An experimental science based on observation and analysis, Psychology (from the Greek word, psyche, for soul and mind) attempts to organize impressions and observations in order to discover patterns, draw conclusions, and create useful models about how our minds work and how we behave. It is used to help people with personal and relationship problems ranging from stress to complex psychological disorders.

Course Description
 
This course consists of five, illustrated study units:

• Elements of Psychology
• The Mind at Work
• Human Development
• On Being a Person
• Psychology in Social Life

• Explain the purposes of psychology and outline its value as a subject of study
• Outline the basic history of psychology as a discipline and describe its perspectives
• Identify such figures as Aristotle, Freud, Skinner, Jung, Maslow, and Milgram
• Describe the main specialty areas of modern psychologists
• Explain the scientific method and the basic steps involved in scientific research
• Outline the basic principles of critical thinking
• Discuss the basic ethical concerns in conducting research
• Outline the makeup and operation of the central and peripheral nervous systems
• Describe the main components and functions of the human brain
• Explain the nature of the endocrine system and the purposes of its main glands
• Differentiate between genes and chromosomes
• Describe the relative importance of heredity and environment in one’s characteristics
• Outline the basic principles of human sensation and perception
• Describe the basic anatomy and functions of human vision, hearing, touch, taste, and
  smell, as well as the vestibular and kinesthetic senses
• Discuss the nature of consciousness and describe its various states
• Explain the effects of depressants, stimulants, and hallucinogens
• Describe the general nature of learning and the main concepts of cognitive learning
• Explain the basic concepts of classical and operant conditioning and their applications
• Describe the different kinds of memory and how memory processes information
• Explain what is involved in forgetting, including the various forms of amnesia
• Describe five ways to improve a person’s memory
• Explain the various approaches to creativity and problem solving
• Outline processes by which people use reason, form judgments, and make decisions
• Define the concept of intelligence as it is most often understood in psychology
• Discuss how to measure intelligence and the controversies surrounding such testing
• Describe the theories of multiple intelligences, retardation, and giftedness
• Outline the stages of human development from the prenatal period through childhood
• Describe the nature of development—cognitive, language, and moral—in children
• Explain the importance of attachment in the development of young children
• Identify the various styles of parenting and discuss their effects on children
• Characterize the nature of physical, cognitive, and moral development in adolescence
• Explain what is involved in attaining an identity during adolescence
• Discuss important dimensions of the social world of adolescents
• Summarize the typical challenges of young, middle, and late adulthood
• Explain cognitive development in adulthood
• Describe the stages of dying and how they apply to other life experiences
• Outline the basic theories of motivation
• Explain the relationship between hunger and motivation
• Summarize the principles of cognitive-dissonance theory
• Describe achievement, affiliation, and aggression as they relate to motivation
• Describe basic theories that relate emotions to human motivation
• Explain such terms as trait perspective, learning-theory perspective, psychodynamic
  perspective, humanistic-existential perspective, and socio-cultural perspective
• Explain the nature and symptoms of psychological disorders
• Outline the differences between males and females in terms of biological research
• Describe different approaches to the nature of interpersonal attraction
• Explain the nature of rape and of sexual coercion, including sexual harassment
• Discuss the nature of human attitudes and prejudice, and their likely sources
• Explain various ways that perception is conditioned by social influences
• Discuss the different kinds of groups and how groups form and change over time
• Outline the social influences that affect obedience and conformity
• Describe the nature of health psychology and its basic concerns
• Discuss the sources of stress and some moderators of stress
• Differentiate between Type A personalities and Type B personalities
• Explain how the body responds to stress and some ways to cope with stress
• Describe several major controversies in health psychology

Study Unit 1: Elements of Psychology

• Introduction: Why Study Psychology?; Roots of Psychology; Development of Modern Psychology; Psychology Today; Psychologists at Work
• Science of Psychology: Basics of Critical Thinking; Types of Research; Special Methods of Observation; Milgram Studies; Ethics and Research
• Nervous System: Neurons; How Neurons Communicate; Synapse; Neurotransmitters; Nervous System at Work; Peripheral and Central Nervous Systems
• Hormones and Heredity: Endocrine System; Menstrual Cycle; Heredity
• Sensation and Perception: Definitions; Exploring; Vision; Hearing; Smell; Taste; Skin Senses; Vestibular Sense; Kinesthesis; Mysteries of Perception; Perception of Movement; Depth Perception; Constancies

