•  Welcome to Introduction to Psychology!  This class is an elective in the Social Studies Department that requires the prerequisite of Health.  The following is a general outline of what topics we will cover in this class and how students are assessed. 
     
    I. What is Psychology?
    a. Exploring Psychology Through Art (assignment)
    b. Research methods of psychology
    c. Is it ethical to use animals in psychology?
     
    II. Basic Principles of Learning
    a. Classical conditioning (various experiments)
    b. Operant conditioning (various experiments)
    c. Reinforcement vs. Punishment
    d. Extinction
    e. Classical vs. operant conditioning (writing assignment)
     
    III. Memory
    a. Our memory is like a computer
    b. Atkinson-Shiffron model of memory
    c. Various activities and experiments to reinforce material that is learned
    d. Improving Memory (writing assignment)
     
    IV. Sex and Gender
    a. Gender roles in foreign countries (poster project)
    b. Gender stereotypes and advertising
    c. Gender empathy activity
    d. Are gender roles present at birth?
    e. Biology and gender roles
     
    VII. Personality
    a. Personality collage and paper (assignment)
    b. Personality traits (Big 5 test)
    c. Creation of personality tests
    d. Is your personality permanent throughout your life?
    e. Psychodynamic, behaviorist, humanist theories
    f. Personalities on TV
     
    VIII. Psychological Disorders
    a. Major project centered around a mental illness
     
    IX. Final exam
     
Last Modified on October 9, 2013