You’ve Got a Friend in Me: Friendship and Mental Health

Catalog description

Children’s social relationships have a profound and far-reaching impact on their development and mental health, leading some experts to assert that peers are as important as parents, if not more so. How do youth form relationships? What factors contribute to their successes and shortcomings? This course considers the theoretical underpinnings of friendship formation and its applications throughout the lifespan. Students learn to identify disorders that impact friendship, as well as associated interventions. Peer issues on individual and societal levels are analyzed and discussed. Finally, students learn interpersonal skills and demonstrate related abilities in a group setting.