Student Resources
Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS)
Provides students counseling, mental health support, and crisis assistance.
Location: Bird Building, Room 225
Hours: Monday – Friday, 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Main Phone / Crisis Line: 828-227-7469
Psychology Core Courses
PSY 150 - General Psychology
PSY 250 - Careers and Issues in Psychology
PSY 271 - Research Design and Data Analysis I
PSY 272 - Research Design and Data Analysis II
Correlation vs. Causation
Correlation is a statistical association or pattern where variables change together. Causation is a direct relationship where one variable makes the other happen.
Sigmund Freud
Austrian neurologist who founded psychoanalysis and transformed how the world understands the human mind
Psychosexual Stages of Development
The Unconscious Mind
Tripartite Structure of Personality (Id, Ego, Superego)
Stanford Prison Experiment
1971 psychological study on how social roles and environment affect human behavior.
Writing and Learning Commons (WaLC)
Free course tutoring, writing support, and academic skills development for WCU students
Primary Office: Belk Building, Room 207
Phone: 828-227-2274
Email: walc@wcu.edu
⏰ Operating Hours
• Monday – Thursday: 8:00 AM – 9:00 PM
• Friday: 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Advanced Elective
PSY 455 - History of Psychology
PSY 483 - Internship in Psychology
PSY 495 - Senior Seminar in Psychology
Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
Human motivation through a five-tier model:
1. Physiological
2. Safety and Security
3. Love and Belonging
4. Esteem
5. Self-Actualization
Ivan Pavlov
Russian physiologist best known for discovering classical conditioning and studying digestive processes.
Milgram Shock Experiment
It aimed to measure the willingness of ordinary people to obey an authority figure, even when instructed to perform acts that conflicted with their personal conscience.
Office of Accessibility Resources (OAR)
Provides campus-wide accessibility services and reasonable accommodations to ensure equal access for students with disabilities.
Location: Suite 137, Killian Annex, Cullowhee, NC 28723
Hours: Monday–Friday, 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Phone: 828-227-3886
Email: accessibility@wcu.edu
Developmental Processes
PSY 319 - Developmental Psychology: Lifespan
PSY 320 - Developmental Psychology: Childhood
PSY 322 - Developmental Psychology: Adolescence
PSY 325 - Developmental Psychology: Adulthood
Operant vs. Classical Conditioning
Classical Conditioning: You link a neutral stimulus (like a bell) with a natural stimulus (like food) until the neutral stimulus triggers the response on its own.
Operant Conditioning: You change how often a voluntary behavior happens by using reinforcement (to increase it) or punishment (to decrease it) after the action.
Mary Ainsworth
American-Canadian developmental psychologist who became a pioneer in attachment theory.
The Strange Situation
Attachment Styles
The Harlow Monkey Experiments
The baby monkeys were given a choice between two artificial "mothers" in their cages:
1. A wire mother equipped with a feeding bottle/tube that provided milk.
2. A cloth mother made of soft terry cloth that provided no food.
Homebase
A campus ministry and support program that provides spiritual, physical, and emotional resources, a safe place to build community, and assistance navigating college life
Food & Hygiene Pantry, Clothing Closet, Facility Access, Tech & Utilities, Laundry, and Housing Help.
Address: 82 Central Dr, Cullowhee, NC 28723
Hours:
• Monday – Thursday: 10:00 AM – 10:00 PM
• Friday: 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM
Biological Bases of Behavior
PSY 340 - Sensation and Perception
PSY 440 - Biological Psychology
PSY 445 - Social Neuroscience
PSY 448 - Human Neuropsychology
PSY 450 - Psychopharmacology
Mind-Body Problem
Monism vs. Dualism
The philosophical and scientific puzzle of how our mental states, thoughts, feelings, and consciousness relate to the physical matter of the brain and body.
Erik Erikson
German-American psychoanalyst and developmental psychologist who fundamentally shifted how the scientific community views human growth.
Eight Stages of Psychosocial Development
The "Identity Crisis"
Asch Conformity Experiments
The research tested how individuals are pressured to align with a group, even when the group's opinion is obviously wrong.
Erin Waddell
Assistant Director of Experiential Education and Liaison to the College of Education & Allied Professions and the College of Business
Email: ewaddell@wcu.edu
Applications in Psychology
PSY 363 - Behavioral Intervention
PSY 375 - Forensic Psychology
PSY 470 - Abnormal Psychology
PSY 474 - Child Psychopathology
PSY 475 - Introduction to Clinical and Counseling Psychology
Id, Ego, and Superego
Id: Primal Urge - demanding immediate gratification for basic biological needs and impulses (like hunger, thirst, or sexual drive) without caring about rules, logic, or consequences.
Ego: The Realistic Mediator - looks for safe, realistic, and socially acceptable ways to satisfy the id's desires while managing the strict rules of the superego.
Superego: The Moral Conscience - the moral and ethical component of the personality.
Elisabeth Kubler Ross
Swiss-American psychiatrist, humanitarian, and author who fundamentally revolutionized how the world approaches end-of-life care, grief, and thanatology.
Five Stages of Greif
Hospice Movement
Project Pigeon
(B.F. Skinner, 1940s)
During World War II, B.F. Skinner built a organic, biological missile guidance system where he placed trained pigeons inside the nose cone of a missile.
The nose cone featured a screen projecting the flight path. The pigeons were conditioned to aggressively peck at the center of the target on the screen to keep the missile on course.
They were surprisingly accurate.