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Technical, Ethical and Policy Skills in Professional Practice with Groups and Populations

Code: 45423
Credits: 6
2026/2027
Degree programme Type Course
Psychosocial Research and Intervention OB 1

Contact lecturer

Name :
Joan Moya Kohler
Email :
joan.moya@uab.cat

Teaching staff

Joel Feliu Samuel Lajeunesse
Luz María Martinez Martinez
Nuria Valles Peris

Group languages

You can consult this information at the end of the document.

Prerequisites

No

Objectives

The general objective of this subject is to provide students with the necessary knowledge and skills to critically analyze and address institutional, ethical, and political issues in the psychosocial field. This is achieved through the use of conceptual, technical, and practical tools, and by integrating theoretical perspectives and concrete examples related to specific phenomena within the field. Specifically:     

-Explore and understand contemporary debates on ethics and politics in the psychosocial field.    

-Analyze the ethical and political principles that guide the practice of psychosocial and community research and intervention.    

-Recognize and analyze various ethical and political dilemmas present in working with individuals, groups, and populations.    

-Critically reflect on the ethical and political implications of professional involvement in specific psychosocial phenomena.    

-Prepare one's own research work for appropriate evaluation by the ethics committee, ensuring compliance with required ethical standards.    

-Equip students with the conceptual, technical, and practical tools necessary to address institutional, ethical, and political problems in professional psychosocial practice.

Learning outcomes

  • CA14 (Design an ethically grounded research proposal or psychosocial intervention that takes the gender and intersectional perspective into consideration in terms of its potential social and academic impact.) Design an ethically grounded research proposal or psychosocial intervention that takes the gender and intersectional perspective into consideration in terms of its potential social and academic impact.
  • CA15 (Devise palliative action to mitigate the potential harmful effects of the action taken.) Devise palliative action to mitigate the potential harmful effects of the action taken.
  • CA16 (Assess the personal and institutional arrangements necessary to negotiate entry and exit from the research/intervention field.) Assess the personal and institutional arrangements necessary to negotiate entry and exit from the research/intervention field.
  • CA17 (Rigorously prepare the necessary ethics and data management documentation for submission to an ethics committee.) Rigorously prepare the necessary ethics and data management documentation for submission to an ethics committee.
  • KA19 (Review the ethical and policy implications of the design, conduct and completion of the research project/intervention in a reasoned manner.) Review the ethical and policy implications of the design, conduct and completion of the research project/intervention in a reasoned manner.
  • KA20 (Recognise the researcher's own position and the ethical and political implications that derive from it.) Recognise the researcher's own position and the ethical and political implications that derive from it.
  • SA12 (Use national and international ethical and legal standards to protect the rights and welfare of participants, ensuring the integrity and confidentiality of the data collected.) Use national and international ethical and legal standards to protect the rights and welfare of participants, ensuring the integrity and confidentiality of the data collected.
  • SA13 (Actively participate in working teams, contributing ideas, skills and knowledge towards common objectives, based on the ethics of care for oneself and others.) Actively participate in working teams, contributing ideas, skills and knowledge towards common objectives, based on the ethics of care for oneself and others.

Contents

-Ethical foundations of professional activity in the psychosocial field: entry into the field, working with individuals, groups, and populations, and dissemination of action results.


-Ethical and political conflicts and dilemmas in approaching phenomena from a psychosocial perspective.


-Ethics committees.


-Principles and techniques for developing responsible forms of interaction with individuals, groups, and institutions involved in projects aimed at understanding and transforming psychosocial reality.


-Implications of publishing “sensitive” qualitative data for ethical or political reasons.


-Political and ethical aspects of disseminating results: open access publishing.

Learning activities and methodology

Title Hours ECTS Learning outcomes
Supervision of the final deliverable 15.3 0.612
Master Class 24 0.96
Supervision of the oral presentation 10.5 0.42
Oral presentation 6 0.24
Elaboration of a (written) reflection on the ethical and political aspects of one's own research work. 62.3 2.492

Autonomous Activities

  • Systematic reading of bibliographic material.
  • Analysis and reflection on the recommended readings.
  • Development of a personal reflection.

