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Running head: CURRICULUM STRUCTURE

A review of 500 college catalogs for 4 institutional types found the modal undergraduate psychology program follows the traditional model. It is taught in the liberal arts tradition as recommended by the St. Mary's Conference, balancing natural and social science content. The major typically requires 34 credits including introductory, statistics, and a capstone course (either a senior seminar/colloquium or history); at least one content course; and limited laboratory experience. It does not necessarily require the "integrative" capstone course nor psychometric methods courses recommended by the St. Mary's Conference. Prerequisites for methodology and capstone courses are limited.

The Structure of the Psychology Undergraduate Curriculum

Psychology has repeatedly studied its undergraduate curricular structure and focus over several decades (Brewer, 1997; McGovern, 1992). This work has looked at courses offered and required (Perlman & McCann, 1998, present recent data on courses offered), breadth (distributional models with courses chosen from broad topic areas), integration (knowledge synthesis), objectives (goals) for undergraduate education and how best to meet them (models). These extensive reports and articles provide the basis for understanding psychology's curricular history (Buxton et al., 1952, Cornell Conference Report; Cooney & Griffith, 1994; Kulik, 1973; McGovern, 1993, St. Mary's Conference, an American Psychological Association sponsored conference on undergraduate education in psychology with curriculum one of its major foci; McGovern, Furumoto, Halpern, Kimble, & McKeachie, 1991, Association of American Colleges Report; McKeachie & Milholland, 1961, Michigan Conference Report; Messer, Griggs, & Jackson, in press; Scheirer & Rogers, 1985). These studies describe the discipline's undergraduate educational goals, ideal curricula, and make recommendations and present data on program structure.

A new look at the content and structure of the undergraduate curriculum in psychology is overdue. Available data are too old to provide valid information to assist psychology departments in planning or revising curricula, retrenchment, or addressing the increasing emphasis on outcome evaluation. Current information on how curricula are structured and presented (a) redefines the curricular norm and (b) provides guidance about the content and unique identity of specific major programs. Our data expand on Cooney and Griffith (1994) and complement Messer, Griggs, and Jackson (in press).

One important aspect of curricular structure in the sciences (Committee on Undergraduate Science Education, 1997, p. 33) not previously studied in psychology is the pattern of prerequisites for certain core courses. Do departments with a "structured model" curriculum (Brewer et al., 1993) require prerequisites, and are these requirements sequenced? Such prerequisites allow instructors to expect student background in the subject matter, and the sequence structures the major.

Sample

We read 500 college catalogs using the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching taxonomy (Boyer, 1990): (a) Doctorate-Granting Institutions (Research Universities I & II, Doctoral Universities I & II; n = 236 nationally, sample = 133, 56%); (b) Master's (Comprehensive) Colleges and Universities (I & II; n = 529 nationally, sample = 133, 25%); (c) Baccalaureate Colleges (I & II; Liberal Arts; n = 637 nationally, sample = 134, 21%); and Associate of Arts Colleges (2-year institutions; n = 1,471 nationally, sample = 100, 7%). The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching (1994) provided the number of institutions nationally. This sample size approximately duplicates the past and current research of Scheirer and Rogers (1985, n = 400) and Messer, Griggs and Jackson (in press, n = 292) but was less than Kulik's (1973) sample of 1,120. We sought a sample large enough that data from each of four institutional types would generalize. To avoid possible interdisciplinary or other idiosyncracies, we sampled only those 4-year institutions with established psychology departments, not departments with other names such as "behavioral and/or social sciences" or "human development." Because 2-year colleges often do not have psychology departments, we included catalog data if they listed psychology courses.

Variables Studied

Variables studied included (a) degree options, (b) number of psychology credits required for a major, (c) required core courses (number of credits, laboratory or not, and level--first year through senior), (d) required capstone course, (e) courses with laboratory work, (f) departments requiring or recommending courses for majors outside the psychology curriculum, (g) prerequisite courses for St. Mary's "core" courses (statistics, research design, psychometric methods, experimental, and capstone), (h) presence of a distributional model for the major (e.g., choose "n" courses from "x" number of subdiscipline areas; with number of options, titles, number of courses offered and required in each option, and (i) curricular models followed (traditional, hourglass, flexible, or thematic). We defined a course as a "capstone" experience only if the catalog course description mentioned an "integrative" or "capstone" experience.

