Diversity & Health 

Course Info:      PSYC 3034
                     3 Credit Hours
                     TH 9:30-10:50AM
​                     Virtual Via Zoom

Instructor:      Dr. Batsheva Guy
                   Pronouns: she/her/hers
                   [email protected]
                     Virtual Office Hours TBD
We will explore:
  • Psychological factors in health disparities
  • Effective interventions for reducing disparities
  • Social determinants of health impacts
This course will provide a psychologically focused overview of health disparities, or the differences in health status experienced by groups that differ by gender, race or ethnicity, education or income, disability, geographic location, or sexual orientation. Students will discuss individual, social, and contextual factors contributing to health disparities and investigate interventions that promise to reduce disparities in healthcare quality & access and health outcomes. The goals of the course are to build knowledge and encourage critical thinking about the factors contributing to health disparities.
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By the end of this course, students will be able to:

  • Identify and explain the psychological, social, and contextual factors—such as stress, discrimination, and social determinants of health—that contribute to health disparities across different demographic groups​​
  • Analyze the psychological mechanisms (e.g., coping, mental health, stigma, health behaviors) that influence how individuals experience and respond to health disparities, and how these contribute to differences in health outcomes.​
  • Critically evaluate interventions that target both psychological factors and social determinants of health, assessing their potential to reduce health disparities in healthcare access, quality, and outcomes​  ​​​
  • Develop and articulate well-reasoned arguments integrating psychological insights with a focus on the interplay between individual, social, and systemic contributors to health disparities.​
  • ​​Reflect on personal biases and their influence on perceptions of health disparities and interventions, fostering empathy and an understanding of how psychological and social factors intersect in healthcare inequities.
  • ​​​Examine the role of social determinants of health, such as socioeconomic status, education, and access to healthcare, as contextual factors that interact with psychological variables to shape health disparities.
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  • ​​​Apply psychological theories and research to understand how individual and collective behaviors, attitudes, and healthcare systems contribute to health disparities, and to propose evidence-based solutions.

Required Textbooks

Guy (2023). Equity and Inclusion in Psychology. Kendall Hunt Publishing.
 
Guy (2023). Psychology of Gender. Kendall Hunt Publishing.

​Additional articles & readings will be posted in the Canvas course