Psychology

The study of human nature from the viewpoint of psychological science. Topics range from the biological bases of human perception, thought and action to the social-psychological determinants of individual and group behavior. This course can be used to satisfy the science and technology with laboratory general education requirement. Two lectures, one laboratory.

Survey of different types of psychological disorders and different models of explanation. Students will come to understand the conflicting viewpoints and treatment approaches that characterize the clinical field, and will understand what is presently known and unknown about psychopathology. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

A survey of brain and mind, emphasizing issues related to human behavior. Topics include: psychoactive drugs, aging and Alzheimer's disease, reengineering the brain, learning and memory, sleep-waking and biological rhythms, and major mental diseases. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

An exploration of original texts in the history of ideas about the workings of the human mind starting in Antiquity and leading to the development of the empirical discipline of psychology in the 19th century and some of its modern trends. Subsequent developments, including the child study movement, are explored though 20th-century writings, culminating with Sartre's philosophical psychology and sources in Eastern thought to put the Western trajectory in perspective. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

This course examines the complex mental and neurological processes that underlie linguistic knowledge and behavior. It will be concerned with the precise description and measurement of language activity, with its governing principles, and with available indices for the associated neural computations and their location in the brain. Seminar.

Science searches for patterns in data. Quantitative methods are tools for finding and evaluating these patterns. This course introduces foundational concepts in quantitative methods, including data visualization and common statistical tests used in psychological research. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

This course examines the scientific study of the way ordinary people think about, feel, and behave in social situations and how they influence, and are influenced by, others around them. We will first examine how people think and feel about others and about themselves; then we explore how they induce others to conform, to comply, to obey, and occasionally to see the world differently. Later, we examine how groups influence individuals and how individuals influence groups, how members of different groups relate to one another, and the seeds of attraction, altruism, and aggression. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

Babies, who look like helpless blobs, are capable of impressive feats of learning. 3-year-olds, who can't cross the street alone, know an astounding amount of information about their environments. We will focus on landmark studies that elucidate how children's biology, cognition, language, and social experiences interact to set the stage for what we do and who we are. Is the baby's world a 'blooming, buzzing confusion', or do babies enter the world prepared to make sense of their environments? How can we understand the collaboration between nature and nurture during development? Two lectures, one preceptorial.

The course will survey discoveries and progress made over the past 50 years of research, from classic experimental findings and fundamental theoretical principles to the cutting edge of research that lies increasingly at the interface of psychology with neuroscience (neural mechanisms underlying cognitive processes), computer science (artificial intelligence and machine learning), and mathematics (formal models of complex processes). Topics will include perception, attention, memory, decision making, reasoning, problem solving, language, and cognitive control. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

A survey of major approaches to the study of personality, including psychodynamic, social learning, and trait-theory approaches. The focus will be on the assumptions made by each approach, relevant techniques for collecting and analyzing data, and theoretical and practical implications. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

An intensive introduction to fundamental topics in neuroscience, including neuronal excitability, synaptic physiology, neural networks, and circuits that mediate perception, action, emotion, and memory. We will examine neuroscience at scales ranging from single neurons, to the activity of small sets of neurons, to the organization of brain and behavior. The course will address broad questions including: How does information enter the brain? What neural pathways transmit these signals? How is information processed and used to construct an internal model of reality? How does the brain choose and execute the correct behavioral response?

Cognitive neuroscience is a young and exciting field with many questions yet to be answered. This course surveys current knowledge about the neural basis of perception, cognition and action and will comprehensively cover topics such as high-level vision, attention, memory, language, decision making, as well as their typical and atypical development. Precepts will discuss the assigned research articles, pertaining to topics covered in class with an emphasis on developing critical reading skills of scientific literature. NEU 201/PSY 258 does not need to be taken before this course.

This course covers foundations of the research process for experimental Psychology: reviewing and evaluating published journal articles, refining new research questions, conducting pilot studies, creating stimuli, sequencing experiments for optimal control and data quality, analyzing data, and communicating scientific methods and results clearly, effectively, and professionally in APA style. Lectures survey time-tested excellent methods, and labs provide opportunities to recreate interesting experiments and innovate, building toward an original research final project. Two lectures, one laboratory.

