GEN-104: Psychology (3 Semester Credits) - Course Syllabus 

Description:

Psychology is designed to meet scope and sequence requirements for the single-semester introduction to psychology course. The book offers a comprehensive treatment of core concepts, grounded in both classic studies and current and emerging research. The text also includes coverage of the DSM-5 in examinations of psychological disorders. Psychology incorporates discussions that reflect the diversity within the discipline, as well as the diversity of cultures and communities across the globe.

Textbook: Discovering Psychology: The Science of Mind.  Cacioppo, et al., Cengage, 2022.

Prerequisites: no prerequisites

Course objectives:

Throughout the course, you will meet the following goals:  

• Demonstrate critical thinking skills as applied to psychological topics.  
• Distinguish between scientific and non-scientific methods of understanding and analysis.
• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the nine general domains of Psychology.
• Explain and compare major theoretical perspectives of psychology.
• Describe and demonstrate an understanding of applied areas of psychology.
• Understand the impact of diversity on psychological research, theory, and application.
• Apply psychological principles to personal experience and social settings.

Chapters:

1. The Science of Mind: The Discipline of Psychology
2. The Measure of Mind: The Scientific Methods of Psychology
3. The Evolving Mind: Nature and Nurture Intertwined
4. The Biological Mind: The Physical Basis of Behavior
5.  The Perceiving Mind: Sensation and Perception
6. The Aware Mind: Elements of Consciousness
7. The Feeling Mind: Emotion and Motivation
8. The Adaptive Mind: Learning
9. The Knowing Mind: Memory
10. The Thinking Mind: Thinking, Language, and Intelligence
11. The Developing Mind: Life Span Development
12. The Individual Mind: Personality and the Self
13. The Connected Mind: Social Psychology
14. The Troubled Mind: Psychological Disorders
15. Healing the Troubled Mind: Therapy
16. The Healthy Mind: Stress and Coping, Health Psychology, and Positive Psychology

Course Evaluation Criteria

A passing percentage is 70% or higher.