About this course: Learn how social factors promote mental health, influence the onset and course of mental illness, and affect how mental illnesses are diagnosed and treated. This course explores how our understanding of mental health and illness has been influenced by social attitudes and social developments in North America and around the world. The course begins by situating our contemporary mental health practices in historical context, then looks at different aspects of mental health, mental illness and mental health services and their connections to what’s going on in our social environment.
Created by: University of Toronto
Taught by: Charmaine Williams, Associate Professor
Faculty of Social Work
| Language | English |
| How To Pass | Pass all graded assignments to complete the course. |
| User Ratings |
Syllabus
WEEK 1
Welcome and A Brief History of Madness
We begin with a quick orientation to the course and continue with our first lecture topic: A brief history of madness.
11 videos, 2 readings
Graded: Commentary
WEEK 2
What is mental health and what causes mental illness?
8 videos, 1 reading
WEEK 3
The social context of diagnosis and treatment of mental illnesses
9 videos, 1 reading, 1 practice quiz
Graded: Personal Reflection
WEEK 4
Culture, mental health and mental illness
8 videos, 1 reading
WEEK 5
Families, caregiving and mental illness
6 videos, 1 reading
WEEK 6
society, communities and mental health
7 videos, 1 reading
Graded: Final Assignment
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Coursework
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University of Toronto
Established in 1827, the University of Toronto has one of the strongest research and teaching faculties in North America, presenting top students at all levels with an intellectual environment unmatched in depth and breadth on any other Canadian campus.
Ratings and Reviews
Awesome course by Professor Williams who taught us a lot about how to consider health issues under the social context to explore the interaction between health and social factors.
A great course. Charmaine Williams is a fantastic educator who made the learning easy, practical and very useful. The course has enabled me to reflect on my situation with much greater awareness. It has also motivated me to be supportive of families who are experiencing difficulties with mental illness. Very grateful.
The content and activities are very well designed and professional. I higly recommend thsi course to any person interested in learning more about mental health and illness.
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I enjoyed taking this class. I learned some interesting facts about mental illness and genetic propensities.