Researching Mental Health and Wellbeing in Education - EDU00058H

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  • Department: Education
  • Credit value: 20 credits
  • Credit level: H
  • Academic year of delivery: 2025-26

Module summary

This module will develop students' understanding of contemporary research methods used to study mental health and well-being in education. Students will cover the design of and data analysis of quantitative and qualitative research projects, drawing upon examples from the literature. The module will also prepare students to engage with more complex publications in the study of mental health and well-being to enable a higher level of critical engagement with the literature. The module will also support students to develop more advanced research methods skills to support their own research through their dissertations.

Module will run

Occurrence Teaching period
A Semester 1 2025-26

Module aims

This module will develop students' understanding of quantitative research methods and analysis, building on learning from level 4 and 5. Students will be introduced to the design of and analysis of data from quantitative research projects utilising advanced methods. The module will also prepare students to read more complex reports of educational and psychological research with critical analysis, understanding and insight, so they are able to assess the strengths and weaknesses of such research.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of this module students will be able to:

  • Design effective and ethical qualitative and quantitative research on mental health and wellbeing in education settings, including evaluation studies.

  • Apply key concepts relevant to research on mental health and well-being in education, including data collection methods, research ethics and data analysis techniques, to answer research questions.

  • Critically evaluate research on mental health and well-being in education

  • Effectively communicate field-specific research methods knowledge to a range of audiences

  • Use a range of analysis techniques to work with different types of data through and computer-based practical lab sessions.

Academic and graduate skills

Students will have learned how to:

  • Manage a range of data and critically evaluate these methods of data collection and analysis in informing and supporting academic argumentation.

  • Understand how to prepare data for analysis.

  • Analyse datasets using appropriate techniques.

  • Report the results of data analysis in an appropriate format.

  • Use the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) website, appropriate statistical software, and the Internet effectively.

Module content

The following is indicative of the different topics that may be covered in the lectures and seminars:

  • Research Paradigms

  • Open Science

  • The ethics and practicalities of conducting research on sensitive topics and with vulnerable populations

  • Advanced literature reviews (scoping and systematic reviews)

  • Survey designs and the importance of factor structure

  • Mixed-methods designs

  • Interviews and focus groups

  • Novel methods: creative and arts-based methods, co-production, diary studies

  • Qualitative analysis (e.g., thematic analysis, content analysis)

  • Advanced regression analyses (moderation and mediation)

  • Evaluation of mental health and wellbeing interventions in educational settings (e.g., RCTs)

Indicative assessment

Task % of module mark
Essay/coursework 100

Special assessment rules

None

Indicative reassessment

Task % of module mark
Essay/coursework 100

Module feedback

Individual written feedback reports, with follow-up tutor meeting, if necessary. The feedback is returned to students in line with university policy. Please check the Guide to Assessment, Standards, Marking and Feedback for more information.

Indicative reading

Adler, K., Salanterä, S., & Zumstein-Shaha, M. (2019). Focus group interviews in child, youth, and parent research: an integrative literature review. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 18, 1609406919887274.

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2021). Thematic analysis: A practical guide. London: Sage Publications Ltd.

Dawson, A., Yeomans, E., & Brown, E. R. (2018). Methodological challenges in education RCTs: reflections from England’s Education Endowment Foundation, Educational Research, 60, 292-310. doi: 10.1080/00131881.2018.1500079

Field, A. (2018). Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS statistics (5th ed). London: Sage Publications Ltd.

Khan, K. S., Kunz, R., Kleijnen, J., & Antes, G. (2003). Five steps to conducting a systematic review. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 96(3), 118-121."

Pallant, J. (2020). SPSS survival manual: A step by step guide to data analysis using IBM SPSS. Routledge.