82158 - Psychology and Psychopathology of Sexual Behavior

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course, the student will be able to: get a detailed knowledge of the psychology and psychopathology of sexual behavior; evaluate the psychological aspects associated with sexuality; define and interpret clinical cases from both the psychological and psychopatological perspective

Course contents

The course, which includes two teaching modules, will take place during the first academic semester (from October to December)at the Cesena Campus of the School of Psychology and Education (address: v.le Europa, 115, Room Europa 2).

Psychology and Psychopathology of Sexual Behavior (Module 1) (30 hours):

• Cultural, Historical perspectives of human sexuality
• Metodology of research in the field of the psychology of sexual behavior
• Developmental and social perspectives on gender
• Sexuality, communication and adult intimacy
• Same-gender orientation and behavior: sexual identity struggles
• Anatomy and physiology of sexual response
• Clinical evaluation of sexual dysfunctions
• Sexual dysfunctions with comorbid psychiatric or physical illness
• Sexual concerns and dysfunction related to past sexual trauma
• Body imagine and sexuality

Psychology and Psychopathology of Sexual Behavior (Module 2) (15 hours):

• Female sexual dysfunctions
• Male sexual dysfunctions
  
• Principles of sex therapy

Readings/Bibliography

Module 1

Consulting the teaching material is essential for the preparation and passing of the exam.

The teaching material presented in power point presentations will be made available to students online AMS Campus - AlmaDL Università di Bologna

The teaching material must be integrated with the following assigned chapter readings that are available at the University Library Silvana Contento, Department of Psychology, Cesena.

Required texts:

Balon R & Segraves RT. Clinical Manual of sexual disorders. American Psychiatric Publishing, 2009. Arlington, VA (Chapters: 1,2,3)

Gary K. Sexuality Today: the human perspective (Tenth Edition). McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2010 (chapters: 1,4,5,9,13)

Suggested readings:

Stephen B. Levine, Candace B. Risen, and Stanley E. Althof. Handbook of Clinical Sexuality for Mental Health Professionals (3rd Edition). Routledge, 2016. New York and London. Section 1, chapters: 1,2,3,4; Section 2, Part C, Chapters: 15,21,22; Section 3, chapters: 23,24,25,27; Section 4, chapter 23.

Yitzchak M. Binik and Kathryn S. K. Hall. Principles and practice of sex therapy, fifth edition.The Guilford Press, (2014). New York: PART III: Chapter 16

Module 2

Consulting the teaching material is essential for the preparation and passing of the exam.

The teaching material presented in power point presentations will be made available to students online AMS Campus - AlmaDL Università di Bologna

The teaching material must be integrated with the following assigned chapter readings that are available at the University Library Silvana Contento, Department of Psychology, Cesena.

Required texts:

Balon R & Segraves RT. Clinical Manual of sexual disorders. American Psychiatric Publishing, 2009. Arlington, VA (Chapters 5,6,7,8,9,10,11)

Suggested readings:

Stephen B. Levine, Candace B. Risen, and Stanley E. Althof. Handbook of Clinical Sexuality for Mental Health Professionals (3rd Edition). Routledge, 2016. New York and London. Section 2, Part A, chapters: 5,6,7,9,11,12,13

Teaching methods

Lectures. Throughout the lectures, clinical cases and clinical vignette will be presented. Seminars with international expert in the field of Psychology and Psychopathology of sexual behavior will be planned. Research published articles will be suggested.

Attendance to lessons is not mandatory but preparatory for the learning and exam.

Assessment methods

The final evaluation will consist in an ORAL exam using the tools (MSTeams) available through ALMA ESAMI, ESAMI ONLINE. There are no mid-term evaluations.

The course, even though organized in two differential teaching modules, will produce a single final evaluation (the average number of the grade obtained from each ORAL exam related to each teaching module will be calculated).

The exam consists in an ORAL exam with the two teachers in relation to the respective teaching modules The ORAL exam aims to verify the acquisition of a detailed knowledge of the psychology and psychopathology of sexual behavior contents presented in each module accordingly to the Syllabus.

The ORAL exam will be performed in the english or italian language, based on the student’s preferences.

The exam will be judged according to the Italian Exam Grade which uses a 30-point scale that can be divided into failing (0 to 17) and passing (18 to 30 cum laude) grades.

The highest final mark (30/30), eventually cum laude, will reflect the comprehensiveness, adequacy and full articulation of the report. The following criteria will be applied for the evaluation: congruency and completeness of oral answer (0-10 points); critical elaboration of the presented contents (0-10 points); completeness of theoretical frameworks (0-10 points); accuracy of the technical language and proving some clinical examples represent further criteria for grade bonus (cum laude). Marks will progressively decrease based on lack of information (i.e., lack of clinical reasoning, relevant studies neither cited nor described) and/or in case of inaccurate or off-topic answers.

During the exam students are not allowed to consult any materials, such as textbooks, notes, and other electronic devices.

Students may register for the exam by using Almaesami. To take the booked exam you will receive an invitation email indicating the link and hour to the virtual classroom where the exam will take place.

After the initial roll call you will be asked to show the ID card for your identification.

Please remember to keep it handy as if you do not identify yourself, you will not be able to take the exam.

At the end of the exam you will be notified of the grade which will be recorded as usual on ALMAESAMI

To take the exam, students must enroll through AlmaEsami online service within the deadline. For any concerns and questions please contact the International Relations Office.

Teaching tools

Videoprojector, DVD player, overhead projector, and PC will be used throughout the lessons. Paper materials of original tests will be displayed to students whenever possible during the lessons. The teaching material presented in power point presentations will be made available to students online.

To obtain teaching material please consult the following: http://campus.unibo.it/

Access to the material is reserved for University of Bologna students.

Office hours

See the website of Elena Tomba

See the website of Laura Staccini