Paula Millin-Lipnos

This course is for psychology majors (or intended majors). Students learn to conduct a variety of statistical tests that are commonly used in psychological research. The course also builds the skills of choosing the appropriate statistical tests for particular research designs and writing and interpreting the results of statistical analyses. Students also learn to use the statistical software package SPSS. This counts toward the foundations requirement for the major. Prerequisite: PSYC 100 or 110 or AP score of 5; declared psychology majors only. Permission of instructor by application. Offered every semester.

This course addresses the ubiquitous presence of psychoactive drugs in human culture. The approach to understanding how drugs affect and are affected by our body, brain, behavior and culture is biopsychosocial, addressing neurobiological, psychological/behavioral and social/cultural factors that influence drug use and misuse. We draw knowledge from basic laboratory animal research and human drug studies, as well as personal memoirs and historical summaries. This counts toward the mind and brain requirement for the major. Prerequisite: PSYC 100 or 110 or AP score of 5 or NEUR 212. Generally offered every year.

This course provide students a comprehensive introduction to the theories and basic principles of learning and motivation in human and non-human animals, with an emphasis on associative learning — namely, classical and instrumental conditioning. We discuss how these principles can be applied to our everyday lives, from training pets and raising children to the development and treatment of mental illness and substance-use disorders. Students learn the scientific methods of the discipline and improve their critical thinking skills by reading and critiquing primary empirical sources. This counts toward the mind and brain requirement for the major. Prerequisite: PSYC 250 or NEUR 212. Generally offered every year.

Students conducting advanced research in psychology work with a faculty member and possibly a small group of students to conduct research in the faculty member’s research area. Students critically analyze published research in the topic area and collect, analyze and write reports on data they have collected with a small group of students. Students are expected to work independently and collaboratively; the course emphasizes effective written and oral communication. This course is offered only on a credit/no credit basis. Permission of instructor required. Prerequisite: PSYC 250 and related intermediate-level study.

This is the first semester of the two-part sequence required for senior psychology majors. Each section has a different topic, but in every seminar, students read and discuss psychological literature, write and discuss critiques of research articles, review the literature and develop a research proposal on a topic related to the seminar's topic, and make a formal oral presentation to the class. This theoretical framework lays the groundwork for the execution of a project in the second half of the practicum. This counts toward the Senior Capstone requirement for the major. Senior standing and psychology major. Offered every fall.

This is the second semester of the two-part sequence required for senior psychology majors. This class features hands-on experience in creating and conducting research to allow students to learn by doing. We investigate the procedure of generating research from start to finish through the lens of theory learned in the first semester. This course strongly and equally emphasizes strengthening scientific writing skills, generating research designs and quantitative reasoning and application. Along the way we practice evaluating research designs and perfecting APA style. This course is designed to prepare students for a career in research in psychology. This counts toward the Senior Capstone requirement for the major. Prerequisite: PSYC 475. Senior standing, psychology major. Offered every spring

Individual study in psychology allows students the opportunity to pursue research on a topic of special interest. The course is designed in consultation with a faculty mentor. The level of credit can range from 0.25 to 0.5 unit, and students may take more than one semester of individual study. Typically, only juniors or seniors may pursue this option. To enroll, a student must first identify a member of the psychology department who is willing to mentor the project. The student must give the department chair a written description of the project, including the nature of the proposed work and a list of references. The project should include reading and reviewing scientific literature and likely entail a research project in which original data are collected. The student and faculty member are expected to meet, on average, once a week. The final project likely a paper written in the style of the American Psychological Association. Additional assignments may be required, including a public presentation. The amount of work required for the individual study should approximate that required of other 400-level psychology courses. It is possible for students to pursue a group project, but more work is expected for the completed project and each student writes her or his own individual paper. Because students must enroll for individual studies by the end of the seventh class day of each semester, they should begin discussion of the proposed individual study by the semester before, so that there is time to devise the proposal and seek departmental approval.

This is a program for senior candidates for honors in psychology, culminating in a senior honors thesis. The course will consist of a research project in some area of psychology. A student who wishes to propose an honors project must meet each of the following three criteria: (1) the student must have a GPA of 3.7 in psychology and an overall GPA of 3.5; (2) the student must have participated in a psychology department-approved research experience (which might be research in a research methods course, independent study or summer lab work); and (3) the student must have completed a minimum of 4 units in psychology and have taken the appropriate core courses for the proposal before the senior year. To continue in honors, students must earn an A in PSYC 475 during the fall of their senior year to continue in the honors program. Students enrolled in this course who successfully complete PSYC 475 with an A will be automatically added to PSYC 498Y for the spring semester. If at any point during the yearlong process, either the student or the departmental faculty determine that the project should not move forward as an honors project, it will automatically convert to an individual study (IS) for .50 units. If such a change occurs in the spring term, the fall designation for Honors will also be changed to an IS worth .50 units. Permission of instructor and department chair required.

This is a program for senior candidates for honors in psychology, culminating in a senior honors thesis. Students will be required to successfully complete PSYC 475 (earn an A) and PSYC 497Y. If at any point during the yearlong process, either the student or the departmental faculty determine that the project should not move forward as an honors project, it will automatically convert to an individual study (IS) for .50 units. If such a change occurs in the spring term, the fall designation for Honors will also be changed to an IS worth .50 units. Permission of instructor and department chair required.