Psychology as a field has too recently been weaned from Philosophy to be definitive or exact in its approach, but its excellent faculty provides the concentrator with a good means of arriving at a wider understanding of human nature either as it pertains to the practice of medicine and psychiatry or to social problems. In its present confused state, the department has more to offer the man who who has the inquisitive mind for research rather than the man who wants his facts served up as the truth, properly correlated.
In spite of a group of potentially good tutors, Psychology's tutorial is as ineffective as it is necessary. Particularly because the courses tend to conflict with and repeat each other, good tutorial is a sorely needed connecting force. Only Junior and Senior honors candidates receive individual attention while Sophomores are distributed in groups of three to five, and non-honors men are relegated into even larger groups.
Dean's List for Honors
Honors candidates must be on the Dean's list or must obtain special permission. The department is not too strict about what courses can be counted for concentration; four Psychology courses are required, but it is possible to substitute an appropriate course in Philosophy, Biology, or Sociology, and two courses in related fields fill out the curriculum. Of the 11 courses ordinarily taken by undergraduates, ten are half courses, so a student can cover a fairly large section of the field.
Necessary for all future study in the field Psych. A also appeals to the non-centrator as a survey. Although Boring has accumulated good material and has organized it well, he has failed to find the spice to make his lectures palatable. Allport, who assists Boring, is the better teacher.
War has prompted a change in the second half, which now deals with neurosis which cause war, problems of civilian morale, and other such timely topics.
Boring's Psych. 11 is an advanced form of Psych. A, and is likewise well-organized, worthwhile, and dull. Contrariwise, dynamic psychology taught by Murray as number 35, rings the bell with general opinion, ranging from "excellent" to "extremely interesting."
White tops in 36
Abnormal Behavior, "particularly neuroses and functional psychoses," is very well discussed by White in Psych. 36, and is counted the best course in the field.
Well-liked himself, Allport is ably abetted by Sanford in Psych. 30, which merges with government in the study of public opinion, but which has been accused of being "bull in specialized terms." The physiological angle has been more fully exploited in 22 by Morgan, who is rated good. Beebe-Center tries to cover too much of the subject of human and animal motivation in Psych. 12. Cattell's Psych. 32 not only tends to be repetitious, but piles on 300 pages a week on the subject of personality.
Term papers, required in almost every half-course, keep you on your toes, as do the comprehensive, tough, but fair examinations. Every Senior must complete the requirements for his A.B. by passing two three-hour Generals, one on the whole field, and the other on three of the following psychological topics: the historical, physiological, experimental, abnormal, or social aspects.
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