Program Courses
Please visit the course catalog website to view current course listings.The courses below are offered through the Psychology department.With approval, students may also take classes offered by other departments.
651. Developmental Psychology. Lecture and discussion: 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PSYC 203S. This course covers topics related to the physical, cognitive, social and emotional aspects of growth, from conception to death. It focuses on human growth and development, but other organisms are also considered.
661. Psychopathology. Lecture and discussion: 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PSYC 405.The course provides a conceptual basis for the study of abnormal behavior.Students conduct an in-depth review of the literature related to neuroses, personality disorders, and psychophysiological disorders.
663. Intellectual Assessment. Lecture and discussion: 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PSYC 412 or equivalent or permission of the instructor. Primary focus is on intellectual assessment for children and adults. Basic instruction in administration and interpretation of standard tests of intelligence will be provided. Additional topics include tests of achievement and memory function.
672. Advanced Physiological Psychology. Lecture and discussion: 3 hours; 3 credits. This course examines the complex physiological structures and processes related to the organism's interaction with its environment; neuronal physiology, sensory and motor systems, as well as motivational, emotional and learning mechanisms.
697. Selected Topics in Psychology. 1-3 credits. Prerequisites: permission of the instructor and graduate program director. This course provides opportunities for advanced investigations of selected topics in psychology. May be taken by students beyond the first year in graduate school who wish to pursue topics not covered by regularly scheduled courses.
698. Research in Psychology. 3 credits. Individual project under guidance of a research advisor. Required for students choosing thesis option. Limited to a total of 3 hours of credit.
699. Thesis. 3 credits. Prerequisite: PSYCH 698. Individual project under guidance of a research advisor. Required for students choosing thesis option. Limited to total of 3 hours of credit.
812. History and Systems of Psychology. Lecture and discussion 3 hours; 3 credits. A survey of the historical roots of modern psychology.
813. ResearchProjectI. Lecture: 1 hour; 1 credit. Students design a research project, completing the background literature review and methods sections for the project. A formal, oral presentation of the research project is required.
814. Research Project II. Lecture: 2 hours; 2 credits. Students collect data, conduct data analyses and complete the results and discussion sections of a research report. A formal, oral presentation of the research project and its results is required.
823. Quantitative III. Lecture and discussion: 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisites: graduate standing and PSYCH 728/828 or equivalent. An advanced course in quantitative aspects of experimental design with an emphasis on multivariate statistics.
826. Quantitative IV. Lecture and discussion: 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PSYC 745/845 or equivalent. This course covers the topics of linear structural equation modeling and focuses on estimation, measurement models, confirmatory factor analysis, longitudinal models, multi-sample analyses, and mean structures.
827. Statistics and Research Methods I. Lecture: 3 hours; 3 credits. Reviews quantitative aspects of experimental design, with a review of basic descriptive statistical procedures and an advanced examination of probability and inferential statistics. Explores univariate statistical approaches emphasizing analysis of variance, to highlight the assumptions and applications of the general linear model to behavioral science data. Materials are covered in the context of classical experimental and quasi-experimental design.
828. Statistics and Research Methods II. Lecture: 3 hours; 3 credits. Provides advanced coverage of behavioral science data analysis in the framework of the general linear model, emphasizing applied multivariate analysis techniques (e.g., multiple regression, multivariate analysis of variance, logistic regression) and their assumptions. Provides a brief overview of advanced analytic methods, including multilevel regression, structural equation modeling, and psychometrics. Advanced issues in research methods are discussed.
830. Teaching Statistics and Research Practicum. 1 or 3 credits. Prerequisites: PSYC 727 or 824 or 827 and PSYC 728 or 825 or 828. Advanced graduate students in Psychology will have the opportunity to direct statistics and research methods labs for graduate statistics courses. Students’ main role will be acting as peer mentors for the new graduate students. Other possible responsibilities may include grading, creating lab activities and assignments, and supervising students’ research projects. Students will be evaluated on their teaching effectiveness and performance.
831. Human Cognition. Lecture and discussion: 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisites: admission into the psychology M.S. or Ph.D. program or permission of instructor. An investigation of the ways in which people process and retain information, make decisions, and solve problems. Current models of structures and processes of human memory and cognition are discussed with particular emphasis on neurocognitive evidence of the brain mechanisms involved in cognition.
833. Grant and Manuscript Writing. Lecture: 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: admission to the doctoral program in psychology and completion of master’s thesis, or permission of the instructor. The course is designed: (1) to teach students to write article-length scholarly manuscripts in APA format of publishable quality, and (2) to teach students the critical components of grant applications. By the end of this course, each student will have prepared a manuscript that is ready for submission to a peer-reviewed journal and have completed sections of a federal grant application.
834. Proseminar in Applied Experimental Psychology. Lecture and discussion: 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: admission into the graduate program in psychology or permission of the instructor. This course introduces students to the breadth of problem areas to which applied experimental (AE) psychology is applicable. Research methods and ethics employed by AE psychologists are discussed. Examples of AE research are reviewed, and students have opportunities to apply techniques to actual or simulated problems.
835. Health Psychology. Lecture: 3 hours; 3 credits. This course focuses on contemporary theory and research topics in health psychology. The course examines psychological and behavioral issues affecting health maintenance, coping with life-threatening illnesses and chronic diseases, and health promotion. The course uses the biopsychosocial (mind-body) model as an organizing framework, emphasizing the dynamic interactions among biological, social, personality, and behavioral factors jointly in influencing people’s health. The course is conducted as a seminar.
841. Sensation and Perception. Lecture and discussion: 3 hours; 3 credits. A survey of human sensation and perception emphasizing historical contributions, recent theoretical and methodological developments, and empirical findings.
845. Psychometric Theory. Lecture and discussion: 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: PSYC 728/828 or equivalent. This course surveys classical and modern test theory, correlational methods, meta-analysis, reliability and validity theory, test development, and change measurement.
849. Advanced Social Psychology. Lecture and discussion: 3 hours; 3 credits. This course discusses the behavior of the human as a member of a group. Topics include attitude theory and change, interpersonal attraction, group dynamics, and related theory and applied research techniques.
815. Teaching Psychology. Lecture and discussion: 1 hour; 1 credit. The teaching of psychology.
897. Individual Study (Readings). 1-4 credits.
898. Research. 3 credits.
899. Dissertation. 1-9 credits per semester with the limitation of a total of 24 credits.
