The Department of Psychology provides a wide choice among the many facets of the science of psychology, satisfying the needs of students who wish to understand the behavior of human and animal organisms. Students who major in psychology are given preparation for graduate study, for counseling, teaching, guidance and personnel positions, or for related business, administrative and human service careers. Departmental courses reflect basic as well as recent trends in clinical, experimental, cognitive, developmental, and humanistic psychology, affording a liberal rather than a compartmentalized perspective on the science of psychology. Courses in personality and clinical psychology reflect the functions of therapy, personality assessment, and understanding of personality theory. Experimental psychology emphasizes the research tradition through laboratory exercises and individual research projects.
Developmental psychology traces human growth from birth to old age.
The recent development of political, social, humanistic, and health psychology reflects concern for the growth of the normal person. The scientific basis of psychology is examined. Basic topics covered are biological and cognitive foundations of behavior, individual differences, measurement techniques, personality theories and development, motivation and emotion, normal vs. abnormal behavior, perception, and learning. Research Methods and Design I-II Methods of designing and conducting behavioral experiments. Psychological methods, data collection procedures and analysis are presented in laboratory exercises.