Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Psychology

This course will enable students to use Microsoft Excel and Access to design and create complex applications to support effective decision making. Students will use Excel to design and create spreadsheets to support business analytics. Access will be used to understand, design, create, and utilize relational databases.

Students will increase their competence in the critical reading of challenging college-level texts that engage significant ideas and in writing effective essays that advance a clear and meaningful thesis while demonstrating understanding of those texts. The second of the department’s three-course composition sequence, This course counts towards the fulfillment of the Essential Competencies element of the CLAS general education curriculum.

Introduces students to the process of library research and documented writing. Emphasis will be on the refinement of critical reading, thinking, and writing strategies applied to multiple sources and documented papers. This course counts towards the fulfillment of the Essential Competencies element of the CLAS general education curriculum.

AMS 212 Multicultural America
AMS 309 Hip Hop and American Culture
COM 105 Communication Culture and Media
COM 230 Radio and TV Communication
COM 328 Sitcoms and American Culture
ENG 230 Women in Literature
GLS 350 U.S. Foreign Policy and Security Policy
GSS 100 Introduction to Gender Studies
HIS 150 World History to 1500
HIS 151 World History Since 1500
HIS 333 20th Century Europe
HIS 352 History of Socialism
MUS 304 Music of the Beatles
POL 313 American Presidency
THE 105 Theater History to 1700
THE 106 Theater History Since 1700
THE 206 American Theater History

AMS 225 American Folklore
AMS 229 American Pop Culture
AMS 309 Hip Hop and American Culture
AMS 310 American Identity in the Arts
COM 328 Sitcoms and American Culture
ENG/GSS 230 Women in Literature
GSS 100 Introduction to Gender Studies
PHL 115 Ethics
PHL 303 Philosophy of Law
POL 102 Understanding Politics

AMS 212 Multicultural America
AMS 229 American Pop Culture
AMS 304 Technology and Science in America
AMS 309 Hip Hop and American Culture
AMS 310 American Identity in the Arts
COM 105 Communication Culture and Media
COM/GSS 318 Gender and Communication
COM 328 Sitcoms and American Culture
ECO 200 Macroeconomics
ECO 201 Microeconomics
GSS 100 Introduction to Gender Studies
GSS 200 Introduction to Women's Studies
GSS 245 Popular Constructions of Gender and Sexuality
HLS 203 Homeland Security
MCS/GSS 110 Race, Class, and Gender in American Society
PHL 203 Business Ethics
PHL 303 Philosophy of Law
PHL 304 Medical Ethics
POL 100 Introduction to American Politics
POL 102 Understanding Politics
POL 206 Healthcare Regulation and Governance
POL 304 Political Behavior: Fear, Risk, and Crisis
POL 313 American Presidency
POL 315 Global Issues
POL 327 Contemporary Issues in American Public Policy
POL 350 U.S. Foreign Policy and Security Policy
SOC 101 Sociological Imagination

BIO 100 Life Science
BNS 107 Life Science: Brain and Behavior
CHE 115 Chemistry and Contemporary Society
PHY 180 Astronomy

An orientation to psychology covering major facts, principles and concepts about human and animal behavior and experience, research findings, major problems, basic vocabulary, methodologies and contributions in the field. Topics include psychology as a science; human development; individual differences; intelligence and its measurement; special aptitudes and interests; personality and social behavior; motivation and emotion; frustration and personality deviations; and learning, thinking, remembering and forgetting.

Students will be introduced to the basic research methods used in psychology, including surveys, experiments and observation. They will collect data and learn to describe it using basic tools of analysis, including graphic display and statistical analysis. Students will read original psychological research and learn to write using the conventions of the American Psychological Association.

Focuses on issues related to human behavior in work settings. Topics include personnel issues such as hiring and promotion decisions, performance appraisals and methods of on-the-job training. Issues of job satisfaction, motivation, productivity and effective leadership styles are also examined. Finally, organizational structure as it relates to communication within organizations will be examined.

This course deals with the fundamentals of organizational behavior as they relate to management such as motivation, communications, and leadership. Behavior is examined at the individual, group, and organizational level. The management functions of planning, organizing, leading and controlling are addressed. The effects of global operations and the requirements of ethical behavior on managers are also explored.

Deals with the scientific study of human beings in social situations, focusing on reciprocal influence of the individual and the group, especially aspects of behavior that are socially determined. The nature of attitudes: their development and change; the nature of social influence; interpersonal perception and attraction; dynamics of social behavior; and social phenomena, such as prejudice and social movements, are covered.

This course deals with the nature of human resource management, its functions, procedures and practices currently found in for-profit, nonprofit and public sector organizations. Topics covered include recruiting and selection, training, human resource development, equal employment opportunity, performance appraisal, diversity, job analysis, compensation and employee rights and discipline.

This course prepares students to work in organizations that use teams as an integral part of their functioning — an increasingly common practice. The class involves intensive group interaction, focusing on individual growth in group settings. Working with other students in role-plays, exercises and team assignments allows the student to develop better communication and leadership skills.

This course covers the general area of research methods such as experimental and non-experimental methods, measurement, statistics and preparation of reports for presentation and publication. In addition, research topics common in the area of organizational psychology such as worker motivation, job satisfaction, stress and burnout, communications in the workplace, productivity, decision-making, leadership style and organizational structure will also be discussed. Students gain hands-on experience conducting empirical research.

