The joint major in Social Psychology focuses on areas where the fields of sociology and psychology overlap. It is one of the oldest subfields of both disciplines. Drawing on the rich history of research in both sociology and psychology, social psychology students explore important and wide-ranging issues such as power and status inequalities, mental, emotional and physical health, deviance and conformity, and interpersonal communication. Such issues occur across the course of human development, in both small groups and larger contexts. Social psychology majors typically seek careers in social services, education, health and medicine, business and other fields where the dynamics of individual functioning and interpersonal behavior are critical to success. This major is offered jointly with the Psychology department, and program requirements include coursework in both disciplines. For their senior capstone requirement, social psychology majors complete either a supervised internship or an advanced course in either department.
Requirements for the Joint Major in Sociology and Psychology
Students are required to declare the joint major in Psychology and Sociology no later than the start of their junior year. Waiving or modifying any joint major requirement must be approved by both departments. Joint majors are assigned a faculty advisor from each department. Students are urged to make contact with their advisors as soon as possible.
Foundational course sequence. Six courses are required:
PSYCH 100 or 101 (Introduction to Psychology)
SOCIOL 101 (Introduction to Sociology)
PSYCH 330 (Social Psychology) or SOCIOL 281 (Society and the Individual)
SOCIOL 341 (Elements of Sociological Theory)
SOCIOL 351L (Research Methods)
PSYCH 201 (Methods), PSYCH 270 (Statistics) or SOCIOL 350 (Statistics)
Psychology, Group A. One of the following Psychology courses:PSYCH 350 (Learning and Memory)
PSYCH 355 (Perception)
PSYCH 360 (Behavioral Neuroscience)
Psychology, Group B. One of the following Psychology courses:
PSYCH 300 (Personality)
PSYCH 315 (Abnormal Psychology)
PSYCH 341 (Infancy and Childhood Development)Two of the following Psychology courses (Psychology Directed List):
PSYCH 333 (Group Dynamics)
PSYCH 335 (Social Attitudes and Public Opinion)
PSYCH 337 (Communication and Society)
PSYCH 338 (Community Psychology)
PSYCH 339 (The Psychology of Law)
PSYCH 415 (Psychological Trauma: Individual and Society)
PSYCH 430 (Internship in Psychology: 6 credits)
PSYCH 434 (Social Perception)
PSYCH 477 (Experimental Methods: Social)
PSYCH 441 (The Family and the Child: A Psychological View)Two of the following Sociology courses (Sociology Directed List):
SOCIOL 300 (Communication and Opinion)
SOCIOL 310 (Socialization)
SOCIOL 316 (Family Violence in America)
SOCIOL 342 (Aging and Society)
SOCIOL 362 (Juvenile Delinquency)
SOCIOL 382 (Sociology of Gender)
SOCIOL 384 (Sociology of Health, Illness, and Health Care)
SOCIOL 386 (Sociology of Mental Health and Illness)
SOCIOL 460 (Internship in Urban Social Service: 6 credits)
Senior Capstone Experience for the Joint Major in Social PsychologyA capstone is required for those who declared their major after September 1, 2003. Students must achieve a C- or better to obtain capstone credit. Any course in the Sociology Directed List or the Psychology Directed List numbered 400 or above fulfills this requirement. Capstone courses require students to synthesize various themes in Sociology and Psychology to which they have been exposed during the coursework required for the major. Two of the choices are internship courses that require students to apply knowledge gained in the major in a setting outside the classroom. Other courses require a substantial research paper with the use of original sources. Students typically complete their capstone course during their last semester or two at UMass Boston.
Additional notes:
- A maximum of three Sociology courses (nine credits) and three Psychology courses (nine credits) may be transferred from other institutions.
- One course within the major may be taken pass/fail, but it may not be the capstone.
- Either PSYCH 430 or SOCIOL 460 may be included in the major, but not both. Students who choose this option will complete 3 extra credits in Psychology or Sociology since each of these courses carries 6 credits. These extra credits will be considered as elective credits, counting towards graduation but not toward the major.