Admission & Financial Aid

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Regulations & Requirements

Regulations & Requirements

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Amherst College Courses

Amherst College Courses

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Psychology

Professors Aries‡, Demorest, Hart, Raskin‡, Sanderson, Schulkind, and Turgeon; Associate Professor Baird (Chair); Assistant Professors Holoien, McQuade, and Palmquist*; Visiting Assistant Professor McCarty.  

 ‡On leave spring semester 2016-17.

Major Program.  The Psychology major is designed to ensure a comprehensive understanding of the content of the discipline and the skills required to work within it.  Psychology majors are required to elect nine full courses, including PSYC 100, 122 and 123.  Psychology majors must complete both PSYC 100 and PSYC 122 by the end of the sophomore year and must earn a grade of B- or better in both courses to continue with the major. Majors are also required to complete PSYC 123 by the end of the junior year.   Students may not enroll in PSYC 100 if they scored a 4 or 5 on the Psychology Advanced Placement exam, 5 or better on the Psychology International Baccalaureate exam, or completed an introductory psychology course at another college or university. Students may choose to place out of PSYC 122 either by scoring a 4 or 5 on the Advanced Placement Exam or by completing STAT 111 (or MATH 135), ECON 360, or a statistics course at another college or university.  Students who place out of PSYC 100 and/or 122 must take an additional course (or two) to reach the number required for the major. 

Additionally, to provide a thorough understanding of fundamental areas within psychology, students must choose at least one intermediate course from each of the three areas below:

Area 1:  Behavioral Neuroscience (PSYC 212), Introduction to Neuroscience (PSYC 226) Area 2:  Developmental Psychology (PSYC 227), Cognitive Psychology (PSYC 233), Psychology of Aging (PSYC 236) Area 3:  Social Psychology (PSYC 220), Personality (PSYC 221), Abnormal Psychology (PSYC 228)

To provide vertical depth in the major, students must also choose a seminar course from at least two of the following six areas:

Area 1: Biological: Psychopharmacology (PSYC 325), Neurophysiology of Motivation (PSYC 356), Hormones and Behavior (PSYC 359),  Area 2: Clinical: History of Psychiatry (PSYC 357), Psychopathology (PSYC 371), Child and Adolescent Psychopathology (PSYC 364); Area 3: Cognitive: Music Cognition (PSYC 366), Autobiographical Memory (PSYC 368); Area 4: Developmental: Adolescence (PSYC 332), Social Development and Peer Relations (PSYC 355), Development of Nonverbal Communication (PSYC 362); Area 5:  Personality: Personality and Political Leadership (PSYC 338), Emotion (PSYC 341),Psychological Assessment (PSYC 353); Area 6: Stereotypes and Prejudice (PSYC 344), Social: Close Relationships (PSYC 354), Psychology and Law (PSYC 363).

Students may complete the required number of courses by taking additional distribution or seminar courses and/or by taking any of the following electives: Psychology of Food and Eating Disorders (PSYC 217), Intergroup Dialogue on Race (PYCH 224), Memory (PSYC 234), Sports Psychology (PSYC 235), The Social Psychology of Race (PSYC 244), Health Psychology (PSYC 247), Psychology of Good and Evil (PSYC 248), Psychology of Gender (PSYC 256).  Special Topics classes (PSYC 490) and thesis work (PSYC 498/499D) also count as elective courses towards the major.

Departmental Honors Research.  A limited number of majors will engage in honors research under the direction of a faculty member during their senior year.   Honors research involves credit for three courses (usually one course credit during the fall and two credits during the spring semester) and culminates in a thesis.  These three courses count towards the nine classes required for the major.  The thesis usually involves both a review of the previous literature pertinent to the selected area of inquiry and a report of the methods and results of a study designed and conducted by the student.  Theses that are an in-depth investigation into a field of psychology, yet do not include the collection of data, may also be available.  Any student interested in pursuing honors research in psychology should discuss possible topics with appropriate faculty before preregistration in the second semester of the junior year.  Students seeking to do Departmental Honors work must have a College-wide grade average of B+ or above.

