Spring 2014

Factors that influence human behavior, including learning,thinking, perception, motivation, and emotion; analysis ofdeterminants of development, adjustment, and maladjustment.

An integrative systems perspective of drugs; including their historical, economic, and cultural importance, psychopharmacology, addiction, relationship to crime, and therapeutic use in treating psychological disorders.

Introduction to the use of statistics in psychology: basic ideas in measurement; frequency distributions; descriptive statistics; concepts and procedures in statistical inference. Prerequisite: MATH 114, MATH 208, MATH 218, or MATH 265. Recommended preparation: PSYC 100.

Language within cognitive science: speech physiology and acoustics, language acquisition, reading, language disorders, perception and mental representation of words, linguistic diversity and computer analysis of speech.

Receptor processes and stimulus organization; traditional topics in the perception of objects, space, time. Laboratory demonstrations and exercises.

Principles involved in classical and operant conditioning. Concentration on basic causes of behavior; consideration of the relevance of simple behavioral laws to complicated human behavior.

Experimental research methods in psychology; nature and concepts of scientific method. Lab exercises, data analysis and preparation of APA style empirical report.

Non-experimental research methods in psychology. Observational, survey and data analysis exercises

The integrative study of bio-behavioral systems. Evolutionary, developmental, ecological, social, ethological, and physiological factors mediating representattive behavioral and psychological phenomenon are examined in detail.

Neural bases of behavior. Concentration on sensory and motor processes and the interaction of neural, chemical, and hormonal systems.

Child and adolescent behavior and associated theories; exploration of the continuity between child and adult behavior. Laboratory projects.

Genetic, physical, and social influences during adult years on perception, learning and memory, intelligence, personality, social roles, and normal and deviant behavioral patterns. Laboratory demonstrations and exercises.

Theoretical and experimental analysis of human behavior. Social processes involved in attitudes, conformity, compliance, interpersonal perception, liking, affiliation, aggression, altruism, and group dynamics.

Theories and research on person perception, attribution processes, interpersonal attraction and romantic love, freedom and causality, social comparison phenomena.

The commonly diagnosed behavior pathologies; biological, social, cultural, and developmental antecedents of abnormal behavior; principles of learning, perception, and motivation, as they relate to psychopathology.

Introduction to the scientist-practitioner model of clinical psychology, including research methods, psychological assessment and diagnosis, psychotherapeutic interventions, and treatment of special populations.

Advanced study of scientific inquiry in psychology with in-depth analysis of current research by faculty in the Psychology Department. Preparation for senior honors thesis research. Prerequisite: acceptance in Psychology Undergraduate Honors Program and consent of instructor.

Individual field experience and independent study supervised by an on-site professional and USC faculty sponsor. Recommended preparation: Minimum of 3 courses completed in Psychology.

Experimental and theoretical aspects of how spoken and written language is produced and understood, learned during childhood, and affected by brain damage.

Exploration of human nature through studies of nonhuman animals, including topics of navigation, culture, object representation, social cognition, music, and morality.

Descriptive and normative models of decision making; topics include probability judgments, inference, correlation, emotion, mental accounting, decision analysis, lens model, equity, social dilemmas, time, risk.

Examination of contemporary psychological theory and research on the development of cognitive skills, including language, memory, reading, and mathematics. Prerequisite: 336L.

The adolescent years from both an applied and a research-oriented perspective. Topics include physical, cognitive, and moral development; socialization; and sexual and sex-role development.

Inheritance and evolution of behavioral characteristics in man and other species.

Introduction to the major components of cognition (perception, memory, intelligence) in terms of the neural coding characteristic of the relevant brain areas.

The influence of culture, ethnicity, race and gender on human behavior. Mental health issues relevant to ethnic minorities in the U.S. Recommended preparation: sophomore standing or higher; PSYC-100.

Genetic, biological, psychological, and sociological characteristics of those who evidence criminal behavior; theoretical formulations to be reviewed and appraised.

Survey of current topics, technologies and techniques. Students acquire a basic understanding of how forensic psychologists contribute their unique expertise to the American legal system.

Advanced study of empirical approaches in psychology. Progress presentations and evaluations of Senior Honors Thesis research. In-depth exploration of issues in science. Not available for graduate credit.

Individual research and readings. Not available for graduate credit.

ANOVA, including three-way and within groups designs, multiple comparisons, ANCOVA, plus related methods based on robust smoothers and multivariate techniques. Prerequisite: PSYC-501.

Intensive review of research methods in the behavioral sciences. Problem analysis, formulation of research propositions, and procedures for research inference.

Various research techniques that are useful in a variety of different real world settings, such as business, governmental agencies and charities. Open only to M.S., Applied Psychology students.

Survey of learning theory and research, including conditioning and information-processing approaches with human and animal subjects.

Review and practice in the analysis and design of experimental and quasiexperimental paradigms for research on ontogenetic age changes and generational differences in behavior.

Review of theories of cognitive development. Analysis of research on brain functioning, perception, memory, language, reasoning and academic skills from birth to adolescence. Open to graduate students in psychology only.

Recent research on relations between basic psychological states (e.g., cognition, learning, emotion) and physiological response processes (e.g., autonomic responses, covert muscle activity).

The nature of the human mind, social interactions, conflicts, cooperative behavior, mutual influence and effectiveness. Application of psychological principles to the dynamics of commercial entities. Open only to M.S., Applied Psychology students.

The nature of the human mind, social interactions, conflicts, cooperative behavior, mutual influence and effectiveness. Application of psychological principles to the dynamics of commercial entities. Open only to M.S., Applied Psychology students.

Neuroscientific studies attempting to understand the neural basis of judgment and decision-making, social behavior, and market economies.

Current issues in psycholinguistic theory.

Research leading to the master's degree. Maximum units which may be applied to the degree to be determined by the department. Graded CR/NC.

Internship in a non-university setting, such as business, governmental agency, or NGO. Graded CR/NC. Open only to M.S., Applied Psychology students.

Requires a research paper of substantial length and high quality that integrates the Internship experience with concepts and principles of human behavior. Credit/No Credit. Open only to M.S., Applied Psychology students.

Credit on acceptance of Thesis. Graded CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of Thesis. Graded CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of Thesis. Graded CR/NC.

Supervised experience in interviewing skills and in assessment, including psychological test administration, and the preparation of reports. Graded CR/NC.

Selected topics in the various specialty areas within psychology at the graduate level. Topic will vary from semester to semester.

Study of clinical psychological treatment: Research and theory about major psychological approaches to intervention. (One of 4 clinical psychology core courses: PSYC 514, PSYC 515, PSYC 619, PSYC 620.)

Normative and descriptive theories and research on human decision-making, with special emphasis on applications to real social decision problems.

Selected topics in clinical psychology.

Supervised clinical work in an approved mental health setting. Graded CR/NC. Prerequisite: Good standing in clinical program and departmental approval.

Didactic practicum combining theory and research on psychological intervention with clinical practice in assessment and treatment, focused on particular client groups or disorders. Graded CR/NC.

Research leading to the doctorate. Maximum units which may be applied to the degree to be determined by the department. Graded CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of Dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of Dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of Dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of Dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of Dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.