Manhattanville College

Academic Catalog

Psychology

Introduction

Psychology is the science of human behavior-- including actions, thoughts, and emotions. Applied psychology uses the methods and findings of scientific psychology to solve practical problems of human and animal behavior and experience. The science of psychology focuses on learning how to frame useful questions regarding human behavior, how do find the information and perform the research that answers these questions, and how to understand the meaning and application of research results.

Degree

Bachelor of Arts

Optional Minors

Students can minor in Psychology

Career Ideas

Applied Behavioral Therapist, Biopsychologist, Business, Career Counselor, Clinical Psychologist, Education, Employee Benefits Analyst, Forensic Psychologist , Guidance Counselor, Health Psychologist, Human Resources, Market Research Analyst ,Neuropsychologist, Psychology Professor, Research Psychologist, Social Worker, Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor

Program Administrators

P. Susan Gerrity Program Chair, Sue.Gerrity@mville.edu

Faculty and Staff

PROGRAM CHAIR

P. Susan Gerrity

FULL-TIME FACULTY

Katherine Bao - Positive Psychology--increasing happiness, sustaining happiness, adaptation to positive life events, and romantic relationships

Alison S. Carson - Cultural psychology--acculturation processes, culture change and identity, and qualitative research methods.

Jessica Arthur-Cameselle - Sport psychology and clinical psychology--eating disorders in athletes, treatment of anxiety disorders, and burnout from sport. 

P. Susan Gerrity - Developmental psychology-- attachment, friendship and love, development of self perceptions and beliefs about self and others; identity, positive development, and coping & emotion regulation

Julie Higgins - Cognitive Psychology--memory, how interference influences memory processes, cognitive aging, cognitive neuroscience, and source memory

Anthony C. Santucci - Biopsychology-- biological bases of mental illnesses, neuroscience, physiological measures, effects of emotions, head trauma, and psychopharmacology

George Schreer - Social psychology--stereotyping, prejudice, social stigma, persuasion, aggression, and group processes

FACULTY EMERITUS

Everett Delahanty

Overview

The psychology major at Manhattanville College provides strong academic preparation for graduate training and for careers through the diverse expertise of the faculty in areas including abnormal, biological, clinical, cognitive, cultural, developmental, personality, and social psychology. Students explore the study of behavior from both the empirical and the theoretical perspectives. Students also become familiar with statistical procedures and develop skills in research design. Students are encouraged to participate in faculty member’s research programs and in the research projects of other students. In addition to classroom work, internships and research placements are available.

The Psychology Department offers a broad program covering areas of biological, clinical, cognitive, cultural, developmental, personality, and social psychology. The Psychology major emphasizes the scientific nature of psychology and provides strong academic preparation for graduate training and for careers in a variety of fields including education, business, social work, and research. In addition to classroom work, internships and research experiences are available. Students are encouraged to participate in faculty member’s research programs and in the research projects of other students.

Faculty and Professional Interests

Jessyca Arthur-Cameselle: Sport psychology and clinical psychology--eating disorders in athletes, treatment of anxiety disorders, and burnout from sport. 

Katherine Bao: Positive Psychology--increasing happiness, sustaining happiness, adaptation to positive life events, and romantic relationships

Alison S. Carson: Cultural psychology--acculturation processes, culture change and identity, and qualitative research methods.

P. Susan Gerrity: Developmental psychology-- attachment, friendship and love, development of self perceptions and beliefs about self and others; identity, positive development, and coping & emotion regulation

Julie Higgins:  Cognitive Psychology--memory, how interference influences memory processes, cognitive aging, cognitive neuroscience, and source memory

Anthony C. Santucci: Biopsychology-- biological bases of mental illnesses, neuroscience, physiological measures, effects of emotions, head trauma, and psychopharmacology

George E. Schreer: Social psychology--stereotyping, prejudice, social stigma, persuasion, aggression, and group processes

Psychology Major Requirements

A minimum of 13 courses are required for the major.

I. Three Required Core Courses

PSY 1004: Fundamentals of Psychology

PSY 2012: Statistics for the Social Sciences

PSY 2040: Research Methods in Psychology

 

II. Five Content Breadth Courses (Pick one from each area)

Breadth Area

OFFERED FALL

 

OFFERED SPRING

Biological

PSY 2008: Sensation and Perception

or

PSY 2004: Physiological Bases of Behavior

Cultural

PSY 2042: Psychology and Culture

or

PSY 2046: Psychology of Identity

Developmental

PSY 2001: Devel. Psych.-Childhood

or

PSY 2052: Devel. Psych.-Adulthood

Personality/Clinical

PSY 2036: Personality Psychology

or

PSY 2011: Abnormal Psychology

Social

PSY 2009: Social Psychology

 

PSY 2009: Social Psychology

 

III. One Capstone Course

A capstone course is a 3000 or 4000-level course taken in the junior or senior year.

 

IV. Four Elective Courses (at least one at the 3000-level or above)

The recommended course sequence for the major is:

Freshman Year: PSY 1004: Fundamentals of Psychology, and one of the five content breadth courses

Sophomore Year: PSY 2012: Statistics, and four remaining content breadth courses

Junior Year: PSY 2040: Research Methods in Psychology, and two or three (of the four) electives

Senior Year: Capstone and remaining elective courses

Psychology Minor Requirements

Five courses are required for the minor in Psychology. PSY 1004: Fundamentals of Psychology and a minimum of four additional courses are required. Students are encouraged to take electives from different content breadth areas in order to be broadly educated in the field of psychology.

Important Considerations for the Psychology Major and Minor

  • A minimum grade of C - is required in order to use a psychology course for the major or minor.

