Psychology
Department of Psychology
Jane Berry, Chair
Professors Allison, Kinsley, Li, Newcomb
Associate Professors Bagwell, Berry, Crawford
Assistant Professors Bukach, Burnette, Lindgren
Clinical Assistant Professors Churchill, LeViness, Stott
The Department of Psychology offers a rigorous, graduated curriculum that combines the highest expectations of achievement in an environment rich in opportunities for intellectual stimulation and growth. Our primary mission is to provide an academic setting for students to become knowledgeable, skilled, reflective, and highly accomplished, preparing them to excel in the best graduate and professional schools and in the most competitive, creative employment contexts. We prepare students to lead productive lives characterized by an inquiring attitude, engagement in the life of mind, and immersion in the larger community. Our faculty are dedicated to excellence in teaching and scholarship, and seek to cultivate in students a love of learning and involvement in their academic community by providing multi-layered mentoring opportunities. The department strives to educate and train its students to reach their potential.
The psychology faculty believe that education is as much an activity as it is a body of knowledge. As professors, we embrace pedagogical approaches that emphasize the scientific method; curiosity about the world and its phenomena; intellectual challenge and complexity; familiarity with primary source materials; interactive and collaborative learning; critical and analytical thinking; mastery in oral and written expression and communication; and the historical and philosophical foundations of psychological science. We value psychology's connections in the arts, humanities, and sciences; we teach professional ethics; we embrace diverse perspectives and individual differences; and we promote student involvement in local and international culture, community, and society. These curricular emphases reflect our educational goals and aspirations. They represent directions for fostering, challenging, and strengthening our students' intellectual experience, and they pervade all levels of our curriculum, from the introductory to the most advanced. Collaborative research pursuits between faculty and students are the centerpiece of the psychology major.
The Psychology Major
Note: The grade point average of the department-specific and related-area coursework comprising the major must be no less than 2.00 with no course grade below C- (1.7).
For the Bachelor of Arts degree
10 units, including
PSYC 100 Introduction to Psychological Science
PSYC 200 Methods and Analyses
PSYC 299 Integrated Topics
One course from PSYC 310-329
One course from PSYC 330-349
One additional course from PSYC 310-349
One course in the 433-449 series
Three electives at the 300 or 400 level
For the Bachelor of Science degree
14 units, including
PSYC 100 Introduction to Psychological Science
PSYC 200 Methods and Analyses
PSYC 299 Integrated Topics
One course from PSYC 310-329
One course from PSYC 330-349
One additional course from PSYC 310-349
One course in the 433-449 series
Three electives at the 300 or 400 level
MATH 211 or 231 Calculus I
MATH 212 or 232 Calculus II
One unit, chosen from
- MATH 235 Multivariate Calculus
- MATH 245 Linear Algebra
- MATH 312 Differential Equations
- CMSC 150 Introduction to Computing
- CMSC 155 Introduction to Scientific Computing
One unit, chosen from
- BIOL 201 Genetics
- CHEM 141 Introductory Chemistry: Structure, Dynamics and Synthesis
- PHYS 127-128 General Physics I and II
- PHYS 131-132 General Physics with Calculus I and II
Note: No more than one unit of Psychology 299 may be applied to the 10 units required in psychology. No more than one unit of internship and two units of Psychology 361 may be applied to the major.
The Senior Capstone Experience
The department's senior capstone experience is intended to provide psychology majors with an intensive and integrative experience in psychology to culminate their undergraduate careers.
Students pursuing either the Bachelor of Arts or the Bachelor of Science degree must choose one of three Senior Capstone options:
Option 1
- Advanced seminar. One course in the Psychology 433-449 series to be taken during the fall or spring semester of the student's senior year.
Option 2
- Senior research and one advanced seminar. One course in the Psychology 433-449 series to be taken during the fall or spring semester of the student's senior year, and collaboration with a faculty member on a year-long senior research project in 461 and 462 courses.
Option 3
- Senior honors research and two advanced seminars. One course in the Psychology 433-449 series to be taken during the fall semester of the student's senior year, a second course from this series to be taken during spring of the senior year, and collaboration with a faculty member on a year-long senior honors research project in 491 and 492 courses.
Related Fields
The Psychology Minor
Note: The grade point average of the coursework comprising the minor must be no less than 2.00 with no course grade below C- (1.7).
7 units, including
PSYC 100 Introduction to Psychological Science
PSYC 200 Methods and Analyses
PSYC 299 Integrated Topics
One course from PSYC 310-329
One course from PSYC 330-349
One additional course from PSYC 310-349
One elective at the 300 or 400 level
Study Abroad
Psychology majors are encouraged to take advantage of study abroad. The key to successful integration of a study abroad experience with a psychology major is early and careful planning with the student's advisor and department chair. In most cases students will want to have their final three semesters on campus. Therefore, if a student anticipates participating in a study abroad program, the best times to be away are the sophomore year, the first semester of the junior year, or during a summer.
