Research Methods and Data Analysis
Statistical analysis and research design with an emphasis on the Multivariate General Linear model as exemplified in basic and advanced multiple regression analysis, ANOVA, and ANCOVA.
Students completing this course will forfeit credit in PSYC 5P01 and PSYC 5P02.
MA Thesis
The preparation and public defence of a thesis which will demonstrate the candidate's capacity for independent research, integration of knowledge, and depth of understanding.
Introduction to Psychological Assessment
An in-depth examination of the history, theory, and ethics of psychological assessment. Topics include the psychometric properties of various assessment tools, the range of approaches, and assessment across the lifespan.
Students completing this course will forfeit credit in PSYC 5P03.
Psychological Assessment Practicum
Supervised experience in the administration and scoring of major psychometric instruments. Topics include interviewing skills, the development of rapport, diagnosis, and the communication of results through report writing and direct feedback. Prerequisite: PSYC 5P04
Students completing this course will forfeit credit in PSYC 5P03.
Behavioural Neuroscience
An overview of current issues in behavioural neuroscience.
Advances in Sleep Research
Current research regarding sleep and circadian rhythms. Topics include neurophysiological characteristics of sleep, anatomical and chemical mechanisms of sleep, phylogeny, and functions of sleep.
Behavioural Neuroscience Techniques
Completion of a research project carried out under the supervision of a behavioural neuroscience faculty member other than the thesis supervisor and outside the thesis area. Note: open to students outside neuroscience only with special permission.
Cognitive Electrophysiology
An introduction to theory, methods and application of event-related potentials and EEG in the context of information processing.
Behavioural Endocrinology
An overview of topics in behavioural endocrinology. Topics include mechanisms of hormone action, the role of hormones in brain and behavioural development (e.g., sexual behaviour, stress responses, cognition, and psychiatric disorders).
Cognitive Psychology
Classic and current questions in cognitive psychology. General topics include attention, memory, consciousness, laterality, language, object recognition, and decision making.
Functional Neuroanatomy
An advanced neuroanatomy of human and mammalian brain will be presented. The emphasis will be on proper neuroanatomical terminology, neuronal connectivity, cytoarchitectonics of selected regions, and functional overview of the major brain structures.
The Concept of Development
An analysis of the meaning of the concept of development. Lifespan developmental theories and principles will be discussed. Methods associated with different conceptions of development will be examined, with applications to specific content areas (e.g., social competence, intelligence).
Emotional Development Across the Lifespan
A survey of psychological research and theoretical approaches related to the study of emotion in childhood and adulthood.
Lifespan Cognitive Development
The origins and development of cognition over the lifespan from a dynamic systems perspective.
Biological Perspectives in Development
A critical analysis of the usefulness of biological constructs in psychological development throughout the lifespan. Topics focus on the relation between brain development and behavioural capacity.
Social Development
An examination of current theoretical, methodological and applied issues in social development, including topics such as ecological perspectives on social competence, the interaction of family and peer relationships and lifespan approaches to attachment.
Developmental Disorders
A study of atypical developmental patterns, including genetically linked syndromes, psychosocial interference, discontinuities related to trauma and diagnostically recognized categories. In the latter part of this course intervention options and evaluation strategies will be examined, with a practicum being an integral part of the requirements.
Lifespan Developmental Techniques
Completion of a research project carried out under the supervision of a developmental faculty member other than the thesis supervisor and outside the thesis area. Note: open to students outside Lifespan Development only with special permission.
Risk and Resilience in Adolescence
(also offered as CHYS 5P29)
A critical analysis of adolescent risk and resilience research. General topics may include youth lifestyle choices, problem behaviour theory, risk and protective factors, competence, and developmental pathways in the context of community, family, peer, and intrapersonal factors.
Students completing this course will forfeit credit in CHYS 5P30.
Research and Theory in Personality and Social Psychology
Fundamental and contemporary issues in personality and social psychology are explored. Emphasis will be placed on the integration of the two fields from the perspective of interactionism.
Psychosocial Aspects of Health and Illness
Personality and social predictors of health, including personality, socioeconomic status, stress, social support and interpersonal relationships. Examination of sickness as a role and interaction with health care providers. Research and models of health risk and health-related behaviours. Health maintenance and recovery, and the perspective of positive psychological variables.
Social Cognition
Classic and current issues in social cognition research. General topics include attribution, social schemata, the self, affect and cognition and applications of social cognition.
Dreaming, Imagination and Metaphor
Review of methods used in dream research (experimental and correlational strategies, content analysis and phenomenological description), emphasizing the complementary nature of these approaches. The contrast between normative features of dreaming and forms of dreaming in special groups (lucid dreaming, nightmares) will be examined. The relation of dreaming and related imaginative states of current research on metaphor will also be considered.
Social and Personality Research Techniques
Completion of a research project carried out under the supervision of a social personality faculty member other than the thesis supervisor and outside the thesis area. Note: open to students outside Social/ Personality only with special permission.
Topics in Positive Psychology
The scientific study of human strengths, virtues, and resilience. We examine such topics as subjective well being, health, positive affective and cognitive states, including love, optimism, hope, creativity, forgiveness, the role of spirituality and religion, social support, and the beneficial aspects of social experience.
