Psychology – WCSU Graduate Catalog 2018-2019

Psychology

PSY 592 Advanced Substance Abuse Counseling: Assessment and Counseling

4 SH

This course provides four hours of academic credit, and is divided into four equal parts. The first two parts concern the assessment of substance abuse, treatment planning, and professional ethics. This will include reviews of the prevalence and etiology of substance abuse, the assessment of substance abuse by interviews and psychometric instruments, individual differences among substance abusers, comorbidity, the determination of the level of care necessary for substance abusers, and assessments of patient’s readiness to change. The third and fourth parts will focus on practice considerations resulting from differences in gender, ethnicity, age, LGBT, and health status.

Prerequisites: Permission of the instructor and graduate standing or permission of the instructor and PSY 202 (Abnormal Psychology), PSY 324 (Experimental Psychology), and either PSY 306 (Internship in Applied Psychology), PSY 332 (History of Psychology), PSY 334 (Psychological Assessment), PSY 341 (Child and Adolescent Abnormal Psychology), PSY 346 (Moral Development), PSY 352 (Cognitive Neuroscience), PSY 426 (Advanced Seminar in Applied Psychology), or PSY 439 (Community Psychology).

PSY 593 Advanced Substance Abuse Counseling: Drugs and Behavior

4 SH

This course provides four hours of academic credit, and is divided into six equal parts. The first two concern the pharmacology of the classes of psychoactive substances and of the most widely used substances within each class. Included will be a review of tolerance, withdrawal, and protocol for detoxification from psychoactive substances. The third part will focus on HIV/AIDS, especially within populations of substance abusers. The fourth part will be devoted to the ethical requirements for substance abuse counselors. The fifth and sixth parts will be devoted to studying counseling that is consistent with the traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), Narcotics Anonymous (NA), and alternative self-help groups. The necessity of multicultural awareness will be emphasized throughout.

PSY 594 Advanced Substance Abuse Counseling: Counseling Techniques

4 SH

In this course, the most influential psychotherapeutic interventions for the treatment of substance use disorders will be studied and evaluated. Professional ethics and guidelines for practice will be reviewed. The counselor’s role in supporting the 12-step fellowships of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA) and in preventing and managing relapse will be analyzed. Counseling issues with women, ethnic minorities, adolescents, and LGBT clients will be identified. Students will demonstrate an understanding of how to implement treatment plans in individual and group counseling.

PSY 595 Advanced Substance Abuse Counseling: Applied Counseling

4 SH

In this course, specific strategies and interventions for counseling and psychotherapy with substance abusers will be studied. There will be an emphasis on interventions that have universal applications in counseling and psychotherapy. Sensitization to multicultural practices in counseling and psychotherapy will be emphasized. The Stages of Change in counseling and psychotherapy and ambivalence about change will be studied. Ethical guidelines for professional practice will be analyzed.