Psychology Transfer Credits

No more than half of the courses used for the major or the minor can be transferred to Manhattanville. Students must get written approval (on the "Transfer Credit Approval Form”) from the Chairperson of Psychology for all courses taken elsewhere to be used toward the Psychology major or minor. This includes both current Manhattanville students and transfer students who want to use courses taken at other schools for the major or minor. Students receiving either a "4" or a "5" on a high school AP Psychology exam can apply that credit toward PSY 1004 upon presenting the Registrar’s Office with the appropriate documentation from the College Board confirming the student’s AP exam score.

Psychology Departmental Honors and Distinction

The minimum criteria to be eligible for Departmental Honors are:

  • "B" or higher in all psychology courses;
  • A minimum of 3.5 GPA in psychology
  • Completion of one of the two following options for advanced study of a single topic (courses must be taken at Manhattanville)

1) Both PSY 4020: Writing Review Articles and PSY 4025: Research and Writing Experience or

2) At least one semester of PSY 4020: Writing Review Articles followed by PSY 4030: Field Work Experience

  • A minimum of A- in both these 4000-level courses is needed for consideration for honors

Following the completion of these minimum requirements, Departmental Honors are awarded based on the recommendation of the full Psychology Department faculty’s evaluation of the intellectual quality of a student’s entire psychology program.

Departmental Distinction is given to graduating psychology majors who, although not meeting the requirements for Departmental Honors, have demonstrated outstanding performance in the classroom, in the laboratory, or in the field, or who have exhibited dramatic intellectual growth and development of scholarly sophistication during their time at Manhattanville. Distinction is awarded based on the recommendation of the full psychology department faculty.

The Psychology Department also awards the Everett J. Delahanty Jr. Prize in Psychology.  This prize is awarded to the senior psychology major who has achieved the highest cumulative psychology GPA, and, because the award is intended to recognize students who undertake challenging coursework, it is awarded to students who also included at least four courses at the 3000-level or higher.  In addition to these criteria, awarding of this prize requires that the full Psychology Department’s faculty judge that the intellectual quality of a student’s entire psychology program and performance is superior.  The fulltime faculty of the Psychology Department serves as the Prize Committee and is responsible for determining the recipient of this prize.  The Committee is not bound to make an award each year.  The Committee can make more than one award if more than one student is deemed to qualify for this special prize.   

Psychology Advising

Students planning to major in Psychology should declare a psychology major as soon as possible. Students are advised not to wait until the end of the sophomore year because some courses are reserved for major and minors, and many opportunities needed for graduate school begin earlier than the junior year. (See Academic Advising web page “Forms” to obtain an “Undergraduate Declaration/Change of Program, Minor or Change of Advisor Form.”)

Psychology Departmental Web Page on the World Wide Web

Additional information about the department including faculty research interests and course syllabi can be found on the department's Web page located at http://www.mville.edu/undergraduate/academics/majors/psychology.html In addition, several Psychology faculty members maintain their own personal Web pages on the college’s Web site.

Catalog Contents

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2014-2015 Undergraduate College Catalog

Manhattanville College Mission

Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action Policy

Brief History of Manhattanville: History and Educational Commitment

Letter to Parents

Inventory of Undergraduate Programs

Inventory of Graduate Programs

Graduate Programs List

Undergraduate Programs of Study(Majors, Minors & Requirements)

Full-Time Undergraduate Degree Requirements

Undergraduate Programs

Graduation Participation Requirements

Registration Requirements & Online Student Resources

Official & Unofficial Transcripts

Types of Courses

Transfer Credit Policy

Grading and Grading Policies

Honors Options

Bachelor Degrees in Accelerated Format

Pre-Professional Studies

Off-Campus Study

English Language Institute (ELI)

Educational Support

Library Information Services

Facilities and Resources

Dual Degree Programs

School of Business, Master of Fine Arts in Writing & Master of Liberal Arts Programs

School of Education Graduate Programs

Course Offerings

African Studies Courses

American Studies Courses

Anthropology Courses

Art History Courses

Art (studio) Courses

Asian Studies Courses (WLL Lang Courses)

Biology Courses

Chemistry Courses

Communication & Media Courses

Castle Scholars Courses

Classic Civilizations Courses (WLL)

Dance & Theatre Courses

Accounting/Economics/Finance/Management/Marketing Courses

Education Courses

Education Courses

English Composition Courses

English Education Courses

Health & Wellness Education Courses

English Courses

English Film Studies Courses

English Writing Courses

French Courses (WLL)

First Year Program Courses

German Courses (WLL)

History Courses

Holocaust Studies Courses

Organizational Management & Human Resource Development (Graduate Program) Courses

Interdisciplinary Studies Courses

International Studies Courses

Irish Studies Courses

Italian Courses (WLL)

Library Skills Courses

Business Leadership (Graduate Program) Courses

Computer Science Courses

Mathematics Education Courses

Mathematics Courses

Finance (Graduate Program) Courses

MGPS Master of Science Courses (Graduate Program)

Physical Education & Sports Pedagogy (Graduate Program) Courses

Physical Education Courses (Undergraduate)

Sport Business Management (Graduate Program) Courses

International Management (Graduate Program) Courses

Marketing Communication Management (Graduate Program) Courses

Museum Studies Courses

Applied Music Courses

Music Technology Courses

Music Education Courses

Music History & Literature Courses

Music Management Courses

Music Theory Courses

Philosophy Courses

Physics Courses

Political Science & Legal Studies Courses

Psychology Courses

Science Education Courses

Sociology Courses

Spanish Courses

Social Studies Education Courses

World Religions Courses

Women's Studies Courses

Admissions

Athletics

Student Affairs

Tuition and Fees

Financial Assistance

Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

Faculty and Staff

Index