WHAT IS PSYCHOLOGY?
What makes you tick? And what ticks you off? You’ve probably asked yourself such questions. But did
you know there’s a whole science devoted to studying your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors…and
providing answers to improve your life?
Welcome to PSY101! Each week, this course will introduce you to the basic concepts of psychology and
explore the skills that will help you use these concepts to make important decisions in your life and
career. Are you ready? Because the next 11 weeks will change your life!
Psychology is more than just a field of study. It’s an approach to how you see and understand yourself
and the world around you.
In this week’s Strayer Talk, you’ll meet Dr. Ryan Poirier, who will be your guide into the
fascinating and diverse world of psychology. And, over the next 11 weeks, you’ll continue to
hear real stories from real people who are using the same skills and concepts you’re learning in
this course to take control of their personal and professional futures!
ABOUT THIS WEEK'S CHAPTER
Why Study Psychology?
“Happy are those who can perceive the causes of things,” according to the ancient poet Virgil.
Or as the rapper Nas put it, “Through your existence become wealthy, knowledge is king.”
Why study psychology? If the above quotes are true, psychology may just unlock the door to
truehappiness. That’s because psychology is the study of things that matter to most people:
how andwhy we think and behave as we do. Psychology helps you understand yourself and
understandothers. Psychology also illuminates the world’s biggest issues, from prejudice and
war tocompassion and connection.
Over the next 11 weeks, you’ll gain a better understanding of the study of psychology. And
you’ll practice two essential employability skills that will help you utilize the psychological
concepts you learn in this course to better understand and empathize with those around you
and make smarter decisions throughout your life and career. They are:
, Problem Solving to
identify and frame
problems, explore ideas,
and create effective,
ethical, and evidence-
based solutions based on
psychological concepts
and principles.
Self and Social
Awareness to monitor
one’s own and others’
emotions, to discriminate
among them, and to use
the information to receive
feedback, reflect, and
guide one’s thinking.
As you practice these two skills throughout this course, you will gain personal insights into
motivation, memory, emotion, depression, aging, and much more. You will learn how you can
use these insights to help you make better decisions in every part of your life so you can reach
your career dreams.
COMING UP THIS WEEK...
You’ll start reading Chapter 1 in the webtext - your interactive, digital textbook, and go-to guide
for course information and assignments. In Chapter 1, you’ll learn about the basic study of
psychology and how psychologists solve problems and make decisions. And you’ll discover more
about why problem solving and self and social awareness matter in your life and career.
The skills and concepts you explore in this course can lead to professions in human resources,
education, big-data analysis, therapy, criminal justice, lab science, business management, and
beyond. More immediately, what you learn here can help improve your memory…and your
grades.
Your introduction to psychology is the start of a great and useful adventure. Let’s go!
Instructions: Please click on the WEBTEXT link below to access the Webtext used for this
course. This link will automatically take you to the chapter for this week. You may also use the
Webtext link located on the left-hand side of your screen in the navigation bar, that link will
return you to the section you previously worked in.
Note: You can purchase the code for the Webtext in the Strayer University bookstore found in
iCampus. Once purchased, the code will be emailed to you. Access the Webtext Purchase PDF
Flyer for more specific details.
,WEBTEXT
USING PSYCHOLOGY TO MAKE GOOD DECISIONS
In this chapter, you read about the history and different perspectives of psychology. You now know that
modern psychology takes a biopsychosocial approach to explaining thought and behavior. According to this
approach, to fully understand yourself and other people you need to consider causes and explanations not
only from a neuroscience (biological) perspective, but also from cognitive (psychological) and social-cultural
perspectives. You can use ideas from these different viewpoints to expand your self and social awareness,
which will improve your ability to read situations, make decisions, and solve problems.
You can also draw on your knowledge about the scientific method, which psychologists use to conduct
research on the mind and behavior, to evaluate possible solutions to problems that you or others are facing.
For instance, if you hear about a new study that relates to a problem you need to solve, you can use what
you’ve learned to think critically about the study and understand the perspective or subfield that informed it.
You now also recognize that modern psychology is based on systematic and scientific methods, not on intuition
or common sense. As you learn more about psychology’s key concepts and principles, you’ll be able to use
them to develop solutions to everyday problems and support your ideas. You’ll also learn what it means to
make an informed decision in any aspect of your life, as well as how to use your self and social awareness to
benefit your problem solving skill more generally.
QUICK CHAPTER REVIEW
This chapter taught you about psychology’s roots, levels of analysis, and methods of research. These concepts
will prepare you to employ psychological research to support your ideas and opinions. Let’s take a few minutes
to review the key concepts from this week:
The domain of psychology has evolved from its early focus on conscious and unconscious thoughts
to its contemporary definition as the science of behavior and mental processes.
Because behavior and mental processes are so complex, psychology utilizes the biopsychosocial
approach to develop a complete picture that incorporates the various psychological perspectives,
which include neuroscience, behavior genetics, and the evolutionary, psychodynamic, behavioral,
cognitive, and social-cultural perspectives.
Psychology emphasizes critical thinking and scientific inquiry instead of intuition.
Psychologists use the scientific method to develop theories and then test hypotheses through a
variety of research methods.
, BIOLOGY AND THE MIND
“Biology gives you a brain. Life turns it into a mind.” —Jeffrey Eugenides, Writer
The word “psychology” suggests a discussion of feelings, thought patterns, even dreams. So you may
be surprised to start this course by studying…biology. But, by understanding the biological processes
What makes you tick? And what ticks you off? You’ve probably asked yourself such questions. But did
you know there’s a whole science devoted to studying your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors…and
providing answers to improve your life?
