Childhood & Youth and Psychology

Childhood and youth studies with psychology is a combination that examines the lives of children and young people through both a social scientific and a psychological lens. Childhood and youth studies is an interdisciplinary field drawing on sociology, social policy, history, politics and cultural studies to understand the social contexts in which children and young people grow up, the challenges they face, and the ways in which childhood and adolescence are shaped by culture, inequality and institutional structures. Psychology brings the empirical tools to understand cognitive and emotional development, attachment, mental health and behaviour, giving you complementary perspectives on the same population.

At Liverpool Hope University you will study for three years full-time, exploring the diverse issues and challenges children and young people face in the UK and internationally. You will examine key questions about children's social contexts, rights, wellbeing and development, drawing on both qualitative social research and the empirical methods of psychology. The programme includes a sandwich year in professional practice and a year abroad, giving you extended professional experience working with children and young people and an international perspective on how different societies approach childhood, education and welfare.

Graduates are well placed for careers in education, social work, youth work, early years care, child psychology support, family support services, community development, youth justice and policy research focused on children and young people. The combination of social scientific breadth and psychological understanding is particularly valued in roles that require both systemic awareness and sensitivity to individual development and wellbeing. Many graduates pursue postgraduate professional training in social work, education, counselling or clinical psychology, or go on to postgraduate study in childhood studies, developmental psychology or child and adolescent mental health.