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Unit of study_
PSTY5205: Growth, Trauma and Adaptation
2024 unit information
This unit explores the way human beings grow in sensitive and responsive relationships but are broken down by trauma - acute, chronic and complex. We begin by exploring the way early relational experiences develop personal organization and stress regulation in the infant and set up patterns of how a person rests, loves, plays and works, sometimes for a lifetime. Students will study research in human development to examine early development and healthy adaptation as the dyadic interaction known as the proto-conversation repeats thousands of times to establish of attachment states of mind and relational schemas. Patterns that foster a sense of self and those traumatic experiences that lead to dissociation and consequent disruption and constriction of the self will be described, including child sexual abuse. Students will reflect on personal and clinical experience to consider the way people adapt to stress and trauma and the ways the therapeutic relationship might mirror early relationships. We will describe the traumatic range of experience in acute and complex trauma and consider the hierarchical nature of consciousness, regulation and protection and the consequent need for a phase-based approach to trauma treatment. Students will apply the concepts to case studies within their area of practice.
Unit details and rules
Managing faculty or University school:
Medicine and Health
| Study level | Postgraduate |
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| Academic unit | Brain and Mind Science |
| Credit points | 6 |
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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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None |
At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:
- LO1. understand and apply concepts of the early relational development of self, biopsychosocial regulation and the capacities for communication, collaboration and reflection.
- LO2. describe sensitive and responsive attunement and relational repair and its importance, seen in the protoconversation and different stages of infant development and describe the sequelae of misattunement.
- LO3. describe the way attachments develop over time and identify the patterns observed in the Strange Situation procedure for infants and attachment states of mind observed in the Adult Attachment Interview.
- LO4. describe the development of forms of coping and life stage challenges across a lifespan.
- LO5. describe the way the attachment system connects but is separate from the other systems of regulation and function such as the fear cascade, companionship, play, sexual function, dominance and care-giving.
- LO6. describe and reflect on the range of experience in loss and acute, chronic and complex trauma including disruptions and adaptations and the development of resilience and post-traumatic growth.
- LO7. understand and formulate the way breakdowns in coping, organisation and regulation can lead to health presentations, considering likely causes and targets for interventions.
- LO8. reflect on the ways therapeutic relationships can mirror early care-giving relationships but differ from them.
- LO9. consider the hierarchical and systemic nature of consciousness, regulation and protection and the consequent need for an integrative, multimodal, phase-based approach to trauma treatment.
- LO10. discuss how attachment and trauma theory are relevant to a psychodynamic approach in psychotherapy and to a person-centred, recovery-focused and trauma-informed approach to treatment.
- LO11. effectively evaluate the relevant theory and evidence base of attachment, human development and trauma and communicate it to clinicians, consumers and carers.
- LO12. apply concepts of development, trauma, and adaptation and self-regulation to psychodynamic concepts to creatively synthesise data and develop assessment, formulation and management plans in case studies within the student’s area of practice.
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 ? |
|---|---|---|---|
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Semester 2 2024
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Normal day | Westmead, Sydney | |
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Semester 2 2024
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Online | Westmead, Sydney |
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Modes of attendance (MoA)
This refers to the Mode of attendance (MoA) for the unit as it appears when you’re selecting your units in Sydney Student. Find more information about modes of attendance on our website.
