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ACADEMIC PROGRAMS
Birmingham-Southern College Catalog 2016-2017
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drug use, and the influence of drugs on the unborn child, the individual, and on society.
Prerequisite: PY 101.
PY 224 Developmental Psychology (1)
Explores the science of human development across the lifespan, from conception through
death. The course examines theories and research of physical development, sexual
development, cognition, personality, language, intelligence, and social development.
Prerequisite: PY 101.
PY 250 Why People Believe “Weird” Things (1)
A focus on heuristics and biases in thinking and how these phenomena can distort and
deceive. Various pseudoscientific phenomena (e.g., psychics, astrology, ESP), common
misconceptions of human behavior, and controversial practices within psychology (e.g.,
use of the Rorschach, fringe therapies) will serve as illustrative concepts. An emphasis is
placed on how major characteristics of scientific thinking and skepticism can be used to
assess extraordinary and ordinary claims. How people tend to arrive at and maintain a
variety of beliefs and how individuals can weigh evidence regarding beliefs is
considered. Prerequisite: PY 101.
PY 293, 393, 493 Independent Study in Psychology (½ or 1)
Directed study for advanced students in the major. Specific guidelines concerning
independent study projects appear in the “Exploration Term and Contract Learning”
section of this catalog.
PY 298, 398, 498 Teaching Experience in Psychology (½ or 1)
A teaching experience course. Specific guidelines concerning teaching experiences
appear in the “Teaching Experiences” section of this catalog. (“S”/“U” only.)
PY 304 Research Methods for Psychology (1)
An in-depth study of experimental design techniques, psychological research
methodology, and research report writing in APA style. This course has a laboratory
component in which students will conduct experiments, including researching a topic
with primary sources, collecting data, analyzing results, and writing the study in APA
style. Laboratory required. Prerequisites: PY 101 and PY 204. Open only to psychology
majors.
PY 305 Advanced Topics in Psychology (1)
An in-depth exploration of theory and research in an advanced area of psychology.
Topics will vary. Some topics may require additional prerequisites. Instructor consent
required. Prerequisite: PY 101.
PY 308 Judgment and Decision Making (1)
An exploration of classic and contemporary scientific theory and research in the
psychology of judgment and decision making. Topics may include heuristics used and
biases shown when making estimations, evaluations, predictions, and choices; automatic
vs. deliberate processing; and personal and situational factors that influence judgments,