Psychology and Social Policy

Psychology and social policy is a combination that brings together the scientific study of how individuals think, behave, and interact with a systematic analysis of the policies and institutions through which societies attempt to address welfare, inequality, health, and social problems. Psychology examines the conditions of behaviour, how we learn, remember, and co-ordinate our actions, and the reasons for differences between individuals, such as personality or intelligence, as Strathclyde describes. Social policy examines how governments design and implement the programmes that shape people's lives, from education and healthcare to housing and income support.

At the University of Strathclyde, this four-year full-time programme develops your understanding of both disciplines with academic rigour. You will study cognitive, developmental, social, and biological psychology alongside social policy analysis, welfare systems, and the research methods that both disciplines use to understand human experience and social outcomes. A year abroad is built into the programme, giving you the opportunity to study psychology and social policy in a different national context, which deepens your comparative understanding of how both the mind and welfare systems work in different cultural and institutional environments.

Graduates from psychology and social policy go on to work in government and public services, health and social care, policy research, NGOs, community organisations, and the voluntary sector. Many use their psychology training as the foundation for further professional qualifications in clinical, counselling, or educational psychology, while others use their social policy expertise to move into policy research, advocacy, and programme management. The combination is also well suited to careers in the charity sector, in public health, and in academic research that spans both disciplines.

Postgraduate study in psychology, social policy, or public health is a natural next step.