PSYC453 POLITICAL PSYCHOLOGY
| Course Code: | 3710453 |
| 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: | Assist.Prof.Dr BANU CİNGÖZ ULU |
| Offered Semester: | Fall or Spring Semesters. |
Course Objectives
This course will enable students to think through political psychological theories and concepts in making sense of contemporary socio-political challenges. Students will also be able to explore and go beyond psychology’s boundaries with neighbouring disciplines. They will be able to reason with what they have learned in this course, as will be demonstrated and assessed through a midterm exam and a research proposal.
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- apply theories and findings to the current political issues around you to understand, explain and perhaps change them for the better
- evaluate and critically examine research conducted in political psychology
- develop thinking skills towards a more systematic, analytical, and critical fashion
- develop communication skills in English (through class discussions, weekly reaction papers and presentations)
- improve group work skills (time management, workload management, communication skills)
Course Content
For course details, see https://catalog2.metu.edu.tr.Course Learning Outcomes
When students complete this course, they will:
- distinguish different approaches in political psychology; critical and mainstream
- name the different eras of popular topics and methods in political psychology from the initial development of the field
- extract the methods used in major published articles in the field
- be acquaintained with a diverse range of methodologies used in political psychology
- make sense of political events and behaviours in different contexts around the world through the theories and perspectives of political psychology
- propose solutions to current political issues using political psychology knowledge
- reflect on how political psychology might develop the discipline of psychology
- develop a critical understanding of the current situation of social/political psychology
- lead and participate in class discussions in English and provide evidence to back up their positions
- develop a final project linking theory and practice by showing how political psychology can enable a fresh perspective on the everyday, the social and the political
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 follow both national and international publications and developments in the discipline and to obtain and interpret new information in the light of acquired theoretical knowledge | ✔ | |||
| 3 | Awareness of the value of continuing educational practices such as in-service trainings, seminars, and conferences to keep career-relevant knowledge and skills up-to-date | ✔ | |||
| 4 | Skills to conduct research based on basic knowledge related to testing and measurement, research methods, and statistics as well as the ability to present and disseminate research findings both orally and in writing | ✔ | |||
| 5 | Knowledge and skills about conducting research and practice by adhering to ethical guidelines | ✔ | |||
| 6 | Skills in oral and written communication both in Turkish and English as well as preferably learning a third language | ✔ | |||
| 7 | Skills to work in teams that involve disciplinary and interdisciplinary projects | ✔ | |||
| 8 | Critical thinking skills in following the psychological literature together with the psychology-related information appearing in popular media | ✔ | |||
| 9 | Skills to generate practical and culture-sensitive solutions to problems | ✔ | |||
| 10 | Awareness of societal, environmental, and economic factors in professional practice and research | ✔ | |||
| 11 | Skills to lead and pioneer in the profession of psychology, either in academia or professional practice | ✔ | |||
| 12 | Skills in independent and team work | ✔ | |||
0: No Contribution 1: Little Contribution 2: Partial Contribution 3: Full Contribution