Professional Certificate in Contemporary Issues in Behavioural Addiction
Stay ahead in the evolving field of behavioural addictions. Explore gambling, gaming, technology, and more while developing the clinical skills to respond effectively.
This certificate examines the rapidly evolving field of behavioural addictions, including gambling, gaming, pornography, eating, sex, technology, and other compulsive behaviours.
You’ll explore the psychological, biological, cultural, and social dimensions of behavioural addiction, with a special focus on gambling.
The course equips you with the clinical knowledge and skills to work with clients presenting with addictive relationships to behaviours that may exist independently of, or alongside, substance misuse.
DATES
- Saturday March 7th
- Sunday March 8th
- Saturday April 18th
- Sunday April 19th
From 9:00 am to 5:30 pm
Please note that by enrolling on this Professional Certificate programme, you will be joining a Year 2 module of PCI College’s MSc Addiction Counselling & Psychotherapy programme. Some of your classmates will be students completing their studies on the MSc Addiction Counselling & Psychotherapy programme, so you can expect to experience a high level of knowledge from your peers during your studies on this Professional Certificate.
Who is this course for?
This course is designed for counsellors, psychotherapists, social workers, and allied health professionals who want to enhance their skills in recognising and treating behavioural addictions in both clinical and community settings.
Course Requirements
Attend all 4 days of teaching
Formative Assessment
Listen to a designated podcast on gambling addiction and submit a 1,000-word reflective piece.
Participate in group discussion and class-based reflection to integrate insights into practice.
Summative Assessment
Produce a Guidance Document that critically evaluates counselling approaches to behavioural addiction, drawing on theory, research, and practice considerations.
What are the benefits of doing this course?
- Gain up-to-date knowledge on a range of behavioural addictions and their impact.
- Learn how to distinguish between adaptive enjoyment and maladaptive compulsive behaviour.
- Understand the societal, cultural, and economic forces driving behavioural addictions.
- Build confidence in working with gambling, gaming, and technology-related addiction presentations.
- Strengthen your therapeutic approach with stepped-care models, psychoeducation, and trauma-sensitive practice.
What will you learn?
By completing this course, you will be able to:
- Appraise similarities and differences between behavioural and substance addictions.
- Evaluate the biological, psychological, and social dimensions of behavioural addiction.
- Critically analyse risk factors, persistence, and recovery pathways, especially in gambling.
- Apply counselling skills and evidence-based approaches to behavioural addictions.
- Identify covert behavioural addictions and their impact on clients, families, and therapeutic work.
Day 1
• Desire, pleasure, and compulsion: understanding the continuum
• Neurobiology of rewarding behaviours and compulsions
• Distinguishing adaptive enjoyment from maladaptive addiction
Day 2
• Diagnosing behavioural addictions and controversies in classification
• Trauma, withdrawal, and relapse in behavioural addiction
• Psychological processes driving compulsive behaviours
Day 3
• Therapeutic approaches: stepped-care models and psychoeducation
• Trauma-informed counselling across diverse cultural contexts
• Internet, gaming, and technology-related addictions
Day 4
• Gambling addiction focus: assessment, cognitive fallacies, and suicide risk
• Family and relational impact of gambling behaviours
• New research on gaming, social media, and online behavioural patterns
• Policy and practice: Gambling Regulation Bill 2022 and implications for professionals
Eligibility
Applicants should possess the maturity to reflect on their development as a person and have successfully completed and obtained a minimum grade 2.2 in one of the following:
Level 8 NFQ/Level 6 UK accredited degree in Counselling and Psychotherapy/Addiction Counselling
OR
Level 8 NFQ/ Level 6UK degree in Social Sciences (Youth Work, Social Care, Social Work, Psychology, Nursing, Medicine, etc.)
OR
Accredited Diploma in Counselling and Psychotherapy/Addiction Counselling plus Level 8 NFQ/Level 6UK degree in an unrelated area plus submission of a clinical portfolio
IT Skills
Students require sufficient IT skills to complete the course.
Additional Entry Requirements
Students with a diagnosed learning difficulty (e.g. dyslexia) must declare this at application stage. Advice and support will be provided where needed. Students currently enrolled in Year 1 of the MSc Addiction
Fees
Standard Rate: Applies to all non-affiliated participants.
PCI College Graduate: Discounted rate available for graduates of BSc Degree and Postgraduate programmes.
Current BSc/MSc Students & Alumni Members: Preferential rate available. Join our Alumni Group on LinkedIn to access this discount
Course Fees – Northern Ireland
Course Total