Psychology
The Department of Psychology offers courses (undergraduate and graduate) that provide a solid foundation in the science of behavior and mental processes. The undergraduate program prepares graduates who can compete effectively in the job market or who can go on to graduate study, if desired. The graduate programs serve essentially the same purposes, but at an advanced level.
The Department of Psychology is known for its faculty who are committed to achieving excellence in a number of areas including teaching, research, publishing, and community affairs, as well as other professional endeavors. While members of the faculty have varied interests that represent several active areas of psychology, each member fosters interaction with other colleagues. Such diversity is often viewed as a strength within the discipline and provides the student with a variety of viewpoints. Students who enter our programs are encouraged to become active participants in the dynamic and growing discipline of psychology. Faculty members are committed to the professional development of all psychology students. Upon declaring a major in psychology, each student is assigned an advisor. The student and advisor then develop a program of study that will best meet both the unique professional goals of the student, as well as fulfill departmental and university requirements.
Most classes are relatively small, so students are able to interact with professors should they need clarification of course material or other general advisement. At both the undergraduate and graduate level, students have the opportunity to work with faculty members and in some cases are supported by grants. Students are encouraged to publish or present their research at professional meetings. Students also have the opportunity to become members of Psi Chi, the national organization for psychology majors, and/or members of the Psychology Club, a local organization that sponsors social events that pertain to psychology.
In total, the department offers a quality education in an environment with concerned professors who routinely use and encourage the use of advanced computer technology (a 25-machine computing facility is available in the department). Our programs provide a solid base for future employment opportunities, advanced coursework, and understanding behavior and mental processes.
Department of Psychology Faculty Listing
Academic Programs
Behavioral Health Technician Certificate Case Management Certificate Psychology - BA Psychology - BS Psychology Minor School Psychology Education Specialist - EdSCourses
This course involves a survey of principles related to human and animal behavior. The focus will be on the evaluation of theories and methods of analyses, related research, and practical applications of principles of behavior.
An introduction to specific areas of psychology and to the organization of psychology as a discipline. Students will interact with all faculty members of the psychology department.
Not accepted for psychology major. The course provides students with objective skills to view their own behavior, procedures to change their behavior, and the skills needed to encourage and support themselves throughout change.
Knowing, understanding, and developing appropriate skills to help the child make an adequate adjustment to current societal demands.
Students will explore new skills, techniques, and information related to a problem or area of interest or practical application.
This course is designed to receive non-equivalent elective transfer credit.
This course involves the acquisition of basic skills and knowledge of the principles related to the study and understanding of human behavior, integrating prior learning from the general psychology course. Students in the course will examine careers in various disciplines of psychology and will engage in critical thinking exercises regarding each discipline. Students will also learn some basic tools needed to facilitate future learning in the study of psychology, including APA writing style, APA ethical standards, how to critique a journal article, and the contrasting theoretical underpinnings of psychology.
This course will give students the fundamental skills in psychology and science to become critically thinking, research oriented life-long learners. Students will learn to evaluate scientific claims, concepts, and principles to be better able to understand and apply psychological research findings.
This course prepares students to become familiar with fundamental skills needed for working in the area of human services, as well as to utilize appropriate skills and techniques needed to work efficiently and professionally with the public.
An introduction to the causes (biological, psychological, and social) of human behavior.
This course is designed to provide practical experience in teaching and administration in psychology.
This course provides social science education majors with observational and participatory experiences in their area of specialization. Students will be placed in a school situation in order to introduce them to the classroom teaching experience.
A study of the classification, description, and treatment of human psychological disorders.
A survey of psychological principles that apply to behavior in work situations and related issues such as selection decision, appraisal, training, motivation, leadership, and job design. Experiential activity will provide concrete related learning experience.
A course designed to introduce the major theories of personality development, as well as to provide exercises that may enable students to gain insight intro their own unique personality development.
This course will examine the interrelated physiological, psychological and sociocultural aspects of human sexuality.
A beginning course in the fundamental principles of learning, including classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and concept formation.
The study of normal human cognitive processes, i.e., those activities involving thinking, reasoning, problem-solving, decision-making, and remembering. Information processing forms the framework for study. The historical threads leading to current widely believed analogies between computing machines and the human mind/ brain will be examined. Specific techniques for more efficient memory and practical problemsolving strategies will be examined.
A laboratory in the experimental study of cognitive processes.
This course involves the study of the individual in social interaction and social influence situations. The focus will be on the investigation of theoretical, empirical, and practical issues related to interpersonal behavior and group processes.
The subject matter will vary from semester to semester. Students pursue intensive study in one area of psychology.
