PSDSDZ Doctoral State Exam

Faculty of Arts
Spring 2025
Extent and Intensity
0/0/0. Type of Completion: SDzk (final examination).
Teacher(s)
prof. PhDr. Marek Blatný, DrSc. (lecturer)
doc. PhDr. Iva Burešová, Ph.D. (lecturer)
prof. Mgr. Sylvie Graf, Ph.D. (lecturer)
doc. PhDr. Jana Marie Havigerová, Ph.D. (lecturer)
doc. PhDr. Martina Hřebíčková, Dr., DSc. (lecturer)
doc. PhDr. Martin Jelínek, Ph.D. (lecturer)
prof. PhDr. Hana Přikrylová Kučerová, Ph.D. (lecturer)
doc. PhDr. Alena Slezáčková, Ph.D. (lecturer)
doc. Mgr. Radovan Šikl, Ph.D. (lecturer)
prof. PhDr. Tomáš Urbánek, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
prof. PhDr. Marek Blatný, DrSc.
Department of Psychology – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Jarmila Valchářová
Supplier department: Department of Psychology – Faculty of Arts
Prerequisites
Candidates who wish to take the Doctoral State Exam and defend their doctoral dissertation are required to register for both events one semester in advance. They submit a registration form to the assistant for doctoral studies at the Study Department complete with the following attachments: - Doctoral dissertation (3 hardcover copies); - Doctoral dissertation summary (10 copies in A5 format); - Structured curriculum vitae; - List of publications.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
State doctoral examination subjects: Theory and methodology of psychology, Psychology - both according the requirements and sources presented in MU information system. The exam is aimed at verifying the deep knowledge of the main theoretical directions and the basic and applied disciplines of psychology. Emphasis is placed on relevant historical contexts as well as new theoretical trends in the given field of education, methodology, multidisciplinarity of contemporary psychological theories and its transfer to basic and applied research.
Learning outcomes
At the final state doctoral examination, the students demonstrate a deep knowledge of basic and applied psychological disciplines and they are able to present the knowledge in broad contexts of related scientific disciplines (philosophy, sociology, medical sciences etc.). Students demonstrate relevant knowledge of their field, the ability to synthesize knowledge from the theoretical foundations of subjects, to draw their own conclusions and evaluation, to discuss suggested issues, to explain definitions and theoretical models, to critically evaluate and apply their knowledge in research and practice. Students will have knowledge of classical and new psychological theories and disciplines and the social, cultural and historical context of their origin and development. Students will understand the interdisciplinary overlaps and multidisciplinary nature of the research themes of contemporary psychological research and will be able to implement this knowledge in the preparation of their own scientific projects. Student should have knowledge of both classical and new models and theories in psychology. These models should be used in his/her doctoral thesis and student have to explain it with respect to the research problem. He/she has to have complex knowledge of philosophy of science, methodology and research methods and he/she should be able to use and explain these knowledge in his/her research.
Syllabus
  • Syllabus is the same for subjects: PSD_TMPS Theory and Methodology of Psychology a PSD_PS Psychology. Introduction to understanding science. Different ways of acquiring knowledge. Common sense. Problem of demarcation. Theory and experience. Functions of science. Causality. Finality. Causality as reality or construct of mind. Mistakes in reasoning the causal relations between phenomenas. Open and semi-open system in psychology. Understending causal relations within whole system. Methodology. Method, methodics and technic. Essential methods in psychology. Exterospection and introspection. Object and subject of psychological searching. Positivism and phenomenology. Hermeneutics. Pragmatics. Nomothetic and idiographic paradigm. Logics in research. Induction and deduction, abduction. Concept and meaning. Therms. Definition. Subject and object of research. Psychic phenomena. Research in other humanities. Problem. Known and unknown. Problem in science as an knowledge about unknown. Problem as a question. Different kinds of questions. Theory as solving the problem. Structure of scienticic theries. Hypothesis. Verification. Kvalitative and kvantitative aspect of research. The gap or two sides of the same river. Kvalitative approach in research. Kvality and kvantity. Functions of kvalitative part of research - description, clasification, explication. Developing of theories. Kvantitative part of research. Scale. Operacional definition. Variables and invariants. Kinds of research variables. Internal and external validity. Sample and population. Sampling. Designs with two and more groups. Extent of sample. Various research designs. Prospective and retrospective design. Experimental and correlative design. Explorative and confirmative research. Research methods Observation. Structure. Selectivity. Observation shedules. Rating scales. Interview. Structure. Interview with indivudual. Group interview. Focus groups. Differend kinds of use - research, diagnostics, therapy. Dialogue. Managing of interview. Exploring the interview. Questionaire. Theme - questions. The kinds of questions. Validity and reliability. Use of questionaire in diagnostics and research. Experiment. Specifics of experiment in psychology. Experiment and theory. Various designs of experiment. Field and laboratory experiment. Anylysis of action results. Content analysis. A criteria of sorting of content elements. System of categories. Cognitive and emotional content of mind. Psycho-semantics. Relation betveen language and mind. Language and individual experience. Searching language use. Qualitative and quantitative aspects of research - the gap or two banks of the same river? Main theoretical directions and schools in psychology science in 20th century. Psychoanalysis and its schools, behaviorism and follow-up theories, cognitive approaches in psychology, trait approach in psychology, humanistic psychology, social-cognitive theory. Basic psychological sub-disciplines and their main paradigms. New directions of the late 20th century and early 21st century. Social constructivism as an umbrella concept for postmodern trends in psychology, critical approach in psychology, positive and neohumanistic psychology. Newly established sub-disciplines, their subject and methods. Evolutionary psychology, life-span psychology, cultural and intercultural psychology, political psychology, gender psychology, cyberpsychology, psychology of peace and conflict, psychology of religion, psychology of well-being. The strengths and weaknesses of specialization in psychology. Psychological sub-disciplines and their interaction. Interdisciplinary cooperation with related disciplines (sociology, criminology, psychiatry, economics, medicine) in theory and research. Behavioral neuroscience, developmental science, family studies.
