Overview
Welcome to the fascinating world of psychology: the science of behaviour and the mind! The purpose of this course is to introduce you to the broad range of topics that we study in the field of psychology, including perception, cognition, learning and motivation and their biological bases. Also reviewed are child development, individual differences, social psychology and abnormal (clinical) psychology. In the process you will hopefully gain some insight into what makes people think, feel, and behave the way that they do. This course is not intended to help you solve behavioural or emotional problems requiring professional attention.
This course is a mix of independent and small group learning. It is therefore important that you progress through the material at the prescribed rate.
Learning Outcomes
- Summarize the major areas and themes of psychology.
- Demonstrate an understanding of the role of genes and environment in determining behaviour and mental processes.
- Describe the major psychological theories and the empirical evidence upon which they are based.
- Apply the scientific method to the formulation and answering of questions related to psychology.
- Assess the validity of, and provide accurate interpretations of, psychological findings.
Course Topics
- Introduction to Psychology
- Research Methods
- Genetics and Evolution
- Learning
- Neurons
- Neurobiology
- Introduction to Sensation and Perception
- The Visual World
- Consciousness and Sleep
- Attention and Memory
- Memory
- Language, Language Use, and Development
- Cognitive Development
- Social and Emotional Development
- Adolescence, Emerging Adulthood, and Aging
- Intelligence and Decision Making
- Motivation and Emotion
- Interacting with Tough Content, Self-Care, and Wellness
- Psychopathology I
- Psychopathology II
- Psychopathology, Psychopathy, and Therapeutic Orientations
- Personality
- Social Thinking and People in Groups
- Relationships and Self-Identify
Terms
Evaluation
30% - Proctored Midcourse Exam
40% - Proctored Final Exam
10% - Weekly online labs
10% - Proctored Quiz 1
10% - Proctored Quiz 2
5% - Bonus Research Opportunities
**Evaluation Subject to change**
Proctored Exams
Exam Centre Location, Eligibility, and Fees
Students enrolled exclusively in online courses may choose one of two options to write this course’s proctored assessments:
- You may choose to write the assessments online under supervision of Examity proctoring services. A $100 fee will be charged to your SOLUS account. This fee is known as the Off Campus Exam Admin Fee and is applied in SOLUS at the earlier of: term tuition posting date, or the date at which exam writing method is changed to online. The fee is assessed once per ASO course with proctored assessments.
- You may choose to write the assessments in-person on Queen’s campus in Kingston at no additional charge.
Students enrolled in at least one on-campus course are expected to write this course’s proctored assessments on-campus during the scheduled exam time. They will not be permitted to write this course’s proctored assessments online.
Students were prompted to indicate their preferred exam writing method when enrolling in the course in SOLUS. The exam writing method may be changed by contacting the ASO Exams Team at aso.exams@queensu.ca.
Information for students writing online assessments using Examity
Selected assessments in this course will be administered in onQ using online proctoring provided by Examity, a third-party, cloud-based service. This proctoring solution was chosen to support our efforts in maintaining academic integrity when online proctoring is required. Queen’s has conducted an extensive privacy and security review of Examity and has entered into a binding agreement with terms that address the appropriate collection, use and disclosure of personal information in accordance with Ontario’s privacy legislation. To learn more about online proctoring, please see the information provided by the Office of the University Registrar.
If you registered to write online with Examity, all information pertaining to the technical requirements and preparation for writing online will be posted in onQ well in advance of your exam. 
The use of Examity as described is unique to courses offered by the Faculty of Arts and Science Online. Other Faculties use online proctoring solutions in different ways under different regulations. Students should contact the appropriate Faculty examination team if they have questions.
Timing of Final Examinations
The exam period dates for each Term are listed on the Faculty of Arts and Science webpage under "Important Dates". Student exam schedules for the Fall Term are posted to SOLUS immediately prior to the Thanksgiving holiday; for the Winter Term they are posted on the Friday before Reading Week, and for the Summer Term they are individually noted on the Arts and Science Online syllabi. Students should not make any travel plans until after the examination schedule has been posted. Exams will not be moved or deferred to accommodate employment, travel/holiday plans or flight reservations. Students experiencing extenuating circumstances preventing them from writing their exams as scheduled should review the information about the Academic Consideration process.
