This course is an introduction to some of the major mainstream fields and theories in the science of Western psychology–in conversation with critical texts and dialogues. We will cover a range of topics such as research methods of psychology, the biological basis of behavior, human development, learning, cognition, psychological disorders and their treatment, theories of personality, and social psychology.
This course covers ten topics of psychology. These topics and the authors that we will explore include:
1. Psychological Disorders (Dr. Daniel Carlat’s book Unhinged)
2. Psychoanalysis (Freud)
3. Research Methods
4. Learning (Behaviorism; Watson, Pavlov, Skinner)
5. Biological Basis of Behavior
6. Piaget’s Cognitive Development
7. Vygotsky’s Sociocultural theory of Learning and Development
8. Sensation and Perception
9. History of Race in Psychology
10. Social Psychology (Milgram on Obedience)