History of Psychology

PS 401 Summer 2000

Goals

History of Psychology is designed to be a "capstone class" for seniors. What does this mean for you? Hopefully this class will help you integrate what you have learned over the last 4 or so years as a psychology major.

In this class we will:

• Explore what it means to say that psychology is a science                                                          
• Trace the philosophical roots of psychology and the development of the discipline over the last 100 years

• Examine different theoretical perspectives and schools of thought and the role they played in shaping the field

• Attempt to understand the cultural and historical contexts in which psychology emerged, and how these shaped the discipline.

This class is not just about memorizing lots of names and dates--who did what and when--although that information can form a framework for your thinking. The class is about thinking about psychology as a field--what are its goals, underlying themes and assumptions, and how did these ideas evolve?

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