82094 - Community-Based Health Promotion

Academic Year 2018/2019

  • Moduli: Elvira Cicognani (Modulo 1) Luca Pietrantoni (Modulo 2)
  • Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures (Modulo 1) Traditional lectures (Modulo 2)
  • Campus: Cesena
  • Corso: Second cycle degree programme (LM) in School and community psychology (cod. 0993)

Course contents

The Course is delivered in the I semester (starting from 25 September 2018), on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon (h. 14-17). It is addressed to II year students of the Master programme in School and Community Psychology. Classes will be in Cesena, School of Psychology and Education, Piazza Aldo Moro, 90, Cesena (FC), aula F.

Objectives. The course aims to introduce students to some intervention strategies and methods that are part of the professional competences of psychologists who work in the field of prevention and health promotion in a variety of contexts (e.g. family, school, health services, local communities, media).

The topics of the course are discussed from the perspective of Community psychology and Social Psychology. It is assumed that students are already familiar with such disciplines, their theoretical paradigms and key issues. Moreover, it useful to have some basic knowledge and competences in methodology of psychosocial research. During the first lectures, the level of knowledge and competences will be assessed.

The Course includes two modules, dealing with the following issues.

Module 1 (10 lectures) (Prof.ssa Elvira Cicognani)

Health promotion from the approach of community health psychology. Participatory assessement of health needs in the community, participatory planning of interventions, evaluation of the quality of participation and interventions. 

Domains of community health promotion:

promotion of health lifestyles (physical activity, healthy eating), prevention of health risk behaviors (smoking, alcohol abuse, unprotected sexual behaviors)

promotion of quality of life in chronic illness.

Module 2 (10 lectures) (Prof. Luca Pietrantoni)

Risk perception and risk communication: psychometric paradigm, cultural theory, social amplification

Risk perception and risk communication and climate change

Community interventions in traffic safety and sustainable mobility

Accidents, near miss and unsafe behaviours in road users

Theory based interventiosn

Behaviour change techniques: applications in safety

Technologies and Behaviour change

“Nudging approach”

Introduction to project management in the EU and international context

Readings/Bibliography

Module 1 (Cicognani)

Laverack G. (2018) Salute Pubblica, Il Pensiero Scientifico Editore, Roma.

For examples of projects:

Inguglia C. (2012). La progettazione di interventi psicosociali. Carocci, Roma.

Module 2 (Pietrantoni)

Chadwick, P. M. (2018). Safety and Behaviour Change. In Beyond Safety Training (pp. 127-137). Springer, Cham.

Walsh, J., & Morrissey, E. (2018). Psychological principles and health behaviour change: applications to eHealth. In eHealth Research, Theory and Development (pp. 47-67). Routledge.

Schick, R. S., Kelsey, T. W., Marston, J., Samson, K., & Humphris, G. W. (2018). MapMySmoke: feasibility of a new quit cigarette smoking mobile phone application using integrated geo-positioning technology, and motivational messaging within a primary care setting. Pilot and feasibility studies, 4(1), 19.

Kaye, S. A., Lewis, I., & Freeman, J. (2018). Comparison of self-report and objective measures of driving behavior and road safety: a systematic review. Journal of safety research, 65, 141-151.

Lieberoth, A., Jensen, N. H., & Bredahl, T. (2018). Selective psychological effects of nudging, gamification and rational information in converting commuters from cars to buses: A controlled field experiment. Transportation research part F: traffic psychology and behaviour, 55, 246-261.

Marchiori, D. R., Adriaanse, M. A., & De Ridder, D. T. (2017). Unresolved questions in nudging research: Putting the psychology back in nudging. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 11(1).

Using Behaviour Change Techniques: Guidance for the road safety community https://www.racfoundation.org/research/safety/behaviour-change-techniques-guidance-for-the-road-safety-community

Human Behaviour change project http://www.bct-taxonomy.com/interventions

Teaching methods

The following instruments will be used:

  • lectures
  • group discussions
  • case study analysis
  • critical analysis of papers and projects

Assessment methods

Since the course involves practical activities, attendance to classes (min 70%) is necessary in order to be able to register for the exam.

The total grade (max 30/30) will be the sum of the grade of the assessement of the two modules (Module 1 and Module 2).

Module 1 (max 15 points over 30)

The exam includes the following:

  1. critical analysis and evaluation of a prevention or health promotion project provided by the teacher. The analysis will be conducted in small groups, following guidelines provided in class, around the middle of the module (30%).
  2. Individual analysis of a health promotion project described in a scientific paper in English provided by the teacher. The analysis will be conducted following guidelines provided in class, and will be delivered within the end of the course (30%)
  3. focus group on the contents of lessons; questions will aim at assessing knowledge and critical understanding of the issues. The FG will be conducted at the end of the module and will last 1hr for each group (max 6 students) (40%)

Modulo 2 (max 15 points over 30)

The exam includes the following:

  1.  critical analysis and evaluation of a prevention or health promotion project provided by the teacher. The analysis will be conducted in small groups, following guidelines provided in class, around the middle of the module (30%).
  2.  Individual analysis of a behavior change project within the topic of safety described in a scientific paper in English provided by the teacher. The analysis will be conducted following guidelines provided in class, and will be delivered within the end of the course (30%)
  3. Group discussion of materials guided by a discussion leader and filling of a module of peer assessment (30%)
  4. Pitch of presentation of a personal statement and assessment of presentation capacity (10%)

 

Students not attending classes

The exam includes the following:

  1. Written exam, with 12 open ended questions (6 per each module), on the compulsory readings
  2. Oral exam

Teaching tools

Overhead projector, slides, scientific papers, online bibliographic sources, software SPSS

Office hours

See the website of Elvira Cicognani

See the website of Luca Pietrantoni