The Presentation of Ethics in Undergraduate Psychology Syllabi

To identify where ethics is presented to undergraduate psychology students, this study reviewed a national sample of 706 syllabi for required mandatory psychology courses. The results indicated that 6 syllabi were designated as ethics courses and 65 syllabi did not mention ethics at all. Even though 641 syllabi mentioned ethics, the most frequent listing was under course policies, usually as a standard statement (e.g., academic honesty and plagiarism) required by many institutions. Our recommendation is that ethics should be intentionally included in the learning goals/objectives/outcomes with a corresponding assessment (assignments) in all syllabi in addition to policy statements.

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Cultures of Diversity

Teaching of Psychology ◽

10.1177/0098628317692605 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 44 (2) ◽

pp. 100-107

Author(s):

Andrew M. Guest ◽

Zachary L. Simmons ◽

Andrew Downs ◽

Mark R. Pitzer

Keyword(s):

Psychology Students ◽

Introductory Psychology ◽

Multicultural Awareness ◽

Important Goal ◽

Multicultural Sensitivity ◽

Psychology Courses ◽

Nature And Nurture ◽

Undergraduate Psychology ◽

Multiple Challenges ◽

Topical Knowledge

Teachers of psychology tend to agree that learning about diversity is an important goal for undergraduate psychology courses. There is significantly less agreement about what aspects of diversity psychology students should understand. The current research proposes and investigates two potentially distinct ways students might understand diversity: more scientific understandings of topical knowledge related to nature and nurture and more humanistic understandings related to multicultural awareness and sensitivity. Drawing on standardized surveys and open-ended responses to diversity questions from the beginning and end of introductory psychology courses, results indicate that students’ topical knowledge of diversity is not strongly associated with multicultural sensitivity. These results emphasize the importance of clarifying the meanings of addressing diversity as a course goal and are discussed in relation to the multiple challenges of teaching about diversity in psychology courses.

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Research Preregistration as a Teaching and Learning Tool in Undergraduate Psychology Courses

Psychology Learning & Teaching ◽

10.1177/1475725719875844 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 19 (1) ◽

pp. 107-115

Author(s):

Sarai Blincoe ◽

Stephanie Buchert

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

Teaching And Learning ◽

Psychology Students ◽

Research Practice ◽

Research Projects ◽

Planning Tool ◽

Questionable Research Practices ◽

Psychology Courses ◽

Survey Results ◽

Undergraduate Psychology

The preregistration of research plans and hypotheses may prevent publication bias and questionable research practices. We incorporated a modified version of the preregistration process into an undergraduate capstone research course. Students completed a standard preregistration form during the planning stages of their research projects as well as surveys about their knowledge of preregistration. Based on survey results, our senior-level psychology students lacked knowledge of importance of the preregistration movement in the sciences but could anticipate some of its benefits. Our review of the completed preregistration assignment suggested that students struggle with data analysis decision-making but generally perceive preregistration as a helpful planning tool. We discuss the value of a preregistration assignment for generating discussions of research practice and ethics.

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What Psychology Students Want From Service-Learning

Teaching of Psychology ◽

10.1177/00986283211021075 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 009862832110210

Author(s):

Christine E. Valdez ◽

Jennifer L. Lovell

Keyword(s):

Professional Development ◽

Service Learning ◽

Civic Engagement ◽

Professional Identity ◽

Teaching Practice ◽

Task Force ◽

Psychology Students ◽

Learning Goals ◽

Undergraduate Psychology ◽

Psychology Major

Background: Limited research has examined how service-learning (SL) outcomes align with learning goals proposed for the undergraduate psychology major by the APA Board of Educational Affairs Task Force on Psychology Major Competences. Objective: To obtain student perspectives of SL, and to evaluate learning and inform curriculum development of SL specific to psychology learning goals. Method: Undergraduate psychology students ( N = 400) participated in a concurrent mixed-methods survey examining empathy, civic engagement, and professional identity between students who had and had not taken an upper-division SL course. Results: SL students reported increased engagement with APA learning goals of Ethical and Social Responsibility and Professional Development compared to students who did not take SL. SL students scored higher on civic engagement behaviors and professional identity. Students reported wanting more exposure to a range of psychology subdisciplines, various service opportunities, and multicultural diversity to support professional development. Conclusion: SL is a high-impact teaching practice that aligns with psychology learning goals. Teaching Implications: Findings informed the development of a generalist psychology SL course that introduced students to different domains of psychology. We discuss how to integrate learning activities to increase multicultural and other awareness, motivate social justice action, enhance career clarification, and increase professional self-efficacy.

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