What are the key motives that affect people’s reactions to the social world? Develop critical, analytical and problem-solving skills while analysing the social psychological aspects of problems in a range of applied contexts.
Immerse yourself in modules exploring the psychology of intergroup behaviour, social cognition and attitudes and persuasion, relating this social psychological research to social problems. Taught by world-leading experts, developing you into an independent thinker ready to continue onto a doctorate or train as a psychologist.
Build on existing knowledge, abilities and skills by developing both in basic and advanced contemporary statistical and methodological issues in psychology. With the chance to further specialise in cognitive, developmental and political psychology, this degree will prepare you for doctoral study, an academic career or a job in the NHS as a psychologist.
A first or second class honours degree in a relevant subject or equivalent.
All applications are considered on an individual basis and additional qualifications, professional qualifications and relevant experience may also be taken into account when considering applications.
This programme includes a one-year statistics sequence which you must normally pass in order to receive your award. The teaching assumes that you are familiar with the following topics:
Therefore, your existing degree transcript should note that you have taken and passed a minimum of one term each in statistics and social science research methods courses (or two terms of a joint statistics and research methods course). A British Psychological Society-accredited degree will likely meet this requirement. Applicants with other degrees may be asked to provide additional evidence of training in statistics.
All applicants are considered on an individual basis and additional qualifications, professional qualifications and relevant experience may also be taken into account when considering applications.
Please see our International Student website for entry requirements by country and other relevant information. Due to visa restrictions, students who require a student visa to study cannot study part-time unless undertaking a distance or blended-learning programme with no on-campus provision.
This course requires a Good level of English language, equivalent to B2 on CEFR.
Details on how to meet this requirement can be found on our English Language requirements webpage.
Examples:
IELTS 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in each component
PTE Academic 63 with a minimum of 59 in each sub-test
A degree from a UK university
A degree from a Majority English Speaking Country
Please note that if you are required to meet an English language condition, we offer a number of pre-sessional courses in English for Academic Purposes through Kent International Pathways.
We’ve created the most progressive approach to higher education, developing and modernising our curriculum. For 2025 our courses will be designed with you at their heart to deliver a top-class student experience and career outcomes.
The following modules are what students will typically study, but this may change year to year in response to new developments and innovations.
You take all compulsory modules and then choose two from a list of optional modules.
How can research methods and statistics answer advanced research questions in psychology? As a postgraduate student, this module will deepen your ability to answer research questions such as how children improve in their skills year on year, whether a given training module improves the ability to correctly identify faces, or what factors predict prejudice in the workplace. You will learn about the logic of qualitative analysis and the many different forms it takes, and gain a firmer understanding of quantitative analysis, sampling, and statistical inference. In preparation for understanding and conducting research, you will learn advanced insights about correlational and experimental methods to understand relationships, causes and effects among variables. Building on this understanding, you will learn in-depth how simple correlations underlie understanding of multiple regression and its assumptions, and how regression in turn supports the general linear model, which is key to the other advanced topics taught in the module. The teaching will keep up-to-date with the latest advances in open science and transparent reporting of evidence. We will also use open-source software to support practical lessons and assessments in data analysis, so that you can produce as well as understand the techniques being taught. Reporting your results through writing in APA style and appropriate data visualisation is an important skill that you will learn for a variety of analyses. There is also a special focus upon learning how to identify which analysis technique is right for any given statistical problem.
Accurately measuring people’s psychological attributes, for example, their personality, abilities and performance is a key goal in quantitative research, educational testing, and organisational selection. In this module, you will gain a postgraduate-level foundation in the theory of psychological tests, measurements, and modelling. You will learn the concepts, methods, and computational techniques needed to effectively evaluate and apply standardized measures in clinical, organisational, educational and research settings. You will be introduced to the fundamental principles of Classical Test Theory such as ‘true score’ and ‘error of measurement’, and key techniques needed for evaluating reliability and validity of test scores. The module covers factor analysis in depth, as a core method to evaluate what the test measures. It also introduces ‘measurement by modelling’ using a Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) framework. Within this framework, you will learn techniques for multivariate data analysis such as path analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, basic longitudinal analysis and multiple-group analysis. You will explore data analysis applications from various fields of behavioural studies and learn how to model/test statistically complex phenomena such as spurious and indirect effects, growth and change, measurement invariance, and others.
