Psychology

Undergraduate Degrees
Graduate Degrees
Courses of Instruction

Seeley G. Mudd Building 501
(213) 740-2203
FAX: (213) 746-9082
Chair: Joseph B. Hellige, Ph.D.*

Faculty
William M. Keck Chair in Biological Sciences: Richard F. Thompson, Ph.D.
William M. Keck Chair in Cognitive Neuroscience: Irving Biederman, Ph.D.
Mendel B. Silberberg Professorship in Social Psychology: Norman Miller, Ph.D.
Professors: Gerald C. Davison, Ph.D.*; Michael E. Dawson, Ph.D.; Margaret Gatz, Ph.D.; Ernest Greene, Ph.D.; Joseph B. Hellige, Ph.D.*; Victor Henderson, M.D. (Neurology; Gerontology); John L. Horn, Ph.D.; Jerald Jellison, Ph.D.*; Gayla Margolin, Ph.D. (Director of Clinical Training); Sarnoff A. Mednick, Ph.D.; Adrian Raine, D.Phil.; Mark Seidenberg, Ph.D.; Rand Wilcox, Ph.D.
Associate Professors: Laura A. Baker, Ph.D.; Kathleen C. Chambers, Ph.D.; T. Shelley Duval, Ph.D.; Richard S. John, Ph.D. (Systems Management); Bob Knight, Ph.D. (Gerontology); David G. Lavond, Ph.D.; Maryellen C. MacDonald, Ph.D.; Stephen A. Madigan, Ph.D.; Franklin R. Manis, Ph.D.*; Beth E. Meyerowitz, Ph.D.; Denis Mitchell, Ph.D.*; Stephen J. Read, Ph.D. (Associate Chair); Norman Tiber, Ph.D. (Psychiatry and the Behavioral Sciences); David A. Walsh, Ph.D.; Elizabeth Zelinski, Ph.D. (Gerontology)
Assistant Professors: Mitchell Earleywine, Ph.D.; JoAnn Farver, Ph.D.; Maria Felix-Ortiz de la Garza, Ph.D.; William J. Jacobs, Ph.D.; Sheila T. Murphy, Ph.D. (Annenberg School for Communication)
Adjunct Assistant Professor: Anne Dunlea, Ph.D.
Clinical Professor: A. Steven Frankel, Ph.D.
Clinical Associate Professor: Carlo Weber, Ph.D.
Clinical Assistant Professor: Adrienne Davis, Ph.D.; Barry Reynolds, Ph.D.
Clinical Associates: Joel Becker, Ph.D.; Barbara Cadow, Ph.D.; Adrienne Davis, Ph.D.; Berta Davis, Ph.D.; Lisa Davis, Ph.D.; Vivian Fernandez-Credidio, Ph.D.; Yoram Jaffe, Ph.D.; Nancy Kaser-Boyd, Ph.D.; Ricardo Machon, Ph.D.; Hans Miller, Ph.D.; Berta Ortiz, Ph.D.; James Pasino, Ph.D.; Cynthia G. Pearson, Ph.D.; Craig Schweon, Ph.D.; Tracy Shaw, Ph.D.; Joanne Steuer, Ph.D.; Star Vega, Ph.D.; Charles Weinstein, Ph.D.; Bonnie Wolkenstein, Ph.D.
Research Professor: Matti Huttunen, Ph.D. M.D.
Research Associate Professors: Stig Berg, Ph.D.; Nancy Pederson, Ph.D.; Penelope Trickett, Ph.D.
Research Assistant Professors: Christopher Barr, Ph.D.; Valerie Benveniste, Ph.D.; Patricia Brennan, Ph.D.; Bonnie Burman, Ph.D.; Diane Filion, Ph.D.; Beatrice Golomb, Ph.D., M.D.; Sharon R. Gross, Ph.D.; Karen M. Hennigan, Ph.D.; Jean-Sok Kim, Ph.D.; Ju-Young Lee, Ph.D.; Ricardo Machon, Ph.D.; Carl E. Osborn, Ph.D.; Leigh Silverton, M.D.
Emeritus Professors: Norman Cliff, Ph.D.; Ward Edwards, Ph.D.; William W. Grings, Ph.D.; Donald J. Lewis, Ph.D.; Albert R. Marston, Ph.D.
Emeritus Associate Professor: Milton Wolpin, Ph.D.
*Recipient of university-wide or college teaching award.
The Department of Psychology offers six topical areas: (1) Cognition and Learning, which analyze biological and social phenomena or abilities - memory, sensation, motivation, motor learning and language comprehension - among humans and related higher animals; (2) Developmental-Aging, which studies changes in behavior - cognitive, lingual, social and emotional - from childhood through adolescence and adulthood into old age; (3) Research Methodology, including statistical methods, psychological testing and measurement, design of research, and mathematical and computer approaches in psychology; (4) Clinical-Personality, which concerns itself, empirically and experimentally, with the ways people interact in their social environment and cope, or have difficulty coping, with problems in living; (5) Biological and Physiological Psychology, which examines the biological bases of behavior, including behavioral genetics, behavioral endocrinology, psychopharmacology and sociobiology; and (6) Social Psychology, which examines normal human nature and conduct, develops and tests theories concerning the consequences of our social condition and its potential improvement. In addition, the department offers a joint major in linguistics/psychology and participates in the college's newly established interdisciplinary program in Neural, Informational and Behavioral Sciences.
Research is integral to psychology; it enables the faculty to make contributions in the field and to be more effective teachers. Undergraduate students are encouraged to work with members of the faculty on research projects. The most direct way for students to participate in research is to enroll in a directed research course, but it is also possible to take part in ongoing research in less formal ways.

