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Dedman College

DEDMAN COLLEGE
PSYCHOLOGY

Professor Ernie Jouriles, Department Chair

Professor: Alan Brown; Associate Professors: John Edens, Ephrem Fernandez, Robert Hampson, Renee McDonald, Curtis McIntyre, Thomas Ritz; Assistant Professors: Katherine Presnell, Alicia Meuret, Jasper Smits; Lecturers: Tom Cox, Michael Crow, Susan Hornstein, Chris Logan.

Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology

The following 9 hours must be completed with a combined average of 2.00 or better prior to declaring the major:

Five courses chosen from the following (15 hours):

Twelve additional hours at the 3000 level or above.

Total number of hours: 36

Practicum, individual research, and independent study courses (4161, 4172, 4261, 4272, 4361, 4372, 5100, 5200, and 5300) may be taken only on a pass-fail basis. Such courses will not count toward the major.

Requirements for the Minor in Psychology

PSYC 1300 (Introduction to Psychology) must be successfully completed before declaring a Psychology minor. The minor requires three PSYC courses chosen from the following: 3332 (Developmental Psychology), 3341 (Social Psychology); 3380 (Health Psychology), 3382 (Experimental Psychology), 3383 (Sensation and Perception), 5354 (Personality), 5355 (Abnormal Psychology), 5384 (Psychology of Learning), 5385 (Physiological Psychology), 5388 (Memory and Cognition), and 5390 (History of Psychology).

The student must also complete two elective courses in Psychology (six hours) at the 3000 level or higher, excluding Independent Research, Human Relations Seminar, and Practicum.

The Courses (PSYC)

1300. Introduction to Psychology. Broad introduction to psychology as a behavioral science with special emphasis on cognition, development, learning, social, personality, physiological, and clinical psychology (psychopathology and psychotherapy).

3332. Developmental Psychology. A survey of the processes and variables that influence the development of the child, adolescent, and young adult. Emphasis is on research in such areas as perceptual, cognitive, language, and social/emotional development.

3337. The Person in Psychology and Literature. Explores issues in personality, from psychoanalysis to contemporary research, through literature. Discussion centers on readings from psychology and literature on topics such as motivation, emotion, and madness.

3341. Social Psychology. Effect of social conditions on individual behavior; includes topics such as attitude change, conformity, attraction, aggression, and small-group behavior.

3350. Psychology of Women. A study of the origin and development of supposed sex differences and their psychological consequences. Emphasis on which sex differences are supported by research and which are not. Also covers the social and personal conflicts encountered by women today, particularly in the business world.

3360. Forensic Psychology. Examination of the interface between psychology and the legal system, focusing in particular on the role of mental health experts in criminal trials and civil disputes. Prerequisite: PSYC 3382.

3380. Health Psychology. An overview of psychological factors affecting the body. Topics include emotion, stress, disease of the immune and cardiovascular systems, eating disorders, and aging.

3382. Experimental Psychology. Design and evaluation of psychological research with emphasis on scientific method, data collection, experimentation, control procedures, validity, reliability, and report-writing skills.

3383. Sensation and Perception. Characteristics of external stimuli, physiology of receptor mechanisms, and information processing. Emphasis on vision and hearing with some coverage of other sensory modalities.

4161, 4261, 4361. Individual Research in Psychology. Supervised individual empirical research and/or library research on selected problems. The proposed research must be submitted to and approved by the instructor before admission. Pass/fail only.

4172, 4272, 4372. Human Relations Seminar/Practicum. An intensive study of interpersonal helping relationships based upon psychological theories and research findings. Focuses on supervised personal involvement with others as a helper. Pass/fail only.

4398. Seminar for Distinction Candidates. Each prospective distinction student will write and defend a research proposal for their distinction thesis.

4399. Departmental Distinction Thesis. Each distinction student will write and defend a research thesis. Students defending their thesis before an examining committee selected from within SMU's Department of Psychology will receive Distinction in Psychology at graduation.

For Undergraduate and Graduate Students

5100, 5200, 5300. Advanced Individual Research in Psychology. Supervised individual empirical research and/or library research on selected problems. The proposed research must be submitted to and approved by the instructor before admission. Pass/fail only. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5333. Domestic Violence and Children. Overview of research and theory on domestic violence and its effects on children. Applied component involves working with children in a domestic violence shelter. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2301, and permission of instructor.

5334. Psychological Disorders of Children. A study of the nature and causes of abnormal behavior in childhood. Includes theories, case studies, and therapeutic approaches; emphasis is on understanding the relationship between normal and abnormal behavior. Prerequisites: Sophomore standing, six hours PSYC including 1300, 3332, 3382, and STAT 2331 or STAT 2301.

