Psychology and Social Connection

What is the secret to a life well lived? People may accumulate wealth and success, and yet find themselves feeling lonely and unfulfilled – what’s missing? The empirical evidence is unusually clear: the most significant determinant in how happy, healthy, and long a life we lead is our social connection, that is, how connected we feel to other human beings. In many societies, however, loneliness has been on the rise, attributed variously to pandemic restrictions, an increasing reliance on digital interactions, or an emphasis on individualism over community.

This course examines why nurturing supportive relationships matter to mental health and how people create bonds with one another. You will learn about the types of social network, and how different people nurture their networks, especially when entering new social environments or facing a life transition. You will also investigate why people can be naturally suspicious of those who seem at first glance to be ‘different’, and how human beings can nonetheless form successful diverse interconnected communities. This exciting course spans several areas of psychology, including evolutionary, social, and clinical psychology, and the psychology of individual differences, to explore how and why humans choose social connection with others.

Click here for the Course Overview.

After studying this course you will be able to:

• Critically examine the role of nurturing supportive relationships on mental health and wellbeing.
• Demonstrate knowledge of different types of social networks and how people navigate them.
• Demonstrate awareness of research into wellbeing, individual differences, and social psychology.
• Critically evaluate empirical findings from psychological research.

This course would suit students from a range of disciplines, including not only students with prior experience of Psychology interested in a modern area of research, but also students without formal academic experience in the subject but who are interested in a scientific study of social relationships.

Available as a Residential or Online course on the following dates:

26th June 2023 to 14th July 2023

Find out more about the admissions criteria, programme fees, and how to apply.

Apply for a residential programme.

Apply for an online programme.

If you have any questions, or would like to know more, please do get in touch here.