Undergraduate Degrees

Department Major Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts
PSYC 100 Introduction to Psychology, MATH 116 Mathematics for the Social Sciences I or a higher level math course, PSYC 274 Statistics I, and eight other courses in the department numbered 300 or higher, are required. Five of the eight upper division courses must be at the 300-level and must include at least one course from five of the six topic areas listed below. Of the remaining three courses, two must be at the 400-level and may be any 400-numbered course other than 490x. The final course may be any other 300- or 400-numbered course.
The 300-numbered courses, listed by topic area are: Cognition and Learning: PSYC 301L, 304, 305; Research Methods: PSYC 314L, 315, 318L; Biological and Physiological: PSYC 320, 326; Developmental-Aging: PSYC 336L, 337L; Social Psychology: PSYC 355, 359; Clinical-Personality: PSYC 360 (with instructor's permission, 461 may be substituted for 360), 361, 366.
As early as possible, students planning to major in psychology should obtain a copy of the advisory booklet and meet with the student affairs assistant for psychology to discuss course selection.
Students considering graduate training in psychology are strongly advised to take a 300-numbered course from the Research Methods area, as well as to arrange for 490x Directed Research for at least one semester before graduation. Involvement in the departmental honors program (see below) is also strongly recommended for students contemplating graduate study.

Bachelor of Arts, Social Sciences, with an Emphasis in Psychology Requirements
The required courses are: PSYC 100, MATH 116 or higher level math course, PSYC 274, and eight upper division courses in departments in the social sciences, including five in the Department of Psychology and three outside the department but within the division. These may be any 300- or 400-numbered courses.

Department Minor Requirements
PSYC 100 and four upper division psychology courses. Three of these must be at the 300 level and must include at least one course from each of three of the six topic areas listed under Department Major Requirements. The remaining course must be at the 400 level and may be any 400-level course except 490x.

Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts with a Combined Major in Linguistics and Psychology
For the lower division: LING 210, PSYC 100 and PSYC 274 are required. For the upper division the following courses are required: LING 401a and 402a; PSYC 314L or 318L; three courses selected from LING 395, 396, 401b, 402b, 480, 485, LING 408/PSYC 406; three additional courses selected from PSYC 301L, 326, 336L, 337L, 348, 424, 433, PSYC 406/LING 408.

Honors Program
The department offers an exciting honors program for outstanding students who desire advanced research training in preparation for graduate work in the social sciences or in professional schools. The primary focus of the honors program is the completion of a significant research study under the guidance of a faculty advisor. Students are admitted to the program in the fall semester of their junior year. To be eligible for admission, a student must have an overall GPA of at least 3.5 at the time of application to the program. Students in the honors program complete all major requirements, including PSYC 380 Junior Honors Seminar during the spring semester of their junior year and PSYC 480 Senior Honors Seminar during the spring semester of their senior year. Students complete an honors thesis proposal as part of the Junior Honors Seminar and must submit a completed senior honors thesis by April 1 of the senior year. Students are also expected to have an overall GPA of at least 3.5 at the time of graduation. For further information, contact the undergraduate advisor.

Psi Chi
Psi Chi is the national honor society in psychology. Membership is open to graduate and undergraduate men and women who meet the minimum qualifications. Psi Chi is a member of the Association of the College Honor Societies and is an affiliate of the American Psychological Association and the American Psychological Society.

