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Unit of study_
PSTY5211: Critiquing Contemporary Practice A
2025 unit information
This unit provides an opportunity, when followed by Critiquing Contemporary Practice B (PSTY5212) for the development of critical thinking in relation to psychotherapy theory, research and practice. It is the first of 2 sequential units, each of one semester, and is intended to be followed up by Critiquing Contemporary Practice B (PSTY5212) to critically review historical and contemporary psychodynamic practice and compare and contrast other approaches with that of the Conversational Model. Psychodynamic practice has in the past been accused of being a closed theory, not open to being disproved or to new evidence. Contemporary practice needs to be highly responsive to information from neuroscience, developmental research, linguistics and other psychosocial research and mental health research. However, research needs to be thoughtfully applied to practice. The history, philosophy and conceptual underpinning of 20th century psychoanalytical and psychodynamic thought will be reviewed in a seminar format, requiring the student to pre-read and pre-view material and come ready to discuss the implications for their own practice, the questions raised by their own practice and the broader questions that challenge the field. This unit will help scaffold the student in their capstone experience to critique and synthesise the scholarly literature to prepare a draft publication in the field in an area of interest.
Unit details and rules
Managing faculty or University school:
Medicine and Health
| Study level | Postgraduate |
|---|---|
| Academic unit | Brain and Mind Science |
| Credit points | 3 |
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Prerequisites:
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PSTY5201 and PSTY5202 and PSTY5203 and PSTY5204 and PSTY5205 and PSTY5206 and PSTY5207 and PSTY5208 |
|---|---|
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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. Discuss the history of ideas and practice in psychodynamic psychotherapy
- LO2. Critically review historical and contemporary psychodynamic practice
- LO3. Compare and contrast the Conversational Model with other contemporary psychodynamic and trauma-informed approaches
- LO4. Discuss the history of trauma and traumatology and its treatment in health settings
- LO5. Describe and critique the current evidence for psychodynamic psychotherapy from neuroscience, developmental research, linguistics and other biopsychosocial research and mental health research.
- LO6. Describe and critique the evidence for current approach to trauma-informed care, trauma-informed treatments and trauma-informed psychotherapy
- LO7. Explain and demonstrate the concept of an open versus a closed theory
- LO8. Understand and explain the nature of evidentiary support in psychotherapeutic research and practice
- LO9. Discuss the concepts of evidence-based practice, practice-based evidence and reflective practice as they pertain to contemporary psychodynamic and trauma-informed psychotherapy
- LO10. Reflect on their own practice considering evidence-based practice and practice-based evidence and be aware of the gaps in current professional and practitioner knowledge
- LO11. Critique and synthesize the scholarly literature to prepare presentations and a draft publication in the field.
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 1 2024
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Normal day | Westmead, Sydney | |
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Semester 1 2024
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Online | Westmead, Sydney |
| Session | MoA ? | Location | Outline ? |
|---|---|---|---|
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Semester 1 2025
|
Normal day | Westmead, Sydney |
Outline unavailable
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Semester 1 2025
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Online | Westmead, Sydney |
Outline unavailable
|
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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.
