Department of Psychology and Neuroscience (GRAD)

This course will investigate the pharmacological effects and the clinical efficacy of drugs used to treat behavior disorders.

This course explores classic and current issues in the study of human memory. Topics include working memory, encoding and retrieval processes, implicit memory, reconstructive processes in memory, eyewitness memory, developmental changes in memory, neuropsychology and neuroscience of memory and memory disorders, memory improvement, and the repressed/recovered memory controversy.

Recommended preparation, PSYC 230 or LING 101 or LING 400. This course examines the mental representations and cognitive processes that underlie the human ability to use language. Covers what people know about language, how they process it, and how people make inferences about the speaker's meaning based on context. Recent work in experimental psycholinguistics is discussed.

Simple mathematical and psychological models of judgment and choice, and related experiments, are treated, as are applications to real world problems in medical, environmental, policy, business, and related domains.

This course offers an inside look at pronouns from an interdisciplinary perspective. From a cognitive perspective, we examine major models of the role that pronouns play, and the mental processes involved in using them. From a social perspective, we examine the role pronouns play in marking gender identity, and how both language usage and gender concepts are currently in flux. Students also learn about research methods and conduct a novel empirical study.

Examines the cognitive mechanisms behind language comprehension, focusing on how we make predictions about the speaker's meaning, based on context, background, gestures, and other cues. In this course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE), groups of students generate novel research questions, perform their own research experiments, and present the results in spoken and written format.

Developmental processes during early childhood as these relate to social behavior and personality.

PSYC 210 or 215 recommended. A survey of the literature on the development of black children. Topics include peer and social relations, self-esteem, identity development, cognitive development, school achievement, parenting, family management, and neighborhood influences.

Explores how the family influences children's development. Topics include family theories, genetics, family structure (e.g., single parents, working mothers, divorce), discipline, parent behavior and values and beliefs, fathers and ethnic diversity.

Examines the evolution and development of behavior patterns and their physiological substrates.

The developmental period of adolescence is studied from a multidisciplinary perspective. The course will distinguish among early, middle, and late adolescence and will cover several theoretical perspectives.

This course will provide an overview of the use of digital technologies to increase opportunities for training in, access to, and use of evidence-based mental health services. Coverage will include the current status of and future directions in research, innovations in service delivery, and policy implications. Special attention will be given to the evolution of the field, the potential costs and benefits, and the promise to address health disparities in particular.

Various special areas of psychological study, offered as needed. Course may be repeated for credit. Honors version available.

Required preparation, minimum of two other psychology courses and junior/senior standing. Designed for highly motivated psychology majors interested in exploring professional opportunities in psychology-related areas. Students complete hands-on internships at community sites for approximately 120 hours across the semester. Students also attend a weekly one-hour class with other interns.

A survey of theories bearing on atypical development and disordered behavior, and an examination of major child and adolescent behavior problems and clinical syndromes.

An in-depth coverage of the traditional clinically based personality theories of the early 20th century contrasted with more recent empirically based perspectives.

A developmental approach to the study of adulthood, from young adulthood through death. Topics include adult issues in personality, family dynamics, work, leisure and retirement, biological and intellectual aspects of aging, dying, and bereavement.

This course examines race and culture in the psychological processes and behavior of African Americans.

An in-depth coverage of psychological, biological, and social factors that may be involved with health.

This course examines the mental health and psychological factors that impact the performance of athletes. Furthermore, the mental health of sports fans, along with the physiological and psychological impact of being a spectator will be examined.

The social, developmental, and biological contributions to mania and depression are examined, as well as the impact of these moods on the brain, creativity, relationships, quality of life, and health.

PSYC 245 and 270 recommended but not required. This course will provide students with a comprehensive overview of the etiology and treatment of addiction, along with exposure to real-life stories of addiction.

In this upper-level course, students will learn about the interdisciplinary field of Positive Youth Development and create a digital tool to improve health, well-being, or developmental outcomes for youth through an intensive semester-long project.

This course addresses techniques in answering new questions with existing data. Students will learn about data from multiple perspectives: different data source and types, intended audiences, and visualization, analysis, and presentation formats. This will make students more savvy consumers as well as producers of data.

