Offered as ENG 112 and PYX 112. This course offers the opportunity to read contemporary poetry and meet the poets who write it. The course consists of class meetings alternating with public poetry readings by visiting poets. S/U only. Course may be repeated.

This course examines both the psychological processes driving social change and prevention, and intervention strategies to promote social change. The first unit of the course explores social issues and social change from a psychological lens, with a focus on relevant psychological processes. The second half of the course explores strategies for intervention and engages with examples of interventions in areas of education, intergroup relations, and youth development.

Examination of the empirical and theoretical research relevant to anxiety disorders and their associated features in youth. Using a developmental perspective, the course focuses on risk factors, theoretical models and methods of assessment and intervention. Prerequisites: (PSY 100 and PSY 150) or PSY 253 or equivalent. Restrictions: Juniors and seniors only. Enrollment limited to 12.  Instructor permission required.

Research Seminar. In this advanced methods course, students study feminist empirical approaches to psychological research. The first part considers several key feminist empiricist philosophies of science, including positivist, experiential and discursive approaches. The second part focuses on conceptualizations of gender beyond difference-based approaches and their operationalization in recent empirical articles.

One cannot turn on the radio or browse the internet today without encountering the latest fMRI findings or other technologically advanced results of contemporary psychological research. The primary goal of this course is to learn how to communicate such complex information to a non-specialist audience. Through a set of prescribed writing assignments, students develop skills in translating psychological theories and empirical evidence to the public. Restrictions: Juniors and seniors only. Enrollment limited to 12. Instructor permission required.

This colloquium offers a broad overview and in-depth study of the etiology, assessment, and treatment of the 10 personality disorders recognized in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5). Some estimates suggest that roughly 15% of people in the general population meet criteria for a personality disorder. These disorders often go undiagnosed and untreated, and can lead to immense suffering and costs to the individual and society.

This course explores the human side of climate change. Drawing from the domains of social, cognitive, developmental and clinical psychology, as well as interdisciplinary theories related to human decision-making, behavior and motivation, the course explores questions raised by the American Psychological Association’s Task Force on global climate change. Prerequisites: PSY 100 or equivalent. Enrollment limited to 25. (E)

A study of human development across the lifespan. In this course, students learn about milestones of human development from conception to death, discuss and critically evaluate current theories of developmental psychology, and investigate the interplay of biological, psychological and contextual factors that shape development over time. For students pursuing health professions, this course fulfills a lifespan development prerequisite course requirement. Not open to first years. Prerequisite: PSY 100, PSY 202 or SOC 101. Restrictions: Not open to first-years. Enrollment limited to 25.

How might psychology enhance the appreciation of literature and the understanding of self? This class reads multiple theories of personality development, including Erikson’s classic proposition that humans grow in stages according to shifting biological, psychological and social capacities. In contrast, contemporary theorists like McAdams view personality as a continuously developing narrative with story-like components.