 Study Unit 2: The Mind at Work

• Mystery of Consciousness: Freud’s Model of Inner Awareness; Sleep and Dreams; Troubled Sleep; Sleep Disorders;
• Altered States of Consciousness: Hypnosis and Meditation; Drugs
• Nature of Learning: Classical Conditioning: Basic Concepts and Uses; Operant Conditioning and Its Uses; Cognitive Learning • Memory: Kinds; How Information is Processed; Long-Term Memory; Forgetting; Improving Your Memory
• Words and Thinking: Cognition; Concepts; Prototypes; Problem Solving; Creativity; Reasoning; Judgment and Decision Making; Language and Cognition
• Intelligence: Defined; Factor Theories; Measuring; Multiple Intelligences; Extremes of Intelligence; What Determines Intelligence?

Study Unit 3: Human Development

• Childhood
  • Development: Early Physical, Childhood Cognitive, Language, and Moral; Attachment; Parenting Styles; Child Abuse
• Adolescence
  • Development: Physical, Cognitive, and Moral; Attaining an Identity; Social World; Surviving
  • Adulthood: Young, Middle, and Late Adulthood; Theories of Aging; Cognitive Development; Challenges in Adulthood; Death and Dying

 Study Unit 4: On Being a Person

• Motivation and Emotion: Theories and Elements of Motivation; Hunger and Motivation; Motivation through Stimulation; Cognitive-Dissonance Theory; Emotion
• Personality: Concept; Perspectives: Trait, Learning-Theory, Psychodynamic, Humanistic-Existential, and Socio-Cultural
• Psychological Disorders: Nature of; Systems; Classifying;
• Disorders: Anxiety, Mood, Dissociative, Somatoform, and Personality; Schizophrenia; Causes
• Gender and Sexuality: Gender Stereotypes, Roles, Polarization, Differences, and Typing; Interpersonal Attraction; Sexual Coercion

Study Unit 5: Psychology in Social Life

• Attitudes: Social Psychology; Shapes, Forms, and Sources of Attitudes
  The A-B Problem: Do Attitudes Predict Behavior?; Attitude Change through Persuasion; Elements of Persuasion; Prejudice and Discrimination; Social Sources of Prejudice
• Perception: Primacy and Recency Effects; Attribution Theory; Fundamental Attribution Error; “A Just World” Hypothesis; Body Language
• Social Groups and Interaction: Types of Groups; Formation; Influences; Purposes; Group Behavior; Decision Making; Social Influence on Obedience and Conformity
• Stress and Health: Psychology of; Good and Bad Stress; Sources of Stress; Personality and Health; Moderating Stress; Stress and the Body; Coping with Stress; Controversies in Health Psychology

After registering for the Psychology course, all of your learning materials will be shipped directly to you. If you like, you can also go to our website and download some of your study materials to get a head start. Your learning materials will guide you through the course content, explaining concepts and operations through a series of lessons. After each lesson, you’ll take an exam which you can submit by phone or our website. As you pass each lesson, you’ll proceed to the next topic until you complete the course.

There are five exams that need to be passed to complete your course in Psychology and you’ll have up to 15 weeks to complete the course.
 
Support
If you should ever need help with your studies, you can e-mail or call our instructors who will gladly help you with any questions that you might have.

Study Time
Since there is no set class schedule, you study when and where it’s convenient for you. You can complete your course as quickly as you’d like.

Completion
When you have successfully completed your course, you will receive a letter of completion along with an official transcript listing your completed course(s) and grades. You can apply your course towards our Diploma Program or a diploma from your local High School (be sure to check with your school authorities regarding mandatory attendance policies and whether they agree that the Penn Foster High School Program is acceptable toward the completion of your high school education). 
 
Accreditation
Penn Foster High School is accredited by The Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools; has met the high standards of integrity and performance set by the Accrediting Commission of the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC), Washington D.C., and is licensed by the Pennsylvania State Board of Private Licensed Schools.

Whether you’re looking for accelerated studies or credit recovery, regionally and nationally accredited Penn Foster High School provides the courses you need to complete your High School Diploma.