°µÍø½ûÇø

2026-2027 Academic Year

Fall 2026

PSYC 140 Social Psychology
Humans are “the social animal” because our beliefs, our brains, and our physical environments are profoundly shaped by our social context, often without us realizing it. The purpose of this course is to introduce you to the field of social psychology - the scientific study of how our thoughts, feelings, and behavior are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of other people. We will discuss topics such as the self, conformity and obedience, social cognition and information processing, attitudes and persuasion, prejudice, stereotyping and discrimination, social influence, romantic relationships, and helping behavior. You will learn how research in social psychology can explain everyday events in your own lives and around the world and how it can help to better human existence.

PSYC 440 The Social Psychology of Risk
In this discussion-based seminar, we will examine current psychological theory and research on how people evaluate their risks. We will primarily discuss risk as it relates to health (e.g., smoking, breast cancer, alcohol, vaccinations) but will also examine the role of risk in other domains (e.g., crime, terrorism, financial risks, and chemical risks). We will address such questions as: How do we best measure risk perception? How is risk perception related to feelings, cognitions and behaviors? Why are people not pessimistic? How can we get people to understand health statistics better and reduce statistical illiteracy? Why do religious people take fewer risks? How do experts and lay people differ in how they think about risks? Why do people sometimes want to avoid risk information and other times seek out risk information such as predictive genetic testing? What role do the media, politicians, NGOs, companies, and physicians play in communicating risk? How do health-promotion and marketing campaigns communicate about risk? How can we make people less defensive when presented with risk information? In this class, you will help co-lead class discussion, write a paper about a specific risk incorporating scientific research and interviews you conduct with two people, and produce with another student a podcast juxtaposing responses to different risks.

Spring 2027

PSYC 140 Social Psychology
Humans are “the social animal” because our beliefs, our brains, and our physical environments are profoundly shaped by our social context, often without us realizing it. The purpose of this course is to introduce you to the field of social psychology - the scientific study of how our thoughts, feelings, and behavior are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of other people. We will discuss topics such as the self, conformity and obedience, social cognition and information processing, attitudes and persuasion, prejudice, stereotyping and discrimination, social influence, romantic relationships, and helping behavior. You will learn how research in social psychology can explain everyday events in your own lives and around the world and how it can help to better human existence.