100 Introduction to Psychology

An introduction to the nature of psychological inquiry regarding the origins, variability, and change of human behavior. As such, the course focuses on the nature-nurture controversy, the processes associated with cognitive and emotional development, the role of personal characteristics and situational conditions in shaping behavior, and various approaches to psychotherapy.

Limited to 40 students per section. Not open to five college students. Fall semester: Professors Sanderson and Visiting Professor McCarty.  Spring semester: Professor Baird and Visiting Professor McCarty.  Spring semester priority given to first-year students.

Other years: Offered in Fall 2011, Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014, Fall 2014, Spring 2015, Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Spring 2020, January 2021, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Fall 2024, Spring 2025

122 Statistics and Experimental Design

An introduction to and critical consideration of experimental methodology in psychology. Topics will include the formation of testable hypotheses, the selection and implementation of appropriate procedures, the statistical description and analysis of experimental data, and the interpretation of results. Articles from the experimental journals and popular literature will illustrate and interrelate these topics and provide a survey of experimental techniques and content areas.    A one-hour weekly lab will be devoted to data analysis using statistical software.

Requisite: PSYC 100 or consent of the instructor. Limited to 30 students. Both semesters. Spring semester: Not open to first year students. Professor McQuade. 

Other years: Offered in Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014, Fall 2014, Spring 2015, Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Fall 2024, Spring 2025

123 Research Methods

This course is designed to explore the principles of behavioral science research and the rationale underlying various research methodologies. The course will take a hands-on approach to research design, data collection, and data analysis. Students will learn how to understand and critically evaluate original research reports, independently design and execute psychological investigations, and write scientific reports in APA format. Topics include the reliability and validity of measures, content analysis, correlational designs, randomized experiments and causal inference, experimental control, and ethical considerations. Time in class will be split between lectures, small group exercises and design of research projects, and data analysis using SPSS.

Requisite: PSYC 122. Limited to 20 students. Fall semester:  Professor Turgeon. Spring semester: Professor Demorest and Visiting Professor McCarty.

2023-24: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014, Fall 2014, Spring 2015, Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Spring 2020, Spring 2021

212 Behavioral Neuroscience

This course will examine how brain function regulates a broad range of mental processes and behaviors. We will discuss how neurons work and how the brain obtains information about the environment (sensory systems), regulates an organism’s response to the environment (motor systems), controls basic functions necessary for survival such as eating, drinking, sex, and sleep, and mediates higher cognitive function such as memory and language. We will also consider the consequences of brain malfunction as manifested in various forms of disease and mental illness.

Requisite: PSYC 100 or consent of the instructor. Limited to 40 students. Not open to five college students. Both semesters. Professor Baird.

Other years: Offered in Fall 2011, Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Fall 2013, Spring 2015, Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2025

217 Psychology of Food and Eating Disorders

Food shapes our lives in many ways that extend far beyond mere ingestive acts. Through a broad survey of basic and clinical research literature, we will explore how foods and food issues imbue our bodies, minds, and relationships. We will consider biological and psychological perspectives on various aspects of eating such as metabolism, neural mechanisms of hunger and satiety, metabolic disorders, dieting, pica, failure to thrive, starvation, taste preference and aversion, obesity, anxiety and depression relief, food taboos, bulimia, and the anorexias. Strong emphasis will be placed on biological mechanisms and controlled laboratory research with both human and animal subjects.

Requisite: PSYC 100 or 212, or consent of the instructor. Limited to 25 students. Omitted 2016-17.

2023-24: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Fall 2007, Fall 2008, Spring 2009, Fall 2010, Fall 2014

220 Social Psychology

The individual’s behavior as it is influenced by other people and by the social environment. The major aim of the course is to provide an overview of the wide-ranging concerns characterizing social psychology from both a substantive and a methodological perspective. Topics include person perception, attitude change, interpersonal attraction, conformity, altruism, group dynamics, and prejudice. In addition to substantive issues, the course is designed to introduce students to the appropriate research data analysis procedures.

Requisite: PSYC 100 or consent of the instructor. Preference to Amherst College students. Limited to 40 students. Fall and spring semesters. Professor Sanderson.

