II – Semester

Basic Psychological Processes – II
Number of Hours: 60
Number of Credits: 4

Course Objectives:
1. To understand further the fundamental processes underlying human behavior such as individual differences, personality and states of consciousness.
2. To understand the relationship between human brain and behavior.
3. Apply the principles of psychology in day-to-day life for a better understanding of themselves and others.

Unit - I: Biological Basis of Behavior (12 Hours)
Neurons and Neurotransmitters;
Nervous system: CNS - brain and spinal cord, PNS - somatic and autonomic - sympathetic and parasympathetic;
The Brain: central core/old brain, limbic system, and new brain /cerebral cortex, specialization of hemispheres;
The endocrine system: location and function of the major endocrine glands (any 3 glands).
Hormones and behaviours.

Unit - II: Sensation and Perception (12 Hours)
Definitions of sensation and perception;
The ABCs of sensation – sensory thresholds: difference threshold, absolute threshold, Weber’s law, sensor adaptation and integration;
The ABCs of perception – perceptual constancies: size, shape and brightness;
Gestalt laws of organization: figure-ground relationships - proximity, similarity, closure, continuity, simplicity, common fate, meaningfulness, common region;
Depth perception: monocular cues – linear perspective, relative size, overlap, ariel, texture gradient, motion parallax, accommodation, binocular cues: convergence, binocular disparity;
Perceptual illusions: vertical-horizontal illusion, Muller-Lyer Illusion, Phi-phenomenon.

Unit – III: Cognitive Processes (10 Hours)
Thinking: definition, basic elements of thought- concepts, propositions, images;
Reasoning: meaning, types- formal (syllogistic reasoning), everyday, deductive, inductive, dialectic.
Decision making: meaning, heuristics and their types; obstacles in decision making;
Problem solving: steps in problem solving, methods, creativity and problem solving;
The relationship between language and thought.

Unit - IV: Memory (12 Hours)
Definition; Basic processes of memory – encoding, storage, retrieval; Models of memory – Atkinson and Shiffrin Model – Sensory register (Iconic and Echoic), short-term memory, long-term memory, Baddeley’s Model – working memory: visuospatial sketchpad, central executive, phonological loop. 2. Craik and Lockhart – levels of processing; Forgetting – meaning, theories: decay and interference; Strategies to improve memory – Method of loci, chunking, key-word technique, pegging, association, imagery, encoding specificity, speed reading.

Unit - V: States of Consciousness (12 Hours)
Consciousness – meaning;
States of consciousness - sleep: circadian rhythms, importance of sleep, theories, stages of sleep;
Altered states of consciousness – hypnosis: effects of hypnosis, psychoactive drugs: physical and psychological dependence, stimulants, depressants and hallucinogens, meditation.

References:
1. Feldman, R. S. (2011). Understanding Psychology, 10th edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill.
2. Robert A Baron, Psychology. (2013). 6th Edition. New Delhi: Prentice Hall of India Pvt Ltd.
3. Ciccarelli & Meyer. Psychology. South Asian Edition. New Delhi: Pearson Longman.
4. Hilgard, Atkinson & Atkinson. (1999). Introduction to Psychology. Oxford: IBH Publishing Co. Pvt Ltd.
5. Wortman & Loftus. (1992), Psychology, 4th Edition. McGraw Hill International.
6. Morgan, King, Weiss & Schopler. Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Tata McGraw Hill, New Delhi.
7. Santrock, John W. (2011). Educational Psychology. 4th edition. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill Edition.

List of Practicals
1. Brain Dominance Inventory.
2. Muller-Lyer Illusion.
3. Creativity Test.
4. Meaning on Retention.
5. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI)

Statistics: SPSS - Graphs