Psychology Courses Offered

The following courses are offered within the Psychology Department:

 

PSYC 101: General Psychology (3 credit hours – Fall and Spring)

This course offers an introduction to the areas, findings, problems and methods which constitute the discipline of psychology. Areas studied include neuropsychology, sensation, perception, learning, memory, development, personality, psychopathology, therapy, and social behavior.

 

PSYC 105: Foundations of Addiction (3 credit hours – Fall)

This introductory course introduces information on the use and abuse of various drugs including alcohol, marijuana, cocaine and others. Areas studied include models of addiction and treatment, the disease concept and its relationship to current psychological thought on learning associated with addictive behavior and other issues involved in the problem of substance abuse and addiction.

 

PSYC 200: Counseling Ethics / Confidentiality (3 credit hours – Odd year Fall)

This course will involve an in-depth exploration of the ethical, legal and behavioral issues facing the counselor and substance abuse professional. The student will learn about confidentiality rules and regulations, clients’ rights and responsibilities, codes of ethics, and avenues for addressing ethical problems that arise in a variety of clinical, supervisory, and consultative settings.

 

PSYC 201: Social Psychology (3 credit hours – Fall)

This course reviews the relationship between the individual and others, including interpersonal perception, attitude formation, social influence, prejudice, aggression, romantic relationships, group processes, and other topics. Areas studied include the application of experimental methods to social processes, and current and historical theoretical perspectives on social processes.

 

PSYC 260: Psychopharmacology / Medical Risk Issues (3 credit hours – Odd year Fall)

This course examines the primary biochemical and pharmacological processes occurring with the use and abuse of psychoactive drugs. Basic knowledge of pharmacology will be covered along with the properties of drugs and their behavioral effects. This course also covers specific health risks and disease transmission factors associated with substance use and abuse as well as related medical knowledge needed for prevention and by treatment providers. Prerequisite: PSYC 101; BIOL 110, BIOL 221 or by consent of instructor.

 

PSYC 285: Diversity Issues in Counseling

 

PSYC 286: Special Topics (Lower Level) (Variable credit – On demand)

This course allows for the study of current topics in psychology best suited for sophomore level students. These include topics such as health psychology, psychology of mass communications, school psychology, and special addiction and recovery workshops for which credit is given. Prerequisite: PSYC 101 or by consent of the instructor.

 

PSYC 310: Fundamentals of Conditioning and Learning (3 credit hours – Odd year Spring)

This course is a study of the fundamental concepts and issues regarding changes in behavior. Emphasis will be on the application of classical, instrumental, and social learning principles of human and animal learning. Prerequisite: PSYC 101.

 

PSYC 325: Abnormal Psychology (3 credit hours – Spring)

This class will examine the major psychological disorders including the anxiety disorders, affective disorders, personality disorders, addictive disorders, and schizophrenias. Areas also studied include the application of experimental methodology to mental disorders, current and historical theoretical perspectives, methods of assessment, classification, treatment, etiology and prognosis.

 

PSYC 340: Introduction to Group Counseling (3 credit hours – Spring)

This course introduces the student to the dynamics of group process involving structured and unstructured interpersonal experiences. Special emphasis is placed on experiencing group interaction via exercises, role-playing and videotaped group process for the acquisition of basic observational and process skills. Prerequisite: PSYC 101 or by consent of instructor.

 

PSYC 345: Addiction and the Family (2 credit hours – Even year Fall)

This course introduces the general principles of family development. The student will develop a working knowledge of family systems theory and a basic understanding of what causes dysfunction within families. Special consideration will be given to the intervention process as it pertains to the treatment of addictive disorders.

 

PSYC 351: Theories of Counseling (3 credit hours – Odd year Fall)

The different theoretical orientations toward the helping relationship and the skill sets needed will be examined as well as review of counselor ethics and professional responsibilities in clinical and educational settings. Prerequisite: PSYC 101, PSYC 380 recommended.

 

PSYC 352: Principles of Counseling Practice (3 credit hours – Even year Spring)

This will be a skill development class with exposure to a variety of counseling techniques and opportunities for role playing of hypothetical therapy situations. Students will work on the counseling skills established as state and national standards for alcoholism and drug abuse counselors, be reviewed and examined on those, and also receive training in the use of assessment tools. Prerequisite: PSYC101, PSYC351 recommended or by consent of instructor.