Students work with a community partner to identify a research question related to our understanding and treatment of psychological health. Using an iterative scientific method, students collaborate to develop hypotheses, to prepare and analyze data, to propose interpretations of data, and to present their results to the public.

Emphasis on the methodological principles underlying experimental and correlational research. Interaction of theory and practice in the design and interpretation of psychological studies. This is a course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE).

Basic psychometric theory underlying test construction and utilization. Detailed study of issues and instruments used in assessing intellectual functioning, educational progress, personality, and personnel selection.

This course examines the science of quantitative psychology. Topics include the analysis of data, the design of questionnaires, and the assessment of psychological attributes, among others. Honors version available.

Consideration of multiple regression and the general linear model in psychological research, including hypothesis testing, model formulation, and the analysis of observational and experimental data. Honors version available.

Introduction to programming and the implementation of statistical techniques. Topics include data manipulation, graphical procedures, writing loops and functions, data simulation, use of regular expressions, and scraping data from the web.

In this course, we will cover fundamental coding practices and computational tools used frequently in psychology research. We will go over the basics of coding, how to present computer-based experiments, how to keep a digital lab notebook, univariate data analyses, and visualization through programming. Through this process, students will have the opportunity to develop and run a simple experiment from start to finish.

As opposed to hypothesis-driven data analysis, machine learning takes an exploratory and predictive approach to data analysis. This course introduces machine learning approaches in psychology to identify important variables for prediction and uncover complex patterns in datasets, such as nonlinearity, interactions, or clusters. Classes include theoretical lectures and hands-on examples.

This course offers an overview of research investigating the psychological underpinnings and impacts of racialization, racism, and racial inequality. It will center research in social psychology, but will also feature work from other areas of psychology (e.g., developmental), as well as other social science disciplines (e.g., sociology, political science).

PSYC 270 Recommended. This advanced course will comprehensively cover the social psychological literature on normally-developing interpersonal relationships, with implications for relationships with family, friends, co-workers, and romantic partners. This is a research-intensive course with a major aspect involving an independent research project to facilitate learning by doing.

PSYC 270 recommended. Examines the determinants, functions, processes, and consequences of stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination. Prospects for change are considered. Class presentations and participation required.

A detailed consideration of the theoretical issues in attitude and belief change.

Surveys cutting-edge research across the field of social psychology and how it matters for everyday life. Topics include morality, mind perception, judgment and decision making, happiness, affective forecasting, emotion, relationships, negotiation, personality, free will, stress/health, and religion. Clear communication of research also emphasized through figures, presentations, and papers.

PSYC 270 recommended. An intensive review of self-regulation theory and research, focusing on the cognitive, motivational, and affective processes involved in goal commitment, monitoring, and overriding behavioral responses.

Social neuroscience is the study of how social processes and experiences are represented in and influence the structure and function of the brain. This course will focus primarily on functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies of humans, though we will also discuss other brain imaging techniques and patient studies. Previously offered as NSCI 571.

An in-depth examination of psychological research and theory pertaining to the influence of gender on the lives of men and women. In general, emphasis will be placed on understanding gender as a social psychological construct.

This course will discuss theories, methods, and empirical research findings on the physical, cognitive, emotional, and social aspects of the psychology of women, as well as topics such as feminist psychology, intersectionality, bias in psychological research, sexual orientation, sexuality, lifespan development, work, and health. Men and masculinity, the psychology of transgender persons, and a critique of the gender binary are also discussed.

Each of us is committed to our moral values and often struggle to understand those who with different beliefs. This course will focus on difficult moral disagreements (e.g., abortion, euthanasia), using social psychology and related disciplines to reveal the basis of our moral judgments, the drivers of moral divides, and how best to bridge them. We will cover both theory and application, and practice having constructive dialogue and civil disagreement to forge moral understanding.

This course examines positive psychology, also called the science of thriving. One basic premise of positive psychology is that thriving individuals and thriving communities require the presence and interplay of positive emotions, positive relationships, and positive meaning. A second basic premise is that thriving does not result simply by curing pathology and eliminating problems. Rather, thriving requires building and capitalizing on human strengths and capacities. Students will apply course concepts in their everyday lives.

Examines the legal system from the perspective of psychology methods and research, with a focus on criminal law. Discusses dilemmas within the law and between the legal system and psychology.

