Course of Study for the Drama Therapy Program

Course Descriptions

Drama Therapy (PDT) Courses / Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology (MCP) Courses. (MCPD indicates an MCP course taught from a drama therapy perspective.)

PDT 5501: Drama Therapy Theory (3 units)
An examination of the major drama therapy theorists, and methods within the field, as well as key drama therapy concepts, such as play, ritual, distancing, and role. The interface of drama therapy and other forms of psychotherapy is explored, as well as the effectiveness of drama therapy with different populations and disorders.

PDT 5602: Drama Therapy Process and Technique (3 units)
An experiential course demonstrating the process and progression of a drama therapy series from the establishment of a playful, creative environment to the development of in-depth personal and interpersonal work. Students experience Renée Emunah’s Integrative Five Phase Model of Drama Therapy and are introduced to self-revelatory performance.

PDT 5603: Drama Therapy Practice (3 units)
An examination of clinical and practical issues in drama therapy, including working with resistance, making interventions within the dramatic mode, and directing and developing scenework in accordance with therapeutic objectives. Through the use of role-play and DVD feedback, students develop skills in leadership.

PDT 5604: Theater Lab—Advanced Improvisation and Group Process (1 unit)
Focus on refining acting, improvisation, movement, sociodramatic, and performance skills. Emphasis on using the theater ensemble as a laboratory in group dynamics to increase awareness of self and to practice communication skills.

PDT 5605: Psychodrama (3 units)
Theory and practice of psychodrama as a therapeutic tool with groups, families, couples, and individuals. Participants experience the roles of protagonist, auxiliary, and director. The efficacy of various warm-ups and techniques with different populations are examined.

PDT 5607: Special Methods in Drama Therapy I: Developmental Transformations (1 unit)
An exploration of the relationship between the major theories of psychological development and therapeutic processes in drama therapy. Clinical applications of a developmental approach are discussed in relation to a variety of populations and therapeutic styles.

PDT 5614: Theater Lab—Playback Theater (1 unit)
An experiential study of the playback theater form, which transforms personal stories told by audience members into improvised theater pieces on the spot, incorporating music, movement, ritual, and spoken improvisation. Playback performances are performed in the community.

PDT 6604: Theater Lab—Drama Therapy and Social Change (2 units)
An exploration of the transformative power of drama therapy in the social context, and of the role of the drama therapist as agent of social change. Four approaches to the use of drama and social issues are examined: the Acts of Reconciliation Project, Sociodrama, Theater of the Oppressed, and World Work. A focus on how change occurs in groups, organizations, societies, and nations.

PDT 6607: Special Methods in Drama Therapy II: Advanced Developmental Transformations (1 unit)
Experiential course focusing on transformational processes within drama therapy. Emphases on individual imagery work, free-association improvisation, movement-based and relationally-oriented improvisation, and elucidation of inner metaphors.

PDT 7700: Integrative Seminar: Final Project (4 units)
A seminar integrating two years of study in the process, theory, and practice of drama therapy, and culminating in a final project that may include either a self-revelatory performance, a theoretical paper/article, a therapeutic performance that the student directs, or a DVD documenting a drama therapy treatment series.

PDT 8888: Special Topics in Drama Therapy (1–3 units)
Occasional courses offered by faculty regarding their current interests and research. For example, Body and Soul: Incorporation of Meditation and Action Techniques in Transpersonal Psychotherapy offers theoretical and experiential exploration of the synergistic use of meditation and embodied action techniques in therapy for accessing a broad spectrum of human experience.

MCPD 5604: Group Dynamics Using Creative Arts Therapies (2 units)
Review of basic theories of group process. Exploration of group process through group interaction, didactic analysis, and synthesis. Use of creative arts therapy modalities (dance/movement, music, art, poetry, and drama therapies) in group work.

MCPD 5608: Theories of Individual and Family Therapy (2 units)
A theoretical survey of the major psychotherapy orientations that complement and inform family therapy theories. Students are encouraged to analyze and critique these major theories, and to develop an integrative framework using an interpersonal, feminist, and systemic approach.

MCPD 6605: Advanced Family Therapy: Action-Oriented Approaches (2 units)
Approaches and techniques to couples and family therapy that employ action-oriented processes are examined and practiced in simulations. Key practitioners in the field of family therapy who have developed action methods are reviewed. Includes work in spousal and partner abuse assessment, detection, and intervention.

MCPD 7602: Supervised Clinical Practicum: Case Seminar in Drama Therapy (2 units, minimum three semesters)
Presentation and discussion of case material. Emphases upon case formulation, the therapeutic relationship, and the development of clinical skills.

MCP 5101: Professional Ethics and Family Law (2 units)
Ethical standards for the practice of counseling and psychology. Review and discussion of ethical and legal aspects of marriage and family therapy and practice.

MCP 5201: Human Development and the Family (3 units)
Theories and research in life transitions, stages of development, and rites of passage, from prenatal conditions through adult experience to dying.

MCP 5603: Psychopathology (3 units)
Comparative historical and contemporary views of the development of adult psychopathology and the categorization system of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual.

MCPD 5605: Family Dynamics and Therapy (3 units)
Covers the family life cycle, as well as the theories and methods of many of the major family theories, including strategic, brief strategic, systemic, narrative, solution-focused, family of origin, structural, and symbolic-experiential family therapy. Includes experiential learning processes and instructor-demonstrated family of origin interviews.

MCPD 5610: Therapeutic Communication (2 units)
Provides an overview of key concepts and methods in therapeutic communication, integrating psychodynamic, humanistic, and other approaches. Experiential portion includes role-play and simulations.

MCP 5105: Psychopharmacology (2 units)
Study of the range of current psychopharmacological interventions in terms of mental disorder diagnostic categories, including antidepressants, antianxiety drugs, mood stabilizers, and antipsychotics. Neurobiological mechanisms of mental disorders are reviewed in terms of current research. Interaction of psychopharmacological and psychotherapeutic interventions is discussed, including medication response and side effects.

MCP 610: Human Sexuality (1 unit)
Explores personal, interpersonal, and transpersonal dimensions of sexual experience. Attitudes, expression, response, and sexual counseling are examined.

MCP 6102: Alcohol and Chemical Dependency Counseling (1 unit)
Survey of current treatment approaches to chemical dependency and examination of humanist-transpersonal perspectives.

MCP 6103: Cross-Cultural Counseling and the Family (2 units)
Therapists need to develop awareness of cultural variations and acquire therapeutic tools to address those differences. The use of the prevalent Western European view of therapy as the only option for therapeutic process is challenged, and alternatives are discussed. Cultural differences, including race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, class, gender, religion, and language, are reviewed.

MCP 6105: Spousal Abuse Assessment and Reporting (1 unit)
Covers spousal or partner abuse assessment, detection, and intervention strategies including community resources, cultural factors, and same-gender abuse dynamics.

MCP 6201: Psychological Assessment (2 units)
A survey of the clinical process of testing and the individual counselor’s ability to clinically analyze and interpret assessment instruments, including diagnostic tests.

MCPD 6401: Research Methods (3 units)
Overview of research methodologies with special focus on qualitative approaches, comparative ways of knowing, and the creation of an integral inquiry research project.

MCP 6502: Child Therapy (2 units)
Techniques to remedy or prevent emotional and behavioral problems in children and their families. Case material introduces strategies of intervention.