Faculty
Julia Smith
BS, BA, Wofford College. MA, The New School for Social Research. PhD, University of Michigan. Postdoctoral Associate, Duke University. Experimental social psychologist with a focus on morality and the self. Interests in judgment and decision making and cross-cultural, religious, and political psychology. Teaching interest in immersive learning. SLC, 2026–
Undergraduate Courses 2026-2027
Psychology
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Sophomore and Above, Seminar—Fall
PSYC 3214
In this course, we will explore research on judgment and decision making from psychology and behavioral economics while playing the tabletop fantasy role-playing game Dungeons and Dragons (D&D). Students will learn economic and statistical theories about how people should make decisions under uncertainty, as well as the heuristics and biases people use to make decisions efficiently, if not rationally. We will discuss classical and modern work on heuristics (mental shortcuts) and biases (systematic errors) by researchers such as Tversky and Kahneman, Sheena Iyengar, Tom Gilovich, and Daniel Gilbert, and learn how to avoid common pitfalls to make better decisions. Applying course concepts in game will help your character succeed, while falling for statistical traps and cognitive fallacies can have disastrous consequences (for your character)! The course will be organized as half seminar, half game. We will use the first class of each week to discuss the readings from a theoretical standpoint, and the second class of each week to apply course concepts in our D&D game. Conference work will include keeping detailed campaign notes and will culminate in an empirically supported written chapter of your party’s story.
Faculty
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Open, Lecture—Spring
PSYC 2044
How do people make decisions about their physical health? What can doctors, coaches, and policymakers do to encourage healthy behaviors? To what extent does pain exist in the body versus the mind? How do socioeconomic factors influence our health? In this course, students will explore the interrelationship between physical and mental health at the individual, community, and policy levels. We will discuss the impacts of psychological factors (such as stress) on physical health, as well as psychologically informed healthcare interventions to promote physical and mental well-being and coping with illness.
Faculty
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Open, Seminar—Spring
PSYC 3855
How do people make moral decisions? What makes something morally right or wrong? How do people balance selfish motivations with prosocial ones? And how do moral emotions—like guilt—guide our moral reasoning? In this course, we will explore research on human morality in a variety of contexts. Drawing on theories such as Kohlberg's Stages of Moral Development and Skitka's Integrated Theory of Moral Conviction, we will learn about how morality develops during childhood and how moral cognition can differ in important ways from similar reasoning about non-moral topics. We will also discuss theories about the origins and purpose of morality and the interplay between morality, religion, politics, and law.
Faculty
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Intermediate, Seminar—Fall
PSYC 3475
Prerequisite: prior coursework in research methods and statistics
What drives behavior in groups? When do people rebel or follow the rules? What makes us want to help or harm others? And, importantly, how do we find the answers to big questions like these? In this course, students will learn how to apply the scientific method to questions about human social behavior using various research methodologies in the field of social psychology. Assigned readings will focus on research methods and ethics, and students will also complete a literature review on their research topic of choice as part of their conference work. By the end of the course, students will be able to (a) generate feasible, falsifiable research questions, (b) identify appropriate research methods to answer a variety of questions, (c) write a research proposal, (d) create suitable data analysis plans and implement them in R, and (e) communicate research findings in academic and casual settings. Conference work will culminate in an APA-style paper (a research proposal or paper using secondary data) which can be used as a writing sample to demonstrate students’ research and writing abilities.
Faculty