Explore UCD

UCD Home >

PSY40450

Academic Year 2024/2025

Basic counselling and clinical skills (PSY40450)

Subject:
Psychology
College:
Social Sciences & Law
School:
Psychology
Level:
4 (Masters)
Credits:
10
Module Coordinator:
Dr Keith Gaynor
Trimester:
Autumn
Mode of Delivery:
On Campus
Internship Module:
No
Module Type:
Clinical Module
How will I be graded?
Letter grades

Curricular information is subject to change.

The focus of this model is on the acquisition of a theoretical and practical understanding of the major approaches to counselling and psychotherapy practice. Students will have the opportunity to develop basic listening skills, grounding skills and self-regulatory skills and evolve an awareness of their own interactive style. Students will be introduced to the professional issues that impact on the practice of counselling and psychotherapy. Skills in self-reflective practice are also introduced with a focus on personal and professional development and one's growing edge in these areas.

About this Module

Learning Outcomes:

At the end of this module, student will have:
a) A solid theoretical and practical understanding of the the main agents of change within counseling and psychotherapy practice
b) Developed basic listening and attending skills
c) Developed self-reflective and self-regulatory skills that will support them in future professional practice
d) Developed an awareness of their own interactive style and the theoretical approaches that best fit that style

Student Effort Hours:
Student Effort Type Hours
Lectures

24
Small Group

6
Specified Learning Activities

35
Autonomous Student Learning

185
Total

250

Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
active/task-based learning
peer and group work
reflective learning
student presentations

Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Not applicable to this module.
 

Assessment Strategy  
Description Timing Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade In Module Component Repeat Offered
Assignment(Including Essay): How my own personal experiences, personality traits and communication style will impact my ability to effectively engage with clients therapeutically in the future.
 Week 12 Graded Yes

100

 Yes

Carry forward of passed components
No
 

Remediation Type Remediation Timing
In-Module Resit Prior to relevant Programme Exam Board
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 

Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Group/class feedback, post-assessment

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Group feedback to students over the course of the semester on performance in the module

Clinical & Counselling Skills Suggesting Reading
Barnett, J. E., & Cooper, N. (2009). Creating a culture of self‐care. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 16 (1), 16-20.

McMahon, A. (2014) Four guiding principles for the supervisory relationship, Reflective Practice, 15:3,333-346, DOI: 10.1080/14623943.2014.900010

Miller, W. R. Listening Well. The Art of Empathic Understanding. A keynote address delivered at the European Congress of Behavioural and Cognitive Therapies, London (Vol. 24).

Nemec PB, Spagnolo AC, Soydan AS. Can you hear me now? Teaching listening skills. Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal. 2017 Dec;40(4):415-417. DOI: 10.1037/prj0000287.

Anjanette Ryan, Jeremy D. Safran, Jennifer M. Doran & J. Christopher Muran (2012) Therapist mindfulness, alliance and treatment outcome, Psychotherapy Research, 22:3, 289-297, DOI: 10.1080/10503307.2011.650653

Rogers, C. R.&. Farson. R. E. ACTIVE LISTENING. Excerpt from Communicating in Business Today R.G. Newman, M.A. Danzinger, M. Cohen (eds) D.C. Heath & Company, 1987 – freely available on google. Journal of consulting psychology, 21

Rogers, C. R. (1957). The necessary and sufficient conditions of therapeutic personality change.

Totsuka, Y. (2014), SG exercise to promote self‐reflexivity. J. Fam. Ther., 36: 86-
106.

Tschuschke, Volker PhD∗; Koemeda-Lutz, Margit PhD†; von Wyl, Agnes PhD‡; Crameri, Aureliano PhD‡; Schulthess, Peter Lic. Phil. I† The Impact of Patients' and Therapists' Views of the Therapeutic Alliance on Treatment Outcome in Psychotherapy, The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease: January 2020 - Volume 208 - Issue 1 - p 56-64 doi: 10.1097/NMD.0000000000001111

Treasure, J. (2004). Motivational interviewing. (5), 331-337. doi:10.1192/apt.10.5.331Advances in Psychiatric Treatment, 10, https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-6427.12026

Yalom, I. (2003). The Gift of Therapy: An Open Letter to a New Generation of Therapists.
Print this page
Fill in the following details:
Enter the body of your query here.

From time to time UCD would like to send you further information that we feel, based on your enquiry, would be of interest to you.