The primary method of instruction will be the lecture, but the course may involve various other methods of instruction such as small group activities, discussion groups, seminars, oral presentation, laboratory demonstrations, field trips, computer simulations, videos, film, or guest lecturers.
- Thinking and Language
- Concept formation.
- Problem solving and reasoning.
- Language structure and development.
- Animals and language.
- Intelligence
- The measurement and assessment of intelligence.
- Principles of test construction.
- Biological and environmental influences on intelligence.
- Motivation and Work
- Concepts of motivation.
- Motivation for hunger, sex, and to belong.
- Achievement motivation.
- Motivation at work.
- Emotions, Stress, and Health
- Theories of emotion.
- The expression and experience of emotion.
- The relationship between stress and health.
- Stress management and promotion of health
- Personality
- Theories and perspectives of personality development: psychoanalytic, humanistic, trait, and social-cognitive.
- The self
- Psychological Disorders and Therapy
- Defining and diagnosing psychological illnesses.
- Classification of psychological disorders.
- anxiety disorders, somatoform disorders, dissociative disorders, affective disorders, schizophrenic disorders, personality disorders.
- Therapies.
- Psychological therapies
- Biomedical therapies
- Evaluating types of therapies.
- Social Behaviour
- Social thinking (attitudes)
- Social influence
- Conformity, obedience, group dynamics.
- Social relations
- Prejudice, aggression, attraction, altruism, conflict and peacemaking
- Social Psychology theories and applications.
At the conclusion of the course the student will be able to:
- Define psychology and give examples of the different kinds of phenomena that psychologists study (i.e. those related to PSYC1200 content).
- Define cognition and explain the role of concept formation, problem solving, reasoning and language in cognitive development.
- Describe how psychologists approach the study of intelligence, how intelligence is defined and measured, the problems associated with measurement and how heredity and environment affect intelligence.
- Explain how behaviour is energized and directed by the complex mixture of motives and emotions and describe the various theories that have been developed to explain motivation and emotion.
- Identify the various perspectives that are common in the area of personality psychology and critically evaluate each in terms of its explanatory and predictive power.
- List and describe the major psychological disorders.
- Identify the various psychological therapies, and critically evaluate each in terms of effectiveness.
- Discuss the issue of stress and its relationship to health and illness, and describe the various aspects of stress management.
- Explain the complex nature of social relations and social influence, (including conformity, compliance, persuasion, and group dynamics) and describe how psychologists investigate such phenomena as aggression, altruism, prejudice, attraction, conflict and peacemaking.
- Describe the experimental methodology and statistical approaches used in contemporary psychology.
- Write a report demonstrating basic knowledge of APA (American Psychological Association) style.
The course evaluation will be in accordance with Douglas College and Psychology Department policies. Evaluations will be based on the course objectives. The specific evaluation criteria will be provided by the instructor at the beginning of the semester.
An example of a possible evaluation scheme would be:
One example of an evaluation scheme
| Four multiple choice tests at 15% each | 60% |
| One written final exam | 20% |
| Laboratory activities | 5% |
| Attendance and participation | 5% |
| APA-style written assignment | 10% |
| Total | 100% |
Textbooks and Materials to be Purchased by Students:
Textbook(s) such as the following, the list to be updated periodically:
Myers, D. (2013). Psychology. (10th ed.) . New York: Worth Publishers
Note: The textbook choice will be used in both PSYC 1100 and PSYC 1200.