Postgraduate Course: Philosophy of Psychiatry (PHIL11190)
Course Outline
| School | School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course examines the ways in which philosophy and psychiatry can inform each other. It considers the relationship between neurotypical and non-neurotypical forms of human experience, while applying philosophical argument and analysis so as to improve our conceptual thinking regarding issues such as the nature of mental illness, psychiatric diagnosis and scientific explanation in psychiatry. |
| Course description |
This course examines the ways in which philosophy and psychiatry can inform each other. It considers the relationship between neurotypical and non-neurotypical forms of human experience, while applying philosophical argument and analysis so as to improve our conceptual thinking regarding issues such as the nature of mental illness, psychiatric diagnosis and scientific explanation in psychiatry. It also explores the possible role of psychiatric conditions as a way of informing philosophical theorizing. For example, do delusions tell us something about the nature of belief (a central concept in philosophy of mind and epistemology)? Along the way, we examine the application of emerging models in the sciences of mind to specific psychiatric conditions: for example, we may look at 'predictive processing' approaches to understanding schizophrenia, autism, and depression.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- critically reflect on the nature of mental illness
- understand both conceptual and practical challenges in psychiatric diagnosis
- critically reflect on the nature of explanation in psychiatry
- critically engage with the latest theories of specific mental disorders
- use mental illness to inform thinking about core areas of philosophy (e.g. the nature of the mind, or moral autonomy)
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Reading, understanding and critically engaging with research; critical thinking; constructive oral engagement; essay writing. |
| Keywords | philosophy,psychiatry,mental illness,cognitive science |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Prof Andrew Clark
Tel: (0131 6)50 3659
Email: Andy.Clark@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Ms Becky Verdon
Tel: (0131 6)51 5002
Email: Rebecca.Verdon@ed.ac.uk |
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