PSYC 100: Understanding Psychology
(4 sem. hrs.)
D.Hilty, S. Little
Prerequisites: None
An introductory-level survey course in psychology with a focus on how psychology can be applied to other fields of study and life in general; intended for students who do not plan to major or minor in psychology. Covers topics in biological foundations of behavior, learning and memory, developmental psychology, motivation and emotion, abnormal psychology and psychotherapy, personality and social psychology.
PSYC 107: StatisticsPrerequisites: To register for Psychology 107, a student must have a 23 or higher Mathematics Placement Level. Contact the Math Workshop for details regarding this prerequisite. A student may not receive credit for more than one statistics course.
This is a course in applied statistics. Its emphasis is on the mechanics of summarizing and analyzing data, with examples from the behavioral sciences. The purpose of the course is to prepare students for other courses in Psychology and related disciplines and to help them interpret data.
PSYC 130: Proseminar III: DevelopmentalPrerequisites: None
This course examines development across the life span. The first half of the course focuses on prenatal development and the changes in physical, motor, cognitive and social skills that take place in the early years of life. The second half of the course focuses on developmental issues unique to adolescents (puberty, at-risk behavior) adults (marriage, career development) and the aged (retirement, Alzheimer's disease). Students are required to participate in a limited number of research studies and to gain practical experience with children and adults by completing an observational and interview project.
PSYC 140: Proseminar V: DifferentialPrerequisites: None
An introduction to psychological tests and their application, emphasizing ability measurement, and a survey of the structure and dynamics of personality. In addition, students are required either to participate in a limited number of research studies or to write a research paper. There are three exams and two brief written projects.
PSYC 150: Proseminar V: Abnormal
(2 sem. hrs.)
S. Little
Prerequisite: None
This course is an introduction to the realm of psychology that focuses on identifying and treating psychological disorders. The course applies different theoretical views to psychological disorders and their treatment. In addition, basic topics in human emotion will be covered.
PSYC 160: Proseminar VI: Social
(2 sem. hrs.)
C. Brown
Prerequisite: None
This course is an introduction to social psychology, the scientific study of how others influence our beliefs, emotions, and behavior. Topics include conformity, persuasion, social cognition, attribution, attitudes, prejudice, aggression, and nonverbal communication. Three tests assess performance. In addition, students are required either to participate in a limited number or research studies or to write a research paper.
PSYC 207: Experimental Design
(5 sem. hrs.)
M.Anes
This laboratory course offers a systematic introduction to relevant aspects of the scientific enterprise, namely the design and analysis of experiments. The focus of the course is on the design of experiments in an analyzable manner, and on their subsequent statistical analysis. In the laboratory, participants will perform statistical analysis by calculator and computer. Course performance evaluation is based on lab projects, tests, and class participation. Considerable discussion is devoted to the nature and limitation of scientific models and scientific knowledge. Test: Elmes, Kantowitz, & Roediger, Research Methods in Psychology. 6 th ed. (1999), St. Paul, MN: West Pub. Co.
PSYC 231: Child DevelopmentPrerequisites: Psychology 130.
The developmental study of children from prenatal development to preadolescence, with emphasis on motor, cognitive, language, social and personality development. Monthly observations of infants and children help students apply theoretical developmental models and research findings. Final Grade is based on essay exams and observation projects.
PSYC 242: Industrial /Organizational Psychology
(4 sem. hrs.)
D. Hilty
Prerequisite: Psychology 107 or another statistics course
Industrial/Organization Psychology is the scientific study of work-related behavior. Work behavior can be viewed from several different perspectives (e.g., organization, societal); because this is a psychology course, our primary level of analysis will be the individual worker. That is, we will focus on what individual workers do in their jobs, how well they do it, and how we select and train people to do those jobs. In addition, we will consider organizational and physical environment influences on employee performance. Finally, because we are concerned with workers' well being, as well as with their performance, we will examine current employment practices (e.g., honesty testing, downsizing) that affect the quality of work life.
PSYC 280: Introduction to Clinical PsychologyPrerequisite: Psychology 150
This course provides an introduction to the field of clinical psychology. Historical and current trends in the field will be covered, as well as assessment and intervention techniques. Major theories of psychotherapy to be covered include humanistic-existential, cognitive-behavioral, and psychoanalytic. Topics to be covered will be applicable to a broad range of counseling-related fields (e.g., social work, case management, guidance counseling).
PSYC 321: Learning, Memory, and Cognition
(5 sem. hrs.)
M.Anes
Prerequisites: Psychology 120 and Psychology 207
This is a course in which we study major operations of the human mind; perceiving, remembering, acting, and thinking. Specific areas of coverage include attention, visual search and object recognition, visual memory, general memory mechanisms (working and long-term), language, imagery, reasoning and judgment. We will discuss learning and memory in other species as well, and attempt to draw parallels that inform our understanding of human cognition. Specific proposals about how the mind accomplishes particular tasks (models) have been advanced in the short, 50-year history of modern cognitive psychology. We will see how these models have been tested, in part by participating in replications of classic cognitive psychology experiments. Data, including the data we generate ourselves, will be discussed in detail. We will write APA-style papers describing the nature of these tasks, the methods used, and the results obtained in the tasks. Finally, we will plan and execute group experiments.
PSYC 341: Psychological TestingPrerequisites: Psychology 140 and Psychology 207.
This is a laboratory course examining principles of test construction, validation, and interpretation, with emphasis on measures of cognitive ability, personality characteristics, and vocational interests. Classes will be in lecture/discussion format. Lab exercises emphasize psychometric evaluation of published psychological tests. A group project requires students to construct and validate a psychological test.
PSYC 390: Junior Seminar J. BrookingsThis seminar meets one hour per week and is designed to help students understand their various options as psychology majors. This includes topics such as senior research projects and internships, senior comprehensive and GRE exams, possible career paths, graduate school applications, and graduate school and job interviews. This class may include guest speakers and field trips based on students' interests. Psychology majors are required to take this no-credit seminar for one semester during their junior year.
PSYC 400: Research: SocialPrerequisite: Permission of instructor.
Students in this course will work with the instructor on research in the area of social psychology. Students will become familiar with the current literature in a specific area of social psychology, and meet twice weekly to discuss research literature, develop hypotheses, and design studies to test their hypotheses. Teams of students will plan and conduct studies, analyze the data and write research papers summarizing their findings. It is anticipated that these papers will be submitted to regional conferences. Microcomputers will be used extensively in each of these stages. Course grades are based on class participation, contributions to the projects, and the research paper.
PSYC 400: Research: Developmental
(4 sem. hrs.)
M.Zembar
Prerequisite: Psychology 130, Psychology 107, or another statistics course, Psychology 232 or Psychology 231 and permission of instructor.
The purpose of this course is to provide the student with research experience with children/adolescents. Students will become familiar with the literature in a specific area, they will learn how to administer assessment tools, collect and analyze data and write a research paper using the APA format. Great emphasis is placed on refining writing skills as numerous drafts of the paper are encouraged. The final grade is based on class contribution, drafts of the paper and the final paper. The class typically meets twice a week and is writing intensive.