What does it mean to know a language? Is it something we learn or something the brain "grows?" What aspects of language are innate? Is parents' speech important in language learning? An examination of the properties of child language through the lens of current linguistic theory. Two 90-minute classes.

This course aims to understand humans in social interaction, from communicating with one another, to jointly remembering the past, to coordinating our actions. This course will also teach you how to be a more efficient and persuasive communicator, create more meaningful connections with others, and focus your motivation to achieve your goals. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

This course is an integrative treatment of memory in humans and animals. We explore working memory (our ability to actively maintain thoughts in the face of distraction), episodic memory (our ability to remember previously experienced events), and semantic memory (our ability to learn and remember the meanings of stimuli). In studying how the brain gives rise to different kinds of memory, we consider evidence from behavioral experiments, neuroscientific experiments (neuroimaging, electrophysiology, and lesion studies), and computational models. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Prerequisite: 255 or 259, or instructor's permission.

Principles of psychology relevant to the theory and practice of education. Through selected readings, discussion, and classroom observations, students study theories of development, learning, cognition (including literacy), motivation, assessment, and the social psychology of the classroom. Individual and group differences in these areas are addressed. The course focuses on how learning by children and adolescents at the elementary, middle, and secondary school levels is influenced by their own characteristics and experiences and the various contexts in which they learn: family, school, community and culture. One three-hour seminar.

The cognitive processes underlying the use and understanding of language, and in learning to speak. Topics include speech production and perception, grammar and meaning, knowledge and words, and pragmatic aspects of language. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

Considers how one infers the motives, dispositions, and abilities of other persons. Next examines how these inferential processes are used to draw inferences about oneself. Students will design an original experiment (with consultation). Two lectures, one preceptorial. Prerequisite: 252 or instructor's permission.

This course will review the neuroscience of selective attention, from the theoretical foundations provided by cognitive psychology to the neural underpinnings identified by systems neuroscience. The course will present a 'hands on' science experience, combining experimental demonstrations and discussions of current research topics to learn the design and analyses of contemporary experiments in the attention field. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

The objectives of this course are to understand the psychosocial processes that influence health and health care delivery. Topics to be examined are the psychophysiological and sociocultural bases of health and illness; pain and healing; adaptation to chronic illness; stress; personality and illness; quality of life; death, dying, and grief; substance use; health promoting behaviors; patient adherence; physician-patient communication; health care; and medical ethics and utilization. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

An examination of the major forms of childhood psychopathology. Causal roles played by individual factors, traumatic events, the family, school, and community as well as the prevention and treatment of childhood disorders will also be examined. One three-hour seminar. Prerequisites: 207 and 254.

This course will review key psychotherapeutic skills from dominant therapeutic modalities. We will learn about the theoretical and empirical backing for each skill and then practice applying them to achieve goals in our own lives. Students will gain knowledge of the science and practice of psychotherapy as well as concrete skills in applying therapeutic techniques in their own lives. Lecture and one preceptorial.

An introduction to the logic of decision making and reasoning under uncertainty. Focus on psychological mechanisms that govern choice and judgment and on characteristic errors found in intuitive judgment and choice. Discussion of divergence from the model of rational agent often assumed in social science theory and economics. Rules governing pleasure, pain, and well-being provide background for analysis of the rationality of some individual choices and for the evaluation of general policies that affect human welfare. Prerequisite: introductory statistics for social science or instructor's permission.

Major issues in social and personality psychology examined from a developmental perspective with emphasis on developmental processes and change. Data on children, adolescents, and adults will be considered. Topics will include: social attachment, stranger and separation anxiety, self-concept, self-esteem, achievement, sex roles, and antisocial, prosocial, and moral behavior. Prerequisite: 252 or 254 or 257 or instructor's permission. Two 90-minute seminars.

