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Undergraduate Subject Objectives
- First year level subjects
- Second Year:
- Third Year:
First Year:
512 120 Introductory Experimental Psychology1 &
512 121 Social, Developmental & Clinical Psychology 1
Specific objectives:
- To introduce the broad areas and varied approaches that comprise the field of psychology
- To develop an understanding of some key psychological concepts and theories from several areas of psychology;
- To develop skills in the use and evaluation of scientific methodology and enquiry, including research design and data analysis;
- To develop basic skills in the critical evaluation of psychological literature;
- To develop skills in report writing as it applies to the study of psychology.
On completion of these subjects that comprise the first year of study in psychology, students should be able to:
- Identify and evaluate the empirical basis for some major psychological concepts and theories;
- Identify the critical features of specific research designs;
- Identify the basic approach to hypothesis testing including formulation of research questions, collection of relevant behavioural observations, analysis and interpretation of data to arrive at a conclusion;
- Apply basic descriptive and inferential statistics in data analysis;
- Communicate the findings of empirical studies.
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Second Year:
512 220 Quantitative Methods 2
The objectives of this subject are:
- to introduce the problem of psychological measurement and to discuss the role of quantitative methods in psychology;
- to develop an understanding that good techniques in data acquisition, both at an individual and group level, underpin psychological science;
- to present basic experimental and survey designs for psychological research;
- to develop an understanding of the role of psychological tests and surveys, including their development,
- implementation, and validation;
- to learn the fundamental criteria for evaluating psychological tests;
- to improve capabilities in a range of data analytic techniques, including in appropriate interpretation of data analytic results;
- to develop skills in computer-based data analysis using the statistical package SPSS.
On completion of this subject, at an introductory level students should be able to:
- analyse research and measurement issues from an evidence-based perspective;
- evaluate critically research designs and data analytic techniques used in quantitative research;
- strengthen their own capabilities in data analysis, particularly using major software packages;
- understand the steps involved in developing and evaluating psychological tests;
- identify strengths and weaknesses of measurement instruments appropriate to the social and behavioural sciences.
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512 221 Developmental Psychology 2
This subject will provide students with the opportunity to examine cognitive, social and affective development in infancy, childhood and adolescence. It will be divided into two interrelated themes: one focussing primarily on the development of individual cognitive, problem solving and reasoning competencies and the other focusing on the development of social and emotional functions. Contemporary theories as well as recent and historical accounts of development will be reviewed. The focus of the subject will be on an analysis of the nature of development, stability and change in developmental processes, and domain-general versus domain-specific abilities. The course will also provide students with experience in the collection, analysis and interpretation of developmental data in either an applied or laboratory setting.
On completion of the subject students should be able to:
- account for some of the factors that influence cognitive, social, and affective development;
- evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of adopting different perspectives for studying developmental processes;
- identify historical as well as contemporary accounts of development;
- assess the adequacy of some of the methods employed to study change in different phases of development;
- critically evaluate research on development
- interpret and analyse data relevant to development
- prepare a laboratory report from a class exercise investigating an issue from contemporary developmental psychology.
Students will further develop generic skills in:
- analysing research literature
- interpreting research data
- evaluating research methodology
- writing reports.
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512 222 Behavioural Neuroscience 2
Following completion of Behavioural Neuroscience II (512-222) students will develop an appreciation of the neurobiological basis of psychological function and dysfunction and of how disease states affect the brain and behaviour. This appreciation will incorporate an understanding of (a) how neurones function, (b) how the different parts of the brain interact and (c) how the brain interacts with the body's efferent and afferent systems. Evolutionary and developmental scenarios will be used to provide a context that will facilitate understanding of brain functioning. A strong appreciation of the means by which scientific methods can be applied to the study of the relationship between the brain and behaviour should be developed. Students will thus become familiar with brain investigation techniques ranging from lesions studies to some of the latest neuro-imaging techniques. Laboratory classes will provide students with hands-on experience with how data can be collected and analysed. Students will be required to draw inferences from these data and report them. In addition, students will develop skills related to the ability to research an area, analyse the information critically and to arrange it in a report that is clearly expressed and lucid.