The "traditional" or "structured" curriculum (Buxton et al., 1952; McGovern, 1993; McGovern et al., 1991; McKeachie & Milholland, 1961) is one in which students build ability and knowledge from a single semester introductory course, followed by core courses, elementary special-interest courses from across the discipline, and advanced and integrative courses (capstone experience). It also is called the "inverted pyramid" (McKeachie & Milholland, 1961) because introductory is the tip of the pyramid that forms the basis for statistics and other mid-level required core courses, with a wide array of courses taken the last two years.

The "hourglass" curriculum (McKeachie & Milholland, 1961) starts (full year introductory course) and ends with a thorough survey, with specialization at the intermediate level lessening the need for a large number of required advanced courses. The "flexible curriculum" (McKeachie & Milholland, 1961) has no required common core or course prerequisites, and students, with faculty advising, design a major to meet their educational goals.

Lastly, a "thematic major" (McGovern et al., 1991) has sequences beginning with a survey course in the thematic sub-discipline area (e.g., developmental, biological, and health). These courses are typically followed by methods, survey, and specialized courses, some with laboratory, in the thematic knowledge base, a senior capstone course, and electives.

Procedure

We studied the general BA and BS psychology major, excluding other major tracks. The data source was the continuously updated on-line college catalog collection "CollegeSource" (Career Guidance Foundation, 1997). Almost all catalogs were 1996-97. We sampled every 10th institution until data collection was complete. Using catalogs has two advantages: (a) return rate is 100% and (b) we did not rely on respondent's memory or interpretation. We combined similar course titles whenever they appeared to differ only semantically. We converted quarter (n = 38, 10%) and trimester (n = 11, 3%) calendar systems to semester equivalents (3-credit trimester or quarter course equals 2-credit semester course). All data exclude 2-year schools, unless otherwise specified.

Type of Degree and Credits for the Bachelor's Degree Major

Psychology majors can choose a BA or BS degree (n = 184, 46%), can graduate with a BA (n = 178, 45%), but rarely only a BS (n = 38, 10%). The BA and BS usually differ only slightly (Messer, Griggs, & Jackson, in press; Perlman & McCann, 1993). The mean number of psychology credits required for a major is 33.5 (SD = 7.8, median = 33, mode = 30, range = 7 to 81). This requirement exceeds the 28 credits Kulik (1973) reported but is similar to the number of credits reported by Messer, Griggs, and Jackson (in press) for the General (34.1) or BS (36.5) option, and to the 9 to 12 courses reported by Scheirer and Rogers (1985).

Required Core

Table 1 presents required courses for majors, the number of departments requiring each, course level (i.e., first year, sophomore, junior, or senior), and laboratory courses. Average required credits for listed courses range between 3.1 and 3.5. The St. Mary's conference recommended core is frequently required in the typical psychology curricula. The courses in this core are introductory, methodology courses (statistics, research methods, psychometric methods), experimental, content, and integrative capstone. The St. Mary's Conference (Brewer et al., 1993) defined psychometric methods as a tests, measurement, and analysis of behavior course.

It is difficult to compare department requirements for these courses with the data of Messer, Griggs, and Jackson (in press) who presented courses required by various degree options, but it appears they found greater requirements of statistics and methods than we did. Methodological differences in data collection may explain these discrepancies and seem to account for distinct findings on required integrative capstone experiences. We report 63% of departments requiring such courses whereas Messer (1997) and Messer, Griggs, and Jackson (in press) found that degree options require an average of .96 and .97 integrative experiences respectively. The Messer research defined integrative by course title (e.g., history and systems, internships, research projects, and senior seminars) whereas we considered a course integrative only if a catalog course description specifically described it as such.

After the required courses of introductory, statistics, and a capstone, there is little agreement about what other courses should be required in an undergraduate major (the "core"). Research methods and experimental are often required, and popular required content areas include personality, abnormal, learning, physiological/biological, and developmental. Data about course levels reveal no surprises.

In addition, 305 departments required (n = 209, 52%) or recommended (n = 96, 24%) certain courses from other departments. We hypothesize that many more departments not listing such recommendations in their catalog entries make them through their written or electronic materials or via student advising. Scheirer and Rogers (1985) reported that 78% of 4-year schools recommended such courses.

Baccalaureate Colleges (82%) and Comprehensive Institutions (77%) were about equally likely to require an integrative capstone course or experience, but only 37 departments (28%) in Doctoral Institutions did so. Doctoral Institutions (65%) were more likely to require statistics than Comprehensive Schools (59%) or Baccalaureate Colleges (49%). Interestingly, Doctoral Schools (3%) were less likely to require the course tests and measurement (psychometric methods) than were Comprehensive Institutions or Baccalaureate Colleges (11% and 13%, respectively).

