Universitat Internacional de Catalunya
Psychopharmacology
Teaching staff
Introduction
The Psychopharmacology course aims to offer the student basic information to understand the functioning of psychopharmaceuticals: to know essential aspects of neurotransmission and the main brain circuits involved in mental disorders, as well as basic principles of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics to understand their use. On the other hand, the functioning of drugs from different groups of psychotropic drugs will be specified: antipsychotics, antidepressants, benzodiazepines, stimulant and non-stimulant drugs for ADHD, antiepileptics and hypnotics, with special emphasis on their use in the clinic. It is necessary, to be a good professional psychologist, to know the bases of psychopharmacological treatment of different mental disorders, as well as its relationship with psychological treatment in order to be able to provide comprehensive, rigorous and holistic psychological care to people.
Pre-course requirements
Have achieved the first-year psychobiology credits of the psychology degree and Psychophysiology of the second year of the psychology degree.
Competences/Learning outcomes of the degree programme
| TRAINING ACTIVITY | METHODOLOGY |
| Lectures will be the setting in which students will learn and use the terminology and linguistic structures related to the sphere of study, for the purpose of practising and developing oral and written communication skills and becoming familiar with the literature and instruction materials provided to better integrate the curricular content. | This is the method whereby students work on their own. In each subject, the students will complete assignments that reflect their autonomous learning experience. The students will also prepare themselves for lifelong learning by learning to use educational materials and multimedia resources autonomously. This will be where they learn to self-regulate learning and develop their time management skills. Practical classes enable students to gain first-hand experience with their future work tools; small practical demonstrations of the theoretical knowledge acquired during the theory classes will be carried out in small groups or individually. Debates and discussion in large and small groups, which help develop the students’ critical thinking and judgement skills. This method encourages participation and initiative, the asking of constructive questions and the presentation of new problems that promote critical thinking. Group work promotes the convergence of the students’ ideas, tasks and proposals for the purpose of carrying out a cooperative project based on each student’s inter- and intrapersonal competences. |
| EVALUATION SYSTEM |
| A circuit with 12-20 stations in which the person being evaluated must carry out a series of tasks in a certain period of time. The format will vary and may include procedures with standardised patients, computerised cases, the evaluation of a test, the preparation of a report, the interpretation of test results, problem solving, etc., all of which make it possible to evaluate the students’ performance, skills and competences in a standardised manner. The students’ active attendance in class reflects their degree of involvement in the form of interest and their interaction with the lecturer and the rest of their classmates. An individual written test that includes the most general and relevant aspects of the subject matter under evaluation. These exams will assess the students’ capacity to listen and understand the main ideas of the course content, as well as their capacity to understand the literature specific to their area of study and use the relevant terminology. On the other hand, the written exams will also assess concepts specific to the degree programme’s various subjects. They will be structured into partial and/or final exams, final exercises, online questionnaires and the analysis of scientific articles. |
Learning outcomes of the subject
Once students have finished the course, they should be able to:
a) Know the mechanisms of brain transmission: type of receptors, neuronal activation mechanisms
b) Know the main routes of cerebral transmission affected in different mental illnesses
c) Know the principles of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of drugs, as well as the characteristics of specific populations (children or the elderly)
d) Know the mechanism of action, safety and tolerance and the use of antipsychotics in the treatment of schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders
e) Know the mechanism of action, safety and tolerance and the use of antipsychotics in the treatment of other disorders: autism, conduct disorder, tic disorder
f) To be able to propose combined antipsychotic and psychological treatments in disorders where indicated
g) Know the mechanism of action, safety and tolerance and the use of antidepressants in the treatment of depressive disorder
h) Know the mechanism of action, safety and tolerance and the use of antidepressants in the treatment of other disorders: anxiety disorders, OCD, among others
e) To be able to propose combined antidepressant and psychological treatments in the disorders in which it is indicated
j) Know the mechanism of action, safety and tolerance and the use of antiepileptic drugs and lithium in the treatment of bipolar disorder.
k) Know the mechanism of action, safety and tolerance and the use of antiepileptic drugs and lithium for other disorders: conduct disorder, depression ...
l) To be able to propose combined antiepileptic and lithium treatments and psychological treatments in the disorders in which it is indicated
m) To know the mechanism of action, safety and tolerance and the use of benzodiazepines and hyposedatives in the treatment of anxiety disorders and sleep disorders.
n) To be able to propose combined treatments of benzodiazepines and hypnosedatives and psychological treatments in the disorders in which it is indicated
o) Know the mechanism of action, safety and tolerance and the use of stimulants and stimulants in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
p) Be able to propose combined treatments of stimulant and non-stimulant drugs and psychological treatments in disorders where indicated
q) Know the new lines of research in pharmacological therapy in the main mental disorders and other biological treatments in psychiatry.
Teaching and learning activities
In person
| TRAINING ACTIVITY | METHODOLOGY |
| Lectures will be the setting in which students will learn and use the terminology and linguistic structures related to the sphere of study, for the purpose of practising and developing oral and written communication skills and becoming familiar with the literature and instruction materials provided to better integrate the curricular content. | This is the method whereby students work on their own. In each subject, the students will complete assignments that reflect their autonomous learning experience. The students will also prepare themselves for lifelong learning by learning to use educational materials and multimedia resources autonomously. This will be where they learn to self-regulate learning and develop their time management skills. Practical classes enable students to gain first-hand experience with their future work tools; small practical demonstrations of the theoretical knowledge acquired during the theory classes will be carried out in small groups or individually. Debates and discussion in large and small groups, which help develop the students’ critical thinking and judgement skills. This method encourages participation and initiative, the asking of constructive questions and the presentation of new problems that promote critical thinking. Group work promotes the convergence of the students’ ideas, tasks and proposals for the purpose of carrying out a cooperative project based on each student’s inter- and intrapersonal competences. |
Evaluation systems and criteria
In person
1st Call:
90% written content test
10% class participation
A minimum of 5 will be required in all parts evaluated. In case of suspending any of the parts, you will have to make up on the 2nd call, except for group work and class participation.
Students who have failed the assessment may take a second call for assessment of the subject, through a multiple-choice exam where all activities developed during the course will be included.
Bibliography and resources
Psicofarmacología esencial de Stahl . Stephen m. Stahl . Edit Aula Medica. 4ª edic .
Historia de la neuropsicofarmacología , L. Muñoz y C. álamo. Edit. Eurobook
Evaluation period
- E1 30/05/2025 I3 08:00h