512-411 Special Topics in Psychology B

Credit Points

Coordinator

Semester

Contact

Subject Description

This subject comprises completing two of three units:

Special Topics in Quantitative Psychology

Focuses on questions of the applicability and usefulness of quantitative models in addressing psychological questions, and more specifically on models for psychological representations, and their implications for our understanding of psychological processes. Topics to be covered include: models for psychological measurement; scaling models; representations of stimuli in psychological space; cognitive models of recognition and classification; distributed memory models; neural networks; models of judgment and choice.

Special Topics in Social Psychology

Considers some current issues in experimental and applied social psychology including social inference processes about the self and others, and the behaviour consequences of such processes. Examples of topics include the influence of motives on social inference, self perception, self concept and self esteem, self esteem in intergroup contexts, attitude behaviour consistency and contextual effects on attitude behaviour linkages.

Special Topics in Cognitive Psychology

Takes students through the various stages of an information processing model, from attentional and perceptual processes, through to high level reasoning and language functions. At each stage, key articles dealing with current questions in the area will be discussed. Specific topics include selective attention, eyewitness testimony, implicit memory, reading and dyslexia, connectionism and motor control.

Assessment

2 x 1,500 word essay/laboratory report or a 1.5 hour examination.