Psychology (PSYC)
40 Hour Community Service.
Fundamental principles of human behavior; history of psychology; research methods; the nervous system; learning; memory; personality; psychological disorders; therapy; social behavior; careers in psychology.
Psychological development from conception through end of life. Consideration of developmental processes, theories, issues, and relevant research. This course cannot be used to fulfill any requirements in the Psychology major.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. Individual behavior in a social context; attitudes; social influence; attribution; prejudice and discrimination; prosocial behavior and aggression.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. Various models of psychopathology, history of abnormal psychology, psychological disorders: their causes, and therapies.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. Psychological development from conception through childhood. Consideration of developmental processes, theories, issues, and relevant research.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. Theories of, and research on, personality, social, physical, and intellectual characteristics from adolescence to young adulthood.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. Theories and research in aging, changes in personality, intellectual abilities, cognitive capacities, and physical capabilities from adulthood to death.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. Personality structure, dynamics, development, and methods of research.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. Survey of empirical findings and theoretical issues in the analysis of learning and motivation and their interaction in the determination of behavior.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. Introduction to descriptive and inferential statistical methods, including basic ANOVA and simple regression. Experience includes problem solving, technical writing, and use of computer statistical package (SPSS).
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. The study of human information processing, including pattern recognition, attention, memory, language, problem solving, and decision making.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. Exploration of biological bases of behavior and neurological correlates of psychological events.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. Introduction to neural models of cognitive processes emphasizing the relations between neural organization and observations of cognitive functioning.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. Exploration of psychological issues surrounding health, illness, and medical care. Social psychological perspectives are applied to such topics as stress-related diseases, exercise adherence, and doctor-patient interactions.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100 and PSYC 201 or PSYC 211 or PSYC 242. Examination of criminal behavior from a psychological perspective, including causes of criminal behavior, the criminal personality, the relationship between psychology and law, how psychology is applied to legal situations, rehabilitation, and the prediction of dangerousness.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. Introduction to major areas of investigation concerning human sexuality, including anatomy, physiology, culture, behavior, sexual health, sexual violence, dysfunctions, and therapy.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. Impact of sex and gender on the female experience--individual, interpersonal, and institutional. Includes work, physical and mental health, physical and cognitive ability, social status and empowerment, ethnicity, and sexuality.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. Introduction to the field of positive psychology theory and research. Topics will include positive emotions, character strengths, and research-based techniques to enhance well-being that allow individuals and communities to thrive.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100 and one of the following: PYSC 201, PSYC 211 or PSYC 242. An exploration of the role that culture plays in the experiences of both individuals and social groups grounded in psychological theory and research. Identity in the context of societal power, privilege, and marginalization will be explored as will applications to a variety of contexts beyond the classroom.
Prerequisite: PSYC 261A with a minimum grade of C-. Introduction to advanced statistical methods, including ANOVA models, a priori and post hoc tests, and multiple regression. Particular emphasis on quasi-experimental and correlational methods, as well as data entry, analysis using SPSS, and presentation.
Prerequisite: PSYC 261 with a minimum grade of C-. An introduction to diverse methods commonly used in psychological research including experimental, quasi-experimental, observational, and correlational methods. The class will emphasize the ethics of research, and students will explore both research design and research ethics through exploration and evaluation of research published in peer-reviewed journals.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100. Study of processing of environmental energy by the sensory systems (visual, auditory, somatosensory, olfactory, and gustatory), as well as the higher-order processing of activity in those systems, from psychophysical, physiological, and behavioral perspectives.
Prerequisite: MGMT 301. Behavioral aspects of organizations, presenting concepts, theories, research, and research techniques applicable to people in organizations. Topics include personnel selection and placement, job and work environments, worker motivation, job satisfaction, and the organizational and social context of human work. Cross-listed with MGMT 345.
Prerequisites: Twelve hours in Psychology and either PSYC 253 or PSYC 320, and acceptance into the UMW-NECC program. This course will provide an introduction to key concepts, methods, and ethical considerations associated with behavioral assessment. Course objectives will include teaching students to distinguish between idiographic and norm-referenced assessment approaches, to conduct pertinent behavioral assessments (preference assessments, functional assessments, and skills assessments), and to incorporate assessment outcomes with treatment selection and design in accordance with contemporary best practices in the field of applied behavior analysis. Course available only to UMW students enrolled in the UMW-NECC cooperative program at the New England Center for Children.
Prerequisites: Twelve hours in Psychology and either PSYC 253 or PSYC 320, and acceptance into the UMW-NECC program. This course will orient students to the concepts, processes, and scientific principles of behavior on which the field of applied behavior analysis was founded. Topics of study will include the history and defining features of applied behavior analysis as well as the role of basic principles in producing socially meaningful behavior change (positive and negative reinforcement, punishment, discriminative control of behavior, and motivating operations). Course available only to UMW students enrolled in the UMW-NECC cooperative program at the New England Center for Children.
Prerequisites: Twelve hours in Psychology and either PSYC 253 or PSYC 320, and acceptance into the UMW-NECC program. This course will prepare students to identify, implement, and maintain effective behavioral interventions in applied settings. Specific objectives will include teaching students to select and implement function-based interventions for the reduction of problem behaviors, skills-based prevention strategies, and a variety of behavioral teaching tactics. Tactics for promoting procedural integrity and facilitating the generalization and maintenance of treatment effects will also be reviewed. Course available only to UMW students enrolled in the UMW-NECC cooperative program at the New England Center for Children.
Prerequisites: Twelve hours in Psychology and either PSYC 253 or PSYC 320, and acceptance into the UMW-NECC program. This course will equip students with skills needed to confirm the clinical efficacy of interventions by subjecting them to experimental evaluation using single subject designs. Students will learn to develop valid and reliable systems for measuring behavior, to display data using popular and accessible graphing software, and to assess for orderly changes in behavior through visual inspection and interpretation of graphic data. Course available only to UMW students enrolled in the UMW-NECC cooperative program at the New England Center for Children.
Prerequisites: Twelve hours in Psychology and either PSYC 253 or PSYC 320, and acceptance into the UMW-NECC program. This course will provide students with a comprehensive review of empirically-supported behavioral teaching procedures for individuals with autism and related disabilities. Topics will focus on teaching skills in a variety of content areas such as language, social, and self-help. Procedures for teaching these include, match-to-sample discrimination training, task analysis, as well as prompting procedures including prompt fading and video modeling. Course available only to UMW students enrolled in the UMW-NECC cooperative program at the New England Center for Children.
Prerequisite: PSYC 100 and courses specified by instructor. Seminar on enduring and/or contemporary issues in psychology. Different topics in different semesters. May be repeated with different topics.
Prerequisites: PSYC 100 and courses specified by instructor. Enduring and/or contemporary issues in psychology. Different topics in different semesters. May be repeated with different topics.
Prerequisite: Junior standing and 12 hours in psychology beyond PSYC 100. Supervised off-campus experience. Maximum of three credits toward the major program.