Laboratory Work

Table 1 also displays laboratory opportunities as part of courses, whether required or elective. Laboratory courses average 3.1 to 3.6 credits. Departments in Doctoral Institutions were more likely to have laboratory offerings. A laboratory as part of statistics was more common in Doctoral Universities (n = 27) than in Comprehensive or Baccalaureate Schools (n = 14 and 8, respectively). Laboratories were most frequently found as part of methodology and statistics (statistics, research methods, experimental) or in experimental content areas (learning, physiological/biological, sensation and perception). A note of caution: Some catalog entries were unclear, making it hard to identify all courses with laboratory experience; these data may underestimate the laboratory work available.

Cooney and Griffith (1994) reported that 72% of 4-year schools required an experience with labs or structured research, up substantially from Kulik's (1973) finding of 25%. We found that laboratory experiences were not integral to most required core courses for the major (as did Messer, Griggs, & Jackson, in press) and were limited primarily to experimental, supporting Kulik's (1973) finding. Even elective courses offering labs were limited in number. Laboratory experiences, required or not, were offered from the sophomore to senior levels.

Capstone Courses

Integrative capstone courses were required by 250 (63%) departments. Of those, 14 departments in Baccalaureate Colleges (15%) allowed students to choose among various options whereas 21 Comprehensive Schools (25%) and 6 Doctoral Institutions (19%) did so. The most frequently required capstone courses were a senior seminar/colloquium (n, = 80, 32% of 250); a combination, typically of history (and systems) with another requirement such as senior status (n = 57, 23%); history (and systems, n = 40, 16%); or some type of applied internship, practicum or field experience (n = 33, 13%). Less frequently required capstone experiences were a senior research seminar/project (n = 13, 5%), content courses (e.g., personality, clinical, abnormal, experimental, human psychological development, n = 7, 3%), comprehensive exams (n = 6, 2%), or other (n = 14, 6%, e.g., any upper level course, independent study, interdisciplinary workshop, GRE exam, senior integrative paper).

Prerequisites

We identified prerequisites for each of the five courses recommended as part of a core in undergraduate psychology (Brewer et al., 1993, See Table 2). We conclude that almost all departments offering statistics, research (experimental) methods, tests and measurement (psychometric methods), and experimental required prerequisites. A combination of introductory plus statistics is the most common prerequisite for research methods, tests and measurement, and experimental. We did not tally prerequisites for other required courses in subdiscipline areas (e.g., personality, abnormal, learning, and social).

Distributional Model

One way to structure and ensure curricular breadth is to require psychology majors to take courses from different content areas (see Table 3). One hundred sixty-two departments (41%) require courses from subdisciplinary groups. Typically (72%) a department had 2 or 3 such groupings, generally broad in scope, with numerous courses from which students select a few. In addition to the groupings in this table, departments listed 68 other options in virtually every permutation and combination imaginable.

Curricular Models

The inverted pyramid, the traditional (structured) model with a final broad overview, was the most popular structure (n = 192, 48%). An inverted pyramid without the integrative capstone was offered by an additional 161 departments (40%), 37 (9%) offered an hourglass, and 10 (3%) offered a flexible curriculum. Seven departments (2%) offered thematic majors. Some departments (n = 30) allowed students more flexibility within the inverted pyramid (with or without a capstone course). Institutional differences appeared with only 30 (16%) Doctoral Institutions offering an inverted pyramid with integrative capstone, whereas 93 (23%) Doctoral Institutions have all of its elements except an integrative capstone course.

Associate of Arts Colleges

A psychology emphasis was offered at 40 of the 100 2-year schools in our sample, requiring an average of 13 credits (SD = 6.2, median = 13, range = 3 to 30). Laboratory courses were offered by 21 schools (experimental = 6, research methods = 4, statistics = 3, other = 8) with 62% of these (n = 13) at the sophomore level, for an average of 3.4 credits (SD = .97). The laboratory experience at a 2-year school may be missed by many students; only 7 require it for a psychology emphasis. Introductory (74%, n = 31) was typically the prerequisite for advanced courses (e.g., statistics, experimental, research methods).

The traditional model predominates in the current psychology major, structured with a beginning and middle, but not always an end. An integrative capstone experience is not yet standard, especially at Doctoral Institutions. After examining the required core, we conclude that the scientist (methodology, statistics, experimental) and humanist (personality, abnormal, developmental) curricular dimensions remain in balance. Traditionalism also is seen in the remarkably homogenous course credits, almost all courses are 3 or 4 credits, including those with laboratories. But an undergraduate education in psychology is best characterized as diversity within a traditional structure. There is great variation from department to department. The imagination, nuances, subtleties, and idiosyncracies in many departments' curricula--and abbreviated in this article--must be read to be appreciated.