Other years: Offered in Fall 2011, Fall 2012, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014, Fall 2014, Spring 2015, Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Fall 2024

221 Personality Psychology

This course examines how psychologists understand the patterns of experiencing and behaving that constitute an individual’s personality. Personality psychologists are concerned with the ways in which a person is like all other people in these patterns (common psychological processes), like some others (individual differences), and like no one else (uniqueness). In examining these questions, we study the “grand theories” of Freud, Skinner, and Rogers, as well as the contemporary models of traits and scripts. We explore what professional observations led to the major theoretical ideas in personality psychology, and we critically examine how these ideas have been tested in empirical research. Furthermore, we study the lives of the theorists to examine how their professional ideas were informed by their personal lives. Students will also take personality assessment devices throughout the semester as a way to better understand the models, and perhaps themselves as well.

Requisite: PSYC 100 or consent of the instructor. Limited to 40 students. Fall semester. Professor Demorest.

Other years: Offered in Fall 2011, Fall 2012, Fall 2013, Fall 2014, Fall 2015, Fall 2016, Fall 2017, Fall 2018, Fall 2019, Fall 2020, Fall 2021, Fall 2022, Fall 2023, Fall 2024

224  Intergroup Dialogue on Race

This highly interactive course brings together students to examine the roles race and other intersecting identities play in their lives. Course work includes an interdisciplinary blend of scholarly readings, in-class dialogue, experiential learning activities, reflective writing, and an intergroup collaborative action project aimed at bettering relationships and communication patterns outside the class itself. The course readings link students’ personal experiences with race to a socio-historical understanding of individual, institutional, and structural discrimination, and to the ways social inequality is embedded in social institutions and individual consciousness, constraining life chances. The readings address power imbalances within and between racial groups, and the ways privilege is allocated and social inequalities are sustained. Students will engage in sustained and respectful dialogue around racial divisions, learning to build skills in intergroup communication, collaboration, and relationships. Students will bring their own experiences with race into the classroom as a legitimate process of learning. Class members will explore similarities and differences between their experiences with race and privilege within and across racial identity groups, with the goal of coming to understand the underlying conditions that account for these different experiences and perceptions.

Requisite: PSYC 100 and consent of instructor required. Limited to 14 students. Omitted 2016-17. Professors Aries and Hart.

Other years: Offered in Spring 2016, Fall 2017, Fall 2019, Fall 2020, Fall 2022, Fall 2024

226 Introduction to Neuroscience

2023-24: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Spring 2008, Spring 2009, Spring 2010, Spring 2011, Spring 2012, Spring 2013, Spring 2014, Spring 2015, Spring 2016, Spring 2017, Spring 2018

227 Developmental Psychology

A study of human development across the life span with emphasis upon the general characteristics of various stages of development from birth to adolescence and upon determinants of the developmental process.

Requisite: PSYC 100 or 212 or consent of the instructor. Limited to 40 students.  Omitted 2016-17.

Other years: Offered in Fall 2012, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014, Spring 2015, Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2017, Fall 2018, Fall 2019, Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2025

228 Abnormal Psychology

A review of various forms of psychopathology including addictive, adjustment, anxiety, childhood, dissociative, impulse control, mood, organic, personality, psychophysiological, schizophrenic, and sexual disorders. Based on a review of contemporary research findings, lectures and discussion will focus on the most relevant approaches for understanding, diagnosing, and treating psychological disorders. The biopsychosocial model will serve as a basis for explaining the etiology of psychological disorders, and discussion will focus on empirically supported interventions for treating these conditions.

Requisite: PSYC 100 or consent of the instructor. Not open to first-year students. Limited to 40 students. Fall semester. Professor McQuade.

PLEASE NOTE: This course is closed for Fall 2016.

Other years: Offered in Fall 2011, Fall 2012, Spring 2013, Spring 2014, Spring 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2018, Spring 2019, Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Fall 2024

233 Cognitive Psychology

This course will examine how the mind extracts information from the environment, stores it for later use, and then retrieves it when it becomes useful. Initially, we will discuss how our eyes, ears, and brain turn light and sound into colors, objects, speech, and music. Next, we will look at how memory is organized and how it is used to accomplish a variety of tasks. Several memory models will be proposed and evaluated: Is our brain a large filing cabinet? a sophisticated computer? We will then apply these principles to understand issues like intelligence, thinking, and problem-solving. Throughout the course, we will discuss how damage to various parts of the brain affects our ability to learn and remember.

