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Physical and mental health are closely linked, and both are the result of complex biopsychosocial interactions, in which stress and ageing play important roles. This module is designed to increase students’ understanding of concepts and issues related to physical and mental health, stress and ageing, and how these interact. This module will look at how health psychologists measure stress, limitations of these approaches, and theoretical models of stress. The psychophysiological response to acute and chronic stress will be described for healthy and chronically ill populations. Factors that may promote or moderate the stress response will be explored, e.g., ageing, coping and environmental factors. The module will also examine key areas where physical and mental health must be considered together such as pain and sexual health, as well as the strong link between depression and physical illness. Lastly, it will explore the role of positive psychology in physical and mental health, such as how the arts can improve our health and well-being, and how positive well-being impacts our physical and mental health, over and above the absence of depression.Ìý

By the end of this module students will:

• Have advanced their knowledge of factors and theoretical frameworks (e.g., models of stress and psychobiology) related to health, stress, and illness.Ìý
• Be able to critically evaluate the validity of different measurement and theoretical approaches for studying issues surrounding stress, health, and illness.
• Demonstrate understanding of factors that promote or moderate stress, illness, and health (e.g., ageing, pain), and how these factors relate to each other.

  This module is compulsory for all students enrolled on the MSc Health Psychology. Spaces are limited to 60.

  Teaching will take place in the form of lectures (11 weeks) and Journal clubs (10 weeks)Ìýin Term 2 of the academic year.