Introduction to the scientific study of human behavior.
Presents information and the critical thinking/decision making methods and activities necessary for the exploration of careers in Psychology. Students learn life planning, career planning, and educational planning methods. The course requires students to develop their own plans and design an educational program.
Issues involved in adjusting to the problems of life and maintaining a psychologically healthy lifestyle.
The systematic analysis of interpersonal relationships is used to teach the skills and attitudes necessary for relationship development, maintenance, and repair. The acquisition of effective relationship skills and the communications styles that support them throughout various types of developmental stages and situations in modern life, will be emphasized.
The philosophical, theoretical, and empirical issues of psychology of gender. Issues include gender differences, stereotypes, androgyny, sexuality, health issues, achievement motivation, gender stereotypes, and violence. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010.
Biological basis of human & animal behavior, with emphasis upon sensory and nervous system processes underlying motivation, learning, perception, emotion, & abnormal behavior. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010.
Supervised participation in faculty research projects in various areas of psychology. Written report required at end of semester; oral report assigned at discretion of faculty supervisor. Prerequisite: Psych 1010 and permission of the instructor.
History, theory, principles, and content areas of consciousness examined from the perspective of information processing at various levels of awareness, including hypnosis, meditation, sleep and dreams, sensory deprivation, biofeedback, consciousness-altering drugs, and psi abilities.
Open to all students who meet the following requirements. Provides academic credit for on-the-job learning experience. Learning experiences will be specified in a learning contract. Grade and amount of credit will be determined by the department. Limited to two credit hours per semester and four credit hours counted toward the psychology major and minor from the following courses: Psych 2890, 4890, 4380 and 4390. Federal regulations restrict all Cooperative Work Experience to no more than six semester hours. Must be employed in a position that uses psychological training. By prior permission of instructor only. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010. May be repeated for up to four semester hours.
Consult the semester class schedule for the current offering under this number. The specific title and credit authorized will appear on the student transcript. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010.
Principles and theories of physiological, psychological, emotional, cognitive, personality and social child development and parent-child relations and developmental problems.
An overview of abnormal human behavior, its etiology, symptoms and treatment as seen by current psychological paradigms.
An overview of the etiology, diagnosis, developmental course, treatment, and prevention of disorders first evident in childhood and adolescence. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010.
This course examines the psychological issues associated with human diversity including culture, disabling conditions, gender, class, ethnicity, and others. It addresses the psychological principles underlying these issues and offers effective ways of dealing with these issues.
Principles and theories of physiological, psychological, emotional, cognitive, personality and social adolescent development and parent-adolescent relations and developmental problems.
Principles of behavioral conditioning and higher-order learning in humans and animals. Emphasizes the role of heredity, environment, and experiences in the acquisition and modification of behavior. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010.
Theories, content areas, research methods, measurement and practical applications in the psychology of motivation and emotion. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010.
Theory and principles of child intervention suitable for school and home settings. Techniques include cognitive, behavioral and other interventions Practical applications of these principles are central to the course. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010 or equivalent.
A survey of the major theories of personality. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010.
An empirically based survey of the effects of social influence on the basic psychological processes of individuals. Included are the individual in culture and society, the development of attitudes, and the impact of the group. Prerequiste: Psych SS1010.
Principles of cognition and thinking including attention, memory, concept learning, decision making, and problem solving. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010.
Principles to effective small group behavior. Awareness of group forces and pressures and development of insights into personal relationships.
Techniques of data collection and analysis for application to experimental research in Psychology. Prerequisite: Meet WSU Quantitative Literacy requirement.
Scientific methods of behavioral research. Emphasis upon design, conducting, and analysis of experiments on human and animal behavior as well as proposal writing and critiques of experimental literature. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010, 3600 or equivalent.
Basic Neuroanatomy and neurophysiology at a molecular level with emphasis on cell membranes, receptors, neurotransmitters, drug and hormonal actions. Analysis of motor and regulatory systems, cognitive processes of learning, memory and language. An emphasis on neural structures and functions relating to normal and abnormal behavior. Prerequisites: Psych 2730 or Zool 2100 or equivalent; or permission of instructor.
Sensory and perceptual processes whereby living organisms acquire information about the world through the sensory structures, and then select, organize and interpret that information. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010.
