Master of Science in Psychology

3 Credits

This course provides students with an introduction to strategies for academic success at the graduate level. Topics include oral and written communication, methods for finding and evaluating course resources, critical thinking, program standards, stress and time management, and collaborative processes.

3 Credits

This course examines biological and environmental influences on human development across the lifespan. The biological foundations of human growth and development are presented along with major theories of cognitive, social, and emotional development. Current research in developmental psychology is presented as students explore both opportunities and challenges that people face as they age. Social, cultural, systemic, and ethical issues related to research and practice are also addressed.

3 Credits

This course is a survey of biological and biochemical correlates of behavior, focusing on the structure and function of the central nervous system, the autonomic nervous system, and the endocrine system as they relate to psychological processes of sensation, drive, emotion, learning, and memory.

3 Credits

This course enables students to differentiate among the primary theoretical approaches to the study of personality, including psychodynamic, affective, cognitive-behavioral, and systems theories. Students examine the belief systems and underlying assumptions inherent in various personality models and learn how the tenets of these models are investigated through empirical research.

3 Credits

This course surveys contemporary research and theory in the field of cognitive psychology, including problem solving and reasoning, attention, memory, knowledge representation, language, and imagery. Strategies and methods for investigating cognition are presented along with future trends involving interdisciplinary research in this growing field.

3 Credits

This course examines major theories of learning, covering topics such as classical conditioning, operant conditioning, shaping and chaining, reinforcement schedules, punishment, one-trial learning, and cognitive and social processes in learning. Students will examine research from animal and human studies, emphasizing basic and complex models of acquired behavior, motivation, and memory.

3 Credits

This course provides students with an in-depth investigation of cross-cultural issues and perspectives in the field of psychology. Students learn to identify and consider cultural and systemic variables in psychological theory, research, and practice. Multicultural issues, social dynamics, social justice, and valued diversity are emphasized.

3 Credits

This course surveys various professional activities in psychology with emphasis on the legal and ethical responsibilities of psychological researchers and practitioners. Students will study the APA Code of Ethics and analyze case studies involving assessment, research, and practice in psychology. Topics include ethics in research, the purpose and function of internal review boards (IRBs), participant and client rights, informed consent, confidentiality, duty to warn and protect, dual relationships, supervision, consultation, ethical considerations when working with diverse populations, and the application of ethical decision-making models.

3 Credits

This course is an overview of the fundamentals of research methods applicable to the broad field of psychology. Topics include research design, quantitative and qualitative forms of analysis, ethical issues in research, and appropriate documentation of research processes and outcomes. Students will learn to critically read and evaluate psychological studies and apply their knowledge of research design and methodology to a variety of problems and issues in the field of psychology.

3 Credits

This course presents fundamental statistical concepts and tools for understanding and analyzing data from studies in the social and behavioral sciences. Topics include measures of central tendency and dispersion, probability theory, data distributions, significance testing, and statistical inference. Students will learn how to analyze and interpret data from psychological studies using descriptive statistics, correlational methods, t tests, and analysis of variance procedures.

3 Credits

This course will introduce students to the science and practice of psychological testing and assessment. Students will learn to evaluate the quality of various psychological tests and develop an understanding of the complex process of test development. Social, cultural and ethical issues will be addressed as students examine the psychometric properties and appropriate applications of commonly used educational, intelligence and personality assessment instruments.

3 Credits

This course covers a wide range of definitions and models that focus on the complex or problematic psychological disorders and conditions of psychopathology. Emphasis is on learning accepted conceptualizations of such disorders along with contemporary treatment approaches. Students are introduced to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) and the basis of diagnosis and classification of psychopathology. Critical thinking skills are emphasized, as are multicultural, legal, and ethical issues involved in the field of abnormal psychology.

3 Credits

This course will trace the historical progression of ideas and concepts in psychology with emphasis on pivotal experiments that influenced our understanding of human behavior. Students will select a specific area of study and explore the historical roots of their selected topic. Students will conduct a comprehensive literature review of a contemporary issue or problems related to their selected topic and develop either an applied project or research proposal.