Skip to main content
Unit of study_

SCWK2008: Social Perspectives on Mental Health

This unit of study focuses on a range of social perspectives on mental health. It introduces students to mental health issues commonly experienced in contemporary society, including depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, drug and alcohol addiction, self-harm and suicidality. It also explores several contextual issues surrounding the topic of mental illness, including the social determinants of mental illness, labelling and stigma, working with young people experiencing distress, working with families, the effects of child abuse and domestic violence, and grief.

Code SCWK2008
Academic unit Social Work
Credit points 6
Prerequisites:
? 
48 credit points including (SCLG1001 and SCLG1002) or (12cp of SCLG1U01) or (12cp of 1000 level units in Diversity Studies)
Corequisites:
? 
None
Prohibitions:
? 
SCWK2005

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

  • LO1. analyse key contemporary debates in mental health policy and practice
  • LO2. discuss the relationship between emotional distress and the social environment
  • LO3. reflect on lived experience narratives of mental distress, including critiques of service provision, and how these can inform social work practice
  • LO4. appreciate the multiple forms of discrimination facing people diagnosed with a mental illness, and discuss the social work role in addressing such discrimination
  • LO5. articulate a working knowledge of commonly diagnosed mental health problems
  • LO6. explain the contribution of social work concepts to the contemporary mental health field, including the relationship between mental health and human rights