Requisite: PSYC 100 or 212 or consent of the instructor. Limited to 40 students. Spring semester. Professor Schulkind.

Other years: Offered in Spring 2012, Spring 2013, Spring 2014, Fall 2014, Spring 2016, Spring 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2025

234 Memory

This course will provide a comprehensive overview of the study of memory. We will begin by examining empirical research on memory for different kinds of content: factual information vs. personal events vs. cognitive skills. This research will be used to evaluate several contemporary models of memory. From there, we will examine how memory theories have been applied to understanding “real world” issues such as eyewitness testimony, and the false/recovered memory debate. We will also discuss developmental changes in memory-from infancy to old age. We will supplement our analysis of memory with evidence from the rapidly growing field of cognitive neuroscience.

Requisite: PSYC 100 or consent of the instructor. Limited to 25 students. Fall semester. Professor Schulkind.

2023-24: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Spring 2008, Spring 2009, Spring 2010, Spring 2011, Fall 2012, Fall 2013, Fall 2015, Fall 2016

235 Sports Psychology

The field of sports psychology examines psychological variables that impact athletic participation and behavior. This course introduces students to theories and research across diverse areas of psychology, including social, cognitive, developmental, and clinical. Topics will include the role of goals and equity in providing motivation, strategies for successful performance, the use of imagery, attributions for successful versus unsuccessful performance, the predictors of aggression, the causes of the “homefield choke,” effective approaches to coaching, the “hot-hand effect,” the role of personality, the predictors of injury, and the impact of gender on athletics. This course will involve intensive participation in class discussion and many written assignments.

Requisite: PSYC 100 or consent of the instructor. Open to juniors and seniors. Limited to 25 students.  Fall semester. Professor Sanderson.

Other years: Offered in Fall 2011, Fall 2013, Fall 2014, Fall 2016, Spring 2018, Spring 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Spring 2025

236 Psychology of Aging

An introduction to the psychology of aging. Course material will focus on the behavioral changes which occur during the normal aging process. Age differences in learning, memory, perceptual and intellectual abilities will be investigated. In addition, emphasis will be placed on the neural correlates and cognitive consequences of disorders of aging such as Alzheimer’s disease. Course work will include systematic and structured observation within a local facility for the elderly.

Requisite: PSYC 100  or consent of the instructor.  Limited to 20 students.  Fall semester.  Professor Raskin.

2023-24: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Fall 2007, Fall 2009, Fall 2010, Fall 2012, Spring 2014, Fall 2016, Spring 2019, Spring 2020

288 Psychology of Attraction

This course will take an empirical approach to the study of human attraction from the perspective of multiple subfields within psychology including cognitive (facial symmetry), social (the influence of attractiveness on perception of other traits), personality (psychodynamic processes), developmental (attachment theory), and biological (sexual orientation) psychology. The beginning of the semester will be devoted to familiarizing ourselves with questions and methodologies from the relevant literatures. Each student will then write a research proposal that will be reviewed and discussed by the class. The majority of the semester will be devoted to conducting original research projects selected from the students’ proposals.  These projects will be run individually or in small groups and will involve all aspects of experimental design.  The semester will culminate with oral and written presentations of the experimental projects.  

Requisite: PSYC 122 or equivalent. Limited to 15 students. Fall semester. Professor Schulkind.

2023-24: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Fall 2016

325 Psychopharmacology

(Offered as PSYC 325 and NEUR 325.)  In this course we will examine the ways in which drugs act on the brain to alter behavior. We will review basic principles of brain function and mechanisms of drug action in the brain. We will discuss a variety of legal and illegal recreational drugs as well as the use of psychotherapeutic drugs to treat mental illness. Examples from the primary scientific literature will demonstrate the various methods used to investigate mechanisms of drug action, the biological and behavioral consequences of drug use, and the nature of efforts to prevent or treat drug abuse.