"The fundamental goal of education in psychology, from which all the others follow, is to teach students to think as scientists about behavior" (Brewer et al., 1993, p. 168). Although prescription of courses is present to a degree, one constant is a relative lack of required or elective laboratory experience for the undergraduate major. We estimate that psychology majors take an average of only two courses with laboratories. Many departments may have fiscal or staffing problems in setting up and maintaining laboratories. In addition, some faculty members argue that (a) mindless laboratory work is not good education, and (b) students can learn to think as scientists in non-laboratory settings. Nonetheless, those psychologists interested in their discipline's models of undergraduate education may ask whether the highest-rated faculty expectation for students, learning the scientific principles of behavior (McGovern & Hawks, 1986), takes place often enough by "doing" in the laboratory.

Distributional models reflect departments' efforts to require breadth. The most common model of the 162 departments with distributional models (n = 102 departments, 63%) found the course groups untitled with, on average, 1.6 courses required from a group of 11. Such distributional groups do little to structure or focus curricula. More specific subdisciplinary groups (e.g., Biological, Social, Cognitive, Abnormal/Personality) requiring a choice of 1 or 2 courses from about 5 better meets the goal of breadth because students must take courses in a variety of subdisciplinary areas.

The curriculum often approximates the St. Mary's Conference recommendations (Brewer et al., 1993). But departments often fail to require either psychometric methods (tests, measurement, and behavioral assessment) or an integrative capstone course. Daniel, Dunham, and Morris (1965) reported many departments were not meeting curricular conference recommendations for a senior integrative course, and this problem remains current. Laboratories are not as evident as one would expect, and a senior capstone experience is relatively rare in Doctoral Institutions. We suspect there is room for improvement in methodological competence (psychometric methods) and laboratory work, one component of the principles of a quality undergraduate psychology program (McGovern & Reich, 1996).

Prerequisites are common for the methodological core courses recommended by the St. Mary's Conference. But do courses, which theoretically build on one another, actually do so? Our experiences and discussions with colleagues lead us to suspect that psychology can do better in systematically and sequentially increasing the complexity and nature of its core material for students. The limited prerequisites for experimental (30% of departments require introductory, 7% statistics, 8% design) are one example, and the fact that 30% of integrative capstone courses require no prerequisites is another.

Future research could study what courses outside psychology are recommended for majors; data on academic minors recommended for psychology majors may be a starting point (Stache, Perlman, McCann & McFadden, 1994). A second area of future research is the types of experiences majors have in laboratory courses and the nature of their laboratory work. Unfortunately we did not learn to what extent departments combine statistics and methodology into one course; this combination could be a curricular trend and data on the question would be useful. A fourth need is to learn how senior or capstone courses actually integrate the undergraduate major experience.

We offer a brief caveat. We gently urge our colleagues to read their institutional catalog entries from a student's perspective. Many entries would benefit from greater clarity, detail, and explanation. It would be especially helpful to (a) find more specificity of subdiscipline distributional titles and (b) clearly identify laboratory and capstone (integrative) courses by title or course description.

We conclude that the Cornell report's emphasis on teaching psychology as a scientific discipline in the liberal arts tradition remains current (Buxton et al., 1952). The required core as recommended by the St. Mary's report (Brewer et al., 1993) as implemented by departments seems to cover "both natural science and social science aspects of psychology" (p. 439).

Tables

Boyer, E. L. (1990). Scholarship reconsidered: Priorities of the professoriate. Princeton, NJ: Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

Brewer, C. L. (1997). Undergraduate education in psychology: Will the mermaids sing? American Psychologist, 52, 434-441.

Brewer, C. L., Hopkins, J. R., Kimble, G. A., Matlin, M. W., McCann, L. I., McNeil, O. V., Nodine, B. F., Quinn, V. N., & Saundra. (1993). Curriculum. In T. V. McGovern, (Ed.), Handbook for enhancing undergraduate education in psychology (pp. 161-182). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Buxton, C. E., Cofer, C. N., Gustad, J. W., MacLeod, R. B., McKeachie, W. J., & Wolfe, D. (1952). Improving undergraduate instruction in psychology. New York: Macmillan.

Career Guidance Foundation. (1997). CollegeSource. San Diego, CA: Author.

Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching (1994). Table 4: Enrollment in institutions of higher education and number of institutions, by type and control: 1994. Retrieved November 1, 1997 from the World Wide Web: http://www.carnegiefoundation.org/cihe/table4.htm

Committee on Undergraduate Science Education. (1997). Science teaching reconsidered: A handbook. Washington, DC: National Academy Press. (2101 Constitution Avenue, NW, Lock Box 285, Washington, DC 20055, 1-800-624-6242. Available on-line at http://www.nap.edu)

Cooney, B. R., & Griffith, D. M. (1994). The 1992-1993 undergraduate department survey. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Daniel, R. S., Dunham, P. J., & Morris, C. J., Jr. (1965). Undergraduate courses in psychology; 14 years later. The Psychological Record, 15, 25-31.

Kulik, J. A. (1973). Undergraduate education in psychology. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

McGovern, T. V. (1992). Evolution of undergraduate curricula in psychology, 1892-1992. In A. E. Puente, J. R. Matthews, & C. L. Brewer (Eds.), Teaching psychology in America: A history (pp. 13-38). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

McGovern, T. V. (Ed.). (1993). Handbook for enhancing undergraduate education in psychology. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

McGovern, T. V., Furumoto, L., Halpern, D. F., Kimble, G. A., & McKeachie, W. J. (1991). Liberal education, study in depth, and the arts and sciences major--psychology. American Psychologist, 46, 598-605.

McGovern, T. V., & Hawks, B. K. (1986). The varieties of undergraduate experience. Teaching of Psychology, 13, 174-181.

McGovern, T. V., & Reich, J. N. (1996). A comment on the Quality Principles. American Psychologist, 51, 252-255.

McKeachie, W. J., & Milholland, J. E. (1961). Undergraduate curricula in psychology. Chicago: Scott, Foresman.

Messer, W. (1997). Undergraduate psychology curricula in North Carolina. Teaching of Psychology 24, 127-130.

Messer, W., Griggs, R. A., & Jackson, S. L. (in press). A national survey of undergraduate psychology degree options and major requirements. Teaching of Psychology.

Perlman, B., & McCann, L. I. (1993). The place of mathematics and science in undergraduate psychology education. Teaching of Psychology, 20, 205-208.

Perlman, B., & McCann, L. I. (1998). The most frequently listed courses in the undergraduate psychology curriculum. Manuscript submitted for publication.

Scheirer, C. J., & Rogers, A. M. (1985). The undergraduate psychology curriculum: 1984. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Stache, C., Perlman, B., McCann, L., & McFadden, S. (1994). A national survey of the academic minor and psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 21, 69-74.

Notes
1. We acknowledge grant support from the APA Education Directorate and the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Faculty Development Program (Grant R518). Marcy Lemieux, Robert Koumal, and Nathaniel H. Perlman assisted with data collection and analysis. Thanks to Charles Brewer, James Korn, and Thomas McGovern for their insights and to Jill Reich for her support and assistance.

2. This article is based on a poster presented at the meeting of the APA, August 1998, San Francisco, CA.

3. Send correspondence concerning this article to Baron Perlman, Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, Oshkosh, WI 54901; e-mail: Perlman@uwosh.edu. Tables with detailed data for the different institutional types are available from the authors.

Table 1 Courses Required for an Undergraduate Major and Laboratory Offerings Available	Table 12 Laboratory Courses by Institutional Type
Table 2 Prerequisites for Select Core Courses	Table 13 Prerequisites for Statistics by Institutional Type
Table 3	Table 14 Prerequisites for Experimental Design by Institutional Type
Table 4 Type of Institution and Degree Types Offered For Psychology Majors	Table 15 Prerequisites for Tests and Measurement by Institutional Type
Table 5 Type of Institution and Number of Credits for a Psychology Major	Table 16 Prerequisites for Experimental by Institutional Type
Table 6 Courses Outside of Psychology Required and Recommended for Psychology Majors by Institutional Type	Table 17 Prerequisites for Capstone by Institutional Type
Table 7 Calendar System and Type of Institution	Table 18 Titles of Distributional Course Groups for the Major for All Institutional Types
Table 8 Major Core Requirements by Institutional Type	Table 19 Required Courses By Institutional Type
Table 9 Courses With Laboratory Experiences by Institutional Type	Table 20 Courses Required Only By Baccalaureate Colleges
Table 10 Level of Required Core Courses by Institutional Type	Table 21 Courses Required Only By Comprehensive Universities
Table 11 Required Capstone Courses by Institutional Type	Table 22 Courses Required Only By Doctoral Universities

