Undergraduate Course: Marxist Psychology (PSYL10092)
Course Outline
| School | School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Course type | Standard |
Availability | Available to all students |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 4 Undergraduate) |
Credits | 10 |
| Home subject area | Psychology |
Other subject area | None |
| Course website |
None |
Taught in Gaelic? | No |
| Course description | In 2005, Radio 4 listeners voted Karl Marx "Britain's favourite philosopher". Marxism has been an influential philosophy in science for the last 150 years (see, for instance, Levins and Lewontin's (1985) "The dialectical biologist"). Marxists see the world as a single totality based in movement and change, and emphasize the interconnectedness, complexity and specificity of that world. They prioritize the role of activity and practice, and the social construction of individual cognition. The human brain is the most complex, densely connected, physically integrated known entity; if we are going to understand particular parts of the brain, or particular functions of the brain, we had better have a clear philosophical understanding of abstraction - this course will provide it.
We will look at theoretical positions and empirical research directly influenced by Marxism, studying the contribution of particular psychologists, exploring particular issues, reconstructing particular debates, and studying philosophical dimensions of psychological theorizing and modelling. We will predominantly be concerned with the psychology of language and higher cognition, but the intellectual conclusions will apply broadly across Psychology and to areas in which the philosophical and ideological assumptions are less explicit.
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Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Degree major in Psychology and passes in Psychology courses at least to the equivalent of Junior Honours level in Edinburgh. Prior agreement with the 4th Year Honours Course Organiser |
| Displayed in Visiting Students Prospectus? | Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Delivery period: 2012/13 Block 3 (Sem 2), Available to all students (SV1)
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WebCT enabled: Yes |
Quota: None |
| Location |
Activity |
Description |
Weeks |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
| Central | Lecture | | 1-5 | | 11:10 - 13:00 | | | |
| First Class |
First class information not currently available |
| No Exam Information |
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
(a) Acquire a working literacy in general philosophical terms useful for psychologists.
(b) Acquire a basic understanding of Marxist theory relevant to understanding natural
phenomena, cognition, and the social construction of the individual.
(c) Acquire a biographical understanding of one or more prominent psychologists in the Marxist tradition.
(d) Develop critical powers concerning the philosophical assumptions present in research. |
Assessment Information
Students will take a psychological phenomenon of their own choosing and, during the
course, produce (a) a short (e.g. 10-20 articles) annotated bibliography of research papers on that topic, (b) a 2000-word exploration of the assumptions embedded in that research (relevant to the dialectical approach developed in the course), (c) a 1000-word discussion of how that research topic might be advanced.
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Special Arrangements
| None |
Additional Information
| Academic description |
Not entered |
| Syllabus |
Not entered |
| Transferable skills |
Not entered |
| Reading list |
Not entered |
| Study Abroad |
Not entered |
| Study Pattern |
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| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Richard Shillcock
Tel: (0131 6)50 4425
Email: |
Course secretary | Mrs Elizabeth Wright
Tel: (0131 6)50 9870
Email: |
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