Module Directory

This module closely links to the Department's mission to foster an "Understanding of our place in the world". The module will feature a range of state-of-the-art psychological research as conducted by Essex based researchers and demonstrate what and how their area of research has contributed to society.

This module's precise content will vary from year to year, lectures will focus on introducing key research questions before outlining how answers to these questions have contributed to addressing challenges faced by society at large.

The aims of this module are:

• To enable students to understand and explain the role psychological research plays in “the real world”, that is beyond academia. How can psychology research be used effectively to help society? What can fundamental research contribute to day to day tasks (e.g., how to find the milk in the fridge), or more taxing questions (e.g., where does AI work lead us)?


• To enable students to understand how psychologists from Essex apply their knowledge beyond academia.


• To introduce students to a range of different Essex research and the contributions it has made to society.


• To provide students with the opportunity to review existing evidence from a variety of different psychology disciplines and explore how this knowledge was integrated into practice.

By the end of this module, students will be expected to be able to:

1. Develop a systematic understanding of empirical research relating to current issues in psychology.


2. Demonstrate the ability to apply knowledge from different disciplines in psychology to provide solutions to real-world problems.


3. Demonstrate a critical understanding of the relationships between empirical evidence, and the use of that evidence in the real-world situations.


4. Critically evaluate the methods used in psychological research in applied settings.

This module will outline how principles of psychological science are relevant to everyday life and will address questions such as "How has cognitive psychology started today's AI revolution", "What are the therapeutic uses of virtual reality for the treatment phobias and anxiety", "Does training people where to look improve performance", "What role does sensory processing play in the understanding and treatment of migraines", "Who is taking drugs and what interventions can psychology provide", "What gestures can be useful for clinicians", "What can psychologists contribute to information design", or "Can psychology tell us anything about how we search for our keys, or find milk at the supermarket"?

Questions such as these will be addressed by critically examining "what the problem is" and what research evidence we can use to answer these questions to have an impact beyond academia. As part of your assessment, you will work on a "real-life" problem, i.e. a problem that an existing company or organisation is facing and you will contribute to them addressing the issue basing your advice on content learned throughout the module. This focus on "real-life" problems will be beneficial for you in future employment where it may be relevant to translate your existing knowledge into company specific strategies.

For each topic, students will be introduced to relevant background literature and typical research methodologies to help form a thorough understanding of how this knowledge can be applied outside the lecture hall. Crucially, over the course of this module, students will train this skill and thus the module will help students draw links between a variety of research that they've previously been introduced to and the benefit this research delivers to the real world.

This module will be delivered via:

• Lectures.

The lectures will be focus on answering questions from different psychology fields in the context of how they contributed to real life problems. Each question will be addressed by providing background knowledge of the research area before focusing in on specific research findings and how this knowledge has been used in practice (or has the potential to be used in practice).

Students will be encouraged to participate in lectures though discussion groups, asking questions, and also through the use of digital interactive platforms. This will ensure that the learning environment is inclusive for all students. Colour and font on slides will be in line with best practice to help those who are visually impaired. Discussion forums on Moodle will provide an additional platform for students to seek additional support and to identify areas that need further explanation.