Major topics of general psychology are examined from an evolutionary perspective with an emphasis on empirical studies asking why much current human behavior and experience would have been adaptive for our early ancestors.

To be taken in the fall of the last year of studies as the first course in the two-semester honors sequence. Students conduct research under the direction of a faculty advisor and receive classroom instruction in research-related topics.

This course comprises the second semester in the two-semester sequence of Senior Honors in Psychology/Neuroscience. There are two components to the course: research that you will conduct under the direction of your faculty thesis advisor, and this class, which you will attend with the other senior honors students to learn about research-related topics and receive consultations with the instructor and your classmates. Admission to the psychology honors program required.

Graduate standing required. A survey of psychological and biological approaches to the study of sensory and perceptual information processing, with an emphasis on touch and pain.

A survey of psychological and biological approaches to the study of basic learning and higher integrative processing.

Each fall one special topic will be covered in depth (e.g., neural bases of memory storage, homeostasis, and perception). Format includes lectures and seminar meetings with student presentations.

This course provides a critical analysis of interdisciplinary research within experimental psychology, including such topics as psychopharmacology, psychoneuroimmunology, psychophysiology, and animal models of brain/behavior disorders.

Basic principles of pharmacology and behavior analysis are considered in relation to drugs that affect the central nervous system.

Examinations of the clinical efficacy, side effects, and neuropharmacological actions of drugs used in the treatment of behavioral disorders. Additional topics include the behavioral and neuropharmacological actions of drugs of abuse.

Limited to graduate students in psychology, neuroscience, and neurobiology. Experimental design, hypothesis testing, power analyses, ANOVAs, regression, correlations. Hands on data analysis with you being able to use your own data sets. Analyses will be conducted with SPSS and Prism. Permission of the instructor.

Lectures, discussions, and seminar presentations on current topics in experimental psychology.

An in-depth treatment of research topics in behavioral and biological aspects of health psychology.

Graduate standing in psychology required. Students design and conduct a supervised research project and engage in critical discussion of research performed by other students and faculty.

Graduate standing in psychology required. Students design and conduct a supervised research project and engage in critical discussion of research performed by other students and faculty.

This course provides an overview of what the field of human neuroscience has revealed about neural structure and function with an eye to examining individual differences. Current knowledge about the neural mechanisms supporting cognitive and emotional function will be investigated in depth through chapters, review articles, and empirical studies.

This course will highlight recent research regarding the cognitive and neural architecture of human memory or attention, with the emphasis placed on studies using cognitive neuroscience methods (e.g. fMRI, EPRs).

Permission of the instructor. Discussion and critical evaluation of various theories of thinking; theories of concept formation, problem solving, and reasoning.

Graduate standing required. This course covers research strategies, research collaboration, giving talks, writing review papers, writing research reports, the peer-review editorial process, the grant-proposal process, the academic job search process, and nonacademic career.

Graduate standing in psychology required. This course will introduce the major issues in attention research and highlight recent work examining the neural mechanisms of attention and its interactions with other cognitive and social-cognitive processes.

This course examines theories of human cognitive aging and how these theories seek to explain age-group differences in various domains of cognitive functioning (e.g., episodic memory, language, judgment).

Graduate standing in psychology required. This seminar addresses the mental processes underlying human's ability to use language at a number of levels. Specific topics vary.

Selective overview of topics in the study of human memory. Course will examine the findings from laboratory research to gain a better understanding of memory structure and organization.

Graduate standing in psychology required. Students conduct a supervised research project in cognitive psychology, and participate in discussion of current research and related ethical and methodological issues.

Graduate standing in psychology required. Students conduct a supervised research project in cognitive psychology, and participate in discussion of current research and related ethical and methodological issues.

This course covers the development of attention, perception, learning, memory, thinking, and language, beginning in infancy and covering the life-span from both information processing and Baldwin-Piaget approaches.

Current thinking and research relevant to social, emotional, and personality development across the life span. Topics include parent-child interaction, peer relations, aggression, competence, sex roles, and gender differences.

Philosophical and sociological perspectives on research in developmental psychology, with specific applications to ongoing projects. As announced.