Social Psychology of Justice
Basic and applied research in the social psychology of justice. Basic research questions include: Is there a justice motive? What is a 'just' distribution of resources? What processes underlie responses to perceived injustices? Applied questions focus primarily on the social psychology of the legal system and social justice in organizations.
Special Topics in Psychological Measurement and Analyses
Selected topics and issues may include qualitative data collection and analysis, multidimensional scaling, nonlinear regression and survival analysis.
Topics in Behavioural Neuroscience
Selected topics in Behavioural Neuroscience.
Prerequisite: PSYC 5P10 or permission of the instructor.
Topics in Lifespan Development
Selected topics in Lifespan Development
Prerequisite: PSYC 5P20 or permission of the instructor.
Topics in Social/Personality
Selected topics in Social/Personality.
Prerequisite: PSYC 5P30 or permission of the instructor.
Colloquium Seminar I
In advance of each of 12 departmental colloquia, students will review and discuss reading(s) recommended by the speaker prior to their attendance at the colloquium.
Colloquium Seminar II
In advance of each of 12 departmental colloquia, students will review and discuss reading(s) recommended by the speaker prior to their attendance at the colloquium.
Teaching Apprenticeship
Students will take major responsibility for the development and delivery of a half-credit undergraduate course, under the mentorship of a faculty member. Development of a teaching portfolio will be required. Students will attend teaching workshops and courses offered by the Brock Centre for Teaching and Learning and participate in an observation-based assessment of their teaching skills. Specific requirements and evaluation criteria will be determined by the teaching apprenticeship supervisor and the student prior to course registration and subject to approval by the Graduate Committee.
Research Apprenticeship
Students will take a major "hands on" role in a research project, under the supervision of a faculty member other than the thesis supervisor. It is expected that the student will produce an acceptable first draft of a manuscript or presentation based on the research conducted. Specific requirements and evaluation criteria for the apprenticeship will be determined by the research apprenticeship supervisor and the student prior to course registration and subject to approval by the Graduate Committee.
Community Apprenticeship
Students will participate in one of a variety of approved community settings and engage in activities such as policy analysis, needs assessment, community education, program evaluation, and service delivery. Specific requirements and evaluation criteria for the apprenticeship will be determined by the on-site community mentor, the university-based community mentor, and the student prior to course registration and subject to approval by the Graduate Committee.
PhD Thesis
The preparation and public defence of a thesis that makes a substantial contribution to scientific knowledge and demonstrates the candidate's ability for independent research, integration of knowledge, and depth of understanding.
Structural Equation Modeling and Related Techniques
Path analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modeling in psychological research.
Prerequisite: PSYC 5F01 or equivalent.
Psychological Measurement
An introduction to psychometric theory and test construction, including scales of measurement, reliability, validity, methods of constructing tests, issues in item generation and selection, and the major factors of human psychological variation. Prerequisite: PSYC 5F01 or equivalent or permission of the instructor.
Professional Issues in Psychology
Ethical, social, and legal issues emerging from psychological research, teaching, and practice.
Individual Study I
Preparation of a paper in the student's primary area of interest but different than the thesis topic, usually directed by a faculty member other than the student's dissertation supervisor. The paper should be potentially publishable.
Individual Study II
Preparation of a paper outside of the student's primary area of interest, directed by a faculty member other than the student's dissertation supervisor. The paper should be potentially publishable.
Special Topics in Psychological Measurement and Analyses
Selected topics and issues may include qualitative data collection and analysis, multidimensional scaling, and survival analysis.
Topics in Behavioural Neuroscience I
Selected topics in Behavioural Neuroscience.
Prerequisite: PSYC5P10 or equivalent or permission of the instructor.
Topics in Behavioural Neuroscience II
Selected topics in Behavioural Neuroscience.
Prerequisite: PSYC 5P10 or equivalent or permission of the instructor.
Topics in Lifespan Development I
Selected topics in Lifespan Development.
Prerequisite: PSYC 5P20 or equivalent or permission of the instructor.
Topics in Lifespan Development II
Selected topics in Lifespan Development
Prerequisite: PSYC 5P20 or equivalent or permission of the instructor.
Topics in Social/Personality I
Selected Topics in Social/Personality.
Prerequisite: PSYC 5P30 or equivalent or permission of the instructor.
Topics in Social/Personality II
Selected Topics in Social/Personality
Prerequisite: PSYC 5P30 or equivalent or permission of the instructor.
Research Proseminar I
Faculty and students will meet each week to discuss ongoing research and contemporary issues in Psychology. In addition, students are required to attend departmental colloquia.
Students completing this course will forfeit credit in PSYC 7Y10, PSYC 7Y20, or PSYC 7Y30.
Research Proseminar II
Faculty and students will meet each week to discuss ongoing research and contemporary issues in Psychology. In addition, students are required to attend departmental colloquia.
Students completing this course will forfeit credit in PSYC 7Y11, PSYC 7Y21, or PSYC 7Y31.
Research Proseminar III
Faculty and students will meet each week to discuss ongoing research and contemporary issues in Psychology. In addition, students are required to attend departmental colloquia.
Students completing this course will forfeit credit in PSYC 7Y12, PSYC 7Y22, or PSYC 7Y32.