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512 223 Personality & Social Psychology 2
Specific objectives:
- To provide an introduction to theory and research in personality. This may include structural approaches to personality, the assessment of personality, and biological basis of personality.
- To develop further the basic understandings gained in introductory level social psychology of theoretical and empirical work in individual, interpersonal, and group processes. This may include attitudes and social cognition, self and identity, and group dynamics.
- To provide an understanding of the relationship between theory and experimentation in personality and social psychology.
- To provide experience in the collection, analysis, and interpretation of personality or social psychological data gained in applied or laboratory settings.
- To provide an opportunity to apply data analytic skills learned in 512-220 to the analysis of personality or social psychological data.
On completion of this subject, students should be able to:
- Give a critical account of some of the main theories in one or more topic areas in personality and social psychology;
- Derive testable empirical predictions from a theory that is expressed in abstract, personality or social psychological term;
- Assess the adequacy of a personality or social psychological theory in relation to a given set of experimental findings;
- Summarise and analyse data in a way that it appropriate to the empirical test of personality or social psychological theory;
- Communicate clearly the relationships that exist between theory, predictions, empirical test and subsequent inferences
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512 224 Cognitive Psycholgy 2
Specific objectives:
- To provide an introduction to some of the central topic areas in cognitive psychology. These may include memory, attention, language, reasoning and decision making;
- To develop an understanding of the information-processing approach to the analysis of cognitive processes and of the historical origins of this approach;
- To develop an understanding of the types of information representation and information processing that are needed to perform various kinds of cognitive tasks;
- To provide an understanding of the relationship between theory and experimentation in cognitive psychology and to show how, through a survey of particular topic areas, the two have developed in a complementary way;
- To provide experience in the collection, analysis and interpretation of cognitive data in applied or laboratory settings;
- To provide an opportunity to apply data-analytic skills learned in 512-220 to the analysis of real psychological data.
On completion of this subject, students should be able to:
- Give a critical account of the main theories in one or more topic areas of cognitive psychology.
- Derive testable empirical predictions from a theory that is expressed in abstract, information-processing terms.
- Assess the adequacy of a cognitive theory in relation to a given set of experimental findings.
- Summarise and analyse data in a way that is appropriate to the empirical test of a cognitive theory.
- Write a laboratory report that clearly expresses the relationship between theory, predictions, empirical test, and subsequent inferences.
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Third Year:
512 320 Research Methods 3
Specific objectives:
- To develop skills in the design and analysis of psychological experiments;
- To develop an understanding of the advantages and limitations of different kinds of experimental design;
- To learn to how recognise and to analyse a variety of experimental designs and how to carry out appropriate follow-up tests;
- To learn how to construct and carry out tests of exact psychological hypotheses in multi-group experimental settings;
- To develop an appreciation of the importance of power and effect size statistics in the design and analysis of psychological studies;
- To introduce techniques for modelling psychological data with multiple predictor variables in applied settings;
- To learn how to assess the adequacy of quantitative models as representations of psychological data.
On completion of this subject, students should be able to:
- Design and analyse a multifactor experiment to test a set of research hypotheses;
- Assess the relationships that exist within a set of psychological data and develop a quantitative model that expresses those relationships;
- Identify strengths and weaknesses in the design and analysis of research in the psychological literature;
- Carry out a range of data-analytic tasks in univariate and multivariate settings using the statistical package SPSS.
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512 322 Industrial/Organizational Psychology 3
On completion of this subject, students should be able to:
- develop analytic skills related to real problems in industry
- develop communication and written skills through their assignment report
- develop communication and interpersonal skills through laboratory exercises.