This course introduces the scientific perspective on close relationships. Students will learn how research psychologists apply the scientific method of data collection and analysis to investigate how people experience and think about relationships in general, and romantic relationships in particular. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

Gender is a topic with which everybody feels intimately familiar. This course holds up to scientific scrutiny the strong beliefs people have about how women and men are similar to and different from each other, examining major theories and empirical findings in psychological research on gender. Topics include the development of gender identity, empirical comparisons of men and women, gender stereotypes and their perpetuation, and the role of gender and gendered beliefs in achievement, interpersonal relationships, and physical and psychological well-being. Prerequisite: any course in psychology. Two 90-minute lectures, one preceptorial.

A fundamental goal of cognitive neuroscience is to understand how psychological functions such as attention, memory, language, and decision making arise from computations performed by assemblies of neurons in the brain. This course will provide an introduction to the use of connectionist models (also known as neural network or parallel distributed processing models) as a tool for exploring how psychological functions are implemented in the brain, and how they go awry in patients with brain damage. Prerequisite: instructor's permission. Two 90-minute lectures, one laboratory.

In this class we will explore gender and sex diversity in humans. We will read and listen to classic medical cases and scientific studies, anthropological reports, the first-person narrative accounts of intersex and nonbinary adults, and podcasts from expert researchers. Throughout the class we will dive into deep ethical dilemmas emerging in the current cultural moment and learn what social and life scientists think about these topics to develop our own views. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

This course explores interdisciplinary ways of tackling the problem of understanding ourselves. Students will learn how to critically evaluate research examining the porous boundaries between self and society, and to think imaginatively about what the scientific method can reveal about humans- now and in the future.Two lectures, one preceptorial.

A survey of the unique behaviors of different animal species and how they are mediated by specialized brain circuits. Topics include, for example, monogamy in voles, face recognition in primates, sex- and role-change in fish, and predation by bats. The role of evolutionary and developmental constraints on neural circuit construction will be a key underlying theme. Prerequisites: 258 or 259. One three-hour seminar.

This course explores the neural foundations of social cognition in natural contexts. Highly controlled lab experiments fail to capture and model the complexity of social interaction in the real world. Recent advances in artificial neural networks provide an alternative computational framework to model cognition in natural contexts. In the course, we will review and critically evaluate deep learning models related to visual perception, speech, language, and social cognition, juxtaposing them against conventional cognitive models. One three-hour lecture.

Seminar designed to expose students to a modern, integrative view of animal learning phenomena from experimental psychology, through the lens of computational models and current neuroscientific knowledge. At the psychological level, we will concentrate on classical and instrumental conditioning. Computationally, we will view these as exemplars of prediction learning and action selection, the pillars of reinforcement learning. Neurally, we will focus on the roles of dopamine and the basal ganglia at the systems level. Students will see how the study of animal decision making can inform us about the computations that take place in the brain.

This course explores how humans and animals make decisions, focusing on how psychological and neural mechanisms implement, or fail to implement, economic theories of choice. Good choice is subject to evolutionary selection; poor choice accompanies many neurological and psychiatric disorders. But theoretical understanding of a function is needed to manipulate and measure it experimentally. We consider choice in many sorts of tasks; e.g., in animal foraging and human competitive interactions. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

This seminar will explore the psychological consequences of adversity, including its effects on beliefs, attitudes, decision-making, morality, self and identity, health and well-being, close relationships, and communities. We will consider not only the deleterious effects of adversity, but also how it can foster resilience, strengthen ties, and spark creativity. The course will balance psychological theories and research with personal and historic narratives. One three-hour seminar.

This course provides advanced students in cognitive science, psychology, and computer science with the skills to develop computational models of human cognition. The course will explore three ways in which researchers have attempted to normalize cognition: symbolic approaches, neural networks, and probability and statistics. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

Freud is approached as a systematic thinker dedicated to discovering the basic principles of human mental life. For Freud, these basic principles concern what impels human thought and behavior. What moves us to think and act? What is it to think and act? Emphasis is placed on the close study and critical analysis of texts, with particular attention to the underlying structure of the arguments. Two 90-minute classes.

