Information for the student – General Health Psychology

The master’s degree final project (TFM) is an individual empirical project for which each student works with an academic tutor. Students may only submit their TFMs once they have passed the remaining credits of their master’s degree (78 credits). TFMs must be submitted in writing and defended before an examination panel in February or June, depending on the semester in which the student is enrolled in the TFM subject. When deciding which semester to enrol in the TFM subject, students should consider both the workload that the report for the subject External Placement II and the TFM itself will entail as well as how much time they have to complete them.

IMPORTANT: Students who finish the subject External Placement II in January can enrol in the TFM in either February or June. However, students who finish in March must necessarily enrol for the TFM subject in June. It is important to remember that there is only one call per year, so students who submit their TFMs in February and fail will have to re-enrol and submit their TFMs the following academic year.

There are three types of TFM:

1. Presentations of clinical cases

2. Empirical research projects

3. Up-to-date and well-founded empirical or theoretical reviews

TFMs are assessed by means of a public defence of the project before an examination panel made up of three lecturers from the master’s degree programme once authorization has been granted by the academic tutor. Information concerning the types, characteristics and assessment of TFMs can be found in the other tabs on this website.

The UB’s general regulations governing TFMs can be found at www.giga.ub.edu/acad/gdoc/fitxers/pdf/normes_TFM.pdf.

The specific regulations of the UB’s Faculty of Psychology can be accessed at /portal/documents/1748627/4460991/TFM_Normativa_Psicologia_2012.pdf/55e322b8-dbd1-42a2-873c-cb4464ad674a.

Types and characteristics of master’s degree final projects

Each student will be assigned an academic tutor to guide them in the execution of their final project (TFM). Students and tutors will hold all necessary supervisory sessions to ensure the effective development of the TFM. The teaching methods employed by the tutors may include information research, case studies and problem-based learning. The types and characteristics of TFMs are as follows:

• Presentation of clinical cases. Providing that the student’s practical experience allows it, students should present three cases (individual or group) on the assessments and/or interventions in which they have participated. These three cases should, if possible, present three different issues. A simple description of the cases is not sufficient; whenever possible, students should include the following sections:

1. Abstract of the TFM.
2. Theoretical basis of the problem(s) each case presents, including their nature and explanatory model(s).
3. Explanation and justification of the assessment techniques applied, including a presentation and assessment of the suitability of the techniques and instruments used.
4. Presentation of the case data prior to the intervention, including the functional analysis or explanatory hypothesis and possible psychiatric diagnosis.
5. Definition of therapeutic objectives.
6. Explanation and justification of the intervention techniques used: effective treatments for the problem(s) considered, data on their efficacy, an explanation of the treatment applied and an assessment of its suitability.
7. Presentation of post-intervention data or latest available data.
8. Discussion of the results obtained, including the strengths and limitations of what was done, the role played in each case, and conclusions about what was learned and possible changes that should be made in the future.
9. Current and subject-specific references (mandatory in sections 2, 3, 6 and 8).

Note. Although the therapeutic objectives, assessment and treatment may be determined by the professionals at the placement centre, the student must critically assess the intervention process by stating and justifying: a) the aspects that they would leave as they are and b) the aspects that they would change. In the latter case, the student must also outline specific proposals for change.

• Empirical research project. These types of projects may consist, for example, of an empirical study of the basic aspects or explanatory variables of a disorder, an empirical analysis of an assessment instrument, an empirical comparison of different assessment or intervention methods, an empirical study of process variables, a prediction of outcomes, an empirical analysis of a therapeutic relationship, etc. Like any research work, it must include:

1. Abstract in Spanish, Catalan or English.
2. Theoretical basis.
3. Description of the method: participants, measures, procedure, statistical analysis.
4. Results.
5. Discussion, including the strengths and limitations of the study and any possible changes that should be implemented in the future.
6. Conclusions about what was learned.
7. Section in which the student describes their role in the research and the activities performed within the context of the project.

• Up-to-date and well-founded empirical or theoretical review on fundamental aspects of health psychology. This type of project might consist of, for example, a review of the effectiveness of an intervention using meta-analysis techniques, a conceptual review of a theoretical model, etc. Students should follow the standard guidelines for scientific publications.

Students who wish to conduct a research project for their TFM should check this link to see a list of available positions that would allow them to complete their work within the framework of some of the current lines of research being undertaken in the doctoral programme in Clinical and Health Psychology.