Table 1

Courses Required for an Undergraduate Major and Laboratory Offerings Available^a

Course	N (%)	Levelb (%)	Laboratory Experiences
				N (%)c
Introductory	372	(93)	F (86)	21 (5)
Capstoned	250	(63)	SR (80)	2 (1)
Statistics	231	(58)	S (51) FS,SJ (18)	49 (12)
Research Methods	161	(40)	S,J (80)	69 (17)
Experimental	150	(38)	S,J (85)	92 (23)
Personality	99	(25)	J,SR (58)
Abnormal	87	(22)	J,SR (80)	3 (1)
Learninge	86	(22)	S (30) J,SR (57)	57 (14)
Physiological or Biologicalf	84	(21)	J,SR (51)	66 (17)
Developmentalg	75	(19)	S,J (75)	15 (4)
Social	69	(17)	S,J (72)	27 (7)
History (and Systems)h	64	(16)	J,SR (93)
Psychometric Methodsi	37	(9)	J (43)	17 (4)
Cognitive	35	(9)	S,J (77)	33 (8)
Counselingj	33	(8)	J,SR (89)	4 (1)
Childk	32	(8)	F,S (55)	4 (1)
Experimental Design	27	(7)	S,J (67)	10 (3)
Sensation and Perception	16	(4)	J,SR (94)	55 (14)

a The first column (N, %) lists required courses. The laboratory course column
sp(N, %) lists number of courses, required or not, with a laboratory experience for students.

b F = Freshman, S = Sophomore, J = Junior, SR = Senior, FS = First or Second Year,
spSJ = Second or Third Year. Not all catalogs list course level. N may vary from number
spof departments requiring the course, % computed for number of departments listing course level.

c 400 departments.

d At 20% (n = 41) of departments with a required capstone, students can choose among courses.

e Learning, Learning and Memory, Learning and Motivation.

f Physiological, Biological, Neuropsychology, Neuroscience.

g Life span or human growth course.

h Not a capstone experience.

i Tests, measurement, and analysis of behavior.

j Counseling, Counseling and Clinical, Therapy.

k Infant and Child, Child, Child and Adolescent

Table 2

Prerequisites for Select Core Courses^abc

			Course
	Statistics	Design	Psychometric Methods	Experimental	Capstoned
Prerequisite	N (%)	N (%)	N (%)	N (%)	N (%)
Yes	176 (75)	191 (92)	226 (96)	232 (100)	162 (70)
Introductory	160 (68)	69 (33)	66 (28)	68 (30)	18 (8)
Statistics		27 (13)	19 (8)	17 (7)
Design	1	2 (1)	11 (5)	18 (8)
Psychometric Methods					1
Experimental	1	3 (1)	3 (1)		1
Class Rank			3 (1)	1	63 (27)
Combinatione	11 (5)	81 (39)	117 (50)	121 (52)	70 (30)
Unspecified	3	9	7	7	9

a In a subsample of 100 of each type of institution (Perlman & McCann, 1998), Statistics was
spoffered by 59% of the departments, Design (52%), Tests and Measurement (59%), and
spExperimental (56%). Percentages are the ratio of number of departments having a prerequisite
spto expected number (of 400) offering the course.

b Psychometric Methods contains tests, measurement, and analysis of behavior. Design is
sp(Experimental) Design.

Table 3

Distributional Groups of Courses for the Major

Group Title	Number of Depts.	Courses in Group To Choose From	Required Courses
		M (SD)	M (SD)
Group (Untitled)a	102	11 (1.9)	1.6 (.69)
Socialb	35	5.5 (.7)	1.4 (.5)
Abnormal/Personalty/Clinical/Applied	32	5.9 (2.7)	1.7 (1.3)
Biological, Physiological,Neuroscience	30	5.5 (3.2)	1.6 (1.2)
Cognitive	20	5.2 (2.7)	1.4 (.58)
Developmental	15	5.1 (2.8)	2.1 (1.5)
BA	13	14.2 (13.6)	8.6 (3.7)
Experimental	9	5.3 (1.9)	1.2 (.67)
BS	7	14.3 (9.6)	9.7 (4.2)

a 8 (8%) have one group, 73 (72%) have 2 or 3 groups, 21 (21%) have 4 or more groups.

b Social, Social-Developmental, Social-Personality.

Table 4

Type of Institution^a and Degree Types Offered For Psychology Majors

	Baccalaureate	Comprehensive	Doctoral
	n	n	n	Total %
Degree Type
BA	65	61	52	45
BS	8	15	8	8
Both	61	57	66	46

a 134 Baccalaureate Colleges, 133 Comprehensive Universities and
sp133 Doctoral Universities.

