PSY453 POLITICAL PSYCHOLOGY
| Course Code: | 2330453 |
| METU Credit (Theoretical-Laboratory hours/week): | 3 (3.00 - 0.00) |
| ECTS Credit: | 5.0 |
| Department: | Psychology |
| Language of Instruction: | English |
| Level of Study: | Undergraduate |
| Course Coordinator: | |
| Offered Semester: | Fall Semesters. |
Course Objectives
This course introduces students to the classical debates and current trends in political psychology, presenting them with a mix of quantitative and qualitative research findings from the area of political psychology. It aims for the students to develop and demonstrate a critical understanding of the debates that informed the area, the individual (e.g., personality, attitudes, cognitions, and emotions) and the situational factors (e.g., social influence processes and inter-group dynamics) that lead to political behaviors, and a critical evaluation of the applicability of research and theory to the current socio-political issues.
Course Content
An introduction to the interdisciplinary field of political psychology. Topics include applications of psychology to political behavior such as voting, mass media, nationalism, conflict resolution, and collective protests.
Course Learning Outcomes
Upon the successful completion of this course, you will be able to:
- comprehend the basic study areas of political psychology
- apply theories and findings to the current political issues around you to understand, explain and perhaps change it for the better
- evaluate and critically examine research conducted in political psychology
- develop your thinking skills towards a more systematic, analytical, and critical fashion
- systematically review and analyze a topic of interest in an in-depth fashion
- develop your communication skills in English (through class discussions, weekly reflection papers, and presentations)
- improve group work skills (time management, workload management, communication skills)
Program Outcomes Matrix
| Level of Contribution | |||||
| # | Program Outcomes | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 1 | Solid background in basic theories and approaches in psychology. | ✔ | |||
| 2 | Skills to obtain and interpret new information in the light of acquired theoretical knowledge. | ✔ | |||
| 3 | Skills to follow both national and international publications and developments in the discipline. | ✔ | |||
| 4 | Basic applied skills and knowledge of the various disciplines of psychology that do not require specialization. | ✔ | |||
| 5 | Awareness of the value of continuing educational practices such as in-service training, seminars, and conferences to keep career-relevant knowledge and skills up-to-date. | ✔ | |||
| 6 | Skills to conduct research based on basic knowledge related to testing and measurement, research methods, and statistics. That is, skills related to forming research hypotheses, designing the research, collecting data, applying basic statistical analysis, and reporting. | ✔ | |||
| 7 | Knowledge and skills about conducting research and practice by adhering to ethical guidelines. | ✔ | |||
| 8 | Skills in oral and written communication both in Turkish and English. | ✔ | |||
| 9 | Skills to work in teams that involve disciplinary and interdisciplinary projects. | ✔ | |||
| 10 | Critical thinking skills in following the psychological literature together with the psychology-related information appearing in popular media. | ✔ | |||
| 11 | Skills to generate practical and culture-sensitive solutions to problems. | ✔ | |||
| 12 | Awareness of societal, environmental, and economic factors in professional practice and research. | ✔ | |||
| 13 | Skills to lead and pioneer in the profession of psychology, either in academia or professional practice. | ✔ | |||
| 14 | Skills in independent and team work. | ✔ | |||
0: No Contribution 1: Little Contribution 2: Partial Contribution 3: Full Contribution