Psychology
PSY 101- Introduction to Psychology
- Describe research methods used in the study of psychology and use standard guidelines of the discipline to evaluate psychological research
- Explain how culture, social contexts and situational factors affect human behavior including one's own
- Identify ways that the brain and biology impact behavior
- Apply and differentiate major developmental and personality theories including the work of Freud, Erikson, Piaget, Skinner, Watson, Rogers and Bandura
- Identify psychological concepts related to: improving the ability to live psychologically healthy lives; resolving intercultural conflicts; and understanding psychological problems
PSY 108- Creative Thinking
- Define the nature of creativity and its relationship to other psychological concepts and cognitive processes
- Explain the significance of developing creative solutions
- Discuss creative thinking and creative problem solving from a variety of theoretical perspectives
- Evaluate how values, frames of reference, and codes of ethics influence problem solving and decision making
PSY 120- Child Psychology
- Provide examples of the three developmental domains of childhood: physical, cognitive, and social-emotional
- Apply key issues in the study of human development, such as nature-nurture, continuity-discontinuity, research designs, and ethical standards of conducting research
- Explain the characteristics of prenatal development, including possible positive and negative outcomes
- Compare and contrast major theoretical perspectives and theorists of child development, including Piaget, Erikson, Vygotsky, and Bronfenbrenner
- Apply cultural comparisons and contrasts which influence the lives of children and families, such as the role of attachment, individualism-collectivism, identity formation, education, parenting styles, health and wellness
- Identify significant developmental markers during infancy and childhood relating to typical and atypical development
PSY 121- Adolescent Psychology
- Compare and contrast major theoretical perspectives which attempt to explain the hows and whys of adolescent behavior
- Apply the scientific methodology to the study of adolescent behavior
- Identify examples of physical and psychological changes occurring during adolescence
- Describe risk factors of behaviors common during adolescence, including drug abuse, suicide, eating disorders and forms of treatment available
- Discuss psychosocial and cultural factors which influence adolescent behavior
PSY 122- Child Growth and Development
- Interview a Family about their prenatal care, family values and traditions, giving birth, and postnatal experiences and summarize their experiences in a five-page paper using predetermined prenatal terminology.
- Observe and interpret the results of two different age groups of children using the Running Record and Checklist Observation Tools and reflect by comparing and contrasting the two different tools.
- Recognize and know the signs and symptoms of child abuse and neglect, analyze a case study to determine if you would file a 51A be prepared to defend your decision based on established 51A criteria, and discuss how it is a moral and social responsibility to protect children and relevance of mandated reporter law.
- Discuss the Early Childhood Theorists and their role in child development by watching a child in a YouTube video then choosing two child development theorists as a basis to analyze the child's behavior.
PSY 123- Developmental Disabilities
- Analyze significant legislation in special education and community integration including IDEA, No Child Left Behind Act, and the Americans with Disabilities Act and discuss the impact of the legislation as it relates to practices, approaches, educational considerations, social responsibility, accommodations and treatment for a particular developmental disability.
- Reflect personal feelings on topics discussed in class related to developmental disabilities and evaluate the tools and strategies, which positively impact the child/student/individual's inclusion and acceptance.
- Identify community resources that assist individuals with disabilities and lists three team members working with child and roles of the team including family members and community professionals.
- Research a specific developmental disability and in a five-page paper identify assessment practices for children with disabilities.
- Demonstrate how the Developmental Disabilities course content can be used to assess career readiness and how it can be counted as professional development in a human services profession.
PSY 124- Human Growth and Lifespan Development
- Describe the physiological, biological, cognitive, and socioemotional changes that occur throughout the lifespan.
- Demonstrate a basic understanding of the different developmental psychological theories such as Piaget, Erikson, Kohlberg and Kubler-Ross.
- Assess and critically analyze these theoretical orientations.
- Identify and evaluate the extent to which environmental and genetic factors influence human growth and development.
- Evaluate the impact of culture, ethnicity and gender on human growth and development.
- Apply developmental psychology principles to daily life throughout the lifespan.
PSY 125- Psychology of Success
- Apply relevant psychological concepts and theories in areas such as motivation, learning, memory, positive psychology and college student development to better understand themselves and others
- Demonstrate greater personal responsibility, including more control over outcomes and experiences in college and in life
- Identify and change self-defeating patterns of behavior, thought, and emotions
- Develop a personal definition of and plan for success within the context of the larger world
PSY 127- Human Sexuality
- Recognize the diversity of human sexual behavior
- Categorize the major reproductive structures in males and females and identify their functions
- Articulate the major biological and psychosocial factors that contribute to our current understanding of gender identity, gender roles, and sexual orientation
- Describe the major methods of contraception currently available including risks and benefits
- Identify the major STIs and their major symptoms, complications, and epidemiology
- Explain the development of human sexuality throughout the lifespan
PSY 128- Cross-Cultural Psychology
- Increase cultural competence, including knowledge about different cultures and the thought and behavior patterns that are common in these cultures
- Describe the ways that culture, beliefs, values, the environment and behavior interact.
- Identify ethnocentrism in psychological thought, theory and research methods.
- Connect concepts covered in this course to those covered in other related courses.
- Improve written and oral communication skills
PSY 135- Windows on the World
- Examine five major factors (perception, cognition, attitudes, relationships and setting) which influence situations and behaviors.
