PSY 101 General Psychology
3 Semester Hours
This survey course explores the fundamental principles governing behavior and the research methods employed. Areas covered include the brain and behavior; sleep and dreaming; learning and memory; intelligence, thinking and reasoning; behavior in social and cultural contexts; theories of emotion, motivation and personality; and mental disorders and their treatment.
PSY 102 Psychology Skills and Careers Lab
1 Semester Hour
A hands-on introduction to skills employed in the study and practice of psychology. Topics include searching psychological literature data bases, oral presentation and supporting technology, APA publication style, and basic data management. Also included is a survey of graduate training, career choices and current trends in the field. Required for psychology majors. Recommended prior to other major course requirements.
PSY 204 Marriage and the Family
3 Semester Hours
A cross-cultural examination of contemporary family structures, PSY 204 emphasizes the relationships between husband-wife and parents-children. Students study various aspects of the family, including gender roles, values, religious influences, child-rearing practices, power structure, conflict within families, and the future of the family. Includes topics of mate selection, separation, divorce, remarriage, and stepfamilies. Prerequisite: SOC 201 or PSY 101.
PSY 210 Social Science Research Methods
3 Semester Hours
PSY 210 presents the basic principles of qualitative and quantitative research methods, including experimental studies, focus groups, interviews, and surveys. It addresses study design, implementation, interpretation, and presentation. Prerequisite: SOC 201 or PSY 101.
PSY 220 Abnormal Psychology
3 Semester Hours
Students in PSY 220 examine how social, psychological, and biological factors cause, maintain, or lessen abnormal behavior. They also study anxiety, mood, sexuality, personality, and eating disorders. Different modes of therapy and their foundations are examined. Prerequisites: PSY 101; PSY 210 is recommended
PSY 230 Life-span Development
3 Semester Hours
A survey of the major areas in human development from conception to death. The course is presented in a topical rather than chronological format, with equal emphasis on all stages of life. Topics include theories of development, research methods specific to the field, as well as an examination of biological, cognitive, social, personality, language emotional and moral development. Prerequisites: PSY 101; PSY 210 is recommended.
PSY 240 Social Psychology
3 Semester Hours
A study of individual behavior as a function of social situations. The course emphasizes theory, research, and applications. Topics include the self in relation to the environment, perceptions and attributions regarding others, stereotypes and prejudice, group processes, attitude formation and maintenance, conformity, attraction and close relationships, helping, and aggression. Prerequisite: PSY 101; PSY 210 is recommended.
PSY 250 Introduction to Basic Counseling Skills
3 Semester Hours
This course is designed to enhance students’ self-awareness so that they can be effective peer counselors. Emphasis is placed on self-observation as students are given opportunities to develop active listening and problem-solving skills. Students examine developmental and transitional issues commonly encountered by college students as well as guidelines for crisis management. Active participation is required.
PSY 260 Industrial/Organizational Psychology
3 Semester Hours
A survey of issues and research focused on the application of psychology to organizations and industry. Topics include personality and psychological factors in leadership, experimental methods and design, basic psychometric theory, the individual relative to organizations and organizational development, the employer and employee in regard to selection, satisfaction, training, motivation, teamwork and job analysis. Prerequisites: PSY 101; PSY 210 is recommended.
PSY 280 Psychology of Learning
3 Semester Hours
A study of the historical and current research, theory and conceptual foundations involved in the study of learning. Topics include classical conditioning and related processes, operant conditioning, reinforcement and related processes. Prerequisites: PSY 101; PSY 210 is recommended.
PSY 320 Therapeutic Principles and Practices
3 Semester Hours
A study of the theories and perspectives frequently applied to counseling and therapy. Topics include individual and group counseling, institutional settings, populations, and legal and ethical issues. Prerequisites: PSY 101 and PSY 210; PSY 220 is recommended.
PSY 330 Child Growth and Development
3 Semester Hours
PSY 330 follows developmental psychology through the stages of life: prenatal, infancy, and early, middle, and late childhood. It examines the relationship between theory and practice in the field of child development. Prerequisites: PSY 101 and PSY 210; PSY 230 is recommended.
PSY 335 Adolescent Growth and Development
3 Semester Hours
In this course, students encounter the field of adolescent psychology, which views this stage in relation to other life stages as well as in relation to society at large. PSY 335 also examines the relationship between theory and practice in the field of adolescent development. Prerequisites: PSY 101 and PSY 210; PSY 230 is recommended.
PSY 337 Adult Development and Aging
3 Semester Hours
An examination of the developmental issues that uniquely affect the adjustment and well-being of adults, and the elderly in later life. Topics include models of adult development, social and demographic influences, the aging body, health, perceptual and cognitive capacity and decline, personality, leisure, relationships, death and dying. Prerequisites: PSY 101 and PSY 210; PSY 230 is recommended.
PSY 340 Theories of Personality
3 semester hours
This course introduces students to personality by examining current and historic research within the context of a range of theories including psychoanalytic, behavioral, and humanistic. Topics will include personality, personality development, personality and health, personality disorders and therapy, and personality assessment. Equal attention is given to normal and abnormal theories. Prerequisites: PSY 101 and PSY 210.