Have you ever wondered how psychology can be used to improve the environment, communities and societies that we live in? Or how psychology can be used to make organisations more effective or to create new business opportunities? This module introduces you to frameworks for applying social psychology theories to understanding and solving a range of social, organisational and business issues.Using expertise within the school of Psychology at Kent and speakers from external organisations, it showcases applications of theory to solving problems in range of contexts. It will develop your ability to design, implement and evaluate evidenced-based interventions that create a positive change for either individuals, organisations, communities or society.
Working with case study problems provided by real organisations, you will have the opportunity put these skills into practice, and develop consultancy skills.
Societies around the globe are increasingly divided by key social challenges relating to climate, war and conflict, political extremism, and prejudice and discrimination. How can we leverage psychology to understand and effectively overcome these challenges? We will discuss the key problems facing society today and outline the psychological findings that are most relevant for addressing them. You will learn about the forces that heighten tension and conflict between social groups; how to change people’s political preferences; what leads someone down a conspiracy “rabbit hole”; and why some people are more concerned about the environment than others. We will discuss how psychological theories can foster social change, such as encouraging people to engage in more sustainable behaviour and reducing social conflicts. You will also gain the ability to interpret and critically evaluate scientific research. These experiences will develop your ability to understand abstract theories and apply them to solve real-world problems, preparing you to meet the growing challenges of the world head on.
Research forms the cornerstone of how we solve psychological problems. You will identify a burning question from a range of psychological sub-disciplines and design a research study that addresses the question using appropriate methodologies. This module will give you the skills to conduct research and communicate research in various forms. You will have the unique opportunity to conduct your research project under the supervision of experts across a range of psychological sub-disciplines. The skills learned in this module will prepare you for the completion of your dissertation and future as psychologists.
Students who have not completed an undergraduate degree in psychology work individually or in groups to identify a gap in the literature, design a study to fill that gap, collect data where appropriate and write up their findings. This work will be an opportunity to use all the research skills they have developed over this programme of study. Students will have an academic member of staff as a Project Supervisor. The area of research students work on will depend on their interests and those of their selected supervisor.
Current estimates suggest that up to 1 in 4 children are neurodiverse or experience some form of psychopathology, yet these children are often overlooked in our understanding of development. In this module, you’ll uncover the complexities behind common (neuro)developmental disorders and emotional/behavioural issues that arise in infancy, childhood, and adolescence. You’ll gain a deep understanding of how these disorders manifest and explore their potential psychological, neurobiological, and genetic or environmental causes. You’ll also examine key clinical approaches to supporting individuals with these challenges and learn how to evaluate research on developmental psychopathology, giving you the tools to critically assess study findings, theories, and methodologies. By the end of the module, you’ll be prepared to engage with this field on a deeper, more informed level.
What makes a great leader? How can leaders inspire change, motivate others and create thriving communities, societies, teams and workplaces? And when can it go wrong? This module examines the psychological basis of how members of teams and groups behave and interact, and their relationships with leaders. It also examines how leaders themselves may affect the behaviour of groups and teams. It considers how organisations and other types of large and small groups are affected by these phenomena and uses a combination of evidence, group discussion and debate to address these questions and highlight new areas for research development. You will analyse and discuss how these areas can be studied, what we can learn from the evidence, identify gaps in the literature and propose and develop exciting new research ideas. You will present your ideas to other students on the module and also develop a research proposal to explore questions that interest you in the areas of leadership, groups and organisations.
How do we learn to think, reason, and understand others as we grow? In this module, you will explore groundbreaking research in cognitive development, examining how key cognitive and social-cognitive functions change throughout childhood and the unique psychological methods used to study them. By the end of this module, you’ll be equipped to critically assess research findings, understand the conceptual foundations, and analyse the strengths and limitations of various methodologies. Equipped with these advanced skills, you’ll have the tools to propose your own original research project on a topic that sparks your curiosity.
