Psychology Courses

PSY101 Psychology for All

[3–0, 3 cr.]

Psychology evolved out of both philosophy and biology. Discussions of these two subjects date as far back as the early Greek thinkers including Aristotle and Socrates. The word psychology is derived from the Greek word psyche, meaning ‘soul’ or ‘mind.’ Psychology is both an applied and academic field that studies the human mind and behavior. Research In psychology seeks to understand and explain thought, emotion and behavior. Applications of psychology include mental health treatment, performance enhancement, self-help, and many other areas affecting health and daily life.

PSY201 Introduction to Psychology

[3–0, 3 cr.]

Provides students with a general overview of the subject matter of psychology, which is defined as the scientific study of behavior and mental processes. The course aims to give students a better understanding of why people act, think, and feel the way they do. Among others, it covers topics on learning, personality, emotions, psychological disorders, social interactions, and the biological bases of behavior. Knowledge will be drawn from the major approaches of psychology, namely psychoanalytic, behavioral, humanistic, cognitive, social and biological. 

PSY202 Child Psychology

[3–0, 3 cr.]

The course explores theories and research findings, on prenatal development, physical growth, emotional, social, and intellectual development, and cultural influences in children prior to adolescence. 

PSY203 Psychology of Youth

[3–0, 3 cr.]

This course focuses on the physical, cognitive and emotional changes experienced by young people and how these changes are affected by family, peers, dating, and the media. It also considers the challenges faced by adolescence, with a focus on drugs and deviance. 

Prerequisite: PSY201 Introduction to Psychology

PSY204 Social Psychology

[3–0, 3 cr.]

Social Psychology focuses on how individual motives, cognitions, attitudes are affected by groups, organizations and institutes. These influences will be explored in domains such as interpersonal attraction, prejudice, conformity, attitudes, aggression and motivation. 

Prerequisite: PSY201 Introduction to Psychology

PSY234 Development across the Life Span

[3–0, 3 cr.]

Human development through the lifespan is devoted to the study and understanding of constancy and change of human beings in the physical, cognitive, social and emotional domains interpreted through a variety of theoretical frameworks, contexts, and interdisciplinary research. The course will cover the periods of childhood, adolescence, adulthood, late adulthood and old age. 

Prerequisite: PSY201 Introduction to Psychology

PSY245 Research Methods I

[3–0, 3 cr.]

Students will develop skills which prepare them to design, conduct and analyze research including a thorough knowledge of the following: literature searches, evaluation of research literature, critiquing and deconstructing an empirical article, developing research questions and hypotheses, research ethics, scientific and APA writing style. There will be special emphasis on the need for psychological research in the Lebanese context.

Co-requisite: ENG202 Advanced Academic English

Prerequisite: PSY201 Introduction to Psychology

PSY256 Sensation and Perception

[3–0, 3 cr.]

This course explores how multisensory mechanisms transform external stimuli into information that our brains can understand and reliably interpret. All senses will be examined with an emphasis on vision. Topics include perception of color, motion, form, depth, perceptual illusions, and perceptual disorders such as inability to see motion and/or identify objects or faces. 

Prerequisite: PSY201 Introduction to Psychology

PSY267 Cultural Psychology

[3–0, 3 cr.]

The course will give students an introduction to the scientific, theoretical and applied basis of cultural psychology. Students will develop an understanding of universal and culturally shaped psychological processes and how they shape morality, religious thought, emotions, psychological health, conformity and other hot topics in the field. 

Prerequisite: PSY201 Introduction to Psychology

PSY295 Theories of Learning

[3–0, 3 cr.]

This course provides an analysis of the factors in learning, through a survey of the major theories of learning. Special emphasis is placed on the learning principles and their implications in the teaching process. 

Prerequisite: PSY201 Introduction to Psychology

PSY311 Exceptional Child

[3–0, 3 cr.]

This course provides an introduction to the concept of exceptionality and an overview of the various forms of atypical growth and development. Course work includes psychology qand identification of exceptional children. Focus is on children classified as having learning disabilities and their implications for classroom life in both special cases and inclusion setting. 

PSY320 Theories of Personality

[3–0, 3 cr.]

This course provides a comprehensive coverage of the most influential theories of personality. It also examines the interplay of forces that shape the individual’s personality throughout the course of life. 

Prerequisite: PSY201 Introduction to Psychology

PSY322 Mind and Behavior

[3–0, 3 cr.]

This course is an interdisciplinary introduction to the problems, theories and research on the human mind and other cognitive systems. The following topics will be covered: perception, memory, attention reasoning, problem solving, language comprehension, and production and cultural cognition

Prerequisite: PSY201 Introduction to Psychology

PSY335 Industrial Organizational Psychology

[3–0, 3 cr.]

Industrial psychology is the study of techniques and theories related to understanding, predicting, and managing human behavior within organizations in order to increase organizational effectiveness and individual well-being. Topics include selection, training, appraisal, job attitudes, work motivation, leadership, job design, organizational culture, and work environment.

PSY345 Research Methods II

[3–0, 3 cr.]

This course covers advanced research designs as well as advanced statistical analyses in psychological research. Students will be introduced to advanced research designs and will to enter data and run descriptive and inferential analyses The course combines both lectures and lab-based sessions. 

Prerequisite: PSY245 Research Methods I and ENG202 Advanced Academic English

PSY355 Biological Basis of Behavior

[3–0, 3 cr.]

This course is designed to familiarize students in the principles of biological psychology and to the fundamentals of the relationships between behavior and brain mechanisms. This course constitutes a comprehensive survey of the anatomical structures and physiological processes that determine behavior including the nervous, sensory and motor systems that are necessary for our ability to function effectively in the world. 

Prerequisite: PSY201 Introduction to Psychology

PSY425 Abnormal Psychology

[3–0, 3 cr.]

In this course students examine the field of abnormal psychology, surveying the major psychological disorders and their classification. Emphasis is on recognizing symptoms and exposure to some treatment approaches. 

Prerequisites: PSY201 Introduction to Psychology, PSY320 Theories of Personality, and ENG202 Advanced Academic English

PSY466 Counseling Psychology

[3–0, 3 cr.]

This course is designed to provide an introduction to the field of counseling psychology. Topics related to the contemporary counseling psychology approaches will be discussed. The core of the course will focus on theory and application. Case studies will supplement theoretical material.

Prerequisite: PSY425 Abnormal Psychology and ENG202 Advanced Academic English

PSY498 Topics in Psychology

[3–0, 3 cr.]

This course deals with an area of psychology, or a topic that is not usually dealt in other psychology courses. Topics will vary depending on contemporary issues in the field of psychology and students’ needs as agreed upon by the faculty of the program. 

Prerequisite: PSY201 Introduction to Psychology and ENG202 Advanced Academic English

PSY499 Senior Study

[3–0, 3 cr.]

This course is an independent scholarly work on a topic chosen by the student. 

Prerequisite: Senior standing, PSY204 Social Psychology, ENG202 Advanced Academic English, and COM203 Fundamentals of Oral Communication