Welcome to PSY101! Each week, this course will introduce you to the basic concepts of psychology and
explore the skills that will help you use these concepts to make important decisions in your life and
career. Are you ready? Because the next 11 weeks will change your life!
Psychology is more than just a field of study. It’s an approach to how you see and understand yourself
and the world around you.
In this week’s Strayer Talk, you’ll meet Dr. Ryan Poirier, who will be your guide into the
fascinating and diverse world of psychology. And, over the next 11 weeks, you’ll continue to
hear real stories from real people who are using the same skills and concepts you’re learning in
this course to take control of their personal and professional futures!
ABOUT THIS WEEK'S CHAPTER
Why Study Psychology?
“Happy are those who can perceive the causes of things,” according to the ancient poet Virgil.
Or as the rapper Nas put it, “Through your existence become wealthy, knowledge is king.”
Why study psychology? If the above quotes are true, psychology may just unlock the door to
truehappiness. That’s because psychology is the study of things that matter to most people:
how andwhy we think and behave as we do. Psychology helps you understand yourself and
understandothers. Psychology also illuminates the world’s biggest issues, from prejudice and
war tocompassion and connection.
Over the next 11 weeks, you’ll gain a better understanding of the study of psychology. And
you’ll practice two essential employability skills that will help you utilize the psychological
concepts you learn in this course to better understand and empathize with those around you
and make smarter decisions throughout your life and career. They are:
, Problem Solving to
identify and frame
problems, explore ideas,
and create effective,
ethical, and evidence-
based solutions based on
psychological concepts
and principles.
Self and Social
Awareness to monitor
one’s own and others’
emotions, to discriminate
among them, and to use
the information to receive
feedback, reflect, and
guide one’s thinking.
As you practice these two skills throughout this course, you will gain personal insights into
motivation, memory, emotion, depression, aging, and much more. You will learn how you can
use these insights to help you make better decisions in every part of your life so you can reach
your career dreams.
COMING UP THIS WEEK...
You’ll start reading Chapter 1 in the webtext - your interactive, digital textbook, and go-to guide
for course information and assignments. In Chapter 1, you’ll learn about the basic study of
psychology and how psychologists solve problems and make decisions. And you’ll discover more
about why problem solving and self and social awareness matter in your life and career.
The skills and concepts you explore in this course can lead to professions in human resources,
education, big-data analysis, therapy, criminal justice, lab science, business management, and
beyond. More immediately, what you learn here can help improve your memory…and your
grades.
Your introduction to psychology is the start of a great and useful adventure. Let’s go!
Instructions: Please click on the WEBTEXT link below to access the Webtext used for this
course. This link will automatically take you to the chapter for this week. You may also use the
Webtext link located on the left-hand side of your screen in the navigation bar, that link will
return you to the section you previously worked in.
Note: You can purchase the code for the Webtext in the Strayer University bookstore found in
iCampus. Once purchased, the code will be emailed to you. Access the Webtext Purchase PDF
Flyer for more specific details.
,WEBTEXT
USING PSYCHOLOGY TO MAKE GOOD DECISIONS
In this chapter, you read about the history and different perspectives of psychology. You now know that
modern psychology takes a biopsychosocial approach to explaining thought and behavior. According to this
approach, to fully understand yourself and other people you need to consider causes and explanations not
only from a neuroscience (biological) perspective, but also from cognitive (psychological) and social-cultural
perspectives. You can use ideas from these different viewpoints to expand your self and social awareness,
which will improve your ability to read situations, make decisions, and solve problems.
You can also draw on your knowledge about the scientific method, which psychologists use to conduct
research on the mind and behavior, to evaluate possible solutions to problems that you or others are facing.
For instance, if you hear about a new study that relates to a problem you need to solve, you can use what
you’ve learned to think critically about the study and understand the perspective or subfield that informed it.
You now also recognize that modern psychology is based on systematic and scientific methods, not on intuition
or common sense. As you learn more about psychology’s key concepts and principles, you’ll be able to use
them to develop solutions to everyday problems and support your ideas. You’ll also learn what it means to
make an informed decision in any aspect of your life, as well as how to use your self and social awareness to
benefit your problem solving skill more generally.
QUICK CHAPTER REVIEW
This chapter taught you about psychology’s roots, levels of analysis, and methods of research. These concepts
will prepare you to employ psychological research to support your ideas and opinions. Let’s take a few minutes
to review the key concepts from this week:
The domain of psychology has evolved from its early focus on conscious and unconscious thoughts
to its contemporary definition as the science of behavior and mental processes.
Because behavior and mental processes are so complex, psychology utilizes the biopsychosocial
approach to develop a complete picture that incorporates the various psychological perspectives,
which include neuroscience, behavior genetics, and the evolutionary, psychodynamic, behavioral,
cognitive, and social-cultural perspectives.
Psychology emphasizes critical thinking and scientific inquiry instead of intuition.
Psychologists use the scientific method to develop theories and then test hypotheses through a
variety of research methods.
, BIOLOGY AND THE MIND
“Biology gives you a brain. Life turns it into a mind.” —Jeffrey Eugenides, Writer
The word “psychology” suggests a discussion of feelings, thought patterns, even dreams. So you may
be surprised to start this course by studying…biology. But, by understanding the biological processes
