Course Number: SS/PY101

Course Title: General Psychology

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES 

General  

  1. Describe the field of Psychology and differentiate it from other fields of the social and behavioral sciences (unit 1).
  2. Describe the research and analytical methods used by psychology including the 7 main psychological theories (unit 1).
  3. Describe the ways in which the brain and nervous system function to produce our thoughts, emotions and behaviors (unit 2).
  4. Describe the processes of sensation and perceptions (unit 3).
  5. Describe the processes of nature and nurture in human development throughout the life- span (unit 4).
  6. Describe the concepts, theories, research and physiological and psychological processes behind human motivation and emotion (unit 5).
  7. Describe the concepts, theories, research and processes underlying human learning (unit 6).
  8. Describe the concepts, theories, research and processes underlying human social behavior (unit 7).
  9. Describe the various types of abnormal behavior and their causes (unit 8).
10. Describe the various types of psychotherapy (unit 9).
11. Describe the ways in which human behaviors affect human health (unit 10).

Specific 

The students should be able to:

 Unit 1 -  Introducing Psychology
 1. Describe the differences between the psychological approach to studying behavior and the approaches used by different social
    scientists including anthropologists, sociologists, and others.
2. Explain the ways in which psychologists describe, explain, predict and control behavior.
3. Describe the major research methods and the types of information that they provide.
4. Explain the seven main psychological theories and the ways in which they explain cause and effect.

 Unit 2 -  Biological Psychology
 1. Explain how the ideas of evolutionary theory have affected the way we view human thought, emotion, and behavior.
2. Explain how genetic information can affect behavior.
3. Describe the structure and function of the nervous system and its main parts.
4. Describe the technologies that are used to understand the brain and its functions.
5. List the major chemicals on the body that affect our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors.

 Unit 3 -  Sensation and Perception
 1. Distinguish between the processes of sensation and perception.
2. Describe the anatomy and functioning of the visual and auditory systems.
3. Describe the processes involved with taste, smell, touch, movement, and other sensations.

 Unit 4 -  Development
 1. Explain the roles of nature and nurture in development and their relations to maturation and learning.
2. List the key milestones in physical development at birth, during infancy, and during childhood.
3. Explain Vygotsky's environmentally based theory of development.
4. Describe the abilities in each of Piaget's stages of development.
5. List the psychosocial stages of Erikson's theory and describe the characteristics of each stage.

 Unit 5 -  Motivation and Emotion
 1. Describe how early psychologists explained motivation.
2. Describe how physiology influences motivation.
3. Explain how psychological needs and cognitive processes affect motivation.
4. Compare and contrast motivation and emotion.
5. List and describe the basic emotions, how they are expressed, and how they may differ across cultures.
6. Explain how the expression of emotions benefits us socially.

 Unit 6 -  Learning
 1. Differentiate between habituation, instincts, and imprinting.
2. Describe learning through classical conditioning.
3. Describe learning through operant conditioning.
4. Describe the social- learning process.

 Unit 7 -  Social Psychology
 1. Explain how we perceive and interpret information about ourselves and others.
2. List and describe the heuristics and biases that people use to help them understand and evaluate others.
3. Describe the nature of attitudes and their relationship to behavior.
4. Explain why people conform and comply with the behavior of others.
5. Discuss the processes whereby people are likely to exhibit pro-social and antisocial behavior.

 Unit 8 -  Abnormal Psychology
 1. List the characteristics needed for behavior to be described as abnormal.
 2. Describe the different theoretical approaches currently used by psychologists to deal with abnormal behavior and its causes.
3. Differentiate between the major classes of diagnoses.
4. Characterize the main DSM IV syndromes.
5. Explain some of the most important causes of suicide.

 Unit 9 -  Psychotherapy
 1. Describe the goals and methods of psychodynamic therapies, and how these therapies differ from other approaches.
2. Describe the goals and methods of humanistic therapies, and how these therapies differ from other approaches.
3. Describe the goals and methods of behavioral therapies, and how these therapies differ from other approaches.
4. Describe the goals and methods of cognitive therapies, and how these therapies differ from other approaches.
5. Describe the goals and methods of biological therapies, and how to distinguish among psychotropic medications.
6. Describe group approaches to psychotherapy.

 Unit 10 -  Health Psychology
 1. Describe the main concerns of health psychology.
2. Identify the various behavioral factors that are associated with the maintenance of good health.
3. State the relationship between stress and disease processes.
4. Describe the personality factors that are associated with health and well- being, as well as with disease.