This course provides an in depth analysis of drugs on behavior. Topics include how drugs affect the brain, and consequently behavior, the underlying brain and environmental factors thought to be responsible for drug addiction, tolerance, and sensitivity, pharmacological treatment of major psychological disorders, the classification of common psychoactive drugs, and mechanisms of action of commonly abused drugs.
A senior level review of modern concepts in all the major areas of psychology. Designed to help a student prepare for the advanced part of the GRE in psychology. Strongly recommended for those who plan to teach psychology. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010.
Early philosophical origins and contributions to psychology; critical contrasts of systems and schools on major issues. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010. Recommended HU1010.
A didactic introduction to the major theories of counseling and therapy plus an introduction to the research findings associated with effectiveness of therapy and principles of behavioral change. Required prerequisite: Psych SS1010 and Psych 3010.
Provides skills and techniques for counselors, ministers, social workers, and other professionals who serve a helping function. Three hours of lecture and two hours of lab/week. Recommended prerequisite: Psych 4310 or equivalent and permission of the instructor.
Placement of students in state and community agencies for the purpose of providing supervised practice in application of counseling skills and knowledge. A maximum of four credit hours counted toward the psychology major and minor from the following courses: Psych 2890, 4890, 4380 and 4390. Prerequisites: If working with adults, Psych SS1010, 4310, 4340 and 4760 plus 8 additional hours in psychology and permission of the instructor; or if working with children, Psych SS1010, 3000, 3140, 3300 and eight additional hours in psychology and permission of the instructor.
The psychological aspects of the work setting including selection, training, motivation, attitudes, and the effects of the organization. Recommended prerequisite: Psych SS1010.
A comparison of humans and animals as to how they adapt and solve problems involving habitat selection, food, mating, communication, social bonding etc. Learning and instincts are evaluated in terms of their evolution, genetic and neurological basis. Some field work is involved. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010.
Survey of methods, techniques, and instruments for measuring individual differences in behavior, a critical analysis of representative tests, values and limitations of test, methods of test selection, lab experience with tests. Prerequisites: Psych SS1010, Psych SI3600 and Psych 3010.
Supervised projects and primary research in various areas of psychology. Limited to advanced students upon consent of psychology supervisor and department chair. A paper written in APA style and an oral report are required at the end of the semester. Prerequisite: Twenty hours of approved Psychology courses including Psychology 1010, 3600 (Statistics) and 3610 (Research Methods) or equivalent. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010.
Independent readings or secondary research on advanced special topics under the direction of a faculty member. For each hour of credit in a readings project the student is required to read 400 pages of journal articles or 1200 pages of book material. Repeatable for a maximum of 4 credit hours. A paper written in APA style and oral report are required at the end of the term. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010.
Open to all students. Provides academic credit for on-the-job learning experience. Learning experiences will be specified in a learning contract. Grade and amount of credit will be determined by the department. Limited to two credit hours per semester and four credit hours counted toward the psychology major and minor from the following courses: Psych 2890, 4890, 4380 and 4390. Federal regulations restrict all Cooperative Work Experience to no more than six semester hours. Must be employed in a position that uses psychological training. By prior permission of instructor only. Prerequisite: Psych SS1010. May be repeated for up to 4 semester hours.
An in-depth exploration of selected topics and issues in the discipline. Repeatable for a maximum of 6 hours. In some cases this course may substitute for one of the area requirements in areas 2-5 when the course has received prior approval of the department for that area. If a student wishes this substitution, they should ask if this approval has been made prior to taking the course. Post-Facto substitutions are not allowed.
A research project to be written by a senior student under the supervision of a faculty member. Successful completion of the research project will fulfill the capstone requirement of the major (as an alternative to Psych 4000 or 4090) and the senior project requirement for honors. The student must apply for acceptance into the course (applications available from the chair), and the research proposal and the final project must be approved by a faculty committee. It is expected that the course will be taken once for the writing and defense of a proposal and repeated for the writing and defense of the final project.
Consult the semester class schedule for the current offering under this number. The specific title and credit authorized will appear on the student transcript.
Readings and active discussions of selected psychological topics. Repeatable for up to a total of 2 hours.
Weber State University 2003-2004 Catalog