This course treats psychology as a science and a profession, emphasizing scientific theories, empirical research, and their applications. We begin with the development of psychology as a discipline devoted to answering centuries-old questions about human nature and behavior. We cover traditional fields of psychology including biological psychology, sensation and perception, learning and motivation, cognition, emotion, child development, personality, psychopathology, psychotherapy, social psychology, and applied psychology.

 

Format
The instructor lectures during one class meeting each week. The other class is devoted to student research projects, in-class experiments and demonstrations, videos, and exams. Students are expected to read the assigned chapters prior to class. They also take a midterm and final exam, both of which consist of multiple choice and open essay questions.