The purpose of this course is to provide an introductory knowledge base of ethical and professional issues that guide the field of Psychology, with specific focus on the field of Developmental Psychology.

Provides an introduction to psychobiological research, focusing on early development in animals. Topics include embryology, developmental neurobiology, the development of sensory and communication systems, and social behavior. As announced.

Research related to family processes, especially regarding the developmental consequences of varying family environments on children. Topics include divorce, cognitive development, single parents, parental employment, discipline, cultural context.

Permission of the instructor. Intensive study of selected topics in developmental psychology.

The goal of this course is to understand the neural systems that support development from childhood to adulthood by drawing on theories and methods from developmental and social psychology as well as cognitive neuroscience. We will draw upon research examining the brain bases underlying the development of various social behaviors including social relationships, social stress, antisocial behavior, self-perception, and social influence.

Permission of the instructor. Presentations of research by faculty, students, and visitors; discussion of professional topics.

Intensive study of selected topics in human development that are being explored by members of the Carolina Consortium on Human Development staff. Permission of the instructor.

Review of the history of major areas of psychology, with special emphasis on the conceptual and methodological underpinnings of the discipline.

Permission of the instructor. Intended for advanced graduate students.

Permission of the instructor. Consideration of problems facing academic psychologists.

Specific training in presentational and interpersonal skills needed by college teachers, such as planning, lecturing, discussing, motivating, and evaluating.

This course provides a comprehensive and rigorous introduction to the technique of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Students will learn the basic physics underlying MRI; the biological principles of fMRI, the principles of experimental design, data analysis, the use of available software packages, and special considerations for patient research.

This course serves as a gateway course to the Graduate Certificate in Biomedical Imaging Science. This course offers an introduction to the most common imaging modalities, including MR, CT, PET, SPECT, ultrasound, and optical imaging. Lectures include discussions of hardware, physics, as well as pre-clinical and clinical applications.

Graduate status in clinical psychology required. This course covers the research bases and clinical application of psychotherapeutic interventions that have demonstrated empirical validity for assisting children and families.

Graduate status in clinical psychology required. This course covers the research bases and clinical application of psychotherapeutic interventions that have demonstrated empirical validity for assisting adult clients.

Graduate status in clinical psychology required. Analysis of clinical and personality research in terms of their contribution to knowledge, their limitations, possibilities for their improvement, further research they suggest, etc. Preparation of individual research proposals for class presentation and critical evaluation. Three hours a week.

Graduate standing in clinical psychology required. Designing and presenting research proposals in individual students' research areas in oral and written form. Critiquing research proposals. Research ethics and preparing and evaluating protocols for ethical review.

First-year graduate status in clinical psychology required. The major forms of psychopathology are examined within a development framework.

First-year graduate status in clinical psychology required. The major forms of psychopathology are examined within a development framework.

Second-year graduate status in clinical psychology required. Supervised experience in psychological assessment and psychotherapy. Six to eight laboratory hours a week.

Second-year graduate status in clinical psychology required. Supervised experience in psychological assessment and psychotherapy. Six to eight laboratory hours a week.

Graduate standing in clinical psychology required. Consideration of how various forms of assessment data can be utilized in understanding the structure and dynamics of adult personalities; problems of differential diagnosis, brain damage, etc., are also considered. Two lecture and two laboratory hours a week.

Theory, research, and application of objective and projective techniques for behavioral, emotional, psychiatric, interpersonal, and social cognitive assessment of cases across the lifespan (e.g., child, adolescent, adult). Two lecture and two laboratory hours a week.

Graduate standing in clinical psychology required. A survey and discussion of the ethical and legal issues that clinical psychologists confront in a variety of professional settings.

Supervised clinical work in an area of particular interest to the student. Clinical activity is coordinated with reading and discussion of literature or professional ethics.

Individualized clinical practicum for advanced doctoral students in clinical psychology. Supervised experience in psychotherapy, psychological assessment, and consultation. May be repeated for credit.

This course will survey contemporary neuroscience approaches to understanding mental illness, including mood, anxiety, and personality disorders, as well as addiction. We will also discuss the role of neurodevelopment and stress in the etiology of psychopathology. Students will become familiar with empirical studies encompassing animal models, computational models, and systems and molecular neuroscience. Finally, we will consider the tensions and synergies between psychological and neurobiological approaches to mental illness.