Honors Program
Students invited into the honors program may earn honors in psychology by completing the following requirements:
- Two courses from PSYC 433-449 series;
- PSYC 491;
- PSYC 492
Courses
PSYC
100 Introduction to Psychological Science
Overview of the study of human behavior, with emphasis on scientific reasoning and the technological skills involved in the process of conducting psychological research and understanding human behavior. Three lecture and two laboratory hours per week.
General Education Requirement: (FSSA)
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
200 Methods and Analyses
Introduction to research methods and statistical procedures in psychological science. Emphasis on mastering fundamental scientific, reasoning, and technological skills associated with literature review, research design, experimental manipulation, data collection, data analysis, data graphics, data interpretation, data presentation, and scientific writing. Three lecture and 1.5 laboratory hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 100 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
249 Special Topics
Special course offerings to explore specific directions within subdiscipline of psychology. May be repeated for credit when topic varies.
Prerequisite(s): Stated when course is offered.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
299 Integrated Topics
Courses that provide an integrative perspective of psychological theories, issues, and research across two or more disciplinary (or subdisciplinary) contexts. This course may not be repeated for credit.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 100 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
300 History and Systems of Psychology
History of psychology and of major schools of thought and their viewpoints. Recommended for majors who are planning to attend graduate school in psychology.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 299.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
311 Child Development
Critical examination of research and theory on developmental changes and processes from prenatal through preadolescent periods. Emphasis on theoretical and empirical work on social, emotional, and cognitive development and on various developmental contexts. Includes an intensive laboratory experience focusing on conceptual, methodological, and analytical skills employed in the study of child development. Three lecture and 1.5 laboratory hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
313 Social Psychology
Critical overview of current theory and research in social psychology, with emphasis on conceptual and empirical work on social inference, stereotyping, self processes, social influence, affective processes, attraction, interpersonal processes, altruism, aggression, and group dynamics. Includes
an intensive laboratory component focusing on conceptual, methodological, and analytical skills associated with social psychological inquiry. Three lecture and 1.5 laboratory hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
315 Adult Development
Critical examination of changes and stability in behavior from late adolescence through advanced old age, including perception, intelligence, memory, personality, emotion, social networks, death/dying, creativity, and wisdom. Emphasis on theory, research, and applications in class with intensive laboratory component. Three lecture and 1.5 laboratory hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
317 Applied Social Psychology
Critical overview of theory and research in applied social psychology. Emphasis will be on applications of experimental behavioral science to societal, institutional, and personal well-being (e.g., inequality, conservation, interpersonal processes, jury deliberation, health). Includes an intensive laboratory component focusing on conceptual, methodological, and analytical skills associated with the study of applied social psychology.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
319 Psychopathology
Critical examination of research and theory in psychopathology and behavior disorders including the phenomenology, etiology, assessment, and treatment of major forms of psychological disorders. Emphasis on an integrative approach incorporating clinical, developmental, biological, and sociocultural perspectives. Intensive co-requisite laboratory experience focused on conceptual, methodological, and analytical skills used in clinical psychology and investigation of psychopathology and behavior disorders. Three lecture and 1.5 laboratory hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
321 The Psychology of Organizations
Critical examination of major theoretical orientations and methodological approaches that bridge the fields of social psychology and organizational behavior. Topics include information processing, decision making, social influence, leadership, and group dynamics. Intensive laboratory experience focusing on methodological, statistical, and computing skills associated with theory and research on the psychology of organizations. Three lecture and 1.5 laboratory hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
331 Behavioral Neuroscience
Focus on the neural regulation of behavior, from animal to human. Intensive lab component with techniques and approaches used in design, execution, and analysis of research in behavioral neuroscience. Three lecture and 1.5 laboratory hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
333 Cognitive Science
Examines interdisciplinary studies of knowledge representation, information processing, and learning using theories and methods drawn from psychology, computer science, linguistics, philosophy, and neuroscience. Intensive lab component involving techniques used in computer simulation, experimental program design, and data processing and analysis in interdisciplinary study of cognition. Three lecture and 1.5 laboratory hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
341 Cognitive Neuroscience
Critically examines what brain injury and cognitive deficits can tell us about the relationship between brain and behavior. Covers the functional anatomy of the major cognitive systems, including action, object recognition, attention, memory, language, emotion, and executive function. Includes an intensive laboratory experience focusing on research skills employed in the field of cognitive neuroscience. Three lecture hours and 1.5 lab hours a week.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
350 Selfhood
Critical examination of nature, function, and development of the human self. Emphasis on the dynamic, open-ended qualities of the healthy, normal self, and on the construction of self-identity, especially in relationship to one's sense of meaning in life.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
351 Religion and Psychology
For millennia, religion and psychology have addressed issues pertaining to the nature and functioning of the human soul (anima) or mind (psyche). Will explore some of the intertwined history of religion and psychology, including some of the religious underpinnings of modern psychology, as well as the psychological foundations of religious experience, doctrine, ritual, and belief. Emphasis on the psychology of religions. (Same as Religion 364.)
