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Unit of study_

OLET1634: Anxiety and its Disorders

2025 unit information

Anxiety is a normal emotion that evolved to ensure our survival. It is experienced when a person perceives that a situation is potentially harmful. However, some people experience so much anxiety that it interferes with their everyday lives. Anxiety disorders are common, and many of them begin during adolescence or young adulthood. How and why anxiety is experienced, how does it become a problem, and what can be done about it? This unit will introduce current scientific knowledge about anxiety and related disorders. We will consider recent empirical research concerning the nature and management of normal experiences of anxiety as well as the causes and treatment of anxiety disorders, for example, specific phobias, social anxiety disorder, or generalised anxiety disorder. Obsessive-compulsive and trauma-related disorders will be briefly introduced as well. You will learn about foundational concepts and methods in psychology, as well as practical skills that help manage anxiety in everyday life. By completing this unit you will increase your general mental health literacy to be able to identify and evaluate information about managing anxiety and maintaining good mental health in general.

Unit details and rules

Managing faculty or University school:

Science

Study level Undergraduate
Academic unit Psychology Academic Operations
Credit points 2
Prerequisites:
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None
Corequisites:
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None
Prohibitions:
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None
Assumed knowledge:
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None

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

  • LO1. reflect upon your own experiences of anxiety and strategies for managing it
  • LO2. differentiate normal anxiety from the symptoms of anxiety disorders
  • LO3. understand the causes of anxiety disorders and identify the main approaches to treatment
  • LO4. seek, identify and critically evaluate evidence regarding anxiety and its disorders
  • LO5. create a plan to manage anxiety in everyday situations.

Unit availability

This section lists the session, attendance modes and locations the unit is available in. There is a unit outline for each of the unit availabilities, which gives you information about the unit including assessment details and a schedule of weekly activities.

The outline is published 2 weeks before the first day of teaching. You can look at previous outlines for a guide to the details of a unit.

Session MoA ?  Location Outline ? 
Intensive October 2024
Online Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney
Session MoA ?  Location Outline ? 
Intensive October 2025
Online Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney
Outline unavailable
Session MoA ?  Location Outline ? 
Intensive October 2020
Online Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney
Intensive October 2021
Online Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney
Intensive October 2022
Online Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney
Intensive October 2023
Online Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

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Modes of attendance (MoA)

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