This course provides a foundation in affect, emotion, mood, and emotion regulation in theory and empirical findings, followed by a review of the tools needed to study change in individuals. Students will master a broad overview of current thinking on affect, emotion, mood, and emotion regulation. They will then learn about methods for studying change affect or emotion in individuals and propose a research project using what they have learned in the class.

Lectures, discussions, and seminar presentations on current topics in clinical psychology.

This course will familiarize fourth year clinical psychology doctoral students with methods and models of clinical supervision and consultation in an ethical and multicultural context. Includes a didactic seminar component and an applied supervision training component. Restricted to fourth year doctoral students in clinical psychology.

Individualized clinical practicum for advanced doctoral students in clinical psychology, namely: supervised experience in psychotherapy, psychological assessment, and consultation. Practicum experience is paired with a seminar within the academic program of the clinical psychology doctoral program to discuss external community practicum experiences and relate these to academic coursework and earlier clinical training.

Graduate standing in psychology and permission of the instructor. The development and format of this course is guided by current "best practice" in multicultural education in emphasizing three overriding goals: awareness and changes in attitudes and beliefs.

Graduate standing in psychology and permission of the instructor. This course provides students with an opportunity to integrate their academic foundation in clinical psychology assessment knowledge skills, ethics, and values in an applied practice setting with diverse clients.

Introduction to the principles and practices of evidence-based assessment for clinical psychology.

Required preparation, a course in introductory statistics. Data analysis, sampling, applied probability, elementary distribution theory, principles of statistical inference.

Statistical estimation and hypothesis testing for linear models (ANOVA, ANCOVA, regression analysis); statistical models in the design and analysis of experiments.

This course is designed for graduate students seeking training in quantitative methods for analyzing a range of data often encountered in psychological and neural sciences studies where numerous observations are collected across time per individual. This data enables the possibility for intra-individual variability analysis (IVA), or how to quantitatively describe individuals' dynamic process.

This course is an introductory seminar on the theory and application of machine learning to data analysis. A lot of research in psychology has focused on hypothesis-driven, explanatory approaches to data analysis. Machine learning could supplement a researcher's analytic toolbox to explore patterns and assess the predictive value of various combinations of variables on an outcome.

The goal of the course is to provide a firm foundation in the regression analysis of binary, ordinal, nominal, or count dependent variables. In addition, the course provides helpful background to those using other methods with categorical outcomes (e.g., item response theory, structural equation models). Students should have a solid background in OLS regression analysis and some familiarity with matrix notation.

Quantitative Research Methods explores the many dimensions of experimental and quasi-experimental design in the psychological sciences with a specific focus on topics that commonly arise in quantitative research. Exemplar topics include true- and quasi- experimental design, causal inference, sampling, randomization, self-selection, Monte Carlo computer simulation design, internal and external validity, and ethics.

Current computational environments for data analysis and visualization are taught and used as a basis for understanding current (and creating new) methods of computational statistics and dynamic statistical graphics.

Survey of classical test theory and more recent developments in item analysis and test construction.

Advanced topics in factor analytic models, multivariate correlational models, and analysis of covariance structures as applied in behavioral research.

Examination of a wide range of topics in covariance structure models, including their history, underlying theory, controversies, and practical use with major computer packages.

Latent curve modeling is a structural equations-based method for analyzing longitudinal data. Equal emphasis is placed on the statistical model and applications to real data.

This course demonstrates how multilevel models (or hierarchical linear models) can be used to appropriately analyze clustered data (i.e. persons within groups) and/or repeated measures data in psychological research.

This is a one-credit hour seminar focused on contemporary topics in advanced quantitative psychology with a focus on psychometrics and measurement.

This is a one-credit hour seminar focused on contemporary topics in advanced quantitative psychology with a focus on statistical and mathematical modeling.

This is a one-credit hour seminar focused on contemporary topics in advanced quantitative psychology with a focus on computational statistics.

Presentations of research by faculty, students, and visitors; discussion of professional topics such as ethics, the publication process, research funding, and the reviewing of articles.

Lectures, discussions, and seminar presentations on current topics in quantitative psychology.