This course examines how social, behavioral and cultural factors influence human behavior and the conceptualization of mental health and psychopathology, with a focus on current, controversial topics. Students will examine the ways their understanding of mental and physical health and well-being are shaped by their own values and assumptions, as well as societal constructs and structures such as the health care system. The class is designed to promote cultural competence in diagnosis, treatment and research strategies. One three-hour seminar.

An examination of various topics in social and personality psychology not emphasized in other courses. The topic and prerequisites will vary from year to year. This year's seminar will focus on the social and psychological experiences of people who possess (or are believed to possess) some attribute, or characteristic, that conveys a social identity that is devalued in a particular social context. One three-hour seminar.

Attitudes matter. Throughout the history of the world, people have taken extraordinary steps to support a set of attitudes and beliefs that helped to bring about a better world. Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King led societies to new views of human dignity by their written words and their behaviors. Every day, people advocate for their ideals. They persuade and organize in the service of bringing about a world that is closer to the paragon in which they believe. One three-hour seminar.

This course will explore a wide range of mind-machine interactions. Are search engines changing the structure of human memory? Is your laptop or smartphone part of your mind? Are human brains flexible enough to update motor and sensory systems, expanding the self to include artificial limbs, exoskeletons, remote-control devices, night vision, wearable computing, etc.? How do experiences in virtual reality impact psychology? As technology advances we are all becoming cyborgs. Now is an exciting time to study the interactive interface of technology and mind. One three-hour seminar.

This course will explore how people believe and how what they believe impacts their behavior. How do people change their beliefs? What factors facilitate the endorsement of conspiracy theories? How do people influence each other's beliefs during communication? How do beliefs propagate through social networks? This course will also explore a multidisciplinary framework to understand the endorsement and propagation of true and false beliefs through social networks. One three-hour seminar.

This course will provide an overview of several theoretical orientations to psychotherapy and critically evaluate how the effects of therapies are measured and studied. Application of research findings to clinical practice will be examined closely, including issues related to psychotherapy integration and the treatment of diverse populations in various settings. The course will also include reviews of the current state of psychotherapy research for a number of psychological disorders and consider current controversies in the area of treatment outcome research. One three-hour seminar.

Introduction to a mathematical description of how networks of neurons can represent information and compute with it. Course will survey computational modeling and data analysis methods for neuroscience. Example topics are short-term memory and decision-making, population coding, modeling behavioral and neural data, and reinforcement learning. Classes will be a mix of lectures from the professor, and presentations of research papers by the students. Two 90 minute lectures, one laboratory. Basic linear algebra, probability, ordinary differential equations, and some programming experience, or permission of the instructor.

Human Factors 1.0 studied how humans interact with machines and technology, bringing engineering and psychology into contact in the 1950s and giving rise to theories of user-centric design. This course will cover recent theoretical advances in cognitive and social psychology, especially in human judgment and decision making, that are relevant for engineers and choice architects as they address technical and societal challenges related to sustainability. Such psychological theory (human factors 2.0) can be creatively applied to designs decision environments that help people overcome present bias, loss aversion, and status-quo bias.

Empirical research is at the core of our work as psychological scientists. The primary goal of your independent work is to make sure you learn how to understand, conduct, and communicate empirical research. The yearlong thesis course aims to assist you in attaining this goal via assignments that promote consistent investment in and attention to the thesis throughout the academic year. PSY majors will complete PSY 498 in the fall (graded P/D/F) and PSY 499 (letter graded) in the spring. In the fall, seniors submit a thesis progress & planning form and partial draft; students must receive a passing grade in PSY 498 to enroll in PSY 499.

Empirical research is at the core of our work as psychological scientists. The primary goal of your independent work is to make sure you learn how to understand, conduct, and communicate empirical research. The yearlong thesis course aims to assist you in attaining this goal via assignments that promote consistent investment in and attention to the thesis throughout the academic year. PSY majors will complete PSY 498 in the fall (graded P/D/F) and PSY 499 (letter graded) in the spring. In the spring, seniors submit a thesis draft partway through the semester and then their final thesis.