How does Developmental and Educational Psychology inform the work of professionals who work directly with children? In this module, you will learn how developmental and educational psychology can be applied in professional settings (e.g., clinical, education, healthcare, etc.) involving children and young people. You will receive lectures from educational psychologists, clinical psychologists, speech and language therapists, and other professionals who will discuss the role developmental and educational psychology plays in their professional settings. These lectures will outline major theories that inform practice and critically evaluate the role of developmental psychology in their work. Through case studies, you will have the opportunity to hear about specific instances where theories and methods from developmental and educational psychology can be applied to a particular problem or issue in a professional setting with children and young people.
For course aims and learning outcomes please see the course specification.
Resources include:
All students registered for a taught Master's programme are eligible to apply for a place on our Global Skills Award Programme. The programme is designed to broaden your understanding of global issues and current affairs as well as to develop personal skills which will enhance your employability.
The School is highly regarded as a leading European centre for postgraduate research, with an international reputation for excellence in social psychology (including group processes and intergroup relations); cognition and neuroscience; developmental psychology; and forensic psychology. We have staff who can supervise research degrees in all of these areas. The research environment is designed to sustain a strong, vibrant research culture, encourage collaboration, and unite staff and students with shared research interests. Our themes ensure critical mass and create a highly energetic and stimulating intellectual climate.
Research activity is supported by:
Much of our social psychology research is co-ordinated through the Centre for the Study of Group Processes (CSGP), the largest research group in this area in Europe. The Centre attracts a stream of major international social psychology researchers, who regularly visit to work with our staff and are officially affiliated to the Centre. The Social Psychology group also includes the co-editor of Group Processes and Intergroup Relations (Abrams).
Social psychology research at Kent is funded by a variety of British and international sources, currently and recently including ESRC, British Academy, Leverhulme, Age Concern, European Commission, European Science Foundation, Home Office, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Nuffield, and Joseph Rowntree Foundation, as well as government departments such as the Department for Communities and Local Government and the Department for Work and Pensions.
The Social Psychology group includes the following themes:
This research is carried out in our social psychology laboratories, at schools and in business organisations. For example, research within this topic focuses on questions such as: how contact between members of different social groups is represented psychologically, how intergroup contact affects prejudice, when outgroups are seen as less human, when and why children show prejudice, and why organisational mergers sometimes fail.
Research on this topic combines theory-driven research and engagement with policy. It is conducted in real-life settings such as the workplace, and involves national and international surveys. For example, the research focuses on the well-being of elderly people in Britain, work participation and motherhood, and discrimination against different groups in society.
Laboratory studies and community-based research are conducted on this topic. For example, research focuses on co-operation in small groups, group decision-making, perception and influence of leaders, social communication and language, subjective group dynamics in adults and children, the dynamics of prison gang activity, and the impact of alcohol on group processes.
Much of this research is carried out in laboratories, through surveys and in clinical or other applied settings. For example, research has examined aggression, the adaptive functions of perfectionism, and consequences of mortality salience.
Research under this theme has an international reputation in the topic areas of Visual Cognition, Attention and Memory, and Language and Communication. Some of this research activity occurs in the Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems, a strategic partnership between the Schools of Psychology and Computing.
Research on this topic focuses primarily on the role of vision and visual perception in human performance. The fundamental aim of this work is to identify the cognitive processes and neurological mechanisms underlying various visual tasks. Studies involving neurologically healthy volunteers examine issues such as face recognition and identification, eyewitness testimony, person detection, emotion processing, episodic memory and pattern and motion recognition.
Research in this group examines various aspects of semantic, pragmatic and syntactic understanding. Research questions on healthy populations include the role of executive functions in successful language use and communication, how language influences attentional processes and perspective taking, anomaly detection, and the effect of interruptions on reading. Work on developmental populations examines issues such as how children learn to understand and produce sentences in their own language, and how they learn conversational conventions and self-repair. Research also examines developmental disorders of communication, including autism spectrum disorders and dyslexia. This research group has links with researchers in the School of European Culture and Languages, as part of the Centre for Language and Linguistic Studies.