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Psychology offers a variety of programs leading to the Ph.D. degree. They fall within six major groupings: (1) clinical, including experimental psychopathology, assessment and intervention, community psychology, and a sub-specialization in clinical-aging; (2) developmental; (3) adult development and aging, including a joint track in clinical and aging; (4) cognitive and behavioral neuroscience, including attention, learning, memory, perception, cognitive neuropsychology, and behavioral endocrinology; (5) quantitative, including psychological measurement and mathematical models; and (6) social, including social influences on attitudes, motivation, perception and behavior.
All of the specialty areas provide training for careers in research, teaching and applied work.

Admission Requirements
The department considers for graduate admission only students with the Ph.D. as their goal.
Psychology courses required for admission are an introductory course, a course in statistics, a course in research methods or experimental psychology and at least one of the following: comparative psychology, physiological psychology, sensation and perception, learning and memory, motivation, and emotion; and at least one of the following: developmental psychology, social psychology, abnormal psychology, personality, and history of psychology. Additional courses are desirable, as is work in the biological, physical and social sciences and in mathematics. Students with outstanding undergraduate records who have less background in psychology are also encouraged to apply.
Students are selected on the basis of undergraduate records, scores on the Graduate Record Examinations General Test, course background, letters of evaluation, personal statement of interests and goals and evidence of research skills or interests (e.g., publications or participation in research projects).
The faculty of each specialty area select the students to be admitted in that area. Because of this procedure, applicants should designate the specialty area to which they seek admission.
Application for admission in psychology requires submission of two sets of material: special departmental forms and university application forms. Both may be secured only by writing to the Department of Psychology. Students are admitted only for study beginning in September; both sets of completed application forms must be submitted by December 31.

Degree Requirements
These degrees are under the jurisdiction of the Graduate School. Refer to Requirements for Graduation and the Graduate School for general regulations. All courses applied toward the degrees must be courses accepted by the Graduate School.

Master of Arts in Psychology
The department does not admit students whose objective is a master's degree. However, if a student accepted in the program does not have a master's degree, the department strongly recommends completion of the requirements for the M.A. in the course of work toward the Ph.D. degree. This involves 24 units of course work and a thesis.

Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology

Course Requirements
Each student must take at least 36 substantive units in psychology at USC during the first three years. Within the first three semesters, each student must complete one statistics course and either a second statistics course or a research design course; one core course outside the student's specialty area, two courses inside the student's specialty area, and an additional elective course. Additional course requirements vary according to specialty area.

Research Requirement
During the first and second year, students work on either a master's thesis or a research report of comparable scope and quality. A research project done at USC is required of all students (by the conclusion of the student's second year), regardless of prior graduate work.

Internship Requirement
The equivalent of three years' graduate status is required in all Ph.D. programs by the Graduate School. Students in the clinical (and clinical-aging) program must complete, in addition, at least one full year of internship at a facility approved by the clinical faculty.

Screening Procedure
The student's ability to master graduate-level course material is evaluated after completion of no more than 24 units, and not later than the third semester of graduate work at USC. This evaluation is based on the student's performance in courses taken and on an evaluation of the student's research competence as reflected in the second year research report. The guidance committee is responsible for this evaluation.

Guidance Committee
A five-person guidance committee is appointed after the student passes the 24-unit screening procedure. This committee directs the student's program of studies and evaluates research competence. The committee continues to serve until after the qualifying examination has been passed, the dissertation topic approved, and the student admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. At that time it becomes known as the dissertation committee and is usually reduced to four members.

Qualifying Examination
The qualifying examination concentrates on the student's ability to demonstrate a grasp of the major area of interest chosen and its relation to other areas of training offered in the department. Partly written and partly oral, the examination is comprehensive and designed to test the student's ability to meet the demands and standards of the profession. Part of the examination is a dissertation proposal. The qualifying examination is planned, administered, and graded by the student's guidance committee.

Doctoral Dissertation
A student is expected to engage in research activity throughout his graduate career, leading up to and culminating in the Ph.D. dissertation. The dissertation is based on an original investigation, usually involving experimental design.

Defense of the Dissertation
The defense may be either a defense oral, based on an approved preliminary copy of the dissertation, or a final oral, subsequent to final typing.

Advisement
The graduate advisor is Dr. Stephen J. Read. Each student has a major advisor who is usually in the specialty area. It is especially important that the guidance committee be formed as soon as the 24-unit screening is completed.