Research Methods in Psychology University of Essex

Overview

The  Research Methods in Psychology programme offered at the  University of Essex  provides you with advanced training to develop your awareness of psychological science in relation to its philosophical and biological contexts, and to conduct research in the natural and social sciences. In addition to this research-focused training, you also study advanced topics in psychology that will extend your theoretical knowledge. In doing so, you examine some of today's most pressing societal challenges by investigating how people think about, interact with, and experience the world around them.

Your future

The Department of Psychology at Essex supports world-leading, interdisciplinary research that promotes a better Understanding of Our Place in the World. This organisation of our research mission allows us to unite and synthesise knowledge across core psychology disciplines and beyond. To contribute to our mission, staff often dismantle conventional, disciplinary boundaries. This unique approach benefits from the use of multi-methodological approaches, while nurturing the translation of our research findings into practical tools that benefit society.

Our academic staff include award-winning teachers and prize-winning researchers who are international experts in their own research areas. We are 17th in the UK for research power in psychology (Times Higher Education research power measure, Research Excellence Framework 2021). Our department is also expanding, and has recently appointed a number of excellent researchers whose expertise increases the diversity and depth of our skills base.

We have a strong expertise of researchers who focus on the psychological underpinnings of individual and group-motivated behaviour and reasoning. Our work in this area brings together researchers applying different methodologies to study how people make decisions, remember, and feel and act, e.g. in the political arena and in health and disease. Staff have strong skills in experimental behavioural, electrophysiological, and neuromodulatory techniques.

We also actively contribute to our understanding of how we perceive and present ourselves in relation to others, and how this affects our behaviour and well-being. Staff study individual and group processes that are fundamental to social relations and that address questions around social wellness, sexual and interpersonal relationships, and their links to identity and meaning of life, justice, and trust. They also focus on education, language, and cross-cultural processes and their interaction. Theme members use multiple methodologies, including self-report, behavioural observations, and (electro-)physiological measures to provide a wide-ranging look into the psychological processes underlying society's pressing issues and that guide our most important social interactions.