PSYCHOLOGY SENIOR PROJECT

GENERAL INFORMATION:

All psychology majors are required to complete a senior project. The senior project takes one of three forms; Senior Thesis, Empirical Research Project, and Community Placement.  Each form is designed to help students develop skills that will serve them in their future use of their psychology degrees.

Seminar with theoretical paper: This seminar will meet once a week for 2 hours and will focus on the integration of multiple psychological perspectives around a common theme. Students will take the seminar for two semesters and will write a 10-12 page theoretical paper at the end of each semester. In this paper, students will examine seminar material via the theoretical lens of their own concentration area and their own topical interests. If a student would like to do a more comprehensive theoretical paper across the two semesters we will work with you to facilitate this option.

Empirical research: This is supervised empirical research leading to a journal quality paper. Students, in collaboration with a faculty supervisor, design a project, prepare an IRB as necessary, collect and analyze data, and write up a paper in a manner appropriate for a peer-reviewed journal. Examples of such research articles can be found in the Journal of Social Issues, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Developmental Psychology, Journal of Abnormal Psychology, Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, and Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. Students choosing this option are required to present a poster of their research during the second semester of their project.

Community Placement: This is a project completed in the community under the direct supervision of a Westminster faculty member. In addition to the service component, the project results in a final paper (e.g., grant/program application, critical summary) that is negotiated between the supervising faculty, the student, and the agency director. Note: It may be possible to combine empirical projects with placements.