Unit name | Buddhist Psychology and Mental Health |
---|---|
Unit code | THRS30067 |
Credit points | 20 |
Level of study | H/6 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
Unit director | Professor. Gethin |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
NONE |
Co-requisites |
NONE |
School/department | Department of Religion and Theology |
Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
In recent decades Buddhist 'mindfulness’ techniques have been adapted as interventions in the treatment of mental illness and as coping mechanisms. The unit focuses on the Buddhist background, examining the Buddhist map of the mind and body as articulated in ancient Indian Buddhist systematic thought (Abhidharma), one of the most sustained attempts to map the workings of the mind in pre-modern thought. The unit considers the distinctive Buddhist analysis of the body, mental states, the processes of perception, dream, sleep, death and rebirth, and how these relate to the workings of karma, theories of the unconscious, and the ethics of violence and sex. The unit concludes by considering Buddhist views in relation to modern understandings of ‘mental health’, materialism (the equivalence of mind and brain), and the secularizing of Buddhist ideas and practices by appeal to the authority of medicine and neuroscience.Students will submit two 500-word blogs, one related to something they have presented, the other related to others’ presentations.
On successful completion of this unit students will be able to:
Classes will involve a combination of long- and short-form lectures, class discussion, investigative activities, and practical activities. Students will be expected to engage with readings and participate on a weekly basis. This will be further supported with drop-in sessions and self-directed exercises with tutor and peer feedback.
1 x 2000 words portfolio (formative) [ILOs 1-6]
1 x 3000-word summative essay (100%) [ILOs 1-5]