If the tutor approves the student’s intention to undertake a research TFM, the student must send an email to the coordinator of the master’s degree programme informing them, between 1 and 30 September, of the name and title of the lecturer responsible for the TFM, which can be found via the link provided above.

Assessment

TFMs are assessed by means of a public defence of the project before an examination panel made up of three lecturers from the master’s degree programme. Express authorization from the academic tutor is required prior to the defence. The tutor will send the chair of the examination panel a brief evaluative report of the TFM which will include the tutor’s express authorization for the public defence. This report can be found in the following file:

TFM MUPGS Tutor’s report (in Catalan)

Excluding annexes, the length of the TFM must not exceed 18,000 words. It must be single-spaced with double spacing between paragraphs, have 2.5-centimetre margins, be printed double-sided and formatted in Times New Roman 12-point font. The work must include the following points in the order shown here (the points preceding the abstract are to be included on the title page).

1. MASTER’S DEGREE FINAL PROJECT (specify type: clinical cases, research project, empirical review, theoretical review)
2. Project title
3. Name of master’s degree programme
4. Academic year in which the TFM was completed
5. Name of the school or faculty in which the TFM was completed
6. Surname(s) and name of the TFM tutor
7. Surname(s) and name of the student
8. Student’s Spanish identity and UB identity numbers
9. Date of submission
10. Number of words, excluding annexes (maximum 18,000)
11. Abstract of the TFM
12. Table of contents with page numbers
13. The sections mentioned above in relation to each type of TFM (functional analysis graphs and evaluation and intervention data are to be included in the main text, not in the annexes)
14. If applicable, short annexes containing only material considered essential

The TFM must be submitted to the following people:

• One copy submitted via email to the coordinator of the master’s degree programme. The file should be named as follows, in the same order shown here: TFM first surname second surname (if applicable), first name (words separated by spaces and a comma before the first name.
• One copy submitted on paper and one copy submitted via email to the chair of the examination panel.
• One copy submitted on paper to each of the other two members of the examination panel.

The size of the electronic copy cannot exceed 1.5 Mb. If it is larger, the student must reduce the size of the images (using, for example, programs like IrfanView, GIMP or Format Factory) and/or the PDF (with, for example, programs like Smallpdf) before submission.

The TFM must be sent as a simple PDF document, without compressing it with programs like Winzip, Winrar or any other similar programs. These programs reduce the size of the PDF for the purpose of sending it electronically, but once decompressed, the size of the document remains the same as it originally was.

TFMs must be submitted by 10 February or 10 June depending on the semester in which the student has enrolled in the TFM subject. TFM defences are typically held between 20 and 28 February or 20 and 30 June.

Students have a maximum of 20 minutes to present one of the three cases described in their work (any one they choose) or their empirical research. Afterwards there will be a discussion session based on questions posed by the panel which will last no more than 25 minutes. The final grade will be the weighted average of a) the mark received on the written submission and b) the mark received on the presentation and defence of the project. The assessment criteria used by the examination panel can be found in the following file:

TFM Assessment criteria (in Catalan)

Should the panel’s recommendations for distinctions exceed the legally permitted maximum, the following procedure will be used to decide which students will be awarded academic distinctions.

1. The chair of the examination panel will inform the coordinator of the master’s degree programme of the recommendation for distinction and will provide a quantitative assessment report of the final project (including the qualifications of the three members of the panel) as well as the examination panel report stating the grounds for the recommendation. (Maximum length: 1 page)
2. The student will provide the coordinator of the master’s degree programme with:

a. A copy of the TFM.

b. A statement describing the reasons why they deserve an academic distinction. The statement should make reference to the student’s acquired professional knowledge, skills and competences. (Maximum length: 1 page)

A committee will be appointed to decide the possible award of academic distinctions in accordance with the established criteria. The committee will be made up of three lecturers from the master’s degree programme who did not serve as tutors for any of the candidates recommended for academic distinction.

Postponing the TFM

Students who, for whatever reason, cannot submit a TFM during the corresponding academic year must notify the coordinator of the master’s degree programme as soon as possible. In addition, they must state which academic year they will enrol in the TFM subject so that the corresponding examination panel can be appointed.

Examination panels

Examination panels for this academic year can be accessed in this file: TFM examination panels for the academic year 2023-2024 June (in Catalan)