Psychology

This course introduces students to concepts and practices of healthy personal and social interactions. It emphasizes a Christian worldview when considering topics such as communication skills, problem solving, personality styles, relationship stages, relationship enhancement and enrichment, societal expectations, and the impact of family dynamics, interpersonal violence, and unhealthy coping strategies on relationships. Additional areas receiving special attention include conflict management styles, cultural diversity, special needs in families, stress, and relationship management.

This course provides an overview of human development in the physical, cognitive, social, emotional, and spiritual domains from conception to death in old age. Emphases include the ecological context of human development; biological and environmental influences on development; developmental anomalies and their impact on the individual and family; and implications of the knowledge of human development for Christian ministry, counseling, and family life education.

This course presents the interviewing and counseling process and trains students in the use of foundational micro-skills (attending, observation, checking out, questions, encouraging, paraphrase, summarization, reflection, focusing, influencing, and confrontation). Students are taught basic concepts, observe experienced practitioners, and practice skills in role play and peer counseling. Upon completion, students should be able to listen, conduct a well-formed interview, and focus their interventions in a Human Services environment.

This course examines the application, interpretation, and analysis of statistics. It introduces basic concepts including descriptive statistics, elementary probability, estimation, and hypothesis testing in both nonparametric, parametric, and normal models. It also covers analytical topics including data summary and visualization, study design, elementary probability, categorical data, comparative experiments, statistical inferences, and model diagnostics.

This course introduces the field of psychology—the scientific study of human behavior and experience. Students are acquainted with the major concepts and terminology of the discipline, providing a broader understanding of self and others. The course includes brief studies of the history and systems of psychology, human neuroanatomy, sensation, perception, learning and thinking, human development, personality, social interaction, health psychology, and abnormal psychology. There is also an emphasis on applied psychology so that students are prepared for advanced courses in social science and other professional studies.

This course provides an overview of research in the social sciences. Attention is given to both purpose and design of research, including problem definition, literature review, sampling and data collection methods, interpretation, and communication of results. Students are expected to develop a rationale for social research, read and understand contemporary research, and write while effectively using current American Psychological Association (APA) Publication Manual style guidelines.

Theories of Counseling & Psychotherapy
This course is designed to present the qualities and resources of an effective counselor (basic elements of counseling relationships, the current theories of counseling with a study of the variety of techniques used, and integration of psychology and counseling theory with theology and a Christian worldview). Individual, marriage and family, and group approaches are addressed. Ethical issues in counseling and an eclectic approach to counseling are discussed. Students have the opportunity to apply theoretical approaches in role play and peer counseling, and to integrate the approaches into a personal counseling style.

Abnormal Psychology
This is a study of the theory of abnormal psychology and how this relates to Human Services. Focus is on how to determine the identified pathology in an individual, couple, family or a larger system, and includes the use of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and other assessment tools. The meaning of “abnormal” thought, affect, behavior, and related concepts are examined within biblical, historical, and cultural contexts.

Choose from a variety of electives offered by the University. Your advisor can explain the choices!