COURSE DESCRIPTION

A study of psychological abnormality, including casework, diagnosis and treatment

PREREQUISITES/ CO-REQUISITES

Prerequisite: PSY 103. Psychology majors are recommended to take PSY 183 and the Theory elective prior to taking this course.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

(a) to provide students with an integrative overview of the field of abnormal psychology and major psychological problems and disorders;

(b) to familiarize students with the multiple causes of psychopathology as viewed from a number of different theoretical perspectives;

(c) to illustrate an integrative view of research in the area of abnormal behavior; and

(d) to discuss intervention and prevention strategies for psychological disorders.

Students in this course should understand that they are responsible for reading and studying the material in the required texts and any other assigned readings, whether or not that material is covered in the class lectures, discussions and exercises. The class presentations (i.e., lectures, discussions, exercises) will serve to illustrate and/or augment some aspects of the topic of the assigned reading, but not necessarily with any specific reference to that reading. The class presentations will proceed with the assumption that the students have read the assigned material before attending the class. Readings are assigned as per the schedule below. Additional readings from sources other than the text may be assigned as the semester progresses. Videos and other material presented to the class will be considered to be of equal weight to the required texts.

TEXTBOOKS AND OTHER MATERIALS

Barlow, D. H., and Durand, V. M. (2014). Abnormal Psychology: An Integrative Approach, (7th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.