This Course Guide has been taken from the most recent presentation of the course. It would be useful for reference purposes but please note that there may be updates for the following presentation.
PSYC A231
Introduction to Counselling Psychology and Psychotherapy
Welcome to PSYC A231 Introduction to Counselling Psychology and Psychotherapy! This is a one-semester, five-credit middle-level course in the Bachelor of Social Sciences (BSSC), Bachelor of Social Sciences with Honours (BSSCH), Bachelor of Social Sciences in Psychology Studies (BSSCPS) and Bachelor of Social Sciences with Honours in Psychology Studies (BSSCHPS) programmes.
This course covers the essential concepts, theories and findings in counselling psychology and psychotherapy, as well as its areas of application.
This course will be delivered using a custom textbook, supplemented by a Study Guide and face-to-face sessions.
Course aims
PSYC A231 Introduction to Counselling Psychology and Psychotherapy aims to provide you with a succinct overview of counselling psychology and psychotherapy. It introduces a range of mainstream counselling interventions and major psychotherapies to illustrate the principles and diverse techniques for dealing with mental health issues. Ethical practice will be emphasised along the way. You will also be required to engage in active self‐reflection for this applied psychology course. This course can be viewed as a preparatory foundation for those of you who are interested in further studies of counselling or psychotherapy alike.
Course learning outcomes
Upon the completion of PSYC A231 Introduction to Counselling Psychology and Psychotherapy, you should be able to:
In this custom textbook approach, different learning modules have been carefully selected by the course team from a textbook on theories of counselling and psychotherapy and organised into a volume specifically designed for PSYC A231 students.
In addition to the custom textbook, you will be working through the course using a Study Guide produced by HKMU. The Study Guide leads you along your study pathway unit by unit, providing commentary on each textbook chapter and supplementary self-learning and self-assessment opportunities.
The third main point of reference for learning resources is HKMU's Online Learning Environment (OLE). There, you will have access to materials such as the introductory video, and you will be able to discuss topics with other students and your tutor on the course discussion board. This course is further supported by regular face-to-face meetings in the form of tutorials and a day school.
Introductory video
To start off, you should watch the introductory video for the course in the ePub version of this Course Guide or on the OLE. Then turn to the Study Guide for further guidance through the course.
The custom textbook
The title of the custom textbook is PSYC A231 Introduction to Counselling Psychology and Psychotherapy. The chapters are selected from the following textbook:
Kress, V. E., Seligman, L. W., & Reichenberg, L. W. (2021). Theories of counselling and psychotherapy: Systems, strategies, and skills (5th ed.). Pearson Education.
The Study Guide will indicate at which point you should read each chapter of the custom textbook.
The Study Guide
The Study Guide sets out your study pathway through the custom textbook and other course learning resources. It is divided into five units and serves as a guide to the textbook chapters, helping you to organise major ideas. It also contains activities and self-tests to facilitate your learning and revision. You will therefore need to keep it by your side as you work through the course.
The following table sets out the custom textbook chapters that will accompany each of this course's study units.
| Unit | Textbook chapters |
| Unit 1 What is counselling psychology? | Module 1 Foundations of Effective Counselling |
| Unit 2 The first force in psychotherapy: Psychoanalytic theories | Module 2 Freud and Classic Psychoanalysis Module 3 Adlerian Therapy Module 4 Post- and Neo Freudian Psychoanalytic Therapies |
| Unit 3 The second force in psychotherapy: Cognitive behavioural theories | Module 5 Behavior Therapy Module 6 Cognitive Behavioral Therapies |
| Unit 4 The third force in psychotherapy: Humanistic theories | Module 9 Existential Therapy Module 10 Person-Centered Therapy |
| Unit 5 The fourth force in psychotherapy: Constructivism | Module 13 Postmodern Therapy |
E-Library E-Reserve readings
In the Study Guide, you may be instructed to read articles in the E-Library E-Reserve. To read these items, go to the University's E-Library homepage and click on 'E-Reserve'. Log in, click 'Accept/Agree' on the Copyright Restrictions page, fill in the 'Course Code' box and click 'Search'. Alternatively, you may access the readings via a hyperlink in the online course materials.
The Online Learning Environment (OLE)
A dedicated area for PSYC A231 students has been set up on the HKMU's OLE. You will need to log on regularly to the OLE to access the course discussion board and online learning components.
Face-to-face support
You will be supported throughout the course by regular face-to-face meetings in the form of tutorials and a day school. Four of the course's study units will be covered by the tutorials, while the day school will be arranged soon after you have gotten started on the course.
Details of the date and time of these sessions can be found on the Course Schedules page on the OLE.
This course is designed to assist you in moving easily from the stated objectives, through the study units, readings and materials to the assignments. During the course, you will have your progress assessed with written assignments. The assessment items are outlined in the following table.
| Assessment item | Weighting |
| Assignment 1 (case study) | 40% |
| Assignment 2 (essay) | 60% |
| Total | 100% |
Assignments
It is compulsory to complete both of the assignments for PSYC A231. You will be expected to apply concepts and techniques acquired during the course when completing assignments.
How to submit assignments
You must use word processing software (such as Microsoft Word) to prepare the assignments. The Assignment File gives you details on how to submit your assignments. Please also read the Student Handbook for the HKMU's policy on late assignments.
Assignments must reach your tutor by the due date shown on the OLE. If you are unable to submit your assignment on time for some good reason, you should ask, before the due date, your tutor or Course Coordinator for permission to submit it late. In general, you are expected to submit your assignments via the OLE. Assignments will be returned to you, marked and with commentary, as soon as possibl.
Please note that there is no extension of the due date for the final assignment. For more information, please refer to your Student Handbook.
Examination
There is no examination in this course.
The following table gives a general overview of the course structure. It suggests the amount of time you should allow for completing units and provides a broad schedule for you to plan your work. This estimation includes time for reading the units and custom textbook, completing activities, self-tests, assignments and attending tutorial sessions and day school.
Unit | No. of weeks | Assignment |
1 What is counselling psychology? | 1 |
|
2 The first force in psychotherapy: Psychodynamic theories | 2 |
|
3 The second force in psychotherapy: Cognitive behavioural theories | 3 |
|
4 The third force in psychotherapy: Humanistic theories | 3 | Assignment 1 |
5 The fourth force in psychotherapy: Constructivism | 1 | Assignment 2 |
PSYC A231 Introduction to Counselling Psychology and Psychotherapy will introduce you to counselling psychology and psychotherapy, highlighting a range of mainstream counselling interventions and major psychotherapies that illustrate the principles and diverse techniques for dealing with mental health issues.
Upon completion, you should be able to achieve the intended learning outcomes through guided deliberation, feedback on coursework and assessment.
