Psychology

Faculty

Andrew N. Christopher, co-chair and professor.
B.B.A., 1992, Stetson University; M.B.A., 1994, Southern Methodist University; M.S., 1996, Ph.D., 1999, University of Florida. Appointed 2001.

Barbara J. Keyes, co-chair and professor.
B.A., 1970, College of Wooster; M.A., 1973, Ph.D., 1976, Bowling Green State University. Appointed 1975.

Edward J. Bujdos, Jr., visiting instructor.
B.A., 1973, Cleveland State University; M.A., 1978, Central Michigan University. Appointed 2008.

Jacqueline Carlson, visiting assistant professor.
B.S., 1990, University of Washington, Seattle; M.S., 1994, Ph.D., 1998, University of Wisconsin-Madison. Appointed 2007.

Holger B. Elischberger, assistant professor.
B.A., 1993, M.A., 1998, University of Würzburg; Ph.D., 2004, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Appointed 2005.

Tammy J. Jechura, associate professor.
B.S., 1994, Bowling Green State University; M.A., 1999, Ph.D., 2002, University of Michigan. Appointed 2004.

Mareike B. Wieth, assistant professor.
B.A., 1999, Kenyon College; M.A., 2001, Ph.D., 2005, Michigan State University. Appointed 2006.

W. Jeffrey Wilson, professor.
B.A., 1977, Haverford College; M.A., 1978, Ph.D., 1983, University of California, Los Angeles. Appointed 1999.

Introduction

Psychology scientifically studies the behavior and mental processes of humans and other animals. As a discipline, psychology spans the natural and social sciences and is based on rigorous scientific analysis and methodologies. Specialty areas represented in the department include clinical, cognitive, developmental, industrial/organizational, physiological, health, and social psychology, as well as philosophy of the mind.

Students who major in psychology become involved in research through laboratory courses, directed study projects or honors theses. These undergraduate research opportunities teach students to develop testable questions and hypotheses, operationally define variables, gather and analyze data, interpret results, and write research reports using APA format, all of which are skills that are valued in many work settings and necessary for graduate study. Finally, in both lecture and laboratory courses as well as in our research with students, the Psychology Department emphasizes the importance of critical thinking, communication, and computer skills.

Psychology Department Web site

Career Opportunities

The Psychology Department offers a variety of courses designed to prepare students for graduate work in psychology as well as for positions in industrial research, human services settings and secondary education. The psychology major at Albion College also provides excellent preparation for a variety of other professional areas, including law, medicine, and business.

During their junior and senior years, students are able to participate in the department's internship program (Psychology Practicum) that allows them to work in a variety of field settings (e.g., mental hospitals, juvenile homes, counseling centers, schools, and human resource departments), thus exploring various career options. They also are encouraged to conduct independent research projects that, in many cases, culminate in an honors thesis.

Special Features

Because the department has a firm commitment to research, upper-level students are strongly encouraged to make use of Olin Hall's laboratory facilities for investigating memory, psychophysiology, perception, language, learning, motivation, behavior and developmental/social processes in collaboration with faculty. Instruction in the Psychology Department includes lecture and class discussion as well as laboratory experiences. Computers are used in many courses for data analysis, experiments, and simulations.

Our major has been approved as a certifiable secondary school teaching major by the State Department of Education.

Albion maintains a chapter of Psi Chi, the national psychology honorary society.

Majors and Minors

Requirements for Major

A minimum of nine units in psychology, including: 101, 204, 206 and 396.
At least three courses from Lists I and II (at least one course must be taken from each list and at least two courses must be at the 300-level).

Please note that some courses in Lists I and II can be offered as lecture-based or laboratory-based courses. Lecture-based courses are taught at the 200-level and have only one prerequisite (Psychology 101); laboratory-based courses are taught at the 300-level and may have additional prerequisites.

• All courses for the major must be taken for a numerical grade, except those offered only on a credit/no credit basis.
• Participation in the department's assessment activities is required.

Requirements for Minor

• A minimum of five units in psychology, including Psychology 101 and 204.
• At least one course from List I and one course from List II.
• All courses for the minor must be taken for a numerical grade, except those offered only on a credit/no credit basis.

Requirements for Major with Secondary Education Certification

• A minimum of nine units in psychology, as specified above.
• Psychology 251 (351) counts toward education certification requirements and will not be counted toward the psychology major.
• All courses for the major must be taken for a numerical grade, except those offered only on a credit/no credit basis.
• Completion of all other requirements for teacher certification.

Requirements for Minor with Secondary Education Certification

• A minimum of five units in psychology, including Psychology 101 and 204.
• One course from List I and one course from List II.
• Psychology 251 (351) counts toward education certification requirements, and will not be counted toward the psychology minor.
• All courses for the minor must be taken for a numerical grade, except those offered only on a credit/no credit basis.
• Completion of all other requirements for teacher certification.

Courses

101 Introduction to Psychology (1)
Covers the principal areas of psychology. Participation in faculty-supervised experiments required of students age 18 and over. Psychology 101 is a prerequisite for all other psychology courses. Staff.

