How humans think, develop, and experience the world around us has been fascinating psychologists for over 100 years. The tracks in this album cover a range of case studies, looking at factors which can influence the development of our personalities. What is the impact of significant people in our early lives? How do you go about the process of researching topics like this in social psychology? The audio tracks feature disabled people who reflect on how disability has affected their sense of identity. Also featured are the cases of twins who didn't grow up together, people coping with memory loss, and the famous case of the soprano Lisa-Lee who discovered in her twenties that a rare genetic disorder meant she was actually a girl, not a boy. Studying people through such issues as gender disorder and disability allows psychologists to learn more about the human condition. This material forms part of The Open University course DSE212 Exploring psychology.

The consciousness of the human mind has long been a topic of fascination and curiosity amongst writers, artists and psychologists, from Carl Jung and Salvador Dali to Virginia Wolfe and Gertrude Stein. This album explores our understanding of consciousness, and features a discussion on some of psychology's most complex questions: what does it mean to be a conscious human, and what purposes our consciousness serves. This material forms part of The Open University course DD303 Cognitive psychology.

What does your health mean to you? What features in society affect it? The tracks on this album explore influences such as stress, housing and employment on everyday health, and examines debates about the relative importance of individual lifestyles and looks at wider public-health concerns and the impact of changes in NHS policy and practice on the delivery of health care. Health is increasingly ‘everybody’s business’. This album will provide you with insight into the debates that surround human health, and will enable you to appreciate and review your own and alternative standpoints and values in this important area of study.

This material forms part of The Open University course K203 Working for health.

Everyone has their own perspective on mental health, especially those who have experienced it. 'An untimely death on Passchendaele Ward' is written and performed by members 'The Orphans of Beulah' - a theatre group consisting of mental health service users and survivors. It is a modern day farce focusing on life in a Mental Health Institution. A death on the the ward leads to a lot of questions being asked. There are nurses self-medicating, patients acting as nurses, commissioners turning a blind eye. Who turns out on top, and what actually did happen that fateful night on Passchendaele Ward? In two of the audio tracks, service users, professionals and practitioners comment on the drama an some of the issues it raises. In the remaining audio tracks, Jonathan Leach of The Open University's School of Health and Social Welfare explains why the drama was commissioned, and how it fits in with the aims of the course. He also gives an overview of the course and who it's aimed at, and talks about how he came to be involved in mental health education. This material forms part of K225, Diverse perspectives on mental health.

Want to improve your professionalism and effectiveness in the workplace? This album explains how to develop reflective skills and improve leadership techniques. With an emphasis on interpersonal communication, teaching methods and customer care, it’s relevant to those instructing, coaching or managing others in a range of sport and fitness settings. The eight video tracks on this album follow professionals working in a gym, a sports college and an ice-rink. They demonstrate how to encourage motivation, how to delegate and how to improve your own instructional skills.

This material forms part of The Open University course E113 Working and learning in sport and fitness.

What significant processes occur in infancy for development and learning? How does cultural environment influence individual development? And how do infants begin to develop their understanding of other people? On this album, international experts present their perspectives on the ways infants and young children enter the social and cultural worlds around them, and ways that children develop their skills of thinking and learning. The speakers are Professors Rudolph Schaffer, Michael Cole, Alison Garton, Vasu Reddy and Dr Suzanne Zeedyk. The interviews are introduced and contextualised by Dr Dorothy Faulkner and Professor David Messer of The Open University. The material forms part of The Open University course ED841 Understanding children's development and learning.

What happens if children aren’t making progress with language and literacy, and what sort of learning impairments might be the cause? How can the study of children’s thinking help us to understand these learning difficulties? This album offers insights into some of the problems faced by children with the developmental disorders dyslexia, poor comprehension and specific language impairment. In the main audio tracks, educators, therapists and researchers explore why children might have language and literacy difficulties, and how schools can work with psychologists to help these children develop key language and literacy skills. The interviews are introduced and contextualised by Professor David Messer of The Open University. The material forms part of The Open University course ED841 Understanding children's development and learning.

How does music help to engage disaffected or disadvantaged young people? How can taking to the streets help build rapport with the youth community? This album is packed with positive examples of youths who've turned their lives around with the help of youth workers. At Madcap Arts they build self-esteem through making music, and The Factory street project meets young people on their own ground and offers a chance for personal growth through exciting activities and teamwork. The tracks offer views from all perspectives, and the audio commentaries provide a clear overview, exploring what makes projects work successfully. The material on this album forms part of The Open University course E131 Introduction to working with young people.

This collection transports you to Europe of 1600 to 1850. Many of the foundations of European culture were being laid: commerce, arts institutions, art displays, terraced houses … even tattooing. Things we now take for granted in the fabric of our lives. Yet here we glimpse them through the eyes of a society for whom they weren’t yet set in stone. The shape of the urban environment was being defined. Yet there was a burgeoning nostalgia for all things rural, and a hunger for the trappings of other cultures. The decisions of this era still have an impact on our culture today.

This material forms part of The Open University course A226 Exploring art and visual culture.