Literature
    required literature
  • Vybíral, Z. Psychologie jinak: současná kritická psychologie. Praha: Academia, 2006. 233 s. ISBN: 80-200-1367-9.
  • Burr, V. Social Constructionism. 3rd ed. London, New York: Routledge, 215. 276 s. ISBN: 978-1-84872-192-0.
  • Willig, C., Rogers, W. S. The SAGE Handbook of Qualitative Research in Psychology, 2th Editon. Los Angeles: SAGE, 2017.
  • Blatný, M. (Ed.). Personality and Well-being Across the Life-Span. London, New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2015. 190 s. ISBN: 978-1-137-43995-6.
  • Mertens, D. M. Research and Evaluation in Education and Psychology: Integrating Diversity With Quantitative, Qualitative, and Mixed Methods, 4 th Edition. Los Angeles: SAGE, 2014.
  • Seznam literatury je shodný se seznamem literatury ke zkoušce z předmětu Teorie a metodologie psychologie a z předmětu Psychologie.
  • Zábrodská, K. Variace na gender. Poststrukturalismus, diskurzivní analýza a genderová identita. Praha: Academia, 2009. 198 s. ISBN 978-80-200-1752-9
  • Weiner, I. B. (Series Ed.), Gallagher, M., Nelson, R. (Vol. Ed.). Handbook of psychology: Vol. 3. Biological Psychology (2nd. ed.). New York: Wiley, 2012. ISBN: 978-0-470-61904-9.
  • Field, A. Discovering Statistics Using IBM SPSS Statistics, 5th Edition. Los Angeles: SAGE, 2017.
  • Goodwin, K. A., Goodwin, C. J. Research in Psychology: Methods and Design, 8th Edition. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2016.
  • Weiner, I. B. (Series Ed.), Schinka, J. A., Velicer, W. F. (Vol. Ed.). Handbook of psychology: Vol. 2. Research Methods in Psychology (2nd. ed.). New York: Wiley, 2012. ISBN: 978-0-470-61904-9.
  • Hoskovec, J., Nakonečný, M., Sedláková, M. Psychologie XX. století: některé významné směry a školy. 1. vyd. Praha: Karolinum, 2002. 295 s. ISBN 80-246-0300-4.
  • Kuhn, T. S. Struktura vědeckých revolucí. Praha: OIKOYMENH, 1997.
  • Popper, K. R. Logika vědeckého zkoumání. Praha: OIKOYMENH, 1997.
  • Weiner, I. B. (Series Ed.), Freedheim, D. K. (Vol. Ed.). Handbook of psychology: Vol. 1. History of Psychology (2nd. ed.). New York: Wiley, 2012. ISBN: 978-0-470-61904-9.
  • Slezáčková, A. Průvodce pozitivní psychologií. Praha: Grada, 2012. 304 s. ISBN: 978-80-247-3507-8.
  • Blatný, M. (Ed.). Psychologie celoživotního vývoje. Praha: Karolinum, 2016. 290 s. ISBN: 9788024634623.
  • Weiner, I. B. (Series Ed.), Graham, J. R., Naglieri, J. A. (Vol. Ed.). Handbook of psychology: Vol. 10. Assessment Psychology (2nd. ed.). New York: Wiley, 2012. ISBN: 978-0-470-61904-9.
    recommended literature
  • Klicperová-Baker, M., Feierabend, I. K., a kol. Demokratická kultura v České republice. Praha: Academia, 2008. 288 s. 978-80-200-1433-7.
  • Feyerabend, P. K. Rozprava proti metodě. Praha: Aurora, 2001.
  • Graf, S., Hřebíčková, M., Petrjánošová, M., Leix, A. Češi a jejich sousedé. Praha: Academia. 349 s. ISBN: 978-80-200-2489-3.
  • Říčan, P. Psychologie náboženství a spirituality. Praha: Portál, 2007. 328 s. ISBN: 978-80-7367-312-3.
  • Šmahel, D. Psychologie a internet. Praha: Triton, 2003. 158 s. ISBN: 978-80-725-4360-1.
Teaching methods
theoretical background
Assessment methods
Exam within the scope of the above-mentioned thematic areas. The state exam is guided by the Masaryk University Study and Examination Regulations - see https://www.muni.cz/en/about-us/official-notice-board/mu-study-and-examination-regulations
Language of instruction
Czech
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
The course can also be completed outside the examination period.
The course is taught each semester.
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2020, Spring 2021, Autumn 2021, Spring 2022, Autumn 2022, Spring 2023, Autumn 2023, Spring 2024, Autumn 2024.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Spring 2025, recent)
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