Savitribai Phule Pune University
(Formerly University of Pune)
Course DSC-PSY- 1A: Foundations of Psychology
Unit 1: Psychology -Introduction:
1.1 Psychology : a Science, goals of psychology
1.2 The brief history & perspective of Psychology: (Structuralism, Functionalism, Gestalt, Psychoanalysis, Behaviorism)
1.3 Career Avenues in Psychology & Fields of Psychology: (Clinical, Industrial & Organizational, Educational, Social, Developmental, Health, Criminal & Forensic, Military, Sports, Neuropsychology, Environmental, Positive, Spiritual and Women & Child psychology.)
1.4 The Indian Psychology: Past and present
1.5 Application: Understanding Behaviour through Methods in Psychology
Unit 2: Cognitive processes:
2.1 Sensation, Attention and Perception, nature of perception, laws of perceptual. organization
2.2 Learning- Classical and Operant conditioning, observational learning
2.3 Memory-processes, information processing model(s)
2.4 Forgetting: Theories of forgetting
2.5 Application: Techniques for improving memory.
Unit 3: Motivation and Emotion:
3.1 Motivation: Definition, Concept of Homeostasis & Maslow’s Hierarchy of Motivation
3.2 Types of Motivation: Physiological, Psychological & Social
3.3 Motivational Conflicts: Intra-Conflicts & Inter-Conflicts
3.4 Emotion: Definitions, Nature & Importance, Basic Emotions (Joy, Excitement,
Tenderness, Sadness, Anger, Fear & Love)
3.5 Application: Conflict Resolving Skills
Unit 4: Personality and Intelligence:
4.1 Personality – Definitions, Nature
4.2 Personality as a set of traits: Cattell’s, Allport’s & Big Five Theory of Personality
4.3 Freud’s Psychoanalytical Theory of Personality and Transactional Analysis
4.4 Intelligence: Definitions, Theories of Intelligence (Gardner's Theory, Cattell’s Theory
of Intelligence)
4.5 Applications: Testing and enhancing Emotional intelligence.
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