Course Descriptions
BSS-B 130 Introduction to Behavioral & Social Sciences (3 cr)
Required for all Behavior & Social Science majors. Must be taken within the first 30 credit hours.
PSY-B 309 Cooperative Work Experience in Psychology (1-3 cr)
Experience in psychology-oriented work settings. Grade is determined on the basis of a written report and a supervisor's evaluation. May be repeated for a maximum of 6 credit hours. Offered yearly.
- Prerequisites: Consent of instructor and Junior or Senior standing
PSY-B 354 Adult Development and Aging (3 cr)
The course content examines changes which occur with age in the following areas: intelligence, memory, personality, sexuality, health, living environments, economics, developmental disorders, and treatment for developmental disorders. Credit not given for both B354 and P363. Offered as needed.
- Prerequisites: P216 or equivalent or consent of instructor
PSY-B 362 Practicum in Child Psychology (3 cr)
Experience in working with children in field settings. May be repeated once for credit. Offered as needed.
- Prerequisites: P316 and consent of instructor
PSY-B 374 Group Dynamics, Theory and Research (3 cr)
An intensive survey of research and theory on the behavior of small groups and the research methods by which groups are studied. Offered as needed.
- Prerequisites: P103 or equivalent or consent of instructor
PSY-K 300 Statistical Techniques (3 cr)
Introduction to statistics; the nature of statistical data; ordering and manipulation of data; measures of central tendency and dispersion; elementary probability. Concepts of statistical inference and decision; estimation and hypothesis testing. Special topics include regression and correlation, analysis of variance, non-parametric methods. Credit not given for both K300 and K310. Offered Spring Semester.
- Prerequisites: P211 and 100 level math course
PSY-P 103 General Psychology (3 cr)
Introduction to psychology: its methods, data, and theoretical interpretations in areas of learning, sensory psychology, psychophysiology, individual differences, personality, development, abnormal and social psychology. May not be taken by students who have previously taken P101 or P102. Offered every semester.
- Prerequisites: None
PSY-P 211 Methods of Experimental Psychology (3 cr)
Design and execution of simple experiments, treatment of results, search of the literature, and preparation of experimental reports. Offered Fall Semester.
- Prerequisites: P103 or equivalent or consent of instructor
PSY-P 216 Life Span Development (3 cr)
A survey course of human development from infancy through old age, emphasizing the life span perspective of development. Classical stage theorists, current popular conception, major research findings, and implications for all life stages from birth to death.
- Prerequisites: P103 or equivalent or consent of instructor
PSY-P 233 Industrial Psychology (3 cr)
Application of psychological principles and research techniques to industrial and personnel problems, including selection, training efficiency, safety, and design of equipment. Offered as needed.
- Prerequisites: P103 or equivalent or consent of instructor
PSY-P 280 Psychology Applied to Teaching (1-6 cr)
The study and application of psychological concepts and principles are related to the teaching-learning process. Offered as needed.
- Prerequisites: None
PSY-P 316 Psychology of Childhood and Adolescence (3 cr)
Development of behavior in infancy, childhood, and youth; factors which influence behavior. Offered as needed.
- Prerequisites: P103 or equivalent
PSY-P 319 Psychology of Personality (3 cr)
Methods and results of scientific study of personality. Basic concepts of personality traits and their measurements; developmental influences; problems of integration. Offered every Fall.
- Prerequisites: P103 or equivalent
PSY-P 320 Social Psychology (3 cr)
Principles of scientific psychology applied to individual in social situation. Offered every Spring.
PSY-P 322 Psychology in the Courtroom (3 cr)
This course considers the psychological aspects of roles and interactions in the courtroom. Topics include: definitions of "sanity" and "competency", eyewitness testimony, jury selection, instructions, and the role of psychologists as "expert witnesses" and jury selection consultants. Offered as needed.
PSY-P 324 Abnormal Psychology (3 cr)
Emphasis on forms of abnormal behavior, etiology, development, interpretation, and final manifestations. Offered every Spring.
- Prerequisites: P103 or equivalent
PSY-P 325 Psychology of Learning (3 cr)
Facts and principles of human and animal learning especially as treated in theories attempting to provide framework for understanding what learning is and how it takes place. Offered every other year.
PSY-P 326 Behavioral Neuroscience (3 cr)
Central nervous system function in relation to sensory processes, motivation, and learning. Offered every other year.
- Prerequisites: P103 or equivalent and an introductory biology course
PSY-P 327 Psychology of Motivation (3 cr)
How needs, desires, and incentives influence behavior; research on motivational processes in human and animal behavior, including ways in which motives change and develop. Offered as needed.
- Prerequisites: P103 or equivalent
PSY-P 329 Sensation and Perception (3 cr)
Basic data, theories, psychophysics, illusions, and other topics fundamental to understanding sensory and perceptual processes. Offered every other year.
PSY-P 335 Cognitive Psychology (3 cr)
Introduction to human cognitive processes including attention and perception, memory, psycholinguistics, problem-solving, and thinking. Offered every other year.
PSY-P 336 Psychological Tests and Individual Differences (3 cr)
Principles of psychological testing. Representative tests and their uses for evaluation and prediction. Emphasis on concepts of reliability, validity, standardization, norms, and item analysis. Offered every other year.
PSY-P 390 Special Topics in Psychology (1-3 cr)
Topics vary with instructor and semester. May be repeated once for credit. Offered as needed.
- Prerequisites: P103 or equivalent or consent of instructor
PSY-P 425 Behavior Disorders of Childhood and Adolescence (3 cr)
A survey of major behavior disorders, with emphasis on empirical research and clinical description relative to etiology, assessment, prognosis and treatment. Offered as needed.
PSY-P 450 Human Factors (3 cr)
instructor.. Theories and data of experimental psychology applied to the problems of the interaction of people and technology in the workplace. Offered as needed.
- Prerequisites: P103 or equivalent or consent o
PSY-P 457 Topics in Psychology (1-3 cr)
Studies in special topics not ordinarily covered in other departmental courses. Topics vary with instructor and semester. May be repeated once for credit if topic differs. Offered as needed.
- Prerequisites: P103 or equivalent and Junior or senior standing
PSY-P 459 History and Systems of Psychology (3 cr)
Historical background and critical evaluation of major theoretical systems of modern psychology: Structuralism, functionalism, associationism, behaviorism, Gestalt psychology, and psychoanalysis. Methodological problems of theory construction and system making. Offered as needed.
- Prerequisites: P103 or equivalent and 6 hours of psychology courses or consent of instructor
PSY-P 462 Field Experiences in Human Development (3 cr)
Supervised fieldwork experience with persons of all ages in community settings. Intended as a laboratory for students to integrate human development theory with practice. Offered Spring Semester.
PSY-P 493 Supervised Research I (2-3 cr)
Active participation in research. An independent experiment of modest magnitude, participation in ongoing research in a single laboratory. Students who enroll in P493 will be expected to enroll in P494. Offered as needed.
- Prerequisites: P103 or equivalent or consent of instructor
PSY-P 494 Supervised Research II (2-3 cr)
A continuation of P493. Course will include a journal-type report of the two semesters of work. Offered as needed.
- Prerequisites: P493
PSY-P 495 Reading and Research in Psychology (1-3 cr)
Offered as needed.
- Prerequisites: Consent of instructor and junior or senior standing
PSY-S 330 Computerized Statistical Analysis
Taken concurrently with PSY K300. Use of the computer for statistical analyses, including how to enter data, perform analyses, and interpret the resulting computer output. Offered spring semesters.
- Prerequisites: G100 or equivalent; or consent of instructor
