Psychology and Sociology, BA
Psychologists and sociologists have long worked together in building social psychology. The Joint Major in Social Psychology is designed to highlight social psychology as a product of both parent disciplines through a sequence of 12 courses that emphasize the approaches and concerns that psychology and sociology have in common. These courses are drawn about equally from the two departments. In addition, the course sequence focuses on how social psychology can be applied to help understand and deal with a variety of social problems and issues. The joint major is expected to be of particular interest to students who:
− plan to enter helping professions such as social work or counseling, that call for a great deal of social-psychological expertise
− are interested in studying ethnic or minority relations
− are interested in studying medical sociology, community mental health, or other aspects of health care delivery
− are interested in studying organizational training and development
− are planning graduate study in social psychology.
The following listing gives the basic requirements of the joint major:
1) Introduction to Psychology (Psych 101 or 100)
2) Introduction to Sociology (Soc 101)
3) Social Psychology (Psych 330) or Society and the Individual (Soc 281)
4) Sociological Theory (Soc 341)
5) Sociology Research Methods (Soc 351)
6) Psychology Research Methods (Psych 201) or Statistics (Psych z270 or Soc 350)
7) One from the group of Intermediate Psychology courses listed below:
- Learning and Memory (Psych 350)
- Perception (Psych 355)
- Behavioral Neuroscience (Psych 360)
8) One from the group of Intermediate Psychology courses listed below:
- Personality (Psych 300)
- Abnormal Psychology (Psych 3l5)
- Infancy and Child Development (Psych 34l)
9) Two advanced level classes from the Psychology Directed List:
- PSY 333 - Group Dynamics
- PSY 335 - Social Attitudes and Public Opinion
- PSY 337 - Communication and Society
- PSY 338 - Community Psychology
- PSY 339 - Psychology and the Law
- PSY 415 - Psychological Trauma: Individual and Society
- PSY 434 - Social Perception
- PSY 430 - Internship in Psychology (6 credits)
- PSY 477 - Experimental Methods: Social
- PSY 441 - The Family and the Child: A Psychological View
10) Two advanced level classes from the Sociology Directed List:
- SOC 300 - Communication and Opinion
- SOC 310 - Socialization
- SOC 316 - Family Violence in America
- SOC 342 - Aging and Society
- SOC 362 - Juvenile Delinquency
- SOC 382 - Sociology of Gender
- SOC 384 - Medical Sociology
- SOC 386 - Sociology of Mental Health and Illness
- SOC 460 - Internship in Urban Social Service (6 credits)
Capstone: A 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 psychology directed list or the sociology directed list numbering 400 or above fulfills the requirement.
Notes and clarifications:
- Only one course within this major may be taken pass/fail;
- A maximum of 3 Sociology courses (9 credits) and 3 Psychology courses(9 credits) may be transferred from other institutions;
- Either PSY 430 or SOC 460 may be included in the major, but not both. Students who choose this option will complete 3 extra credits in Psychology and 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.