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512 323 Professional Applications of Psychology 3
Specific objectives:
This course aims to provide an introduction to two areas of Psychology in which theories and research are directed specifically towards improving the well-being of individuals in our community, i.e. two areas of Professional Psychology. While there are points of overlap these are taught in two independent units, Human Neuropsychology and Health Psychology.
Human Neuropsychology aims to provide students with knowledge and skills in relation to common neuropsychological disorders in adults, including causes and assessment. It also aims to introduce students to basic conceptual and methodological issues in neuropsychological assessment and describe the theory which underlies neuropsychological process. At the completion of the unit, students will understand the relationship between theory and the clinical expression of various clinical syndromes. Students will also gain insights into clinical approaches to assessment. Students will understand issues related to common neuropsychological disorders including Disorders of Memory, Attention, Perception, Emotion, Language, Movement and Executive Dysfunction.
Health Psychology aims to provide students with knowledge and skills in relation to health psychology including determinants of health-promoting and risk behaviours, issues in health promotion, and psychological issues related to coping with physical illness, pain and grief. At the completion of the unit, students will understand different theoretical models predicting determinants of health behaviours and be able to apply them to specific health behaviours. They will also have knowledge of research related to safe sex behaviour, sun-protection, smoking and exercise behaviours; the relationship between stress and illness; and the nature of pain. Students will also have an understanding of eating behaviours and weight related issues, including eating disorders and obesity.
During Professional Applications of Psychology, students will develop the following generic skills, qualities and attitudes:
- The ability to apply theoretical models of human biology and behaviour to diverse applied settings;
- The ability to synthesize research material from numerous sources and identify and communicate central themes;
- The ability to apply problem solving strategies in order to make accurate diagnoses;
- An appreciation of the role of research in improving the quality of individual lives and social environments;
- An appreciation of the social implications and obligations of applied psychological research.
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512 330 Human Psychophysiology 3
On completion of this subject, student should be able to:
- be able to appreciate the physiological basis of human behaviour;
- have an understanding of the basic principles of physiology as applied to human behaviour;
- understand the cognitive and neural mechanisms underlying various behavioural processes, such as attention, emotional behaviour and sleep.
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512 335 Advanced Cognition 3
On completion of this subject, students should be able to:
- Think critically about theoretical and empirical issues in psychology;
- Evaluate research issues critically on the basis of empirical evidence;
- Demonstrate a knowledge of classical and current issues in psychology;
- Demonstrate an understanding of some of the obstacles to an integrated perspective in areas of psychology;
- Locate and use web-based material effectively (webpages, news groups, list servers, etc).
Specific Unit Objectives:
Introduction to Cognitive Science
This unit aims to:
- Introduce students to the discipline of cognitive science and outline the contributions of the various subdisciplines;
- Assist students to develop an understanding of the challenges and opportunities inherent in an interdisciplinary approach;
- Help students develop an understanding of the computational and process assumptions that underpin this approach;
- Provide an opportunity for participation in a class project that demonstrates how the various subdisciplines can meet.
Adult Language Processing
This unit aims to:
- Help students to understand basic linguistic concepts;
- Introduce issues in the field of adult language processing, such as lexical access, syntactic processing, sentence comprehension, discourse strategies, and production of utterances;
- Assist students to understand the role of individual differences in basic language and cognitive skills;
- Provide an opportunity for participation in a class project that demonstrates the application of current research techniques to topical areas in the field.