Table 5

Type of Institution^a and Number of Credits for a Psychology Major

	Baccalaureate	Comprehensive	Doctoral
	n	n	n	Total %
# Credits
Under 25	23	8	17	12
25-30	29	33	43	26
31-36	43	52	47	36
37+	39	40	26	26

a 134 Baccalaureate Colleges, 133 Comprehensive Universities and
133 Doctoral Universities.

Table 6

Courses Outside of Psychology Required and Recommended for Psychology
Majors by Institutional Type^a

	Baccalaureate	Comprehensive	Doctoral
	n	n	n	Total %
Require Courses	67	67	75	52
Recommend Courses	33	28	35	24

a 134 Baccalaureate Colleges, 133 Comprehensive Universities and
sp133 Doctoral Universities.

Table 7

Calendar System and Type of Institution^a 

	Baccalaureate	Comprehensive	Doctoral
	n	n	n	Total %
System
Not Specified	6	2	2	3
Semester	115	117	109	85
Quarters	7	12	19	10
Tri-Mester	6	2	3	3

a 134 Baccalaureate Colleges, 133 Comprehensive Universities and
sp133 Doctoral Universities.

Table 8

Major Core Requirements by Institutional Type^a

	Baccalaureate	Comprehensive	Doctoral
	n	n	n	Total %
Course Required
Introductory	125	122	125	93
Statistics	65	79	87	58
Research Methods	56	54	51	40
Experimental Design	10	9	8	7
Experimental	52	57	41	38
Tests and Measurementb	18	15	4	9
Capstonec	110	103	37	52

a 134 Baccalaureate Colleges, 133 Comprehensive Universities and
sp133 Doctoral Universities.

b A Psychometric Methods course.

c Courses are placed in the capstone category only when the catalog course
spdescription mentions an integrative or capstone experience.

Table 9

Courses With Laboratory Experiences by Institutional Type^a

	Baccalaureate	Comprehensive	Doctoral
	n	n	n	% of 400 Schools
Course
Experimental	29	33	30	23
Research Methods	22	20	27	17
Biological	10	21	35	17
Learning	18	13	26	14
Sensation and Perception	13	9	33	14
Statistics	8	14	27	12
Cognitive	10	3	20	8
Social	5	6	16	7
Introductory	9	3	9	5
Tests and Measurementb	3	8	6	4
Experimental Design	4	4	2	3
Developmental
Research Methods	1	2	2	2
Abnormal	2		1	1
Capstone	1	1		1
Counseling	2	1	1	1
Child			4	1
History (and Systems)
Personality
Physiologicalc
Memory & Cognition	2	4	1	2
Motivation & Emotion	1	2	1	1
Personality Assessment	3		2	1
Clinical/Social Research	4		2	2
Industrial/Organizational	1		3	1
Development Education	1
Human Factors	1
Research Design and Analysis	1
Advanced Experimental		1
Advanced Research Methods		1
Comparative		2		1
Contemporary Problems		1
Environmental		1
Intro to Computers,Computers in Psychology		2		1
Adult and Aging			1
Behavior and Alcohol Labs			1
Behavior Analysis			1
Behavioral Medicine			1
Human Performance			1
Interviewing			1
Mammalian Systems			1
News Psychology			1
Vocational			1

a 134 Baccalaureate Colleges, 133 Comprehensive Universities and
sp133 Doctoral Universities.

b A Psychometric Methods course.

c Labs included with Biological.

Table 10

Level of Required Core Courses by Institutional Type^a

	Baccalaureate	Comprehensive	Doctoral
	n	n	n	Total %
Course
Introductory
(n = 355)
F	103	106	109	90
S	2	2	3	2
F,S	12	8	10	8
Statistics
(n = 204)
F	4	2	3	4
S	32	40	46	58
F,S	7	6	7	10
S,J	7	9	6	11
J,SR	4	10	21	17
Research Methods
(n = 141)
S	18	17	20	39
J	13	10	20	30
S,J	10	14	6	21
J,SR	3	6		6
F,S	2	1	1	3
Experimental Design
(n = 24)
F			1	4
S	3	2	4	38
J	1	3	1	21
S,J	1	2	1	17
J,SR	3	1	1	21
Experimental
(n = 136)
F		2		1
S	9	13	9	23
F,S	1		1	1
J	18	24	13	40
S,J	15	4	13	24
J,SR	6	7	1	10
Tests and Measurementb
(n = 29)
S	2	4		21
J	9	6	1	55
SR	4		2	21
F,S			1	3
Capstonec
(n = 250)
SR	97	93	35	90
J,SR	11	6	1	6
S,J	2	4	1	4

a F = Freshman, S = Sophomore, J = Junior, SR = Senior.

b A Psychometric Methods course.

c Courses are placed in the capstone category only when the catalog course
spdescription mentions an integrative or capstone experience.