Requisite: PSYC 212 or PSYC/NEUR 226, or consent of the instructor. Limited to 22 students. Not open to five college students. Fall semester.  Professor Turgeon.

Other years: Offered in Fall 2011, Fall 2012, Fall 2013, Fall 2014, Fall 2015, Fall 2016, Spring 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Fall 2020, Fall 2021, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Spring 2025

332 Psychology of Adolescence

In this course we will examine adolescent behavior from the perspective of psychologists, sociologists, historians, and anthropologists. We will look at theories of adolescent development, empirical research studies, first person accounts written by adolescents, and narratives about adolescents written by journalists and novelists. We will cover the psychological and social changes that accompany and follow the physiological changes of puberty and the acquisition of new cognitive capacities. Topics include the role of race, ethnicity, social class, gender, and sexuality in the formation of identity; changing relationships with family and peers; the development of intimate relationships; and the opportunities and constraints posed by neighborhoods and schools. The course aims to help students become more critical readers of and writers about the empirical and theoretical literature on adolescence.

Requisite: PSYC 227.  Not open to first-year students. Limited to 15 students. Fall semester. Professor Aries.

2023-24: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Spring 2008, Fall 2008, Spring 2010, Spring 2012, Spring 2014, Spring 2015, Fall 2016

337 Stereotypes and Prejudice

This advanced seminar provides students with an overview of the social psychological study of stereotyping and prejudice. Through weekly discussions of empirical and theoretical articles, students will gain understanding of the cognitive, affective, and motivational underpinnings of stereotyping and prejudice, as well as learn how these psychological biases relate to treatment of stigmatized group members. Topics will include the automatic and controlled components of stereotypes, interracial interactions, and discrimination in academic and workplace domains. Students will be expected to participate actively in class discussions, provide written reaction papers, and develop a final research proposal.

Requisite: PSYC 100 and 220. Limited to 15 students. Fall semester. Professor Holoien.

2023-24: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Fall 2022

338 Personality and Political Leadership

In this course we will examine how to apply psychological theories and methods to understand the lives of political leaders. We begin this course with a consideration the role of personality in political leadership. We then examine psychological theories that can be fruitfully applied to the study of individual lives (e.g., Freud) and psychological methods that are useful in analyzing case material (e.g., Linguistic Inquiry Word Count).  Over the course of the semester, we will evaluate existing psychobiographies of important figures and students will conduct their own psychobiographical analyses of figures of their choice.

Requisite: PSYC 220, 221, or permission of the instructor. Limited to 15 students. Fall semester. Professor Demorest.

Other years: Offered in Fall 2012, Fall 2014, Fall 2015, Fall 2016, Fall 2018, Spring 2020, Spring 2022, Spring 2023

353 Psychological Assessment

This course examines methods used by psychologists to understand the  psychology of individual personalities. The primary focus is on three psychological assessment tools: the Early Memories Procedure, the Thematic Apperception Test, and the traditional interview.  Students will take these devices themselves, read the theory behind them, examine case studies by prominent psychologists using these devices, and conduct their own interpretations of responses given by college students and by psychotherapy patients. In the process, students should develop a good understanding of the complexity of the clinical thought process.                  

Requisite: PSYC 221, 228, or permission of instructor. Limited to 15 students. Spring semester. Professor Demorest.

Other years: Offered in Spring 2012, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2015, Spring 2016, Spring 2017, Spring 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, January 2021, January 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2023, Spring 2025

354 Close Relationships

An introduction to the study of close relationships using social-psychological theory and research. Topics will include interpersonal attraction, love and romance, sexuality, relationship development, communication, jealousy, conflict and dissolution, selfishness and altruism, loneliness, and therapeutic interventions. This is an upper-level seminar for the major requirement that requires intensive participation in class discussion and many written assignments.

Requisite: PSYC 220. Open to seniors. Admission with consent of the instructor. Limited to 15 students. Spring semester. Professor Sanderson.