Forensic Psychology research at Kent and all forensic-related teaching operates through our newly constituted Centre of Research and Education in Forensic Psychology (CORE-FP). Current research is focused on bullying in prisons, prison gang behaviour, jury decision-making, child sexual offending, rape, rape proclivity, female sexual offending, theories of offender rehabilitation, firesetting, sexual harassment, violence, aggression and alcohol, and the infrahumanisation of offenders. Other areas of research include social cognition, social and moral emotion, and group process theory, all of which are applied to the study of offending behaviour or court process issues.
Forensic psychology research at Kent is funded by various national and international sources, which include: The British Academy, Economic and Social Research Council, Home Office, Leverhulme, Ministry of Justice and the Nuffield Foundation.
Research may be carried out with staff or offenders/ex-offenders in a variety of settings, including prisons, youth offender institutions, secure mental health units and probation offices. Alternatively, research may take place with students or members of the community in our newly equipped laboratories.
Much of the research conducted by members of the Developmental Psychology group is conducted with neurotypical infants, children, and adolescents. However, we also take a lifespan approach to the study of development and conduct research with older adults. Moreover, a key focus of our research is on neuro-developmental disorders. Central research topics include:
Developmental group members are particularly interested in the expression and control of ethnic and gender prejudice, social ostracism and inclusion, conversational norms and group identity in children. We also conduct research on social aspects of older adulthood, in particular self-stereotyping and prejudice against elderly people.
Cognitive development is a major focus of many of our developmental psychologists. In particular, members of the Developmental Psychology group actively research topics such as the development of social cognition and theory of mind, language, information and sensory processing, and conversation and pragmatic skills.
Our developmental research also focuses on adolescence, as well as infancy, childhood and older adulthood. In particular, we are interested in the emergence of gang activity and antisocial behaviour during this period of development.
We also conduct cutting-edge research into neuro-developmental disorders, such as autism and language impairment, with a view to understanding the nature and basis of, and best ways to treat, these disorders.
The School of Psychology currently includes two formally constituted research centres, representing areas of concentration and excellence in research.
The Centre for the Study of Group Processes (CSGP) was set up in 1990 to consolidate the School’s excellent international reputation for social psychological research into group processes and intergroup relations. CSGP is now a thriving international research community, including 15 full-time academic staff and a large number of research fellows and PhD students. The Centre also attracts a stream of major international group researchers who are officially affiliated to it and regularly visit to work with our staff. The Centre also edits an international journal, Group Processes and Intergroup Relations.
The main aim of the Centre of Research and Education in Forensic Psychology is to conduct high-impact psychological research to further understand key forensic issues of social significance, and to lead to cutting-edge teaching and research opportunities for postgraduate students. Forensic psychology is an extremely popular and rapidly developing branch of psychology that seeks to understand the psychological processes underlying offending behaviour (including group processes), the reduction and supervision of offending behaviour (ie rehabilitation, treatment and management of community risk), victim responses to offending, the mechanisms underlying the criminal justice system more generally (ie jury decision-making and the courts), and attitudes to offenders and offender reintegration in society.
Many of our graduates work in the public sector, the government or non-profit organisations, in leading roles, designing and evaluating policies and programmes in health services, education, environmental or animal protection organisations. They also work in the private sector as social media strategists, consultants, data scientists, managers, marketing directors or as researchers at universities.
The programmes we offer help you to develop general critical, analytic and problem-solving skills that can be applied in a wide range of settings.
The 2025/26 annual tuition fees for this course are:
For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.
Tuition fees may be increased in the second and subsequent years of your course. Detailed information on possible future increases in tuition fees is contained in the Tuition Fees Increase Policy. If you are uncertain about your fee status please contact information@kent.ac.uk.
The University will assess your fee status as part of the application process. If you are uncertain about your fee status you may wish to seek advice from UKCISA before applying.
For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.
Tuition fees may be increased in the second and subsequent years of your course. Detailed information on possible future increases in tuition fees is contained in the Tuition Fees Increase Policy. If you are uncertain about your fee status please contact information@kent.ac.uk.
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