Psychology of Childhood Adversity

Course Overview

Childhood adversity refers to factors extrinsic to the child such as growing up in contexts of parental psychopathology, economic deprivation and community conflict. Psychological, educational and behavioural outcomes of adversity will be explored as well as the predictors, mediators and moderators of outcome. Students will additionally have the opportunity to study interdisciplinary approaches to tackling childhood adversity, with compulsory and optional modules in Children's Rights, Youth Justice and Caring for Children with Complex Health Needs through QUB's Improving Children's Lives inter-disciplinary research initiative. The study of the Psychology of Childhood Adversity at Queen's University Belfast will address questions such as: What aspects of childhood adversity impact of child and adolescent development? How do intrinsic (eg child's personality) and extrinsic (eg parenting) factors interact to moderate outcomes of adversity? What programmes and interventions can help children growing up in adversity and how can they be best designed and implemented? Why Queen's? The School has a long-standing reputation for research and practice in developmental psychology and currently offers two professional Doctorates in applied areas of psychology (clinical and educational). Career Prospects: The programme is designed to prepare graduate students for more advanced research in developmental psychology, for professional training in psychology or related disciplines, and/or for employment in children's voluntary or statutory services. It will also provide graduates with the research skills and knowledge to carry out a PhD in developmental psychology and/or in childhood studies, and to pursue an academic career. Queen's postgraduates reap exceptional benefits. Unique initiatives, such as Degree Plus and Researcher Plus bolster our commitment to employability, while innovative leadership and executive programmes alongside sterling integration with business experts helps our students gain key leadership positions both nationally and internationally.