Guided Activities

  • Presentation of different contents.
  • Presentation and analysis of various proposals and readings for each session.
  • Oral presentation.
  • Discussion and participation in the class group.

Supervised Activities

  • Tutoring to prepare the oral presentation.
  • Tutoring for the final reflection.
Annotation: within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.

Assessment

Continuous assessment activities

Title Weight Hours ECTS Learning outcomes
EV1. Written reflection on the ethical and political aspects of one's own research and/or intervention work 50% 24.4 0.976 CA14, CA15, CA16, CA17, KA19, KA20, SA12
EV2. Oral presentation on ethics in intervention and/or research 30% 5.5 0.22 CA17, KA19, KA20, SA12, SA13
EV3. Participation in activities during the sessions 20% 2 0.08 CA14, CA15, SA13

EV1. Written reflection on the ethical and political aspects of one's own research and/or intervention work (50%).

EV2. Oral presentation on ethics in intervention and/or research (30%).

EV3. Participation in activities during the sessions (20%).


Course passed: To pass continuous assessment on a scale from 0 to 10, students must obtain an overall mark of at least 5.0 and a mark of 4.0 or higher in each in-person assessment test that accounts for 20% or more of the continuous assessment grade.

Evaluable: The student will be considered evaluable when they present learning evidence with a weight equal to or greater than 40% of the total course.

Non-evaluable: The student will be considered non-evaluable if, although they have presented several deliverables, the total weight regarding the course is less than 40%.

Reassessment: There is no reevaluation.

Single assessment: All content ofthe module will be assessed on the day Evidence 1 is submitted. On that day, you will make the oral presentation (Ev2: 30%) alone or with the rest of the participants in the single assessment, on one of the topics of the module, which will be assessed according to the criteria established for Evidence 2. The written work of Evidence 1 will be submitted in the Moodle classroom (Ev1: 50%).


Return: June 19 for EV1 and EV3. EV2 may be done two weeks after the oral presentation.

Bibliography

Paul-Atkinson, Sílvia C. & Wästerfors, David (2024). For an ethics of generosity: Values for ethnography in a time of regulatory ethics. Qualitative Research, 25(2), 313-329.


Estalella, Adolfo (coord.). (2022). Ética de la investigación para las ciencias sociales. Madrid: Universidad Complutense de Madrid.


Gilligan, Carol (1982). In a different voice: Psychological theory and women's development. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.


Ibáñez, Tomás e Íñiguez, Lupicinio (1997) Aspectos Metodológicosde la Psicología Social Aplicada. En J.L. Álvaro, A. Garrido y J.R. Torregrosa (Coords.) Psicología Social Aplicada. Madrid: McGraw Hill.


Moyà-Köhler, Joan y Rojas-Arredondo, Jesús (2024) Capítulo VI - Psicología Social y Comunitaria en La ética en la práctica psicológica. Dilemas y retos. Ed. Selva, C. y Pino, R. Barcelona: Editorial UOC.


ranzke, aline shakti; Bechmann, Anja; Zimmer, Michael; Ess, Charles and the Association of Internet Researchers (2020). Internet Research: Ethical Guidelines 3.0.


Tronto, J. C. (1993). Moral boundaries: A political argument for an ethic of care. Routledge.


Vázquez Recio, Rosa (2014). Investigación, género y ética: una triada necesaria para el cambio. In Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung/Forum: Qualitative Social Research (Vol. 15, No. 2).

Software

In this course, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies is permitted as an integral part of the development of assignments, provided that the final result reflects a significant contribution from the student in terms of analysis and personal reflection. The student must clearly identify which parts have been generated or reviewed using AI technologies, specify the tools used, and include a critical reflection on how these tools have influenced both the process and the final outcome of the activity. Lack of transparency regarding the use of AI, failure to verify the accuracy of AI-generated content, citation of non-existent bibliographic references, or the use of fabricated data generated by AI will be considered a breach of academic integrity and will result in a grade penalty for the activity, or more severe sanctions in serious cases.

Course groups and languages

The information provided is provisional until November 30. After this date, you will be able to consult the language of each group through this link. To access the information, you will need to enter the course CODE

Type of teaching Group Language Semester Shift
(TEm) Theory (master) 1 Catalan second semester afternoon