GEN1000 Perspectives on General Education
COM1301 Psychology and Life
PSY1001 Introduction to Psychology
Psychology is a science that studies the mind and behaviour of people, uniquely blending the general knowledge of biology, philosophy, anthropology, linguistics, and sociology. Thus, it provides a broad discipline studying and explaining human behaviour and the complexities of human interactions. This module aims to facilitate students’ self-understanding and comprehension of others’ behaviour. Through the exploration of a number of psychological processes, it enhances students’ awareness of the importance of psychology in our daily life.
Upon completion of this module, students should be able to:
a. identify the basic philosophy, principles, methods, research and appreciations of psychology from a social science perspective;
b. apply psychological principles to students’ daily life on personal, social, and organisational levels;
c. develop insights into their own and others’ behaviour and mental processes and apply effective strategies to self-management and selfimprovement;
d. examine with realistic ideas on how to implement their psychological knowledge, skills, and values in a variety of applied settings;
e. critically evaluate how different psychological processes are relevant to our everyday life.
1. Relationship between psychology and life
1.1 Evolution of Psychology: From Philosophy to Social Science
1.2 Social Science Research methods
1.3 Applying Psychology in daily life
2. Brain and behavior
2.1 Basic human brain anatomy
2.2 Basic human brain functions
2.3 The nervous system
2.4 Methods of studying the brain
3. Life Span development
3.1 Prenatal development: heredity and environment
3.2 Emotional, social, and cognitive development in childhood
3.3 Adolescence and adulthood
4. Personality
4.1 The psychodynamic perspective
4.2 The trait perspective
4.3 The social-cognitive perspective
4.4 The humanistic perspective
4.5 Assessing personality
5. Sensation and Perception
5.1 Basic concepts of sensation
5.2 Basic concepts of perception
5.3 Our senses
6 Learning
6.1 Classical conditioning
6.2 Operant conditioning
6.3 Cognitive learning
6.4 Application of learning in real life
7. Memory
7.1 Remembering: The memory systems
7.2 Forgetting and interference
7.3 Ways to improve your memory
8. Social Psychology: About your social life
8.1 Perceiving self
8.2 Perceiving others
8.3 Social power and its influence on behaviors
8.4 Anti-social behavior
8.5 Using compliance in real life
9. Managing Stress in Life
9.1 Stressors
9.2 Physiological and psychological stress reactions
9.3 Coping with Stress
9.4 Application: Stress management
10. Psychological Disorders
10.1 Abnormal behaviors
10.2 Discussions on different types of disorders: e.g., anxiety disorders, mood disorders, personality disorders, schizophrenia, etc.
1. Exercises & problems (10%)
2. Project (20%)
3. Mid-term test (20%)
4. Final examination (50%)
