PSYC 202Culture in Psychology
The course broadly examines human behaviour and experience and its interdependence with cultural factors. Both comparative and indigenous approaches are applied to a range of psychological topics. The application of cultural theory and research, particularly in relation to topics important in Aotearoa, is highlighted.
On this page
Course details
- Dates
- 7 Jul 2025 to 9 Nov 2025
- Starts
- Trimester 2
- Fees
- NZ$1,022.25 for
- International fees
- NZ$4,771.80
- Lecture start times
- Monday 1.10pm
- Wednesday 1.10pm
- Campus
- Kelburn
- Estimated workload
- Approximately 150 hours or 8.8 hours per week for 17 weeks
- Points
- 15
Entry restrictions
Taught by
School of Psychology—Faculty of Science
About this course
Lectures for this course will be delivered in-person and recordings of lectures will be available for preparation for assessment. Please note, the lectures and tutorials are optimised for in-person delivery, and we would love to see you in person. On-line tutorial support will be available under exceptional circumstances.
The course is an introduction to the four major approaches to culture in psychology: cross-cultural, indigenous, cultural, and cultural evolution. Along the way, this course builds students' real-life skills in time management, written communication, verbal communication, and group collaboration.
This course will help students build their skills in critical insight by integrating commentary across multiple scholarly papers, and preliminary application of culture-in-psychology research methods. These skills will be presented in the culture-in-psychology frameworks, but can apply to other domains within psychology, anthropology, sociology, cultural studies, and biology (among others).
Course content is presented in phases:
Phase 1: Intro
Wks 1 & 2: Introduction: Moving tapu to noa; What is this all about?; Starting to think differently
Wks 3-6: Theory, Methods/ Concerns, & Applications of the 4 approaches (x-cult, indigenous, cultural, cult evo)
Phase 2: Using what you've learned
Wk 7: Culture in Organisations
Wk 8: Culture and Health
Wk 9: Culture and Development
Wk 10: Self-concept and Identity
Wk 12: Culture and Justice systems
Topics covered include:
Comparative and indigenous approaches in cross-cultural research.
Culture and basic psychological processes (e.g., perception, cognition, emotion and language).
Human development and socialisation across cultures.
Culture and psychological constructs (e.g., personality, values, and subjective well-being).
Applied cross-cultural issues, including health practices.
See lecture and tutorial schedule on the course Nuku site for more details. There may be changes to the order and content of some lectures and tutorials. We will notify you of any changes in lectures and on Nuku.
Course learning objectives
Students who pass this course should be able to:
Compare and contrast cross-cultural, Indigenous, cultural, and cultural evolutionary (culture-in-psychology)approaches.
Evaluate strengths and weaknesses of theories, methods, and data employed within and across culture-in-psychology approaches.
Apply culture-in-psychology approaches (i.e. methods, theories) to diverse topics in psychology.
Develop a reflective learning practice that integrates materials across a wide array of findings.
Conduct, analyse and report short observational social research in a naturalistic setting.
How this course is taught
- This course requires in-person attendance for the large majority of its activities including lectures, tutorials and tests for which there are no online alternatives.
- All assessment items except the discussion boards will require in-person attendance.
Assessment
- Internal Test 1 Mark: 25%
- Internal Test 2 Mark: 25%
- Observational study report Mark: 35%
- 5 x Collaborative discussion board posts Mark: 10%
- 5 x Tutorial exercises Mark: 5%
Assessment dates and extensions
Once you've signed up to this course, you can use to see due dates for assessments and information about extensions.
Mandatory requirements
There are no mandatory requirements for this course.
Lecture times and rooms
What you’ll need to get
You do not need to get any texts or equipment for this course.
Who to contact
Selected offering
PSYC 202
7 Jul–9 Nov 2025
Trimester 2 · CRN 37014