PSY 131
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The Science of Mental Illness
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3 Credits
| The Science of Mental Illness explores the biological bases of mental health and mental illness, focusing on anxiety, mood disorders, schizophrenia, and Alzheimer’s Disease. This course examines the neural networks of these conditions, common psychiatric medications for treating them, studies of the long-term efficacy and effects of using psychiatric medications, and the psychological and biological capacities for improving mental health. This course counts towards the fulfillment of the Disciplinary Perspectives element of the CLAS general education curriculum. |
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PSY 220
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Abnormal Psychology
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3 Credits
| The development of abnormal personalities is discussed, with a survey of the various types of mental abnormalities, including their symptoms, diagnoses, and treatments. Neuroses and psychoses are emphasized. |
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PSY 283
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Sports Psychology
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3 Credits
| This survey course will focus on the social and psychological factors related to performance and participation in sport and exercise, health, and injury rehabilitation settings. Two general questions will be explored: (a) how do social and psychological variables influence performance and participation in physical activity pursuits? And (b) how does physical activity participation affect the psychological well-being of the individual? To better understand these questions, this course will overview theoretical and methodological approaches to a variety of sport and exercise psychology topics, including: socialization, motivation, group processes, competition, and performance enhancement. This course counts towards the fulfillment of the Disciplinary Perspectives element of the CLAS general education curriculum. |
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PSY 345
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Health Psychology
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3 Credits
| This course focuses on the biopsychosocial model of health in which biological, psychological and social factors contribute to health and wellbeing, as well as illness and disease. After a brief introduction to systems of the body, i.e. nervous, endocrine, respiratory, cardiovascular, digestive, immune, this course will examine health enhancing behaviors such as exercise and nutrition, as well as health compromising behaviors such as drug abuse and other reckless behaviors, along with models that explain behavior maintenance and change. Additionally, attention is devoted to a discussion of how health psychology can function in shaping health care policy. |
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PSY 365
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Drugs and Human Behavior
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3 Credits
| Presents the student with an in-depth analysis of the effects of alcohol and selected chemical substances on the behavior and body of the user. Commonly abused substances will be discussed in terms of their history, sources of production, routes of administration, distribution, metabolism and excretion, neurophysiology, tolerance, properties of addiction, withdrawal course and symptoms, and potential beneficial and harmful effects. |
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PSY 382
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Aging, Brain, and Cognition
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3 Credits
| This course covers the biological structures and processes underlying cognition in humans and explores modulating factors such as age, sex, disease, stress, and environment. The theoretical and methodological issues of developmental cognitive neuroscience research are addressed. Focus of the course is on brain structure and function in the largest growing segment of our population, persons over the age of 65, and the link between structure and cognitive abilities, both intact and declining. Special attention is paid to those factors related to successful aging and treatments with putative cognitive enhancers. |
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PSY 385
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Death, Dying, and Suicide
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3 Credits
| Everything that is alive eventually dies, thus death is a part of life. Understanding death can help us to understand and experience life more fully, and it can help us to make appropriate, compassionate responses to death and dying. Class members will examine difficult and controversial psychosocial issues related to dying and death, death perceptions from childhood through older adulthood, religious and death attitudes, the dying process, living with dying, dying in the American health care system, euthanasia and biomedical issues, pain management, suicide, cross-cultural perspectives on dying and death, the business of dying, the legal aspects of dying, and the bereavement process. |
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