Black Psychology

Catalog description

The purpose of this course is to help students to familiarize themselves with the basic concepts and theories in the area of the psychology of African-Americans. Historical, social and cultural phenomena are discussed with specific attention is given to the understanding of Afrocentric worldview and an examination of the psychological research on mental health, personality and identity development, racism and psychological empowerment. There will also be an examination of the role of religion and spirituality in the Black community as well as an overview of the Black family and male-female relationships. There will be additional focus on the development of pathology and a contrast and comparison of Afrocentric and Eurocentric approaches in the treatment of mental health issues in the African-American community.