Introduces students to statistics and research methods in the behavioral sciences. Covers the fundamentals of descriptive and inferential statistics, a variety of issues in research design, selected research designs including the case study, correlational and experimental designs. In addition, students will explore the literature in psychology to examine the use of statistics and research design in real research problems.

This course is designed to provide students with fundamental concepts, knowledge and tools from statistics that may be useful in one's attempt to reach intelligent conclusions in real-world settings, particularly in business applications. The focus is on the normal random variable, sampling distributions, framework of estimation and hypothesis testing, as well as the one-way ANOVA and simple regression model.

Prerequisite(s): MSD 10

This course introduces students to the process of analyzing big data and discovering new information to support business decision making. The course covers descriptive, predictive, and prescriptive analytics. Some topics covered include data visualization, data forecasting, and data mining. This course provides students with the fundamental concepts and tools needed to understand the role of business analytics in organizations and shows students how to apply basic business analytics tools in a spreadsheet environment. It also includes how to communicate with analytics professionals to effectively use and interpret analytic models and results for making better business decisions. Emphasis is given on applications, concepts and interpretation of results. Students utilize Excel for data analysis.

Prerequisite(s): MSD 205 or MSD 200.

Focuses on the ongoing communication processes in organizations. This course examines how and why organizations develop policies and procedures that both encourage and yet constrain creativity and autonomy in employees. It also introduces various management skills to balance the dynamic in organizations. Finally, the course introduces students to various communication technologies that enable communication processes in organizations. Students will also have opportunities to participate in creating organizational dynamics through role-playing exercises, case studies and other kinds of experiential learning.

Examines the communication process as it relates to the small group. Theoretical constructs including motivation, group climate, attraction, leadership, decision-making, problem solving and roles are analyzed. Utilizes group experience to study and evaluate the dynamics and effectiveness of interpersonal systems.

This course explains the processes involved in selecting and training employees. With regards to selection, specific examples include evaluating applicant credentials, administering pre-employment tests and complying with equal employment opportunity legislation. With regards to training, topics include assessing the need for training, designing effective training programs, utilizing methods such as technology to deliver training and evaluating the effectiveness of training programs.

The goal of this course is to familiarize you with the common methods of compensation used by today’s organizations and how these methods could be used to increase motivation, job satisfaction and performance in the workplace. To accomplish this, we will first discuss the bases of motivation in the workplace. Next, we will then talk about the various compensation options and techniques and the strengths and weaknesses of each in maximizing motivation and performance in an organization.

Employee engagement is commonly described as a focused passion and enthusiasm that employees bring to their work that produces high-quality performance and positive organizational outcomes such as enhanced firm reputation, customer loyalty and profitability. In this course, students will explore the concept and value of employee engagement, and strategies for energizing an organization's workforce. Projects and activities will focus on the role of the human resource function in measuring employee attitudes, designing relevant interventions and influencing a culture of engagement.

Demographic shifts, changing patterns of labor force participation, global competition and a growing cultural emphasis on the celebration of difference have all contributed to the creation of diversity as a hot topic in management. This course explores the opportunities and challenges of the increasingly diverse workforce emerging in the United States today. We will address the knowledge and skills managers must develop in working with others who are different from themselves. Some of these differences are obvious, such as gender, race, age and physical characteristics. Other differences are not as easily observed, such as family structure, educational level, social class and sexual orientation. This class incorporates experiential learning techniques for personal growth.

Topic to be approved in advance by supervising instructor, chairperson and academic dean. Available for juniors and seniors. No more than 12 credits allowed toward graduation, and can be used as free elective or MGT major elective. Prerequisite(s): MGT 201 or permission of instructor.

A synthesis of the most recent research in the field of personality development. Topics include interplay of biological, cultural and subjective personal processes; analysis of the broad trends in personality theories; and introduction to personality measurement. Prerequisite(s): PSY 100.

A broad coverage of the expanding fields of learning, memory and cognition is provided, while addressing their relevance and impact on human behavior. Continuity between early associationistic and contemporary cognitive theories is established. Topics range from basic conditioning to the more complex processes of memory, concept learning, thinking and problem solving. Prerequisite(s): PSY 100.

Examines the history of psychological testing. Issues concerning the construction of psychological tests are discussed, including concepts concerning reliability, validity and item analysis. The rationale and structure of the major tests of intelligence, aptitude and personality are reviewed, including the Rorschach, WAIS, TAT, MMPI and Bender-Gestalt. In the last section of the course, students are given hands-on experience in the administration, scoring and interpretation of a standard test battery.

This capstone course will provide a synthesis and evaluation of important critical issues in psychology, such as the role of modern psychology in solving social problems, the scientific vs. human services perspectives on behavior, emotion and cognition, and the nature of mental illness and well-being. Students will be expected to draw broadly from their education in psychology; to grapple with conflicting points of view; and produce professional-quality writing, oral or multimedia presentations.

Provides students with an opportunity to design and carry out original research in an area of their choice. Students designate a faculty supervisor and work closely with him/her during the semester. All students must have approval from the department and the dean to register for PSY 490. Prerequisite(s): PSY 201.