A course designed to provide the student with an understanding of the methods and principal findings concerning the psychological and physiological bases of psychoactive and abused substances.
This course covers the interrelations between psychology and the legal system, including: forensic career options; psychological services provided for police, the military, criminals, and victims; psychology's role in criminal profiling and in courts (criminal, civil, adult and juvenile); the development of criminal behavior; and the multiple types of crime (violent, property, etc.).
The primary purpose of this course is to provide the students with an introduction to the field of evolutionary psychology and apply the principles of natural selection, adaptation, and sexual selection to human behavior.
This course will provide an overview of techniques that result in different levels of altered consciousness; including relaxation, meditation, hypnosis, and the principles of biofeedback.
This course is designed to receive non-equivalent elective transfer credit.
A survey course dealing with the theoretical assumptions of why changes in behavior occur during the growth and development of the individual.
A laboratory in the experimental study of child behavior. Reports will be submitted in publishable form.
This course examines the biological, cognitive, and emotional changes that take place during adolescence and their influence on the behavior, concerns, and problems of adolescents.
A laboratory in the experimental study of behavior and cognition.
This course examines the effects of the aging process and includes the influence of stereotypes, physiological and psychological changes, and environmental forces on the beliefs, self-esteem and actions of aging persons.
A survey of theories of personality. Special emphasis is given to considering and comparing the key concepts of the more important theories. Pertinent research findings are also examined.
The study of behavior with a consideration for evolutionary perspectives. Emphasis will be upon comparisons of species-characteristic behavior and on data yielded by observational methods.
Senior psychology students will learn about career options, making career decisions, and applying to graduate school. The goal of the seminar is to prepare students for life after college.
Students will conduct a replication of a published experiment in an area of social psychology. Reports will be submitted in publishable form.
A survey of method and results of studies in perception with emphasis upon detection, discrimination, recognition, scaling, and information processing models.
The student will learn about the complex social processes governing work behavior, and how organizational structure influences worker motivation, job satisfaction, work performance, and leadership within the organization. Experiential activity will provide related learning experience, focusing on work group behavior.
A laboratory in the areas of perception and psychophysics.
Students will study the concepts and skills necessary in measuring the psychological differences in individuals and the importance of high quality measurement in research and in decision making. Selection and construction of tests will be covered.
An introductory laboratory for the study of physiological correlates of behavior.
Readings and written reports on special topics in psychology.
Research appropriate to the student's field of interest.
Intensive inquiry into various areas of psychology.
Subject of the study varies with each offering. Includes, but is not restricted to, motivation, comparative and animal behavior, advanced social processes, learning, perception, and personality theory.
Course is designed to provide practical experience in teaching and administration in psychology.
An introduction to methods of analysis of research data in the behavioral and social sciences. Includes measurement problems, data description, frequency distributions, central tendency, variability, norms, correlation, hypothesis testing, decision making, and evaluation of the results of empirical investigations. Emphasis will be placed on real world applications of statistics.
Supervised work experience in a psychological clinic, mental health clinic, or state hospital setting.
A beginning course in the basic techniques in experimental methodology: how to formulate a problem, design a study to answer the question, organize the results and communicate them in a formal style.
Independent original research under the supervision of a staff member. Students are required to submit a report of their findings in publishable form.
This course covers our basic understanding of how memory works, both theoretical and applied. Topics include research methodology, specific models of learning and forgetting, and clinical aspects such as amnesia and repressed memory.
This course covers our basic understanding of how memory works, both theoretical and applied. Topics include research methodology, specific models of learning and forgetting, and clinical aspects such as amnesia and repressed memory.
A survey of the physiological correlates of behavior, including a study of the nervous, sensory, and endocrine systems.
A survey of the physiological correlates of behavior, including a study of the nervous, sensory, and endocrine systems.
This course covers a number of topics in neuropsychology, including the mapping of mental functioning onto the brain and the assessment of selected neurological difficulties.
This course covers a number of topics in neuropsychology, including the mapping of mental functioning onto the brain and the assessment of selected neurological difficulties.
This workshop is an in-service improvement activity, at either the undergraduate or graduate level, where the students will explore new skills, techniques and information related to a problem or area of interest or practical application.
This workshop is an in-service improvement activity, at either the undergraduate or graduate level, where the students will explore new skills, techniques and information related to a problem or area of interest or practical application.
Historical analysis of psychological thought from the 17th century to the present.
Historical analysis of psychological thought from the 17th century to the present.
A study of the principles and procedures of behavior therapy and their applications in clinical, school, and home settings.
