Research Lab Group

PSY 401: Social Psychology

Course Description. This course will introduce you to the scientific study of the way people think, feel, and behave in social situations. It involves understanding how people influence, and are influenced by, real or imagined others around them. The focus will be on the major theories, research methods, and empirical findings in social psychology. Topics covered include: perceiving the self and others, explanations for behavior, attitude formation and change, stereotypes and prejudice, close relationships, group dynamics, conformity, persuasion, aggression, and altruism. A combination of lectures, classroom activities, discussions, and assignments will be used to facilitate your learning. After completing the course, you will be able to describe the social and cultural influences on behavior and psychological functioning. You will have a better understanding of why people do the strange things they do!

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PSY 433/L: Experimental Psychology

Course Description. This course will strengthen your existing knowledge of the process of conducting scientific research, covering all stages of research including ethics in research, conceptualization of a research idea, formulating testable hypotheses, complex experimental design, reducing error and threats to validity, measurement, and collecting, analyzing, interpreting, and presenting data. A combination of lectures, classroom activities, discussions, lab activities, and assignments will be used to facilitate your learning. The course takes a hands-on or learning by doing approach. After completing this course, you will be able to design and critically evaluate scientific research. You will see that scientific inquiry is both a philosophy of how we can know about our world and a set of rules for putting that philosophy into practice.

Considering this course? Click here for a sample syllabus.

BHS 204: Research Methods for the Behavioral Sciences

Course Description. This course will introduce you to the process of conducting scientific research, covering all stages of research including the philosophy of science, ethics in research, conceptualization of a research idea, formulating testable hypotheses, experimental and quasi-experimental design, reducing error and threats to validity, measurement, and collecting, analyzing, interpreting, and presenting data. A combination of lectures, classroom activities, discussions, and assignments will be used to facilitate your learning. After completing this course, you will be able to design and critically assess scientific research. You will see that scientific inquiry is both a philosophy of how we can know about our world and a set of rules for putting that philosophy into practice.

Considering this course? Click here for a sample syllabus.

BHS 307/A: Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences

Course Description. This course is designed to introduce you to the many ways that statistical methods help researchers organize, interpret, and evaluate information. In this course you will learn how to: (1) use descriptive and inferential statistics; (2) answer questions about differences between groups of people and relationships between phenomena; and (3) conduct statistical analyses with a calculator and a computer. This course will lay the foundation for more advanced work in statistical analysis and experimental design. You also will become more knowledgeable consumers of the statistics you encounter in research articles, the media, and everyday life.

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BHS 498: Senior Seminar on Stereotyping, Prejudice, and Discrimination

This seminar will provide an intellectual forum for discussing classic and current theories and methodologies focused on understanding stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination. Using a social psychological framework, we will assess psychology's current understanding of why people use and apply stereotypes in their everyday thinking and behavior. Utilizing books, scholarly research articles, and the Internet, we will explore such topics as social categorization, stereotype activation, contemporary forms of prejudice, the social context of prejudice, the consequences of prejudice and discrimination, the stigmatized target’s perspective, coping with prejudice, and techniques for reducing prejudice and discrimination.

Considering this course? Click here for a sample syllabus.

BHS 200/400: Independent Study

BHS 200 (for Freshmen & Sophomores) and BHS 400 (for Juniors & Seniors) provide an opportunity for you to receive 1 or 2 course credits each quarter (for a maximum of 6 credits) for doing research with a faculty member. You can work on any of the research projects listed here to receive course credit. To earn credit, you need to commit 5 hours a week for 1 credit or 10 hours a week for 2 credits. There also is a final paper assignment which will be tailored to your research activities, such as writing a brief literature review, or writing a methodology or results section. Complete an application to be a Research Assistant to be considered for a BHS 200 or BHS 400 course.

Social Psychology, Research Methodology, and Statistics

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