Psychology

This seminar introduces  students to the style, structure, and content of the UCL BSc Psychology program. The seminars develop key academic skills relevant to the range of disciplines that are studied in scientific psychology: including cognition, perception, developmental psychology, neuroscience and health psychology. Students on the course learn academic skills that are required on UCL's program (in particular report and essay writing, and critical assessment of research papers) and which are particular to UK system in general and a British Psychological Society accredited BSc Psychology degree program in particular.

This course explores major theories of personality, including psychodynamic, trait, behavioural, cognitive, and humanistic approaches. Students learn to analyse, compare, and apply these theories to understand human behaviour, development, and individual differences.

The course covers the role of companion animals in promoting human welfare, with a focus on behavioral science and inter-species relationships. Students will explore ethology, comparative psychology, co-evolutionary processes, the behavioral patterns of canines and felines, their disorders, and the benefits of human-animal bonds.

This course provides a broad-based introduction to the study of behavior and mental processes. It provides students with an overview of contemporary psychological approaches to the study of human behaviors and its contribution to our knowledge of human functioning. Topics include learning, development, psychotherapy, the brain and states of consciousness, sensation and perception, memory, social behavior, personality, psychological disorders, coping and health, stress, and others. Emphasis will be placed on application of theories in everyday life.

This course introduces the history, evolution, and contemporary practices of clinical psychology. Students use the scientist practitioner model to study underlying theoretical frameworks and the skills and practices of clinical psychologists. Ethical and professional issues covered include classification and diagnosis, clinical research, assessment, case formulation and treatment planning, interventions, and prevention. The materials are discussed in the context of typical work settings of clinical psychologists (e.g. mental health, forensic or neuropsychological) and across varied client populations (e.g. children, adults, couples). The course requires students to take prerequisites.

This course offers a practical introduction to the study of human flourishing and well-being. Drawing on principles from positive psychology, including the PERMA model, the course explores positive emotions, engagement and flow, relationships, meaning, and achievement. Emphasis is placed on applying research findings through an individual well-being project that supports personal development and thriving.

This practical application course covers the basics of conducting research in psychology and how to conduct a study on cultural psychology topics. As a unique combination of two different courses, Research Methods and Independent Study in any APA (American Psychological Association) accredited universities, this course encourages students to take advantage of their immersive cultural experience in Korea. 

Students should be prepared to bring their own phenomenon of interest to class: observations of certain individual behaviors, social systems, and cultural norms that intrigue you are the starting point. We will develop a researchable question from the phenomenon, design a study to answer the research question, collect data to test your hypothesis, and write up the entire process as a research paper. Potential opportunities to present your work for a larger audience can be provided.  

Topics include Science for descriptive and applied methods and their design, Theories and hypothesis testing in descriptive and applied research, Research question development, Ethical issues, Observational research, Measurement and measurement construction, Survey research, Single-case and small-n research, Data entry and analysis, Writing in psychology, Implications. 

Prerequisite: An Introductory or General Psychology course is required. 

This course extends understanding of historical and contemporary theories in social psychology and challenge students to use their knowledge to engage with real-world issues. For example, what brings people together, and what keeps them apart? The emphasis is on fostering ethically minded and socially responsible psychology graduates, through critical reflection of our personal place in a social system. Students consider one’s potential to help others in need, and to be critically and responsively aware of known biases in social perception and judgement. The course equips students with enhanced employability skills through a focus on the ability to understand and articulate complex arguments, and to support claims by making sense of and explaining empirical evidence. Students are encouraged to engage with compelling experimental paradigms and debates in social psychology to move beyond directed textbook material and to become independent, active, and self-directed learners.  

Tourists' decisions and behaviors are influenced by their desires and motivations, as well as their personalities. Tourism not only provides job opportunities and money, but also provides opportunities for human interaction and encounters. Hosts and guests meet, discover their differences and similarities, and thus rediscover themselves. This course introduces psychology-based research findings in the field of tourism and explains the mechanisms and influences of modern tourist behavior. 

This course explores traditional psychological explanations of pro-social and anti-social behavior as well as more recent research findings in the field. Various psychological approaches to pro- and anti-social behavior are considered, including evolutionary and biological perspectives, learning and social-learning perspectives, cognitive-emotional perspectives, cultural and cross-cultural perspectives, and psychodynamic perspectives. Students learn about various theoretical explanations of pro-social and anti-social behavior, including catharsis, deindividuation, the development of empathy, personality factors, the influence of media and other environmental factors. Strategies to increase pro-social behavior and reduce and control anti-social behavior are evaluated. Students develop a more sophisticated understanding of the field of pro-social and anti-social behavior and critically evaluate variables influencing pro-social behavior and anti-social behavior.