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Unit of study_
OLET2608: Psychology of Faith
2023 unit information
Faith (specifically religion/spirituality) is a fundamental, multidimensional and multilevel aspect of humanity. Faith has always had a powerful and distinct impact on a person's functional and dysfunctional mental processes, their emotional and intellectual states, behaviour, and attitudes, while at the societal level, it has been providing the necessary requirements for the formation of identity, social stability, social roles and social control, and moral order. At the same time, faith and science, arguably, have not had an easy or friendly relationship. In fact, this relationship has been at times rather polemical, in part due to fundamentally opposing positions and gross bilateral misunderstanding of interpretations. This Open Learning Environment unit will introduce the academic field of the psychology of faith. You will understand how faith is psychologically defined and evaluated, its psychological, evolutionary and sociocultural characteristics, structures and processes, its relation to wellbeing, psychopathology and anomalous experiences, and you will be critically exposed to the major theoretical and empirical issues and approaches in the psychological study of faith. In general, this unit will help you promote better cultural, intergroup or interpersonal relations and understanding. By completing this unit you will be able to recognise and disambiguate the psychological and, to an extent, broader scientific/academic approaches to and understanding of faith.
Unit details and rules
Managing faculty or University school:
Science
| Study level | Undergraduate |
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| Academic unit | Psychology Academic Operations |
| Credit points | 2 |
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Prerequisites:
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None |
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Corequisites:
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None |
| Prohibitions:
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None |
| Assumed knowledge:
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No academic knowledge is pre-required, only academic competence of logical and critical thinking |
At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:
- LO1. Explain religion and spirituality.
- LO2. Define the psychological characteristics of faith.
- LO3. Identify the major issues involved in the psychological study of faith.
- LO4. Describe and compare the different theoretical positions in the psychology of faith.
- LO5. Critically evaluate the scientific evidence in the field of the psychology of faith.
- LO6. Evaluate personal/interpersonal and evolutionary/cultural forces that shape faith.
- LO7. Understanding how and what faith elements contribute to the well-being of the individual.
Unit availability
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Modes of attendance (MoA)
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