5336. Cognitive Development. A survey of the psychological literature concerned with the child's development of cognitive skills, structures, and processes. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3332, 3382, and STAT 2331 or STAT 2301.

5337. Social and Personality Development. An examination of theories of development of personality, with emphasis on those aspects that affect the individual's interaction in a social world. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5338. Psychology of the Family. An in-depth exploration of current research and theories dealing with psychodynamics of family life, developmental nature of the family, and family pathology. Prerequisites: Six term hours in psychology, including PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301; or permission of instructor.

5340. Gender and Ethnicity. Considers recent empirical research and analyses in order to integrate emerging knowledge about gender, ethnicity, and power, and to examine the influences affecting these issues in contemporary psychology. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301. Senior or graduate standing.

5341. Research Design in Psychology. Provides a background in the tactics of research design. Focuses on nonstatistical issues; unobtrusive measures, reactivity, causal relationships, experimental and quasi-experimental design, internal and external validity. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5342. Research Methods in Social Psychology. An introduction to the techniques of social psychological investigation, concentrating on the procedures of field and laboratory experiments. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3341, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301; or permission of instructor.

5343. Organizational Psychology. Psychological principles applied to organizations, both business and volunteer, emphasizing a systems approach and including selection and assignment of personnel, leadership, motivation, communication, groups, and an overview of organizational developments. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5351. Social Perception. Surveys social perception and cognition, including topics such as person perception, nonverbal communication, emotional expression, accuracy, and stereotyping. Ecological, evolutionary and cognitive theoretical approaches to social knowledge acquisition are considered. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3341, 3382 and STAT 2331 or 2301; or permission of instructor.

5354. Personality. An examination of theories that attempt to explain the underlying bases of personality and the causes of individual differences. Emphasis is placed on the normal personality, but the causes of abnormal personality development, as outlined by each theory, are discussed as well. Prerequisites: Sophomore standing and six hours of Psychology, including PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5355. Abnormal Psychology. An examination of the causes, correlates, consequences, and treatment of abnormal behavior and mental states. Emphasis placed on findings from empirical research. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5356. Introduction to Clinical Psychology. A survey of the important issues and subfields of clinical psychology from the viewpoint of the scientist-practitioner model. Research, assessment, diagnosis, and theories in the area of psychotherapy are covered. Primarily designed for students contemplating graduate school in clinical psychology or related fields. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301; or permission of instructor.

5359. Death and Dying. An intensive study of topics related to mortality including sociocultural attitudes, funeral practices, loss and mourning, suicide, death across the lifespan, legal and ethical issues, and spiritual aspects of death. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5361, 5362, 5363. Special Topics in Psychology. Designed to cover topics that may have temporary or limited interest. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5371. Psychological Testing. Statistics and theories underlying the construction of psychological tests and inventories; emphasis upon concepts of reliability, validity, and other procedures for utilizing and evaluating psychological tests. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5381. Psychosomatic Processes. Explorations into the links between mind and body. Theories and recent findings concerning psychological influences on emotion, stress, immune system function, and selected diseases are discussed. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301; or permission of instructor.

5382. Advanced Experimental Psychology. Topics include descriptive and inferential statistics, experimental design, correlational design, and quasi-experimental design. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5383. Behavioral Medicine. Biopsychosocial bases of problems in physical health ranging from acute illness to chronic diseases and addictive disorders. Emphasis is on psychological assessment and treatment of these conditions. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382 and STAT 2331 or 2301; or permission of instructor.

5384. Psychology of Learning. A survey of the general principles, concepts, and current developments in the empirical analysis of learning. Topics include conditioning modes of addiction, learned helplessness, and the contribution of evolution to the expression of behavior change. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5385. Physiological Psychology. A survey of the neural bases of behavior. Primary emphasis will be given to mammalian brain structure and function and their relationships to psychological and behavioral processes. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5386. Behavioral Action of Drugs. Principles of drugs and behavior. Classification and chemical effects of behaviorally active drugs. Influences of environmental, response, and task variables, as well as evaluation and treatment of addiction. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5387. Psychology of Motivation. A study of current theories of motivation, with attention to the methods used in studying motivation and the effects of motivation on selected behaviors in human beings and animals. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5388. Memory and Cognition. A study of how information is encoded, stored, and retrieved in adults. Topics may include attentional processes, verbal learning, memory, comprehension, and problem solving. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5390. History of Psychology. A coverage of the most important movements and individuals contributing to the development of modern psychology. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382, and STAT 2331 or 2301.

5392. Comparative Cognition. Comparative cognition studies the higher mental abilities (e.g., learning, remembering, problem solving, language) of humans and animals. These abilities are examined from cognitive, learning, developmental, and evolutionary viewpoints. Prerequisites: PSYC 1300, 3382 and STAT 2331 or 2301.