GRA 2231 Occupational Health Psychology

GRA 2231 Occupational Health Psychology

Course code: 
GRA 2231
Department: 
Leadership and Organizational Behaviour
Credits: 
6
Course coordinator: 
Christina G. Leonore Nerstad
Course name in Norwegian: 
Occupational Health Psychology
Product category: 
Master
Portfolio: 
MSc in Leadership and Organisational Psychology
Semester: 
2022 Spring
Active status: 
Active
Level of study: 
Master
Teaching language: 
English
Course type: 
One semester
Introduction

Due to unforeseen circumstances the lecturer for this course has been changed at the last minute. Therefore the reading list has been adjusted 18. March.

As organizations today are facing challenges in their efforts to perform effectively, there is increasing agreement that in order to be successful, they need to focus on employee health and well-being for a unique competitive advantage. The field of occupational health psychology aims to help organizations address this need.

Standing at the intersection of health psychology, work and organizational psychology, and social and environmental psychology, occupational health psychology is a field of psychology concerned with improving the quality of work life, and with protecting and promoting the safety, health, and well-being of workers.

This course on occupational health psychology will help students understand the field of occupational health psychology, reflect on central theories, research, and practices associated with occupational health psychology, and identify how to best advise organizations and employees dealing with occupational health issues.

Learning outcomes - Knowledge

By the end of the course the students will have knowledge of the:

  • The depth and scope of the occupational health psychology field
  • Central theories, research, and practices in the field of occupational health psychology
Learning outcomes - Skills

By the end of the course students should:

  • Have improved their awareness of psychological health issues in the workplace
  • Be able to explain occupational health issues in the workplace
  • Be able to identify effective strategies to deal with occupational health issues in the workplace
  • Be able to critically evaluate occupational health initiatives and programs
General Competence

By the end of the course, students should be able to reflect on occupational health issues in the workplace and on managers’ and organizations’ roles and responsibilities in occupational health issues. Students should also have acquired tools and developed strategies to apprehend and deal with occupational health issues in the workplace.

Course content
  • Sources and consequences of job-related stress
  • Theories of job-related stress
  • Preventive stress management strategies
  • Psychological health problems and interventions
  • Deviant workplace behaviors
  • Positive occupational health psychology

 

Teaching and learning activities

The course is structured as a combination of lectures, discussions, in-class activities, and compulsory student presentations. It requires a substantial amount of preparation by the students and active involvement during class.

Software tools
No specified computer-based tools are required.
Additional information

Please note that while attendance is not compulsory in all courses, it is the student’s own responsibility to obtain any information provided in class.

This is a course with continuous assessment (several exam components) and one final exam code. Each exam component is graded by using points on a scale from 0-100. The components will be weighted together according to the information in the course description in order to calculate the final letter grade for the examination code (course). Students who fail to participate in one/some/all exam elements will get a lower grade or may fail the course. You will find detailed information about the point system and the cut off points with reference to the letter grades when the course starts.

At resit, all exam components must, as a main rule, be retaken during next scheduled course.

Qualifications

All courses in the Masters programme will assume that students have fulfilled the admission requirements for the programme. In addition, courses in second, third and/or fourth semester can have spesific prerequisites and will assume that students have followed normal study progression. For double degree and exchange students, please note that equivalent courses are accepted.

Covid-19 

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, there may be deviations in teaching and learning activities as well as exams, compared with what is described in this course description.

Teaching 

Information about what is taught on campus and other digital forms will be presented with the lecture plan before the start of the course each semester.

Required prerequisite knowledge

GRA 2205 Organizational Behaviour or equivalent

Assessments
Assessments
Exam category: 
Activity
Form of assessment: 
Presentation
Weight: 
30
Grouping: 
Group/Individual (1 - 2)
Comment: 
-
Exam code: 
GRA22316
Grading scale: 
Point scale leading to ECTS letter grade
Resit: 
All components must, as a main rule, be retaken during next scheduled course
Exam category: 
Submission
Form of assessment: 
Written submission
Weight: 
70
Grouping: 
Group/Individual (1 - 3)
Duration: 
2 Week(s)
Comment: 
-
Exam code: 
GRA22316
Grading scale: 
Point scale leading to ECTS letter grade
Resit: 
All components must, as a main rule, be retaken during next scheduled course
Type of Assessment: 
Continuous assessment
Grading scale: 
ECTS
Total weight: 
100
Student workload
ActivityDurationComment
Teaching
36 Hour(s)
Student's own work with learning resources
124 Hour(s)
Sum workload: 
160

A course of 1 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of 26-30 hours. Therefore a course of 6 ECTS credits corresponds to a workload of at least 160 hours.