Other years: Offered in Fall 2011, Spring 2013, Spring 2014, Fall 2014, Spring 2016, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Spring 2021, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2024

356 Neurophysiology of Motivation

(Offered as PSYC 356 and NEUR 356.)  This course will explore in detail the neurophysiological underpinnings of basic motivational systems such as feeding, fear, and sex. Students will read original articles in the neuroanatomical, neurophysiological, and behavioral scientific literature. Key goals of this course will be to make students conversant with the most recent scientific findings and adept at research design and hypothesis testing.

Requisite: PSYC 212 or 226 and consent of the instructor.  Limited to 15 students.  Fall semester.  Professor Baird.

2023-24: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Spring 2008, Fall 2010, Fall 2011, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Fall 2017, Fall 2018

357 History of Psychiatry

Though the history of madness is as old as humanity, the field of psychiatry has come of age over the past 300 years. The understanding and treatment of mental illness within the psychiatric profession has drawn upon neurological and medical, as well as psychological and psychodynamic points of view. An emerging field, Neuropsychoanalysis, attempts to integrate the two. This course will survey psychiatry’s evolution, with special emphasis on the major contributions that have changed perspectives and directions in psychiatric medicine. We will also review the history of how mentally-ill patients have been housed, from custodial asylums to de-institutionalization and community-based programs, as a reflection of changing attitudes towards mental disease. Seminar. One class meeting per week.

Requisite: PSYC 212 and 228, or consent of the instructor. Limited to 15 students.  Omitted 2016-17.  Professor Raskin.

2023-24: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Fall 2007, Spring 2009, Spring 2010, Spring 2011, Spring 2013, Spring 2014, Spring 2015, Spring 2016, Spring 2018, Spring 2020

359 Hormones and Behavior

(Offered as PSYC 359 and NEUR 359.)  This course will examine the influence of hormones on brain and behavior. We will introduce basic endocrine (hormone) system physiology and discuss the different approaches that researchers take to address questions of hormone-behavior relationships.  We will consider evidence from both the human and the animal literature for the role of hormones in sexual differentiation (the process by which we become male or female), sexual behavior, parental behavior, stress, aggression, cognitive function, and affective disorders.    

Requisite: PSYC 212 or NEUR 226.  Limited to 15 students.  Omitted 2016-17. Professor Turgeon.

2023-24: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Fall 2007, Fall 2008, Fall 2012, Spring 2015

362 Development of Non-Verbal Communication

This course will examine how infants learn to communicate through gestures, body language, and preverbal vocalizations, and how nonverbal communication develops through childhood and adulthood.  The course will also examine how nonverbal communication in humans compares to communication in nonhuman species such as dogs, chimpanzees, and dolphins.  As a precursor to these discussions, we will explore the theoretical controversies surrounding the definition of "communication."   Students will read empirical work, engage in collaborative research design, conduct naturalistic observations, and will develop a final paper that explores the communicative content of nonverbal interactions.   

Requisite: PSYC 227.  Limited to 15 students. Omitted 2016-17. Professor Palmquist.

Other years: Offered in Fall 2023

363 Psychology and the Law

Psychology strives to understand (and predict) human behavior. The law aims to control behavior and punish those who violate laws. At the intersection of these two disciplines are questions such as: Why do people obey the law? What are the most effective means for punishing transgressions so as to encourage compliance with the law? The idea that our legal system is the product of societal values forms the heart of this course. We will repeatedly return to that sentiment as we review social psychological principles, theories, and findings addressing how the principal actors in legal proceedings affect each other. We will survey research on such topics as: criminal versus civil procedure, juror selection criteria, juror decision-making, jury size and decision rule, the death penalty, insanity defense, and eyewitness reliability. To a lesser degree the course will also consider (1) issues that arise from the impact of ideas from clinical psychology and other mental health-related fields upon the legal system, and (2) the impact that the legal system has had upon the field of psychology.

Requisite: PSYC 220.  Limited to 15 students. Spring semester. Professor Hart.

