Department of Psychology
Administered by the Department of Psychology within the College of Arts and Sciences.
https://www.utpb.edu/academics/colleges/arts-sciences/departments/psychology/index
Psychology is the science of behavior and mental processes. Behavior is anything an organism does that we can observe and record; examples include smiling, talking, yelling, and marking a questionnaire. Mental processes are internal subjective experiences we infer from behaviors, such as thoughts, feelings, and beliefs. During their study at UT Permian Basin, psychology majors are expected to gain knowledge about theoretical perspectives and empirical findings across a wide range of topics as well as understand and apply research methods and statistics. They are expected to develop critical and creative thinking skills, apply psychological principles to a wide range of activities and learn ethical principles that underlie psychological approaches.
Students will demonstrate competence with information technology, communicate effectively, understand and respect the complexity of socio-cultural diversity, understand avenues for personal development, and apply psychological principles in various occupations. Psychology is an extremely broad discipline and provides students the opportunity to prepare for a wide variety of careers or graduate school. For example, a major in Psychology can provide a liberal arts education with a broadened understanding of psychological functioning as it applies to the study of the simplest organisms to the most complex of human behavior.
The major in Psychology is also useful for students preparing for advanced study in business administration, education, law, medicine, neuroscience, and social work. In addition, the major in Psychology is recommended for students planning careers in organizational settings (in both the public or private domain) focusing on personnel, industrial training, urban planning, information systems, or pure and applied research. Careers in community settings focus on the juvenile justice system, adult probation and parole, recreation, and educational or clinical services to children, adolescents, the aged and handicapped.
Students who complete the Psychology major often desire to enter professional careers in psychology which require advanced study beyond the bachelor's level, such as clinical psychology, counseling psychology, industrial psychology, school psychology, research, and college teaching. Psychology majors are encouraged to join the Psychology Club and Psi Chi, the UT Permian Basin Chapter of the National Honor Society in Psychology. Membership information is available from the faculty advisors