Have you ever wondered how schizophrenia affects someone's thinking? What is the purpose of emotions? If other species use language? What is intelligence and how it develops? Where in our brain are memories stored? If psychoanalysis really "does" anything? These, and many others, are questions we will examine and better understand in Introductory Psychology during the first summer session.

This class will be a theoretical AND practical exploration of broad psychological concepts. More specifically, the class will focus on what is known about human nature and how this reveals general principles of the functioning of brains, individuals, and groups. You will be introduced to information from a wide variety of sources, including your own observations/perceptions/experiences. Since this is a small class, you will be an active participant in your learning experience, as we journey through the fields of art, philosophy, biology, mathematics, physics, medicine, and computer science, in search of a better understanding of the human condition.

There are additional UVa-only syllabus items for this course. Click here to view all the public and UVa-only syllabus items. This link is restricted to UVa-members with Netbadge authentication.