 

PSYC 360: Cognitive Psychology (3 credit hours – Even year Spring)

This class investigates the major areas of human cognition, including perception, attention, memory, language, problem-solving, reasoning, and applications in areas such as artificial intelligence. Prerequisite: PSYC 101.

 

PSYC 370: Psychological Tests and Measures (3 credit hours – Even year Fall)

This course introduces the student to the psychometric basis of testing and measurement. Areas studied include the history of testing and measurements, ethics in testing, and major types of psychological tests. Prerequisite: PSYC 101.

 

PSYC 380: Theories of Personality (3 credit hours – Even year Fall)

This course investigates several major approaches to the study of personality. This will include psychoanalytic, psychosocial, humanistic/existential, behavioristic, and social learning approaches. It includes the major contributions to the study of personality by psychologists such as Freud, Erikson, Rogers, Maslow, Dollard and Miller, Skinner, and others. Prerequisite: PSYC 101.

 

PSYC 385: Sport Psychology (3 credit hours – Even year Fall)

This course examines a number of areas of psychological knowledge as they apply to sport, including the role of behavioral and learning principles, social psychology, personality, motivation, etc. Attention will be given to the ways psychology helps us to better understand sport-related problems such as aggression and burnout in sport, performance-related variables, and ways of improving performance for sports participants. The processes of self-regulation in sports events for example, anxiety control, mental rehearsal, and the use of biofeedback and goal setting techniques are also included in this course. Prerequisite: PSYC 101 or by consent of instructor.

 

PSYC 390: Psychological Research Design (4 credit hours – Fall)

This course examines the use of experimental designs in the systematic study of major areas in the field of psychology (such as learning, perception, memory, social psychology, etc.). Students will have the opportunity to conduct and present laboratory research projects and practice writing in APA style. Prerequisites: PSYC 101 and BSHS 210, or by consent of the instructor.

 

PSYC 402: Physiological Psychology (3 credit hours – Even year Spring)

This course examines the relationship of psychological phenomena (such as sensation, motivation, and memory) to brain structure and function as well as biochemical processes. Investigative techniques such as brain lesions and stimulation, bioelectrical recordings and anatomical procedures will also be examined. Prerequisite: PSYC 101.

 

PSYC 410: History of Psychology (3 credit hours – Even year Spring)

This course studies the development of psychological thought from its philosophical roots to the present time including an examination of the schools of psychology that emerged to define the field of psychology. Prerequisite: PSYC 101 and Junior standing or by consent of instructor.

 

PSYC 455: Case Management (3 credit hours – Odd year Spring)

This class will ideally be preparatory to agency internship experience. The course will covers aspects of client management and treatment planning, including screening, intake, assessment, and referral procedures. There will be review of client support systems and issues in counseling special populations, review of legal, ethical and professional growth issues for the counselor, and examination of state services and treatment trends in Kansas that include programming-related issues in the addictions field. Short-term observation and on-site orientation at different treatment facilities may also be required. Prerequisites: PSYC 101, PSYC 351, PSYC 352, or by consent of the instructor.

 

PSYC 460: Internship (Variable credit – On demand)

This course offers an intensive field experience with a community social service agency, treatment center or other psychological service provider. Placement will be based on the student’s career orientation. Prerequisite: Departmental approval and satisfaction of entry criteria where applicable.

 

PSYC 470: Research Assistantship (Variable credit – On demand)

This course offers students the opportunity to participate as part of a psychological research team. Depending on the stages of various projects in the department, students may be involved in planning, data collection, data entry, analysis, or writing and presentation phases of research. Course may be repeated, preferably in adjacent semesters. Prerequisite: PSYC 101 and by consent of the instructor (PSYC 390 or SOCI 331 recommended).

 

PSYC 485: Special Topics (Upper Level) (Variable credit – On demand)

A focused investigation into a selected area (or areas) of psychology that includes topics such as industrial/organizational psychology, the psychology of consciousness, the psychology of religion, etc. Prerequisites: PSYC 101 or by consent of the instructor.

 

PSYC 490: Independent Study in Psychology (Variable credit – On demand)

With consent of the instructor, the student is allowed to pursue advanced or specialized study in a topic of special interest. See Independent Study under Alternate Means to Academic Credit for a more detailed description.