2023-24: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Fall 2007, Spring 2008, Fall 2008, Spring 2009, Spring 2012, Spring 2014, Fall 2015, Spring 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Spring 2021

364 Child and Adolescent Clinical Psychology

This course examines the development, maintenance, and treatment of psychopathology in children and adolescents. Disorders discussed will include behavioral (e.g., Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Conduct Disorder), anxiety (e.g., the phobias and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder), mood (e.g. Depression), and developmental (e.g. Autism). Using a developmental perspective, topics will focus on risk factors, theory and etiology, family and social influences, and evidence-based psycho-social treatments. Course readings will come predominantly from empirical research articles and will be discussed in-depth in class. Students will be expected to participate actively in class discussions, to provide written reaction papers, and to develop a final research proposal.  

Requisite: PSYC 228.  Open to juniors and seniors. Limited to 15 students. Spring semester. Professor McQuade.

Other years: Offered in Spring 2023, Fall 2023

366 Music Cognition

Current theories of cognitive psychology will be evaluated in light of what is known about the effects of musical stimuli on learning, memory, and emotion. The course will begin by examining how musical information is stored and, subsequently, retrieved from memory. Particular attention will be paid to comparing learning and memory of musical and non-musical stimuli. The course will also compare the behavior of trained and untrained musicians to determine how expertise influences cognitive performance. Finally, the course will consider the ability of music to elicit emotional responses and the psychological basis for its use in applied settings.

Requisite: PSYC 233 or 234. Limited to 15 students. Spring semester. Professor Schulkind.

Other years: Offered in Spring 2013, Fall 2014, Spring 2017, Fall 2019

368 Autobiographical Memory

Autobiographical memory encompasses everything we know about our personal past, from information as mundane as our Social Security number to the most inspirational moments of our lives. The course will begin by evaluating several theoretical frameworks that structure the field. We will consider how personal knowledge influences our sense of self and will examine both the contents of autobiographical memory and the contexts in which it functions, including eyewitness testimony, flashbulb memories, and the false/recovered memory controversy. We will discuss individual differences (gender and age) in autobiographical memory and will also examine the neurobiology of long-term memory and the consequences of damage to the system (i.e., dementia and amnesia). Finally, we will explore how social groups retain memories for important cultural events.

Requisite: PSYC 233 or 234. Limited to 15 students. Omitted 2016-17. Professor Schulkind.

2023-24: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Spring 2014, Spring 2016, Fall 2017, Spring 2021, Spring 2025

371 Psychopathology

This term, used for mental illness and mental distress, is defined by differing perspectives, i.e., medical model, family systems and psychodynamics.  How the psychological and psychiatric communities define, and measure dysfunctional behavior depends upon these differing perspectives.  We will review the ideas and concepts behind the definitions and descriptions of psychological and psychobiological disorders i.e., Schizophrenia, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and Attention Deficit Disorder.  Students will write final papers on topics such as, whether specific diagnoses are scientifically or socially constructed, whether psychopathology is distress, disability or social deviance, and how a specific disorder can be understood from the point of view of depth psychology as well as underlying brain mechanisms.    

Requisite: PSYC 100 or 212, PSYC 122 or MATH 130, and some knowledge of Abnormal, Personality or Clinical Psychology.  Open to juniors and seniors. Limited to 15 students. Fall semester.  Professor Raskin.

2023-24: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Fall 2009, Fall 2010, Fall 2011, Fall 2016

490 Special Topics

This course is open to qualified students who desire to engage in independent reading on selected topics or conduct research projects. Preference will be given to those students who have done good work in one or more departmental courses beyond the introductory level. A full course.

Open to juniors and seniors with consent of the instructor. Fall and spring semesters.

Other years: Offered in Fall 2011, Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014, Fall 2014, Spring 2015, Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Fall 2024

498, 499, 499D Senior Departmental Honors

Open to senior majors in Psychology who have received departmental approval. A full course.  Spring semester.

Other years: Offered in Spring 2012, Spring 2013, Spring 2014, Spring 2015, Spring 2016, Spring 2017, Spring 2018, Spring 2019, Spring 2020, Spring 2021, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2025

498D Senior Honors

A double course.

Open to senior majors in Psychology who have received departmental approval. Fall semester.

Other years: Offered in Fall 2011, Fall 2012, Fall 2014, Fall 2015, Fall 2016, Fall 2017, Fall 2021, Fall 2022, Fall 2023, Fall 2024