PSY 345 Psychology of Gender
3 Semester Hours
A seminar discussing psychological and other literature that considers the personality and behavior of both women and men in the context of gender. Both men’s and women’s issues are covered with equal attention. Topics include the social constructivism of gender, equity in the workplace, victimization, biological factors and gender differences in personality and development, interpersonal relationships, cultural influences on gendered behavior, and childrearing practices. Prerequisites: PSY 101 and PSY 210; PSY 240 is recommended.
PSY 350 Human Sexuality
3 Semester Hours
A survey of the major areas of human sexuality. Topics include sexual and reproductive anatomy, the sexual response, sexually transmitted diseases, pregnancy, birth control and childbirth, gender identity and gender roles, sexual development, sexual behaviors and attitudes, love and relationships, sexual dysfunction, sexual disorders and sex therapy, sexual values, religion and sex, and effective communication about sex. Prerequisites: PSY 101 and PSY 210; and PSY 230 is recommended.
PSY 355 Sports Psychology
3 Semester Hours
This course reviews variables that enter the equation of sports performance and considers how to modify the ways they affect performance. It reviews how social interchange affects sport and changes the experience of sporting. Prerequisite: PSY 101.
PSY 360 Tests and Measures
3 Semester Hours
A survey of the origins of psychological testing, methodological principles, and the application of testing to ability, personality, and occupational assessment. Topics include norming, reliability, validity, and objective versus projective testing. Prerequisites: PSY 101; PSY 210, and MAT 141; PSY 260 is recommended
PSY 365 Personal and Group Environments
3 Semester Hours
Students are introduced to the concepts of Personal Ecology and Group Environments. Students will learn to identify their personal strengths using the personality framework described by Carl Jung and others and popularized by Isabel Myers and Katherine Briggs through the development of the Myers, Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). Students will learn to be active leaders in their own lives and in the lives of the groups in which they find themselves. Study, discussions, and experiences will focus on the nurturance and preservation of each individual’s personal eco system as it grows and develops. From this foundation, students will experience how to apply this knowledge as members and leaders of groups. Prerequisite: PSY 101 or permission of instructor.
PSY 370 Community and the Environment
3 Semester Hours
This course focuses on small and large group interaction and participation, management, and conflict resolution. This course is experiential in nature, and proposes that the most powerful learning about groups occurs within the environment of the group. Prerequisite: PSY 101 or permission of instructor.
PSY 380 Cognitive Psychology
3 Semester Hours
A study of the research methods, and findings related to cognitive functioning. Topics include memory and its associated processes, thought, perception, language, reasoning, problem solving, creativity and concept formation. Prerequisites: PSY 101 and PSY 210.
PSY 385 Sensation and Perception
3 Semester Hours
Examines the research methods, and findings related to our relationship with the physical environment. Topics include psychophysics, sensory systems and thresholds, perceptual abilities, principles of perceptual organization, illusions and hallucinations, and the phenomena related to those topics. Prerequisites: PSY 101 and PSY 210; PSY 280 is recommended.
PSY 390/490 Special Topics Seminars
Variable Credit
Special topics seminars encourage both reading of and reaction to texts around a major theme. Individual research and reports, team projects, and class discussions facilitate creativity and inquiry. Students engage in in-depth discussions, and a variety of perspectives are encouraged. Prerequisite: PSY 101.
PSY 395 Biological Basis of Behavior
3 Semester Hours
This course introduces students to the physiology of neural systems as it relates to significant psychological functions by examining major areas of research and data. Theories will be analyzed and compared using relevant data. Prerequisites: BIO 110, PSY 101 and PSY 210.
PSY 430 Directed Research
3-6 Semester Hours
This course is reserved for advanced students who have shown academic skill and scholarly activity beyond the typical undergraduate level, and who show clear promise for future contributions to the field of psychology. Prior to registration a faculty mentor must agree to supervise the project and meet with the student individually on a regular basis. A substantial and substantive paper or presentation of work is required. The course may be repeated in the case of demonstrable scope or depth. Prerequisite: Permission of faculty member and Chair of Social Sciences.
PSY 469 Internship in Psychology
3-12 Semester Hours
A faculty supervised field experience. Interns meet weekly with their peers and the faculty supervisor for the Internship Seminar (PSY 470). The internship is typically completed in the student’s final semester, and may be taken for 3 hours credit (one day per week on site) to 12 hours credit (4 days per week on site). Prerequisites: PSY 101, PSY 210, 2.0 GPA, and senior standing. Co-requisite: PSY 470.
PSY 470 Internship Seminar
3 Semester Hours
The internship seminar is designed to be an opportunity for students to see how concepts and methods in psychology are applied in different types of field work. This is accomplished through weekly presentations by/for their peers, writing assignments, case presentations and discussions. Field supervisors are invited to attend the seminar occasionally during the semester for their observations and discussion of issues. Students who will graduate without an internship may take the class as an elective, but are required to journal their participation in class meetings, and complete interviews of interns and their supervisors. Prerequisites: PSY 101, PSY 210, 2.0 GPA; and senior standing.
PSY 495 Senior Seminar: History, Systems and Contemporary Issues in Psychology
3 Semester Hours
This course includes a half-semester intensive study of the History and Systems of Psychology, and a half-semester examination of contemporary literature discussed in current publications of the American Psychological Association. Students become student affiliates of APA (a fee is required), and read, discuss and present materials concerning the state of the science and future directions. A public presentation of prior research or other work is required. Prerequisites: PSY 101, PSY 210, and senior standing. |