Minor in Psychology

Provides a broad, general introduction to psychology--the scientific study of behavior and mental processes. This course includes such topics as memory, learning, the study of the nervous system, psychological disorders and therapy, sexuality, attitudes, conformity, persuasion, and motivation. Students gain an increased awareness of the broad range of phenomena investigated by psychologists and a greater ability to understand and critique psychological research. Prerequisites: GE105. Co-requisites: GE106. Credits: 3

Introduces students to the scientific study of the way people think about, feel, and behave in social situations. It involves understanding of how people influence and are influenced by others around them. The topics covered will examine how individuals perceive themselves and others, how individuals interact with others, and how individuals think in social settings. The primary goal of this course is to provide students with an understanding of the perspectives, research methods, and empirical findings of social psychology. An equally important goal will be to develop critical and integrative ways of thinking about theory and research in social psychology. Prerequisites: GE105, GE106. Credits: 3

Equips the entry-level clinician with an understanding of the variety of ethical dilemmas faced in clinical psychology. Students will learn an ethical paradigm with which effective counseling can be practiced. Students will study legal precedents that have been established in the clinical field. This course will stimulate students’ self-awareness of personal, values, and multicultural issues concerning ethical decision making. Prerequisite(s): GE105; Co-requisites: GE106 Credits: 3

Focuses on the basic principles associated with human cognition exploring such topics as perception, attention, memory, knowledge, problem solving, reasoning and language comprehension and production. The course guides students in an exploration of what is known about cognitive psychology, how it was discovered, and what is still left to be discovered. Upon completion of the course, students understand related cognitive theories and how the scientific method works within the context of cognitive psychology and are able to appreciate how research and theory in cognitive psychology have been applied to real-world problems. Prerequisites: GE105, GE106. Credits: 3

The aim of the course is to introduce students to the field of Forensic Psychology by dealing with many different domains of the subject. The student will obtain an understanding of inventories, procedures, case conceptualizations and interventions based on Forensic Psychology theory and practice. Students will be able to gain knowledge on a wide range of subjects which will be addressed by discussing theory and then going on into skills’ practice. The course is structured in a manner which will give the students the opportunity to work on their practical and critical skills. The whole course will be focused on how theory is embedded in practice and case performance. Prerequisite(s): GE105, GE106. Credits: 3

Provides a broad introduction to the key theories of personality, including the perspectives of psychoanalytic/psychodynamic, social/life-span, humanistic, and cognitive/behavioral. The course draws attention to significant contemporary movements, such as positive psychology and cross-cultural psychology, and their application in the study of personality theories. The course is designed to help students understand various historical issues and controversies to date, what research has shown, and what difficulties are encountered in trying to form a comprehensive understanding of human personality. Prerequisites: GE105, GE106 Credits: 3

Provides students with a broad overview of the theory, research and practice of health psychology and behavioral medicine, with an emphasis on the prevention and modification of health compromising behaviors. The class will also address the psychological management of stress, pain and chronic/terminal illness as well as effective interventions for specific health behaviors and disorders.
Prerequisites: GE105, GE106 Credits: 3

Surveys the history and various theoretical approaches to the study of learning and behavior modification, and the basic and applied research from which current behavior modification techniques have been derived. The course addresses theoretical and ethical issues raised by application of these approaches. Topics include positive control, aversive control, stimulus control, symbolic control of behavior, classical and operant conditioning, modeling, cognitive principles and behavioral and cognitive interventions. Students learn applied behavior modification techniques including: observing and recording behavior and formulating and writing behavioral objectives. This course also includes an examination of motivation, attitude formation and cognitive intervention approaches. Prerequisites: GE105, GE106, PSY150, PSY200, PSY320. Credits: 3