Hellenic College-Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology · Courses
PSYC
16 courses with the subject PSYC, each shown exactly as we captured it from the college's catalog, with every element we hold. Where the wording looks broken, that is our reading of the catalog, not the college's text.
PSYC 1001General Psychology3
An introduction to psychology through an examination of cognition, emotions, learning, motivation, perception, personality, and physiology. Attention is given to psychological issues in view of the student’s understanding of personal growth. This is a survey course, examining major topics in psychology. Students will be introduced to the study of behavior and the factors that determine and effect behavior. This course will acquaint students with the diverse field of psychology, methods of research used and how it contributes to the body of knowledge in psychology, promotion of critical thinking, generation of new ideas, and consideration of alternate explanations when evaluating information. In addition, this course will demonstrate to students why scientific and critical thinking are so important in the decisions they make. Students will learn how to interpret research and address and resolve various controversies with the integration of gender, culture, and ethnicity.
This is a broad and applied introduction to the field of neuropsychology and cognitive neuroscience. The course surveys introductory topics such as brain anatomy, memory, perception, brain development, cognition, social cognition, mental health, executive functioning, and spiritual integration. The course also uncovers the critical interconnectedness between science, spirituality, and psychology and explores why properly integrating the three is essential for holistic development.
Why do we behave as we do? What roles do biology, environmental influences, and unconscious processes play? What are personality disorders and what causes them? How can we achieve greater well- being? Emphasis will be given in this course to an integrated biopsychosocio-spiritual perspective that emphasizes the centrality of relationships in motivation, emotion, cognition, behavior, development, diagnosis, and treatment. Theory will be illustrated through case studies.
This course explores the neurobiological, genetic, and neurochemical etiology of mental illness as described and categorized according to the DSM ‐V. In the class we will discuss how psychology, neuroscience research, pharmacology and medicine come together to manage mental illness. For each specific mental illness covered we will investigate how changes in physiology and biology might manifest in the aberrant behaviors we observe as psychologists. Lastly, we will examine how pharmacology is often used to treat mental illness and how genetic expression is involved in predisposing some people to these disorders while sparing others.
Working and helping other people is rewarding, but at times interacting with others and hearing their stories can leave us over time drained, confused, sad, or just exhausted. Burnout in helping professionals is a common encounter. In order to fulfill our vocation is it possible to learn and acquire insights and skills to connect and renew deeper within our hearts and prevent burnout? This course aims to teach theoretical and practical ways to understand our inner system (body, mind, and spirit), to renew our hearts in the deeper wells of our being, allowing the Image of God within us to be revealed in a fuller light. This course will require a willingness to look internally to discern various driving forces in our lives, to apply the learned concepts, and to work in groups. 89
Professional resilience is a person's capacity to thrive in demanding situations. The course examines how those in the helping-caring and relationship-intense professions establish a balance between self-care and other care, prevent burnout, and maintain professional vitality. It explores key resilience factors and helps people understand the inevitable stress and suffering that impacts them in the helping 96
Explores change throughout the lifespan. Focuses on the basic physical, perceptual, cognitive, and emotional capacities that develop from infancy through late adulthood. Emphasizes how biological inheritance interacts with the physical and social environment. Individual and cross-cultural differences in patterns of development are explored.
This course focuses on the descriptive study of abnormal behavior in both normal and pathological states, together with theories of causation and treatment.
This course is focused on evidence‐based practice models for healthcare practitioners. The goal of this course is to provide information on the overall enhancement and maintenance of psychosocial functioning of individuals, families, and small groups. This course presents current and contemporary material that is application oriented. The overall goal of the course is to help students develop beginning level knowledge and skills related to the special topic area. The course reinforces the person‐ in‐situation perspective, which is essential to health services work practice. Evidence‐based practitioners acknowledge and respect diversity in all forms of practice. Diversity is expressed as differences among individuals, groups, and populations (age, class, culture, disability, gender, political ideology, race, religion, sexual orientation). An emphasis on junior year pre‐practicum placements in various trauma‐focused organizations around the surrounding Boston area.
For HD majors and minors, with instructor’s permission.
PSYC 3305Psychology of Addiction3
This course will focus primarily on: the nature of commonly used and abused substances; the psychological and neurobiological understandings of substance use, misuse, and addiction; the treatment approaches that are informed by the cognitive, psychodynamic, behavioral, and experiential traditions; relevant insights from the various self‐help movements; scientific perspectives derived from social psychology/sociology and behavioral pharmacology; and, different views on drug policy. Abnormal Psychology is recommended but not required. 90
For HD majors and minors only, with instructor’s permission.
PSYC 3902Professional Development Seminar3
This course will prepare students for engagement as human service professionals and procure senior practicum placements. This course is structured around the Career Development Process Model, and includes the following: self‐ awareness assessment, vocational exploration, professional presentation, practicum procurement and decision‐making, and employment goal achievement. Prerequisite: General Psychology. For HD majors and minors only, with instructor’s permission.
“Cultural competence” is one of public health’s primary tools to closing the disparities gap in health service professions. It encompasses behaviors, attitudes, and policies that are integrated in a system, agency, or group of professionals that enables effective work in cross‐cultural settings and situations. While “culture” is commonly associated with race/ ethnicity, it encompasses the language, thoughts, communications, actions, customs, beliefs, and values of any social group. This course will examine both analytical and practical approaches to cultural competence in health services. Concepts, models, frameworks, and communication that occur in cross‐cultural health situations will be discussed, but also the application of these concepts in real interventions and programs. Each class will generally include a short lecture, practical activities, and discussion. The lecture will review pertinent concepts for the week’s topic area. Activities will include readings, student‐led discussions, guest lecturers, and other in‐class exercises. The course’s major projects include: 1) research (via readings and interviews) of a particular ethnic culture; and 2) a culminating presentation and paper on a specific topic relating to cultural competence in healthcare.
This course is designed to familiarize the student with the range of child, adolescent, and adult psychological disorders seen in clinical practice across the lifespan. It examines a variety of mental distress and mental disorders from several different theoretical perspectives. It focuses on diagnostic issues, causes, differences, and treatments of each disorder.
PSYC 4552Faith Development and Personal Reflections3
How do we discern our Christian faith development through our personal and interpersonal journey? How is our spiritual growth relating to our vocation? This course is designed to overview and to integrate various psychological systems with spiritual development, exploring stages of faith and various types of spiritual intelligence, through lectures, readings, personal reflections, and class discussions. The class 91
This course constitutes a field experience in a setting selected by the student in conjunction with faculty. The practicum may be an internship in a nursing home, an agency for troubled adolescents, a state or federal agency dealing with social problems, or in a setting addressing issues relevant to student’s primary service-area of interest. The program is tailored to each student’s needs. The practicum provides supervised learning experience in human services culminating the student’s learning in human development. The course also includes a weekly conference with the major professor and peer group meetings to review and critique the student’s experience and progress. Development Seminar. For HD majors and minors only, with instructor’s permission.
General Psychology, Abnormal Psychology, & Professional
PSYC 4905Capstone Research Project6
The Capstone Research Project Seminar is designed to demonstrate your accumulated training in Human Development in a single original project of your choice, subject to the instructor's approval. Although the most common way of completing this course is the writing of a research thesis of approximately 8000 words, alternate projects can be explored in consultation with the instructor of the course and the Human Development Director. The completed thesis or project should bring together your Human Development theme, research expertise, and future vocational direction. The Capstone necessitates multiple drafts of your research that are subjected to heightened peer review and regular feedback from your instructor.
