Learning from Experience: the Role of Experiential Knowledge in Dutch University Programmes

Psychology students frequently encounter mental health challenges themselves or through others, yet their lived experiences are rarely explored as potential learning resources within their studies. This study examined how firsthand and secondhand experiences with mental health problems (self-reported disturbances in cognitions, emotions, or behaviour) relate to psychology students’ self-reported experiential knowledge and their attitudes toward integrating such experiences into education. The main research question asked how different types of mental health experience are associated with students’ experiential knowledge and their attitudes toward using and discussing such experiences in education. It was hypothesised that most students would report both firsthand and secondhand experience (H1), students with both types would report the highest level of experiential knowledge (H2), these students would hold more positive attitudes toward experiential knowledge in general, toward...Show morePsychology students frequently encounter mental health challenges themselves or through others, yet their lived experiences are rarely explored as potential learning resources within their studies. This study examined how firsthand and secondhand experiences with mental health problems (self-reported disturbances in cognitions, emotions, or behaviour) relate to psychology students’ self-reported experiential knowledge and their attitudes toward integrating such experiences into education. The main research question asked how different types of mental health experience are associated with students’ experiential knowledge and their attitudes toward using and discussing such experiences in education. It was hypothesised that most students would report both firsthand and secondhand experience (H1), students with both types would report the highest level of experiential knowledge (H2), these students would hold more positive attitudes toward experiential knowledge in general, toward their own experiences as learning sources, and toward creating space in education to discuss them (H3a-c), and that these relationships would remain significant when controlling for experiential knowledge (H4). A cross-sectional online survey was conducted among psychology students at Dutch universities (N = 111). Participants were grouped by experience type: firsthand only, secondhand only, both, or none. Results showed that a small proportion (n = 9, 8.11%) had neither firsthand nor secondhand experience, confirming H1. Students with both types of experience valued experiential knowledge more than those with only secondhand experience, but H2, H3b, H3c, and H4 were not statistically supported. These findings indicate that having mental health experience does not automatically lead to reflective understanding or professional growth, and thus possessing experiential knowledge. Structured reflection in psychology education may help students transform such experiences into meaningful professional insight.Show less

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Learning from Experience: the Role of Experiential Knowledge in Dutch University Programmes