A study of the principles and procedures of behavior therapy and their applications in clinical, school, and home settings.
The course will emphasize recent experimental findings and their relevance to clinical practice.
This course reviews theoretical foundations of developmental psychology. The applications of developmental theory to the practice of psychology with children will also be considered.
This course examines the symptoms, diagnosis, etiology (including nature/nurture), treatment, prevention and controversial issues surrounding child psychopathologies such as ADHD, Conduct Disorders, Autism and Autism Spectrum Disorders, Child Onset Schizophrenia, Mood Disorders, Anxiety Disorders, Trauma, Social Withdrawal, and Somatoform Disorders.
This course examines development into adulthood and the aging process and includes the influence of stereotypes, physiological and psychological changes, and environmental forces on the beliefs, self-esteem, and actions of aging persons.
This course surveys the various perspectives used to study and explain the development of knowledge, thinking, memory, and logic in human beings. The primary focus of the course is on children. The work of Piaget, Vygotsky and other perspectives involving behaviorism and information processing are compared and contrasted.
The course discusses the principles of learning and the processes motivating behavior.
A study of current ethics codes for psychologists and their application to activities related to psychotherapy, psychological assessment, research, and teaching. Includes a focus on procedures to help insure professional conduct and avoidance of malpractice.
Practice in administration, scoring, and interpretation of a wide variety of diagnostic instruments. Emphasis on report writing, theory of intelligence testing, and best practices of assessment. Permission to enroll in this course is limited to graduate students in the school psychology and clinical psychology programs.
Study of experimental methods in psychology. Provides experience in formulating experimental problems, designing experiments, collecting data, analyzing and interpreting data, and writing scientific reports.
This course surveys alternative models and elements of program evaluation in the behavioral sciences. It is designed to train evaluators to make valid conclusions about the success or impact of social programs, the generalizability of results, and causes underlying results.
Hypothesis testing and basic experimental design. Applications of t, f, and chi-square distributions.
An intensive study of methods for appraising adult intelligence and personality.
A survey of the major approaches to psychotherapy. Emphasis is also given to specific approaches for frequently encountered problems such as depression, eating disorders, and marital distress.
A survey and application of psychological theories and techniques for conducting clinical psychotherapy with couples, includes special topics in working with couples and issues of diverse couples.
An introductory laboratory for the study of physiological correlates of behavior.
Readings and written reports on special topics in psychology.
Research appropriate to the student's field of interest.
Intensive inquiry into various areas of psychology.
Subject of study varies with each offering. Includes, but not restricted to motivation, comparative and animal behavior, advanced social processes, learning, perception, and personality theory.
Course is designed to provide practical experience in teaching and administration in psychology.
A course designed to bridge the gap between academic and applied psychology settings. There will be an examination of the historical and sociological aspects of public institutions and community mental health programs.
Emphasis on the best practices, content, problems, philosophies and current trends in the field of school psychology.
Designed to provide students in school psychology with an advanced observation and participation experience in a local educational agency emphasizing school psychology. Students will "shadow" a currently employed school psychologist and make systematic observations of school children's behavior for an extended period during the semester. The student will obtain experience directly and indirectly related to school psychology.
Supervised training in psychotherapy, psychological, and psycho-educational assessment in the Kelly Center.
Supervised work experience (600 clock hours) in an off-campus mental health agency such as a state hospital or community mental health center. Supervision will be provided by both university and field supervisors.
An intensive survey of psychological problems with participation by students and faculty.
A student may enroll in this course a maximum of two times.
Readings and written reports on special topics in psychology.
Research appropriate to the student's field of interest.
Intensive inquiry into various areas of psychology.
Subject of study varies with each offering. Includes, but not restricted to, motivation, comparative and animal behavior, advanced social processes, learning, perception, and personality theory.
This course emphasizes the role of consultation in the schools in terms of theory, research and applied procedures. There is an examination of the various models of consultation, major approaches to school-based consultation, and intervention strategies.
Supervised work experience in local education agency. Supervision will be provided by university faculty and field supervisors.
A full-time work experience of at least 500 clock hours. It provides the beginning school psychologist with appropriate experiences in a Kansas school system. Supervision will be provided by both university and field supervisors.
Continuation of PSY 985, Internship in School Psychology I, with at least 500 additional clock hours. Supervision will be provided by the university faculty and field supervisors. This internship completes requirements of the KSBE for school psychologists.
Preparation of a portfolio as outlined by the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) for national certification.
Empirical research resulting in a bound thesis. A student may enroll in this course a maximum of two times.
Fort Hays State University
600 Park Street
Hays, KS 67601-4099
785-628-FHSU (3478)