Senior Seminars

Senior Seminars for 2011 & 2012

The descriptions of Senior Seminars appear below. In order to enroll in a Seminar, you MUST do two things:

1. Complete the Preference Form. You can access it here after you receive login information from Judy Smith.

2. Receive permission of the instructor. You should talk to the professor teaching the class and make sure you receive explicit permission to enroll. 

Fall, 2011

Controversial Issues in Psychology

Professor Jeff Holmes
Wednesday 2:00-4:30

In this seminar, students will address an array of controversial and frequently misunderstood topics in psychology through class discussion and debate, student presentations, and individual exploration. Potential topics include controversial mental health diagnoses and treatment approaches, false and repressed memories, gender differences, self-esteem, forensic issues, intelligence testing, learning styles, and many others. Students learn about many topics but also have the opportunity to examine in depth one relevant topic of their choice. The single weekly class meeting allows us to thoroughly explore these contemporary areas of debate within our field.

Clinical and Mental Health Topics

Professor Hugh Stephenson
Wednesday 4:00-6:30

This seminar is for advanced psychology students and those who are considering graduate school in areas such as clinical, counseling, school, social work, art therapy, or any applied practice in which they will be directly supporting clients with psychological evaluation or intervention.

The seminar examines the practice of psychology closely from different professional, philosophical and personal perspectives. During the semester students will meet with professionals. Students will also hear from patients and clients who will report on their experiences and evaluate the treatments they received.

Nature AND Nurture: A Systems Approach

Professor Nancy Rader
Wednesday, 3:00-5:30

Moving beyond an either-or analysis, this seminar will consider how genes and experience interact throughout development to create individuals with unique personalities, skills, and challenges. There will be common readings for written reflection and group discussion during Block I. During Block II students will conduct individual research for oral presentations and papers.

Spring, 2012

The Story of Psychology

Professor Barney Beins
Wednesday, 4:00-6:30

This seminar will help you understand how psychology ended up looking like it does. The story of psychology is filled with interesting and surprising people and ideas. The evolution of psychology has involved people with unusual personalities, like Sigmund Freud whose family dynamics influenced his model of sexual energy associated with hysteria; and like B. F. Skinner, who proposed using pigeons to help the war effort in World War II. In addition, you will read about why some psychoanalysts concluded that the story of Little Red Riding Hood was really a sexual adventure and why, centuries ago, animals were put on trial for crimes and why psychologists have used animals as extensively as we have.

You will also learn about the practices associated with confinement in psychiatric facilities throughout psychology’s history. Finally, it will become apparent that psychological ideas do not develop in a vacuum. Culture and society shape the people who develop the ideas, so the ideas result from the combination of the person, the culture, and the issues that society deems important.

In this seminar, you will have interesting weekly readings that provide material for class discussions and writing assignments. There will be a final presentation and paper at the end of the semester.

Seminar in Social Cognition

Professor Leigh Ann Vaughn
Wednesday, 3:00-5:30

Humans are unique from other animals in many ways, including our social interactions. How do we understand what others are thinking, feeling, and doing? For that matter, how do we infer the beliefs and feelings that contribute to our own behavior? How do the ways we think about ourselves affect how we think about others, and vice versa? How do we navigate our social world? In this course we will attempt to answer these questions through an examination of a range of topics, including research on the self, how we understand others, the process of judgment and decision making, the role of emotion in social cognition, how we exert self-control, and how attitudes can change.

The primary goals in this senior seminar are for you to 1) Gain exposure to some important current theories and research on social cognition, 2) Develop a better understanding of the methodologies used by social and personality psychologists who study social cognition, 3) Develop a tolerance for ambiguity and respect for the tentative nature of cutting edge scientific knowledge, 4) Develop an ability to summarize and critically evaluate published literature, 5) Explore in-depth one topic relevant to the study of social cognition, and 6) Improve your writing and discussion skills.

Seminar in Psychology: Neuroscience

Professor Beth Caldwell
Tuesday 4:00-6:30

The seminar in neuroscience is the capstone course for senior psychology majors working toward a concentration in neuroscience. The Senior Neuroscience Seminar provides students with valuable experience refining literature search techniques, strengthening reading, summarization, and integration skills, and presentation/discussion of knowledge gained from their studies. Students will become immersed in the scientific literature within the field of behavioral neuroscience, learn to write an APA-style literature review, lead group discussions on research topics in the field of behavioral neuroscience, and discuss their work with students in the class via formal oral presentations.