- Apply social psychology theory to interpret literature, drama, and other areas within the humanities.
- Demonstrate integration of social psychology theory and humanities through papers and presentations.
PSY 138- Research Methods in Behavioral Sciences
- Articulate the value of the scientific method and evidence-based inquiry, as compared to other forms of inquiry
- Use scientific reasoning to interpret, design, conduct, and critique basic psychological research, using concepts such as: research design; reliability; validity; sampling; and, appropriate statistics and their graphical representation
- Apply the ethical principles that behavioral sciences use
- Demonstrate information literacy, including how to find psychology sources and how to evaluate the quality of the source and effectively summarize the information that is accessed
- Demonstrate competence in writing using APA style, including the ability to write a cogent scientific argument, present information using a scientific approach, and develop a research proposal
PSY 150- Abnormal Psychology
- Classify the different types of psychological disorders
- Differentiate between the Major Models of Abnormality and their approach to etiology and therapy
- Identify the signs of abnormal behavior
- Explain methods that are used to classify and evaluate psychological disorders
- Develop empathy for the mentally distressed
PSY 151- Psychology Of Personality
- Describe various assessment measures in research of the study of personality
- Compare and contrast major theoretical perspectives on personality through the application of theories to case studies or other examples
- Discuss the impact of outside forces on the development of personality
- Evaluate the advantages and limitations of the various theoretical perspectives in the study of personality
PSY 153- Community Psychology
- Identify the guiding principles and orienting concepts in community psychology
- Explain the principles of community mental health, its origins, and present applications
- Describe the effects of societal, cultural, and environmental influences on psychological and community well- being
- Apply community psychology principles to specific social problems identified in the community
- Utilize systems theory to explore the relationship between people and their environments and consider ways of improving this relationship
PSY 155- Positive Psychology
- Explain the main concepts and scope of positive psychology, including the three pillars in positive psychology
- Identify the major contributors in positive psychology
- Evaluate assessment measures and inventories developed by positive psychologists
- Apply the main dimensions and practices of well-being
- Critique the major research on the principles and practices of positive psychology
PSY 157- Cognitive Psychology
- Demonstrate an understanding of the major theories and approaches to understanding cognition.
- Explain basic principles of cognition, such as memory, attention, language, and decision making.
- Identify how cognition is affected by external environmental variables.
- Articulate some of the cognitive processes that occur in day-to-day life and how they affect behavior.
- Explain how cognitive psychology can be applied and integrated with other fields of psychology, such as clinical, physiological, developmental and learning.
PSY 160- Dynamics Of Interpersonal Relations I
- Identify verbal and non-verbal behaviors/communication and dynamics that arise in groups
- Differentiate between the stages of group development
- Employ neutral writing in clinical notes used in various human services agencies
- Apply appropriate considerations when working with diverse populations
PSY 162- Addictions and Treatment
- Identify and understand the medical, social, psychological, and economic impact of addictions on individuals, their families, the health care and criminal justice systems, and the general public.
- List and analyze the personal and monetary costs of addiction and various treatments in the United States and other countries. Compare and contrast the influence of family behaviors and cultures on addictive choices and behaviors.
- List and understand a minimum of five (5) treatment modalities and twenty (20) treatment interventions or techniques that are used in the addiction treatment field. All students will develop a treatment plan and demonstrate knowledge of the importance of a multi-faceted approach to treatment.
- Research and analyze the impact of changes in state and federal laws (such as marijuana laws) and the effects of social policy and attitudes towards specific addictions.
- Expand their knowledge of vocational options and future educational opportunities in the field of addictions treatment.
PSY 166- Brain and Behavior
- Identify the major anatomical landmarks of the human brain and the basic functions of each of the landmark areas
- Explain the ways in which neurons interact with each other, including both the electrical activity and neurotransmission
- Explain at both the subcortical and cortical levels the ways in which areas of the brain influence behavior and the ways in which the brain interprets input from the external world
- Discuss the methods used to investigate the brain's anatomy and physiology, acknowledging ethical concerns that face neuroscientists who use human participants or animal models
- Predict how damage to the anatomy or physiology of the nervous system would influence behavior and mental states
- Evaluate research in order to develop, and promote public awareness of, a neuroscientific explanation of a social problem
PSY 171- Social Psychology
- Explain key concepts in social psychology, such as: social cognition, social perception, the self, attitudes, stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination, interpersonal relationships, group dynamics, social influence, prosocial behavior and aggression, conformity, the self-serving bias, the fundamental attribution error, and cognitive dissonance
- Discuss the significance of historic and contemporary scientific research and methods used in this field, including ethical concerns and legal issues
- Explain the relationship between culture, social behavior, and social thinking that can directly and indirectly result in different behaviors and attributions about behavior
- Demonstrate comprehension of how various key social psychology themes, theories, and concepts apply to everyday living and current world problems
PSY 292- Asian Cultures: Honors Seminar
- Integrate the interrelatedness of Asian literature and social psychology.
- Analyze similarities and differences within and between various Asian and Western cultures.
- Interpret Asian literature, the arts and drama through a social psychology lens.
- Integrate the various threads of this course through writing and presentations.
- Write an honors-level research paper with academic sources and present at the annual Honors Research Conference.