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512 350 Brain, Cognition & Behaviour
Upon completion of Brain, Cognition & Behaviour (512-350), it is intended that students will have developed a solid understanding of the relationship between the physical entity of the brain and the role that perception, sensation and cognition have in the behaviour of the organism. In addition to the presentation of more established empirical observations and theory, the course will use current research publications to illustrate how questions relating to cognition, perception and the brain may be examined using a variety of research methods, each of which will be discussed and critiqued. The course will cover topics relating to human perception, cognition and laterality. Evolutionary and developmental scenarios will be used to provide a context that will facilitate understanding of brain and cognitive functioning. Students will be encouraged to review research rationally and critically and will be expected to draw conclusions on the basis of their reviews. They will become familiar with the types of data that can be collected in neuroscience and the means by which it can be analysed. The process of drawing inferences from data will be critically examined with a particular view to encouraging a realistic and honest opinion of the utility of a given methodology. Laboratory work will introduce students to the design of experiments and the problems with obtaining meaningful data. Students will be required to run an experiment, collect and analyse their own data and write up a coherent report discussing their findings in the context of what they have learned from the course. In doing this, they will become familiar with interpreting data they collect and with presenting their conclusions in both written and verbal contexts.
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512 360 Personality & Social Psychology 3
Specific objectives:
- to develop familiarity with contemporary theories and issues in personality and social psychology;
- to enhance the understanding of research methods in personality and social psychology;
- to strengthen the ability to critically appraise research appearing in the field's professional journals;
- to explore links between theory and research, on the one hand, and applications (e.g., understanding social problems, personality assessment) on the other;
- to promote an understanding of the links between intrapersonal, interpersonal, and group processes.
On completion of this subject, students should be able to:
- critically appraise current knowledge and its internal structure;
- critically evaluate the methods used to acquire the current knowledge;
- critically analyse the current knowledge within the larger socio-historical and intellectual context;
- appropriately interpret empirical data in light of the current knowledge and methodological considerations;
- constructively plan a theoretical and empirical research project to advance knowledge.
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512 370 Cognitive & Neuropsychological Development 3
Specific objectives:
- To help students learn to evaluate psychological research in cognitive and neurological development.
- To assist students to become aware of the role of social, biological, neurological and cognitive factors, among others, in the development of children's thinking and problem solving.
- To present contemporary accounts of cognitive development in the preadolescent period.
- To review contemporary accounts of children's brain functioning.
- To analyse the significance of individual differences in young children's cognitive competencies.
- To lead students to a better understanding of factors affecting the development of children's arithmetic and reading competencies.
- To lead students to a better understanding of the importance of executive planning functions in children's problem solving.
On completion of this subject, student should be better able to:
- Critically read and evaluate psychological research in the areas of cognitive and neurological development.
- Comprehend some of the issues and difficulties associated with assessing children's cognitive competencies.
- Understand the processes involved in writing empirical research reports.
- Begin to design a research project in the area of cognitive and neurological development.
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512 380 Personal & Social Development 3
This subject will examine personal and social development in its social and cultural contexts [eg. family, school, work, community]. A range of theoretical perspectives on personal and social development will be considered. Specifically included are perspectives that can be described as sociogenetic, dialectical, transactional and psychosocial in their theoretical assumptions and descriptions. Attention will be focused on issues related to change and stability within and across persons, variability, interpersonal relationships, and person/culture exchanges.
The subject is designed to give students opportunity to develop both:
- generic skills related to their self directed management of their own learning, and problem-solving related to: summarising, analysing and integrating material from different sources [written, computerised, verbal, practical];
- specific skills related to the domain of study - developmental psychology - in the analysis of prior research and theory; in conducting and analysing developmentally-oriented interview; and in administering and analysing a life structure diagram on the computer.
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512 395 Introduction to Mathematical Psychology
Specific objectives:
- to introduce the use of mathematical modelling of psychological phenomena;
- to review the role of quantification in the development of psychology;
- to develop an understanding of how mathematical theory and methods can be applied to psychological phenomena;
- to develop computer-based analytic skills for testing and evaluating mathematical models of psychological processes;
- To provide an understanding of the role of quantitative theories in a range of selected topic areas.
On completion of this subject, students should be able to:
- critically evaluate the application of mathematical models in applied and theoretical contexts;
- more clearly communicate the application of mathematical methods to applied problems;
- identify and solve research problems amenable to mathematical representation.
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