Psychological and Psychiatric Anthropology – (M.Sc.)

Anyone interested in psychological processes, feeling and expression, memory and trauma, culture and personality, will have asked themselves some of the questions systematically addressed in this new MSc degree, the first of its kind in Britain.

Do our categories of behaviour - normal and abnormal - translate across cultures? Is one person's madness another's spirit possession? Why do ethnic minorities have different experiences of mental health? Can we distinguish between human universals and their local expressions? Are 'anger' and 'shame' the same in Britain, Uganda and Java? In tackling these and other issues anthropologically, participants will acquire comparative knowledge, practical, analytical and research skills, and a reflective understanding of their own cultural and professional practices, whether they work in health, education, or psychology sectors, or are simply seeking a more systematic and culturally enlightened approach to human nature.

The new MSc aims to give candidates a solid grounding in key topics in psychological and psychiatric anthropology. Through detailed consideration of cases from Britain and around the world, we explore the ways in which person, emotion, and subjectivity are shaped through cultural practices. We also explore classic topics such as 'Culture and Personality' and assess their contemporary relevance.

Candidates from backgrounds in health, therapy, social work and psychology will be able to challenge the categories and assumptions inherent in standard approaches to psychological and behavioural issues. They will also learn to apply cross-cultural perspectives on madness, depression, trauma, and alternative states of consciousness. Those seeking a better understanding of ethnic and cultural variety in Britain will gain new insights and skills applicable in professional settings.

The programme offers a broad-based anthropological approach, with options on learning and cognition, the body, childhood, and psychoanalysis as well as intensive training in ethnographic research methods designed to equip the student for practical assignments in work settings or 'the field', wherever it may be. An important part of the degree is a dissertation based on a research project agreed with supervisors and formulated in group discussions. Students have the opportunity to develop a project related to their normal work or to strike out into new fields which might include projects such as spiritual healing and neo-shamanism in the New Age; the experience of being a refugee; depression among London Bangladeshis; friendship in an English school; the construction of emotion in an African community; memory and trauma among asylum seekers.