204 Research Design and Analysis I (1)
Prerequisite: Psychology 101 with a grade of 2.0 or higher, or permission of instructor.
An introduction to the theory and practice of research methods in psychology with an emphasis on descriptive designs. Focuses on naturalistic, archival, and survey methodology with discussion of descriptive statistics, probability, Chi-square, z-scores, correlation, and multiple regression. Lecture and laboratory. Course normally taken during second year. (Laboratory fee.) Christopher, Elischberger, Jechura, Wieth, Wilson, Staff.

206 Research Design and Analysis II (1)
Prerequisite: Psychology 204 with a grade of 2.0 or higher, or permission of instructor.
Further exploration of the theory and practice of research methods in psychology with an emphasis on experimental designs. Focuses on both simple and complex designs with discussion of z-test, t-test, ANOVA (one-way, repeated measures and factorial), and MANOVA. Lecture and laboratory. Course normally taken during second year. (Laboratory fee.) Christopher, Elischberger, Jechura, Wieth, Wilson, Staff.

230 Health Psychology (1)
Prerequisite: Psychology 101.
The role of behavior in the prevention of disease and in the enhancement of health. Looks at behavior in relation to stress, pain, cardiovascular disease, cancer, alcohol abuse, weight control, psychoneuroimmunology. Contrasts biomedical and biopsychosocial approaches to health and disease. Jechura.

236 Social Psychology (1)
Prerequisite: Psychology 101.
The scientific study of the ways people think, feel and behave in social situations. Topics include self-perception and self-presentation, person perception, stereo-typing and prejudice, interpersonal attraction and close relationships, altruism, aggression, attitudes and persuasion, conformity, and group processes. Also examines theory and research in several applied areas of social psychology, including law and health. Christopher, Staff.

241 Neuroscience I: Brain Structure and Function (1)
Prerequisite: Psychology 101, Biology 195, or permission of instructor.
An introduction to brain structure and function. Emphasis on the way the nervous system is organized to process information, construct representations of the world and generate adaptive behavior. Lecture, discussion, dissection. Same as NEUR 241. Jechura, Keyes, Schmitter, Wilson.

243 (343) Psychology of Perception (1)
Prerequisite for 243: Psychology 101.
Prerequisite for 343: Psychology 206 with a grade of 2.0 or higher, or permission of instructor.
Operation of sensory systems and major principles of perception. Addresses the classical question, "Why do things look as they do?'' Not offered every year. Offered occasionally as 343, Psychology of Perception with lecture and laboratory. Wieth.

245 (345) Psychology of Learning (1)
Prerequisite for 245: Psychology 101.
Prerequisite for 345: Psychology 206 with a grade of 2.0 or higher, or permission of instructor.
A survey of major concepts and issues in conditioning, learning and memory processes. Emphasizes research dealing with the ways learning and memory interact with other variables such as development and species-typical behavior. Lecture and laboratory. Not offered every year. Offered occasionally as 345, Psychology of Learning with lecture and laboratory. Jechura, Wieth, Wilson.

246 Industrial and Organizational Psychology (1)
Prerequisite: Psychology 101 or permission of instructor.
Focuses on personnel selection, evaluation and employee training and development. Emphasizes criterion development, motivation, job satisfaction, leadership, and conflict resolution in industrial and organizational settings. Christopher.

251 Child and Adolescent Development (1)
Prerequisite: Psychology 101.
Focuses on physical, cognitive, social and emotional development with emphasis on the periods of infancy, childhood and adolescence. Reviews methods for studying the developing person and major theoretical approaches. Elischberger, Keyes, Staff.

253 Lifespan Developmental Psychology (1)
Prerequisite: Psychology 101.
Focuses on physical, cognitive, social and emotional development across the lifespan. Adopts an integrative and interdisciplinary approach to understanding the human experience from birth to death. Keyes, Elischberger, Staff.

260 Psychology of Language (1)
Prerequisite: Psychology 101.
Examines the relationship between the uniquely human cognitive capacity of language and other cognitive processes. Acquisition, comprehension, production, and utilization are studied with particular reference to structure and meaning. Not offered every year. Staff.

265 (365) Abnormal Psychology (1)
Prerequisite for 265: Psychology 101.
Prerequisite for 365: permission of instructor.
Reviews major theories of abnormal behavior as well as related techniques of diagnosis and therapy; considers various emotional/behavior problems (e.g., schizophrenia, anxiety disorders, eating disorders and depressions). Keyes, Staff.

267 (367) Psychology of Personality (1)
Prerequisite for 267: Psychology 101.
Prerequisite for 367: Psychology 206 or permission of instructor.
Examines the major theories of personality. Attention is given to the relevance of each personality theory to the students' own personality development. Offered occasionally as 367, Psychology of Personality with laboratory. Staff.

289, 389 Selected Topics (1)
Prerequisite for 289: Psychology 101.
Prerequisite for 389: Psychology 101 or permission of instructor.
Focuses on the contributions psychologists have made to current issues. Topics offered recently have included Psychology of Women and Psychology and the Law. May be taken more than once for credit. Staff.

