PSYC 4342-Behavioral Neuroscience
Your brain controls every facet of your existence
from the way you perceive the world and move around, to the dreams
and feelings you experience. The field of psychology was created
out of two other fields: physiology and philosophy. This course
will provide you with an introduction to the neurosciences. We
will examine the function and anatomy of the central nervous system,
and how it mediates our perceptions, emotions, thoughts, memories
and all other behavior. Includes anatomy laboratory experience.
Prerequisite: PSYC 2301
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PSYC 4343-Learning and Cognition
Our ability to learn and remember allows us
to define who we are. Some memories last a lifetime, dictating
that lasting changes in our brains represent those memories. This
course will examine several of the contemporary approaches that
allow us to study the mechanisms of learning and memory. We will
be studying processes that span from invertebrates to humans,
drugs to disease, and theories to clinical treatment. The course
will provide a brief background of learning principles and basic
neural anatomy and physiology in order for the class to have a
framework to integrate the relevant research. Prerequisite: PSYC
2301
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PSYC 4350-Internship
An educationally directed program under the supervision of faculty and professionals in the field that offers students opportunities to acquire skills and to test in a field setting theories and principles learned in the classroom. Prerequisites: PSYC 2120, senior standing, psychology major. Students are required to apply to instructor for acceptance in field a semester in advance and plan to spend 150 to 300 hours in the field.
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PSYC 4348-Independent Research
Students will be concerned with an in-depth
study in one of the major areas in psychology and the integration
of that knowledge with other areas in psychology. Prerequisite:
Senior standing, PSYC 2317 and PSYC 3338
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PSYC 4349-Research in Behavioral
Neuroscience
Students will be concerned with an in-depth
study in behavioral neuroscience. The semester will include journal
article reviews, observation and training in neuroscience techniques,
and finally the design and proposal of an experiment that will
be completed in the summer in a local laboratory.
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PSYC 3316-Theories of Personality
Have you ever wondered why some people need
to be the center of attention and others would rather be by themselves,
or why you tend to have the same taste in music as your brother
or sister, or what might cause someone to be a violent criminal?
These are just a few of the questions that people have been asking
about other people, and themselves, for as long as we can imagine.
This course is designed to provide you with some of the tools
to address these questions by examining the major theories of
personality and the empirical research that has attempted to validate
those theories. You will be asked to understand the assumptions
a personality theory makes, including the terms and organization
of that theory, apply several different theories to a person,
or a group of people, and evaluate the strengths and weaknesses
of personality theories.
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PSYC 2349-Human Sexuality
(co-taught with Dr. Villanueva-Dixon)
This course is an introduction to the psychology of human sexuality. It is broad in scope and will cover a variety of topics dealing with human sexuality, including male and female physiology, sexual orientation, sexual expression and variation, sexual difficulties, birth control, reproduction, and many others. The primary goal of this course is to develop a greater awareness and acceptance of your own sexuality and the sexuality of others, as well as to become more comfortable with and knowledgeable about the topic of sex.
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PSYC 2326-Chemical Dependency
Issues
We live in a society fascinated by drugs. Whether
they are consumed for medical purposes or recreation, prescribed
by a doctor or procured illegally, taken in moderation or in massive
doses, almost everyone takes, has taken, or will take drugs during
their life. In this course we will discuss issues of drug use
and abuse, and the effects of drugs on behavior. We will evaluate
both human and animal research. Our goal in this course is to
better understand how drugs work in the brain and in the body
to produce their psychological and physiological effects. We will
also discuss the roles that drugs play in societies and some of
the clinical models used to treat those who abuse drugs. Contemporary
issues such as the link between chemical abuse and crime, our
society's war on drugs, legalization proposals, allocation of
priorities and resources, and changing definitions of addiction
are explored. This course is open to all students although it
is part of a series designed for students pursuing licensure in
the state of Texas as a Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor
(LCDC). [Same as CRIJ 2326, CRIM 2326, SOCI 2326, and SOCW 2326]
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PSYC 2120-Community Service
in Psychology
This course will explore a service-oriented
approach to learning. Through involvement in a professional setting,
it is expected that the student will evaluate personal qualifications
for working with people in need, develop an awareness of the desire
to serve others, develop an appreciation for the numerous human
service agencies in the Austin area. Perhaps just as important,
the students will explore the process of becoming a helper by
looking closely at his/her own values, motivations, strengths
and weaknesses.
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BIOL 1305-Biological Basis
of Human Behavior
This course is an introduction to the fundamental
principles of biology through an in-depth study of a specific
topic of contemporary interest, specifically, Biological Psychology.
Your brain controls every facet of your existence from the way
you perceive the world and move around, to the dreams and feelings
you experience. We will examine the function and anatomy of the
central nervous system, and how it mediates our perceptions, emotions,
thoughts, memories and all other behavior. Emphasis will be placed
on the cell theory as the primary organizing principle throughout
biology. (This course satisfies the Science in Depth general education
requirement.)
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