Welcome to Psychology 437
Advanced Psychology Lab: Research
Methods in Personality Psychology
web page:
http://www.yourpersonality.net/psych437/fall2011/
Why is Psychology One of the Most Popular
Majors?
Why is Psychology One of the Most Popular
Majors?
• Of all the disciplines that exist, psychology is one
of the few that is explicitly concerned with
understanding the way people behave, feel, and
think.
Why is Psychology One of the Most Popular
Majors?
• Many of the themes that have characterized
intellectual inquiry over the years are studied by
psychologists
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free will and determinism
mind and matter
nature and nurture
love and loss
relationships and emotion
personality (growth and disorder)
What Makes Psychology Different?
• So, what is special about psychology, as opposed
to the study of philosophy, literature, or history?
• The critical difference is that modern psychology
is based on the scientific method.
Psychology
the methods
of psychology
the themes of
psychology
Philosophy &
Humanities
Natural Science
Psychology, like the humanities, is
concerned with fundamental issues
concerning human experience.
However, psychologists use the methods
of the natural sciences to better
understand psychological phenomena.
Why Does this Matter?
• Why do we need the scientific method in order to
study the human mind?
• The methods we tend to use are subject to severe
limitations—some of which we will review in our
next lecture.
Personality
• Although the study of psychology focuses on big
issues, such as development, mental functioning,
and social behavior, the discipline of psychology
is rather dissociated.
• Students tend to receive training in specific areas
of psychology.
• Students focusing on some areas (e.g.,
psychobiology) may receive little if any training in
other areas (e.g., social).
Personality
• Personality psychology is the one subdiscipline
within psychology that is motivated by issues that
cut across the various subdisciplines.
• The science of personality is concerned with
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The development of people (developmental)
The way in which people differ from one another (individual differences)
The way the mind works (cognitive)
The way in which people influence, and are influenced, by their cultural
and social contexts (social)
– The biological bases of thought, feeling, and behavior (biological)
Class Objectives
• The objectives of this course are
– to illustrate some of the limitations of non-scientific
approaches to understanding personality
– to teach you how to use the scientific method as it
applies to the psychology of personality
– to foster your ability to think critically about
psychological theories and research (as well as other
information)
– to help you better understand your own personality
through the use of existing research paradigms in
personality psychology
Overview of Syllabus
• Class web site
– http://www.yourpersonality.net/psych437/fall2011/
– Future updates and changes will be reflected in the
online version of the syllabus.
• Grading
– Attendance and written assignments
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20% Attendance and participation in lab activities
20% Project 1
20% Project 2
40% Assignments
Important Notes
• The lab sections will be meeting in rooms 35 and
37 of the Psychology Department.
• Labs will begin this week! Please be sure to
attend. However, we will only be meeting on Wed
of this week. We will not have lab on Friday of
this week.
Computers in Room 35/37
• You will need to know your account information
to log in to the computers in rooms 35/37.
– Everyone (instructors, students, staff, etc.) will need an Active Directory
(AD) password to login to any psychology computer.
– Students should already have AD passwords. Please go to the CITES
website to create your AD password if you do not already have
one: http://www.cites.illinois.edu/accounts/index.html