Module Catalogue 2024/25

Pre Requisite Comment

N/A

Co Requisite Comment

N/A

Aims

The aim of this course is to provide a summary of weight and eating-related syndromes and symptoms, including clinical eating disorders, eating disordered behaviour, and obesity. It focuses on issues around cause, diagnosis, intervention, and treatment options for eating and weight disorders, concentrating primarily on psychological therapies. The course will have input from clinicians and researchers who have experience in investigating, developing and delivering treatment therapies and long-term care programmes to those with eating and weight disorders.

Outline Of Syllabus

Topics covered include:

Determinants of Eating Behaviour
Clinical Definitions of Eating Disorders
Body Image, Media and the ‘Ideal’ Body
Eating disorders in men
Conceptual models and causal risk factors for Eating Disorders
Psychological Treatments for Eating Disorders
Disordered Eating in Children and Adolescents
Obesity and Body Image in Children and Adolescents
Obesity in adults

Intended Knowledge Outcomes

At the end of the module the students know how to:

- Differentiate between the different forms of eating or weight disorder, and types of eating behaviour;
- Delineate and compare the various causal developmental processes for different forms of eating disorder and obesity;
- Differentiate between and critically compare the usefulness of models of eating / weight disorder development, and apply them to case studies;
-Summarise how the different behavioural symptoms map onto the physiological and neural changes seen in these diseases;
- Summarise and critically evaluate the possible treatment approaches for eating disorder patients;
- Synthesise up-to-date evidence in order to take an informed, research-based position on key critical issues in the field of eating and weight disorders;

Intended Skill Outcomes

By the end of the module students should be able to:

- Interpret scientific information in the form of medical data relating to eating or weight disorder case studies;
- Select a likely diagnosis of a specific form of eating or weight disorder based on a set of behavioural symptoms and anthropometric data;
- Apply a case formulation framework and diagnostic assessment to eating or weight disorder case studies.
- Drawing extensively upon up-to-date evidence in the field of eating and weight disorders, explain and defend in writing their position on key critical issues in the area.

Teaching Rationale And Relationship

Lecture materials present a systematic perspective on the subject with reference to alternative perspectives. Formative learning activities (online) allow students to apply and self-test key knowledge and practice writing increasingly more extensive pieces of work ahead of the exam. Present in person seminars allow for general feedback on the formative activities to be given, allow us to revisit tricky areas (e.g. diagnosis) and allow for real-time small group discussions about overarching issues and debates, deepening students’ knowledge of the key topics. Seminars will also include revision preparation, a practice exam and general Q and A.

Assessment Rationale And Relationship

Formative assessment

Essay exam practice: Essay outlines will be produced under exam conditions in response to exam question examples; essay plans will be presented to the group as a whole. Other example essay plans are available on the VLE. The lecturer then verbally reviews the marking scheme used for these essays. The activity provides learners with the experience of planning and writing exam essays and of comparing their answers to the marking schemes.

Formative online learning activities: These are graduated written exercises completed via Qualtrics/Canvas to consolidate lecture content and prepare for the exam - automated feedback is provided immediately on completion of each exercise, and longer verbal feedback is provided in the seminar sessions. These informal formative assessments allow learners to consolidate key lecture content around central critical evaluative themes.

Summative assessment

In the final examination, students will be presented with two unseen essays (two questions from an open choice of six). This will allow students to demonstrate both factual knowledge, and – by their organization of material – abstract systematic understanding of topics related to key issues in eating and weight disorders research in an objective and rigorous manner. Each essay should take approximately 1 hour to complete.
Marks will be equally distributed between the two essays.



FMS Schools offering Semester One modules available as ‘Study Abroad’ will, where required, provide an alternative assessment time for examinations that take place after the Christmas vacation. Coursework with submissions dates after the Christmas vacation will either be submitted at an earlier date or at the same time remotely.

General Notes

The course extends the range of clinical and health psychology options available to Psychology undergraduates. A career in clinical psychology remains the most popular career option amongst psychology undergraduates and they would like more modules which specifically fall within this remit, both because of academic interest and to improve their CV.