Textbook and Materials
ASO reserves the right to make changes to the required material list as received by the instructor before the course starts. Please refer to the Campus Bookstore website at to obtain the most up-to-date list of required materials for this course before purchasing them.
Required Material
- The textbook for this class is a customized online Open Access textbook. This textbook is free, and available to you in multiple formats.
Time Commitment
To complete the readings, assignments, and course activities, students can expect to spend, on average, about 9-10 hours per week (221 hours per term) on the course.
Evaluation
30% - Proctored Midcourse Exam
40% - Proctored Final Exam
10% - Weekly online labs
10% - Proctored Quiz 1
10% - Proctored Quiz 2
5% - Bonus Research Opportunities
**Evaluation Subject to change**
Proctored Exams
Exam Centre Location, Eligibility, and Fees
Students enrolled exclusively in online courses may choose one of two options to write this course’s proctored assessments:
- You may choose to write the assessments online under supervision of Examity proctoring services. A $100 fee will be charged to your SOLUS account. This fee is known as the Off Campus Exam Admin Fee and is applied in SOLUS at the earlier of: term tuition posting date, or the date at which exam writing method is changed to online. The fee is assessed once per ASO course with proctored assessments.
- You may choose to write the assessments in-person on Queen’s campus in Kingston at no additional charge.
Students enrolled in at least one on-campus course are expected to write this course’s proctored assessments on-campus during the scheduled exam time. They will not be permitted to write this course’s proctored assessments online.
Students were prompted to indicate their preferred exam writing method when enrolling in the course in SOLUS. The exam writing method may be changed by contacting the ASO Exams Team at aso.exams@queensu.ca.
Information for students writing online assessments using Examity
Selected assessments in this course will be administered in onQ using online proctoring provided by Examity, a third-party, cloud-based service. This proctoring solution was chosen to support our efforts in maintaining academic integrity when online proctoring is required. Queen’s has conducted an extensive privacy and security review of Examity and has entered into a binding agreement with terms that address the appropriate collection, use and disclosure of personal information in accordance with Ontario’s privacy legislation. To learn more about online proctoring, please see the information provided by the Office of the University Registrar.
If you registered to write online with Examity, all information pertaining to the technical requirements and preparation for writing online will be posted in onQ well in advance of your exam. 
The use of Examity as described is unique to courses offered by the Faculty of Arts and Science Online. Other Faculties use online proctoring solutions in different ways under different regulations. Students should contact the appropriate Faculty examination team if they have questions.
Timing of Final Examinations
The exam period dates for each Term are listed on the Faculty of Arts and Science webpage under "Important Dates". Student exam schedules for the Fall Term are posted to SOLUS immediately prior to the Thanksgiving holiday; for the Winter Term they are posted on the Friday before Reading Week, and for the Summer Term they are individually noted on the Arts and Science Online syllabi. Students should not make any travel plans until after the examination schedule has been posted. Exams will not be moved or deferred to accommodate employment, travel/holiday plans or flight reservations. Students experiencing extenuating circumstances preventing them from writing their exams as scheduled should review the information about the Academic Consideration process.
Textbook and Materials
ASO reserves the right to make changes to the required material list as received by the instructor before the course starts. Please refer to the Campus Bookstore website at to obtain the most up-to-date list of required materials for this course before purchasing them.
Required Material
- The textbook for this class is a customized online Open Access textbook. This textbook is free, and available to you in multiple formats.
Time Commitment
| Completing/reviewing online lessons | 10-12 hours every week |
| Discussion participation | 2 hours (approx.) every other week |
| Written assignment | 6 hours (approx.) every other week |
| Quizzes | 2 hours every week |
| Refer/review text | As needed |
| Total: | Approximately 16 hours/week |
Students can expect to spend 221 hours total on the course.