Overview

Faculty

Mairin Augustine

Vikranth Bejjanki
Jennifer Borton, chair
Rebecca Dyer
Kelly Faig
Elaine Paravati Harrigan
Alexandra List
Tara McKee (Associate Dean of Students for Academics)
Siobhan Robinson (on leave 2020-21)
Patricia Sanchez
Rachel White
Keelah Williams (on leave 2020-21)
Penny Yee (Associate Dean of Faculty)

Special Appointment

David Walden

The goal of Hamilton’s Psychology Department is to provide students with the tools to pursue novel questions about behavior and the mind using the scientific method. Strong emphasis is placed on helping students learn to communicate their ideas clearly and concisely.

A concentration in Psychology consists of ten courses: PSYCH-101; PSYCH-201; either PSYCH-204 or PSYCH-205; one laboratory course numbered between 300 and 327 (except PSYCH-320); PSYCH-380; and five additional courses at the 300 level or above, including the Senior Project.

Students may place out of Introductory Psychology by earning a 5 on the Psychology AP exam; a 6 or 7 on the Standard Level Psychology IB test; or a 5, 6, or 7 on the Higher Level Psychology IB test. Concentrators who place out of Introductory Psychology must still take a total of ten courses.

To fulfill the Social, Structural, and Institutional Hierarchies requirement in Psychology, concentrators must take either ONE course from the following list:

PSYCH-324 (Law and Human Behavior)
PSYCH-350 (Lifespan Development)
PSYCH-359 (Stereotyping and Prejudice)
PSYCH-367 (Psychological Bias in the Justice System)
PSYCH-369 (Psychology of Gender)

or TWO courses from the following list:

PSYCH-316 (Developmental Psychology of Self-Control)
PSYCH-349 (Parenting)
PSYCH-353 (Adult Psychopathology)
PSYCH-355 (Neurobiology of Addiction)
PSYCH-356 (Social Psychology)
PSYCH-372 (Psychology in a Pandemic)

Courses taken off-campus may fulfill the SSIH requirement; students should consult with the chair to determine whether the course(s) will count toward the first or second list, above.

Students should plan to complete their lab requirement by the end of their junior year. The Senior Project involves an extensive research and theoretical inquiry, culminating in a written thesis and an oral presentation. The project can be completed in one or two semesters; therefore, concentrators must enroll in PSYCH-500 and/or PSYCH-501 during their senior year. Students are strongly encouraged to consider a full-year Senior Project.

Students may not take any course at the 200 level or above on a credit/no credit basis if the course will be used to fulfill concentration or minor requirements.

Departmental honors in psychology recognize the distinguished achievement of students who excel in their coursework in the concentration; only students who conduct a full-year Senior Project are eligible for departmental honors.

A minor in Psychology consists of five courses: PSYCH-101; PSYCH-201; either PSYCH-204 or PSYCH-205; one laboratory course numbered between 300 and 327 (except PSYCH-320); and one other course.

The departments of Biology and Psychology offer an interdisciplinary concentration in neuroscience. See the description under Neuroscience.