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
352 Choice and Decision Making
Critical examination of theories, concepts, and applications in the areas of human choice, judgment, and decision-making. Rational models of choice will be compared and contrasted with strategies that typify human behavior. Also focuses on applications of theoretical concepts to a variety of choices in everyday life as well as to major life decisions.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
353 Mental Health and Policy
Integrates the study of mental health care and policy in the United States from the early 20th century to the present and the etiology of major mental health problems and their treatments. The policy portion of the course will focus on the effects that changes in financing programs and health insurance have had in shaping mental health policy, the types and patterns of treatment, the expansion of concepts of mental illness, and the changing nature of mental health advocacy and ideology. The clinical portion of the course will be based on a biopsychosocial model of mental health and will thus encourage students to think critically about how biological, psychological, and contextual factors interact to produce mental disorders and how different treatment approaches must then address these complex causal factors.
Prerequisite(s): (PSYC 100 and PSYC 200) or PLSC 260
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
359 Special Topics
Special course offerings to explore specific direction within subdisciplinary area of psychology. May be repeated for credit when topics vary.
Prerequisite(s): Stated when course is offered.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
361 Independent Research
Individual research conducted in collaboration with faculty. Note: No more than 2 units may count toward a psychology major.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better and permission of supervising instructor prior to registration.
Unit(s): .5-1
PSYC
377 Advanced Research Seminar
Critical overview of major subdisciplinary fields of specialization in psychological science, with emphasis on the research enterprise. Emphasis on developing a viable research proposal grounded in historical, philosophical, and empirical foundations related to research question. Open to advanced sophomores and juniors.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 and 299.
Unit(s): .5-1
PSYC
388 Individual Internship
Supervised independent work in field setting designed to give student applied experience after completion of appropriate coursework in psychology. Requires consultation with and approval by department chair. No more than 1 unit of internship in any one department and 3.5 units of internship overall may be counted toward required degree units. Available as pass/fail only.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 299 appropriate to the internship setting.
Unit(s): .5-1
PSYC
433 Multivariate Statistics
Multiple variable research design and applied multivariate analyses, including, but not limited to multiple regression, factor analysis, structural equation modeling, hierarchical linear modeling, and multivariate analysis of variance.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
435 Advanced Personality and Social Psychology
Critical examination of theory and research associated with interface between personality and social psychology.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
436 Developmental Psychopathology
Intensive analysis of description, etiology, and development of individual patterns of behavioral maladaptation in childhood and adolescence with critical evaluation of child and family treatment approaches.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
437 Psychology in American Society and Culture
Critical examination of the ways in which American society and culture have influenced the development of modern psychology, and the reciprocal influence of modern psychology upon the social practices and cultural norms of the United States. (Same as History 303.)
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
438 Group Processes
In-depth analysis of psychology of group formation, group conflict, group decision making, and intergroup relations. Emphasis on critical analysis of current theory and research on collective phenomena.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
439 Psychoneuroendocrinology
A treatment of the neuroendocrine regulation of brain and behavior.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
440 Advanced Neuroscience
Advanced interdisciplinary examination of field of neuroscience, including biochemistry of the neuron, biology of the brain, and creation of psychology out of nervous tissue.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
441 Clinical Neuroscience
Examination of ways in which brain function is modified to create symptomotology and syndromes that comprise clinical topics in psychology. The contrast between so-called psychological and biological bases of disorder is considered.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
442 The Neurobiology of Relationships
Examination of complex array of behaviors that animals display toward each other from the perspective of evolutionary pressures that shaped extant neurobiology. Focus on inextricable link between human and animal origins.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
443 Cross-Cultural Psychopathology
Critical examination of the extent to which the etiology and manifestation of mental disorders are affected by society and culture. The proposition that mental disorders prevalent within a particular culture shed light on the value structure and preoccupations of that culture is considered.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
444 Clinical Case Studies
Intensive seminar that examines select clinical case studies and their contributions to our understanding of brain-behavior relationships. Special emphasis will be placed on the power and limits of the double dissociation methodology: contrasting patients with opposing patterns of deficits.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
446 Memory: Mind, Matter, Maturity
Intensive analysis of developmental, psychological, and biological aspects of memory across the life span. Emphasis on normal memory development with some attention to special cases, e.g., Alzheimer's and other dementias. Memory in science, literature, society, and film examined.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
449 Advanced Seminar
Intensive seminar intended for seniors and advanced juniors, based on faculty expertise and research specializations, and offered regularly in fall and spring semesters for capstone requirement.
Prerequisite(s): Psychology 200 with a grade of C- or better.
Unit(s): 1
PSYC
461-462 Senior Research
Intensive year-long research project for seniors, requiring conception, completion, and presentation of a research thesis under faculty mentorship.
Unit(s): 1-1
PSYC
491-492 Senior Honors
Intensive year-long research project for seniors who meet requirements for University and department honors programs, requiring conception, completion, and presentation of senior honors thesis under faculty mentorship.
Prerequisite(s): Departmental invitation.
Unit(s): 1-1
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