PSYCHOLOGY

BECAUSE THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS DEPEND ON THE

DEVELOPMENT , PERFORMANCE , AND WELL-BEING OF PEOPLE .

For more information about the Psychology Major, contact:

Dr. Marjorie Carroll, 269E Thayer, 938-5642 Dr. Lisa Korenman, 269A Thayer, 938-4806

MAJ Dan Caffarel, 269D, 938-1381 CPT Yoonie Dunham, 269C, 938-4475

Department of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership

http://www.usma.edu/bsl/SitePages/Psychology.aspx

“Building Stronger Leaders”

I N T E R E S T I N G A I A D S BS&L currently coordinates over 100 AIADs a year, across the United States and in various foreign countries. Some examples of organizations you could work with include the FBI, NSA, NASA, The Army Research Institute, Office of the Surgeon General, civilian for-profit corporations, the Boy Scouts (Philmont Ranch and SeaBase High Adventures), and the Military Child Education Coalition.

“Majoring in Psychology allows you to truly embrace UNDERSTANDING the individuality of Soldiers, giving you a

secret key to unlocking the vast potential in Soldiers that would otherwise remain

untapped.”

- 1LT Amanda Darling, ‘13, Adjutant General

Psychology majors, Dalton Mendenhall, Matt Reyes, and

Morgan Rowe, presenting their capstone project to Mr.

Brett Morash, Bob Woodruff Foundation, on Projects’ Day.

“When working with Soldiers and noncommissioned officers who joined the

Army for a myriad of reasons through a demanding training cycle, it was

absolutely imperative to understand what drives them to persevere succeed. The

Psychology major gives you that understanding”

- 1LT Dan Jester, ‘13, Armor

2LT Meghan Bordenave ‘15 during a deployment to Africa

to work with a unit from the Zambian Army as part of their

training for a UN peacekeeping deployment.

“Being a Psychology Major increased my emotional

intelligence, allowing me to better understand Soldiers and

help them which ultimately helps them focus on their job

and being the best Soldier they can be.”

CDT Amanda Blanco, ‘17, learning a dance from one of the

students at the Adaentire Anpawan Suksa Elementary

School in Bangkok as part of her AIAD.

“Psychology provides a baseline under-standing of how humans think, behave, and interact that empowers leaders to make better decisions with respect to both our Soldiers and our missions.”

- MAJ Chaveso Cook, ‘ 04, Support Ops (MISO)

H O N O R S S O C I E T I E S

CDT Sarah Baermann ‘17 at the summit of Mt. Fuji while

during a semester abroad to Japan.

L E A R N T O E X P L A I N , P R E D I C T , A N D I N F L U E N C E H U M A N B E H AV I O R .

P S Y C H O L O G Y W I T H H O N O R S

Cadets with a 3.0 APSC in the Core Curriculum and a 3.5 in the Psychology Major may elect to “Major with Honors”. Two options are available: 1) Psychological Research Thesis (two-semester thesis project), or 2) Biological Psychology (two additional

courses in Biology and/or Chemistry).

W H Y P S Y C H O L O G Y ?

Psychology is arguably the most applicable major for future Army officers. Psychology majors gain specialized skills and knowledge related to understanding human behavior, making them uniquely

prepare to understand and ultimately lead people.

As a Psychology major, you will:

Understand how to build effective teams

Develop critical thinking and problem solving skills needed to

be an adaptive leader

Understand how to impact individual motivation, organization-

al culture, and personal/unit resiliency

Understand the roots of prejudice, violence and aggression

and how to reduce and resolve conflict

Understand how to leverage diversity constructively to make

units more effective

Be able to manage difficult situations and high stress environ-

ments

Develop the interpersonal and counseling skills required of

leaders

Understand interventions that can reduce distress in Soldiers

and their families

Dr. Keita Franklin, Director of the Defense Suicide Prevention

Office, speaking with Michael Freas, ‘16, following her

discussion with Psychology majors on DoD suicide prevention

initiatives.

“Combine interesting, applicable topics with friendly, supportive faculty and you get West

Point’s Psychology program.”

- LT Woo Do, ‘11, Harvard Medical School ‘15

Psychology faculty, cadet inductees, and guest speaker, Dr.

Richard Lerner from Tufts University, at the Psi Chi National

Honor Society Induction Ceremony.

Psychology majors meeting with Leland Melvin, NASA

astronaut during the Hatton W. Sumners Student

Leadership Conference at the University of Texas at Austin.

O V E R V I E W O F P S Y C H O L O G Y

Psychology is Interdisciplinary - The study of psychology investi-gates human behavior, cognition, and emotion by analyzing the complex interactions between social, environmental, cultural, organizational, and biological influences.

Psychology majors can be found in every sector of the profes-sional world: in the military, industrial, retail, non-profit, consulting, academic, and research & development sectors.

Psychology majors at West Point choose between two different

tracks within the major:

Applied General Psychology is focused on applying knowledge of psychology to improve the development, performance, and well-being of individuals (Soldiers).

Organizational Psychology and Leadership is focused on apply-ing knowledge of psychology to select and develop leaders, and improve the effectiveness of groups, teams, and organizations.

W H A T C L A S S E S W I L L I T A K E ?

All cadets majoring in Psychology take the following courses: PL383 Social Psychology PL387 Foundations of Counseling PL361 Research Methods I PL462 Experimental Applications in Psychology PL488B Colloquium in Psychology (Capstone) Two Depth of Discipline electives Cadets who elect the “Applied General Psychology” track take: PL250 Neurocognitive Foundations of Behavior PL373 Life-Span Human Development PL376 Abnormal Psychology Cadets who elect the “Organizational Psychology and Leadership” track take: MG379 Leading Teams PL398 Leadership Theory & Development PL479 Leading Organizations through Change Complementary Support Courses - cadets will take three courses from one of the following areas of study:

Psychology and Medicine

Psychology and Law

Psychology and Society

Psychology of Peace and Conflict

Psychology and the Military

Psychology and Human Performance

Psychology and Philosophy

Cultural Psychology