Psychology (PS-GY)

This course explores behavioral analyses of transportation decision-making and travel characteristics. Topics: User needs in design of transportation systems: crowding, social isolation, crime, comfort and convenience. Social impact of transport systems on communities. Prerequisite: none. Co-Requisite: none. Notes: none.

This course is a 6-credit Independent research project that demonstrates scientific competence and that is performed under the guidance of advisers. The course may be repeated for total up to 6 credits, | Prerequisite: consent of adviser

This course demonstrates how various problems, particularly in work, can be solved through the judicious use of psychological principles. Phenomena addressed include human-machine interaction and other engineering- behavior interactions, smoking, study habits, memory, creative thinking, group interaction, raising children, influencing people, self control and specific problems brought up in class by students. Students learn to employ behavioral analysis to understand various problems. Students select a problem, perform behavioral analysis and modify it as a class project. | Prerequisite: none. Co-Requisite: none. Notes: none.

This course covers human cognitive capabilities, including natural language and information processing. Topics: Memory, internal representation of knowledge, concept information, symbol manipulation, language acquisition, reasoning and problem solving. Artificial intelligence approaches to natural language learning and acquisition of cognitive skills. | Prerequisite: none. Co-Requisite: none. Notes: none.

This course introduces students to human behavioral issues in designing and using interfaces for information systems. Basic issues of behavioral research and evaluation methods are discussed. Sensory systems and memory and learning theory relevant to human factors systems are reviewed and related to specific interface issues, such as interaction devices, dialogue design and reference material. The focus is on understanding the issues involved in creating systems amenable to human use. | Prerequisite: none. Co-Requisite: none. Notes: none.

This course examines theory and methods of sensory-functions measurement in human and animal subjects. Topics: Examination of the concept of the threshold and problems of its measurement. Investigation of learning— motor and verbal, simple and complex— including problem solving and creative thinking. Students perform a series of experiments with human and animal subjects. | Prerequisite: none. Co-Requisite: none. Notes: none.

The course explores experimental and descriptive methods, including quasi-experimental design and large-scale survey techniques used by social, environmental and developmental psychologists to assess human behaviors in laboratory and natural settings. The course focuses on laboratory and observational methods used to assess environmental effects, attitude measurement, social impact assessment and theory and psychometric bases of normal personality development and assessment. | Prerequisite: PS 9083 or consent of advisor Co-Requisite: none. Notes: none.

The course looks at programmed learning, behavior therapy, attitude function and social interaction. All students are required to perform one experiment on learning under instructor guidance. Available to undergraduate majors in social science. | Prerequisite: none. Co-Requisite: none. Notes: none.

The course deals with methodological problems in analysis of language, verbal behavior in animals, anatomical and physiological aspects of speech apparatus, operant and respondent conditioning of verbal behavior, semantics, statistical approaches and mathematical models, contextual factors and pathology of speech. All students are required to perform one experiment under guidance of instructor. | Prerequisite: none. Co- Requisite: none. Notes: none.

This course reviews different sensory systems: vision, audition, taste, smell, touch, temperature sensitivity, vestibular and kinesthetic senses and their relations to nonsensory controlling stimuli such as states of the organism, learning and social psychological variables. Topics: Techniques for obtaining psychophysical data on each sensory system and relations of these techniques to theories of discrimination. Available to undergraduate majors in social science. | Prerequisite: none. Co-Requisite: none. Notes: none.

The course covers physiological and anatomical bases of behavior. Topics: Memory, motivation, emotion, sleep reward mechanisms, psychosurgery and higher cortical functions. | Prerequisite: none. Co-Requisite: none. Notes: none.

This seminar discusses major areas of psychology required of all MS candidates. Topics: History and systems, sensation and perception, learning, developmental and abnormal. | Prerequisite: none. Co-Requisite: none. Notes: none.

The course examines how physical changes in urban or rural settings affect social systems and group and individual behavior. Topics: Measuring quality of life and social responses to technology, uses of alternative futures paradigms. Students analyze a problem in social impact and report their findings to class. | Prerequisite: none. Co-Requisite: none. Notes: none. PS 9263 Environmental

The course covers theory and methods of measuring sensory functions in human and animal subjects. Topics: Examination of the concept of the threshold and problems of its measurement. Investigation of learning— motor and verbal, simple and complex—including problem solving and creative thinking. Students perform a series of experiments with human and animal subjects. | Prerequisite: none.

This course varies from year to year depending on the needs and interests of students and instructors. Potential subjects include social impact of transportation systems; stress and the environment; aversive environmental factors; laboratory assessment of environmental effects on animal learning; effects of pollution; human factors of software design; assessing the built environment, including the office; and applied behavioral analysis. The course may be repeated for total of up to 9 credits.