UnitLevel 4Postgraduate

PSY4122 Psychology foundations: The social self

Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences

PSY4122 Psychology foundations: The social self is a level 4, 6-credit-point, postgraduate unit from the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences. It isn't offered in 2025. It has no prerequisites and unlocks 4 units, leading on to 9 units in all.

Credit points
6
Offered in 2025
Other periods
Monash Online
Assessment
No exam
3 tasks

This is the 2025 handbook entry. See the 2027 entry.

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Requisites

Enrolment rules

Corequisite: Must be enrolled in either of the GDP course codes (M5013 or 4525).

Overview

In this unit you will be introduced to key models and theories relating to motivation, emotion, and social behaviour. The influence of culture and the diverse viewpoints from cross-cultural and Australian Indigenous psychology will also be explored. Throughout the unit there will be a strong emphasis on understanding how psychological phenomena are investigated scientifically, and the epistemological assumptions that underlie different research approaches.

The two introductory units, PSY4111 Psychology 1A and PSY4122 Psychology 1B, together develop a foundation for understanding the breadth of principles and skills that are fundamental to psychology.

Offerings in 2025

Teaching periodCampusMode
Teaching period 2Monash OnlineMo
Teaching period 4Monash OnlineMo
Teaching period 6Monash OnlineMo

Assessment

  • Case study report (600 words)Written
    35%
  • Research team discussions (oral presentation - 5 mins per student)Exercise
    20%
  • Research plan (2,000 words)Written
    45%

Learning outcomes

When you finish this unit, you should be able to:

  1. 1

    Explain the foundational concepts, theories and findings relating to motivation, emotion and social psychology.

  2. 2

    Discuss how culture shapes behaviour and the perspectives from cross-cultural and Australian Indigenous psychology.

  3. 3

    Compare different epistemologies and their relation to various research approaches and outcomes for diverse populations.

  4. 4

    Apply knowledge of research design and ethics to design a simple research study.

  5. 5

    Demonstrate professional group collaboration and teamwork.

  6. 6

    Communicate effectively in a variety of formats using a range of digital technologies.

Workload and teaching

  • Tutorials6 hours

You should expect to spend a minimum of 20 hours per week on this unit to achieve the learning outcomes.

This time will cover:

a) video lecture materials;

b) synchronous & asynchronous discussion;

c) synchronous web-based 'class-time' for skills-based activities;

d) weekly readings;

e) weekly skills-based assessment tasks; and

f) content-based assessment, including revision and formative assessment.

Each week there will be a one hour ‘Live class’, facilitated by your instructor. This will be followed by a live office hour, where you can ask questions and chat with your classmates and instructor about anything to do with the unit or psychology in general. There is also a 1 hour live chat with the Senior Instructor that you can attend each week for additional discussion and guidance.

Learning resources

Required resources

See Moodle for details about required resources.

Contacts

Chief Examiners
Natalie Doring
Dr Kim Johnston
Unit Coordinators
Dr Simone Thomas
Natalie Doring

Common questions

What are the prerequisites for PSY4122?

PSY4122 has no prerequisites, but enrolment rules apply.

What can I take after PSY4122?

PSY4122 is a prerequisite or corequisite for 4 units, including PSY4051, PSY4131, PSY4140 and PSY4180. Those lead on to 9 units in all.

When is PSY4122 offered?

PSY4122 has no offerings listed in the 2025 handbook.

Does PSY4122 have an exam?

No. PSY4122 has 3 assessment tasks and no exam.

More details

Credit points
6
Level
4
Study level
Postgraduate
Faculty
Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences
Organisational unit
Psychology
Type
Coursework
EFTSL
0.125
Student contribution
SCA Band 4
Study abroad
Not available