304 Psychological Assessment (1)
Prerequisite: Psychology 204.
The principles of psychological assessment and the general process of clinical diagnosis. Deals with the construction, evaluation, administration and interpretation of widely-used measuring instruments. Offered in alternate years. Staff.

336 Research in Social Psychology (1)
Prerequisites: Psychology 206 with a grade of 2.0 or higher and 236, or permission of instructor.
Focuses on either social cognitive processes or interpersonal relations. Guides the upper-division student through an intensive review of social psychological theory in either social cognition or interpersonal relations. Emphasizes how to assess and employ methodologies that affect explanations, interpretations, and applications of human social cognition and behavior. Laboratory work stresses the inextricable link between theory, methodology, and statistical analyses. Projects relating to one of these two areas closely parallel the process of professional research in social psychology. (Laboratory fee.) Christopher, Staff.

348 Research in Behavioral Neuroscience (1)
Prerequisites: Psychology 206 with a grade of 2.0 or higher and 241, or permission of instructor.
Examines the methodology of behavioral neuroscience research. Focuses on a review of the major means by which brain/behavior relations can be determined (i.e., lesion, stimulation, and recording studies) as well as an examination of much that has been learned using these procedures. Laboratory work covers at least two of these procedures in detail: human electrophysiology and either a lesion or stimulation experiment in rats. (Laboratory fee.) Jechura, Wilson.

351 Research in Developmental Psychology (1)
Prerequisites: Psychology 206 with a grade of 2.0 or higher and 251, or permission of instructor.
Focuses on either social/emotional development or cognitive development in infancy, childhood, and adolescence. Covers issues of ethics in research, rapport-building, and subject-recruitment. Emphasizes research techniques (design, data collection, analysis and write-up) used in the study of development. Laboratory work includes experience observing children. (Laboratory fee.) Elischberger, Staff.

353 Psychology of Adolescence (1)
Prerequisites: Psychology 101 and 251, or permission of instructor.
Examines the psychological, physical, historical and social forces from early adolescence to young adulthood. Major topics include physical, cognitive and social/emotional development, as well as identity formation, ethnicity, adolescent sexuality, health, delinquency and the impact of schools. Staff.

378 (278) Cognitive Psychology (1)
Prerequisites for 378: Psychology 101 and 206 with a grade of 2.0 or higher.
Prerequisite for 278: Psychology 101. 204 recommended.
A review of recent studies of attention, memory, concept formation, problem solving and related areas. Focuses on the ability of humans to select, code, store, organize, and retrieve information. Lecture and laboratory. (Laboratory fee.) Offered occasionally as 278, Cognitive Psychology lecture only. Wieth.

380 Introduction to Counseling (1)
Prerequisites: Psychology 101, and 267 or 367.
A study of the major theories and current approaches to counseling and psychotherapy. Emphasizes important communication skills necessary in providing a helping relationship to another person. Opportunity is provided through videotape for students to learn and practice some of these basic skills. Staff.

390 Neuropsychopharmacology (1)
Prerequisite: Psychology 241, 348, or permission of instructor.
Examines the effects of drugs (recreational, therapeutic and experimental) on the physiology of the nervous system and on behavior in order to elucidate the mechanisms by which behavior is controlled by the brain. Introduces the methods and conclusions of modern neuroscience research as it relates to the pharmacology of behavior. Wilson.

395 Forensic Psychology (1)
Prerequisites: Psychology 251 and 265, or permission of instructor.
Explores the psychology of criminal behavior, from causes through prevention or intervention and ending with punishment and rehabilitation. Provides an understanding of the criminal mind, based on knowledge of developmental and abnormal psychology. Staff.

396 History and Philosophy of Psychology (1)
Prerequisite: Psychology 101 or permission of instructor.
Examines the emergence of modern psychology from ancient Greek speculations about the mind and its relation to physical nature. Survey of the major psychological schools and their assumptions about the subject matter and methods of psychology. Jechura, Staff.

398, 399 Practicum (1/2, 1)
Prerequisites: Permission of instructor and declared psychology major, human services concentration, or neuroscience concentration, junior or senior standing.
Supervised experience in an applied setting and the opportunity to reflect upon and evaluate this experience in a weekly group meeting. May be repeated once. Offered on a credit/no credit basis. Keyes.

401, 402 Seminar (1/2, 1)
Prerequisite: Junior or senior standing.
The study of a specific problem area in the discipline. Examples of topics include Psychology of Women and Men, History of Psychology, Psychology and Law, and Culture and Cognition. Staff.

411, 412 Directed Study (1/2, 1)
Highly recommended for majors. Admission is by permission of instructor. Staff.

416 Senior Research Seminar (1)
Prerequisite: Permission of instructor.
Guides students completing a senior thesis through all aspects of the research process. Focuses on data analysis, interpretation and reporting on the results of student research projects. Considers both theoretical and practical research issues. Staff.