Contemporary Issues in Psychology


This course will introduce psychology as well as non-psychology students to a wide range of
contemporary issues in the field of psychology. The topics will vary from lecture to lecture and
will be assigned to students always two weeks in advance.

For illustration some of the topics will be : eye-witness testimony, visual hallucinations, phantom
limbs, visual illusions, nature of consciousness.


The character of the course: every class a group of students (4-5) will be assigned to a specific
topic. Since the class capacity will be maximum 25 students, students will be two or three times a
semester present the topic that will be followed by a discussion.


The goal of the class:


-         to  learn about new topics and current topics in psychology

-         to acquire knowledge about broader range of topics in psychology

-         to be able to critically evaluate field of psychology



Class evaluation:


The overall grade will reflect the performance in the class, i. e. active participation, the
presentations of the selected topics, the attendance (2 classes can be missed with prior excuse),
and at the end of the semester you will write 5-7 page research paper on a specific topic in
psychology. In case of lack or absence of any of the mentioned criteria, your grade will suffer.


Literature:


American Psychological Association. (2001). Publication manual of the American Psychological

Association (5th ed.) Washington, DC, US: American Psychological Association.


Kosslyn, S. M. & Rosenberg, R. S. (2001). How to read, critically evaluate and write research

papers (Appendix B, pp. 605 – 610). Psychology: The brain, the person and the world.

Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon.


Smith, R. A (2007). The psychologist as detective  : an introduction to conducting

research in psychology. Prentice Hall. (available at the library of FSS)


Gerow, J. (1992) Psychology: an introduction. New York: Harper Collins. (available at the library
of FSS)