PSYCHOLOGY
PAPER – I
Foundations of
Psychology
1. Introduction:
Definition of
Psychology; Historical antecedents of Psychology and trends in the 21st
century; Psychology and scientific methods; Psychology in relation to other
social sciences and natural sciences; Application of Psychology to societal
problems.
2. Methods of
Psychology:
Types of research:
Descriptive, evaluative, diagnostic and prognostic; Methods of Research:
Survey, observation, case-study and experiments; Characteristics of
experimental design and non-experimental design, Quasi-experimental designs;
Focussed group discussions, brain storming, grounded theory approach.
3. Research Methods:
Major steps in
Psychological research (problem statement, hypothesis formulation, research
designs, sampling, tools of data collection, analysis and interpretation and
report writing) Fundamental versus applied research; Methods of data collection
(interview, observation, questionnaire); Research designs (ex-post facto and experimental);
Application of statistical technique (t - test, two way ANOVA correlation,
regression and factor analysis); Item response theory.
4. Development of Human
Behaviour:
Growth and development;
Principles of development, Role of genetic and environmental factors in
determining human behaviour; Influence of cultural factors in socialization;
Life span development Characteristics, development tasks, promoting
psychological well-being across major stages of the life span.
5. Sensation, Attention
and Perception:
Sensation: concepts of
threshold, absolute and difference thresholds, signal-detection and vigilance;
Factors influencing attention including set and characteristics of stimulus;
Definition and concept of perception, biological factors in perception;
Perceptual organization-influence of past experiences, perceptual
defencefactors influencing space and depth perception, size estimation and
perceptual readiness; The plasticity of perception; Extrasensory perception;
Culture and perception, Subliminal perception.
6. Learning:
Concept and theories of
learning (Behaviourists, Gestaltalist and Information processing models); The Processes
of extinction, discrimination and generalization; Programmed learning,
probability learning, selfinstructional learning, concepts; Types and the
schedules of reinforcement, escape, avoidance and punishment, modeling and
social learning.
7. Memory:
Encoding and
remembering; Short term memory, Long term memory, Sensory memory, Iconic
memory, Echoic memory: The Multistore model, levels of processing; Organization
and Mnemonic techniques to improve memory; Theories of forgetting: decay,
interference and retrieval failure: Metamemory; Amnesia: Anterograde and
retrograde.
8. Thinking and Problem
Solving:
Piaget’s theory of
cognitive development; Concept formation processes; Information processing,
Reasoning and problem solving, Facilitating and hindering factors in problem
solving, Methods of problem solving: Creative thinking and fostering
creativity; Factors influencing decision making and judgment; Recent trends.
9. Motivation and
Emotion:
Psychological and
physiological basis of motivation and emotion; Measurement of motivation and
emotion; Effects of motivation and emotion on behaviour; Extrinsic and intrinsic
motivation; Factors influencing intrinsic motivation; Emotional competence and
the related issues.
10. Intelligence and
Aptitude:
Concept of intelligence
and aptitude, Nature and theories of intelligence Spearman, Thurstone, Gullford
Vernon, Sternberg and J.P; Das; Emotional Intelligence, Social intelligence,
measurement of intelligence and aptitudes, concept of IQ, deviation IQ,
constancy of IQ; Measurement of multiple intelligence; Fluid intelligence and crystallized
intelligence.
11. Personality:
Definition and concept
of personality; Theories of personality (psychoanalytical, sociocultural,
interpersonal, developmental, humanistic, behaviouristic, trait and type
approaches); Measurement of personality (projective tests, pencil-paper test);
The Indian approach to personality; Training for personality development;
Latest approaches like big 5 factor theory; The notion of self in different
traditions.
12. Attitudes, Values
and Interests:
Definition of attitudes,
values and interests; Components of attitudes; Formation and maintenance of
attitudes; Measurement of attitudes, values and interests; Theories of attitude
change; Strategies for fostering values; Formation of stereotypes and
prejudices; Changing others behaviour; Theories of attribution; Recent trends.
13. Language and
Communication:
Human language -
Properties, structure and linguistic hierarchy, Language
acquisition-predisposition, critical period hypothesis; Theories of language
development Skinner and Chomsky; Process and types of communication - effective
communication training.
14. Issues and
Perspectives in Modern Contemporary Psychology:
Computer application in
the psychological laboratory and psychological testing; Artificial
intelligence; Psychocybernetics; Study of consciousness-sleep-wake schedules;
dreams, stimulus deprivation, meditation, hypnotic/drug induced states;
Extrasensory perception; Intersensory perceptionSimulation studies.
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