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Introduction to Psychology 1 & 2
Course leaders:
Margaret Tilley
margaret.tilley@buckingham.ac.uk
Two terms (30 units)
This is the first psychology course in all psychology degrees and is a very important basis. Its aim is to introduce the general principles, approaches and perspectives which psychologists use to understand behaviour. The course makes use of classic psychology studies to illustrate these principles.
On completion of this course the student should have a solid understanding of the areas of and approaches to psychology and its study. Knowledge of a number of specific classic studies and experience in essay writing and use of the library resources are additional learning outcomes.
The two halves of the course cover the following topic areas:
- What is psychology? Psychological methods and ethics
- Consciousness - sleep, dreams and hypnosis
- Perception - seeing and hearing
- Cognition - language and thought; memory and learning
- Motivation and emotion
- The brain and neuropsychology
- Abnormal psychology
- Personality
- Intelligence and emotion
- Attachment
- Adolescence and adulthood
- Prejudice and social influence
- Language acquisition
- Relationships and attraction
This course is assessed by both course work (40%) and written examination (60%).
Main texts:
- Davey, G. (ed.) Complete psychology (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 2004). ISBN: 0-340-81568-X.
- Martin, G.N., N.R. Carlson & W. Buskist. Psychology: the science of behaviour (3rd ed., Harlow: Pearson, 2007). ISBN: 978-0-273-71086-8.
- Hock, R. Forty studies that changed psychology: explorations into the history of psychological research (5th ed., Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2004). ISBN: 0-13-114729-3.
- Banyard, P & A. Grayson. Introducing psychological research (3rd ed., Basingstoke: Palgrave, 2008).
ISBN: 978-1-4039-0038-8.