Foundations of Psychology

Why are some people more reliable than others? Is intelligence heritable? Does violence on TV make children more aggressive? Why do some people believe in superstitions? Why do we remember some events in our life but forget others? Can media messages change people?s attitudes to smoking? What makes somebody practice the banjo for six hours a day? Why do some people report having been abducted by space aliens?
Psychology studies the processes taking place in the human mind and the factors that determine how people behave. As the science of mind and behaviour, psychology has found answers to many questions like the ones above, and produced new questions still open to inquiry. This course is an introduction to psychological science providing students with an overview of the key topics in contemporary research. The lectures cover the following major areas of psychology: (1) cognitive psychology, (2) developmental psychology, (3) social psychology, (4) personality and intelligence, and (5) psychopathology.

Corvinus University of Budapest awards credits based on the ECTS system (2 ECTS credits equals 1 U.S. credit therefore, 6 ECTS credits is equivalent to 3 U.S. credits). At Corvinus University of Budapest, all classes meet for a minimum of 180 minutes per week. Contact hours are calculated through a combination of lecture hours and outside activities which can include (workshops, seminars, fieldwork activities, guest lectures, and independent work) therefore, contact hours may vary on syllabi