Graduate status in social psychology or permission of the instructor. Directed research problems and seminar discussion of related issues.

First-year graduate status in social psychology or permission of the instructor. Directed research problems and seminar discussion of related issues.

Intensive study of interdependence theory and research of interpersonal relationships.

Methods of investigation in social psychology, with primary emphasis upon experimental design and the nature of the experimental situation.

A critical examination of selected topics in attitude theory and change.

Graduate standing required. Supervised research experience in an applied setting and accompanying methods of non-laboratory research, including nonquantitative methods of social psychology and evaluation of quasi-experimental and nonexperimental designs.

Intensive study of the processes by which adult close relationships are initiated and developed.

Graduate standing or permission of the instructor. Survey of research and theories of attitude change, interpersonal relations, and small groups.

Seminar in Social Psychology.

Advanced theory and research in social psychology that explores the cognitive processes underlying social phenomena. Specific topics include attributions, emotions, heuristics, self, goals, motives, and others.

Graduate standing required. Seminar featuring research and theory on emotions. It stretches across traditional psychological subdisciplines because emotions are complex, multiply determined phenomena.

Discusses both classic and contemporary theory and research related to group processes, including group performance, motivation, decision-making, social dilemmas, social justice, and other intragroup and intergroup phenomena.

Graduate standing required. This course surveys research in political psychology. Topics may include personality and politics, political values and attitudes, voter behavior, candidate evaluation, and the role of emotion in political decision-making.

Graduate standing required. Seminar reviews classic and current literature on the psychology of stereotyping and prejudice. Focus is on causes, consequences, and mental processes that maintain social biases.

Discusses both classic and contemporary theory and research related to social judgment and decision making, including basic psychological processes, heuristics and biases, models of decision making, and social influences.

Positive Psychology represents a scientific approach to understanding positive aspects of life, including character strengths and human flourishing. This seminar builds students' empirical skills in this vibrant area of inquiry.

This course will provide students with an understanding of the more basic biological (and psychological) mechanisms that contribute to social processes such as stereotypes, person perception, moral judgments, and emotions. The course will prepare students to be informed consumers of contemporary neuroscience research.

Psychological processes are increasingly being appreciated as key predictors of morbidity, mortality, and well-being. But how, exactly, do factors in the social environment "get under the skin" to influence health? This is the main question we will investigate in this course. We will accomplish this primarily through extensive reading and discussion of journal articles and presentations on a variety of biomarkers, physiological processes, and pharmacological approaches.

Course explores moral judgments and behavior; examines morality and cognition, emotion, mind perception, and religion; covers debates between reason vs. intuition, utilitarianism vs. deontology, and single vs. multiple domain theories. Discusses real world applications (courtroom, torture) and related concepts (free will).

This course offers training and discussion in a wide array of skills rarely covered within formal academic curricula, including: how to select a career path, financial planning, media training, balancing personal/professional lives, applying for postdocs, writing research statements, getting tenure, multiculturalism, applying for grants, consulting, etc.

Required preparation, third year or beyond in clinical psychology doctoral program. This advanced seminar provides clinical psychology graduate students with case formulation skills in the context of exposure to psychotherapy integration and contemporary evidence-based treatment models.

A first course in test theory (e.g., EDUC 829, PSYC 842) is recommended but not required. Please ask the course instructor if you are unsure about prerequisites. This course covers basic and advanced topics in item response theory (IRT). Examples are taken from educational testing, psychological assessment, and patient-reported health outcomes. Students produce a term project applying IRT to assessment data, and / or addressing mathematical or computational aspects of IRT.

This is an independent study course on the topic of history and systems of psychology, providing a background on the origins and the development of core ideas in the field of psychology including psychoanalysis, behaviorism, and cognitive psychology, and on the development of applied and professional psychology in the United States. Restricted to: Clinical psychology doctoral students only.

This course provides students with hands-on experience in an area of psychology and neuroscience relevant to the student's research interests through projects and work outside the University, such as an internship experience. The course exposes students to a different range of problems and application areas than they would encounter in the classroom, which is an essential part of their graduate study. The student is to be registered for the course while working.

Six laboratory hours a week.

A course for Clinical Psychology PhD students to register for if they have defended their dissertation but are on internship and therefore are off campus