Table 11

Required Capstone^a Courses by Institutional Type^b

	Baccalaureate	Comprehensive	Doctoral
	n	n	n	%
Course
None Required	24	30	96	38c
Senior Seminar/Colloquium	31	27	10	27d
Combination	26	23	8	23
Historical	11	20	9	16
Internship/Field Experience/Practicum (and Seminar)	15	15	3	13
Research Project/Seminar	8	1	4	5
Senior Colloquium/Seminar	5	5	2	5
Content Courses	2	4	1	3
Comprehensive Exam	4	2		2
Other	8	6		6

a Courses are placed in the capstone category only when the catalog course
spdescription mentions an integrative or capstone experience.

b 134 Baccalaureate Colleges, 133 Comprehensive Universities and
sp133 Doctoral Universities.

c Based on 400 institutions.

d Percentages for Capstone Alternatives are based on the number of institutions requiring a capstone, n = 250

Table 12

Laboratory Courses by Institutional Type^a

	Baccalaureate	Comprehensive	Doctoral
	n	n	n	Total %
Course
Biological/Physiological	17	17	32	17
Experimental (not required core)	5	10	17	8
Learning	18	20	26	14
Sensation/Perception	13	9	33	14
Statistics (not required core)		2	4	2
Other	27	26	57	28

a 134 Baccalaureate Colleges, 133 Comprehensive Universities and 133 Doctoral Universities.

Table 13

Prerequisites (n = 177 departments) for Statistics by Institutional Type

 

	Baccalaureate	Comprehensive	Doctoral
	n	n	n	%
Course
Introductory	39	54	67	91
Other (Class Rank, Experimental, Exp Design)	1	2	2	3
Combinationa	5	4	2	6
Science of Psychology			1

a Any two of the above serve as prerequisites.

Table 14

Prerequisites (n = 203 departments) for Experimental Design by Institutional Type

	Baccalaureate	Comprehensive	Doctoral
	n	n	n	%
Course
Introductory	22	20	27	34
Statistics
Other (e.g.,Class Rank, Experimental)	5	7	2	7
Combinationa	28	22	31	40
Any Psychology Course	1
Biological			2	1
Cognitive	1
Educational			1
Freshmen Elective	1
Instructor's Consent			1
Learning	1
Life Development	1
Natural Science	1
Science of Psych	1		1	1

a Any two of the above serve as prerequisites, usually Introductory and Statistics.

Table 15

Prerequisites (n = 244 departments) for Tests and Measurement^a by Institutional Type

	Baccalaureate	Comprehensive	Doctoral
	n	n	n	%
Course
Introductory	27	24	15	27
Statistics	3	7	9	8
Other (e.g.,Class Rank, Experimental Exp. Design)	8	8	8	10
Combinationb	36	36	45	48
Abnormal		3		1
Advanced Statistics/ Research Methods		1	1	1
Biological	2		1	1
Clinical			1
Computers	1
Learning		1
Life Development			1
Personality	2	1	1	2
Social			1

a A Psychometric Methods Course.

b Any two of the above serve as prerequisites, usually Introductory and Statistics.

Table 16

Prerequisites (n = 241 departments) for Experimental by Institutional Type

	Baccalaureate	Comprehensive	Doctoral
	n	n	n	%
Course
Introductory	20	27	21	28
Statistics	2	10	5	7
Experimental Design	4	9	5	7
Other	3	3	2	3
Combinationa	40	40	41	50
Advanced Statistics/ Research Methods	2
Cognitive	1
Computers	1
Instructor's Consent			1
Learning		1
Math		1
Physiological		1
Social			1

a Any two of the above serve as prerequisites, usually Introductory and Statistics.

Table 17

Prerequisites (n = 184 departments) for Capstone^a by Institutional Type

	Baccalaureate	Comprehensive	Doctoral
	n	n	n	%
Course
Introductory	5	12	1	10
Class Rank	26	31	6	34
Experimental Advanced Stat	5	5	2	7
Combinationb	30	32	8	38
Abnormal	1	1		1
Biological	1
Counseling	1			2
Foundations of Internship	1
History	1
Instructor's Consent	1
Laboratory at Junior Level and Other Credits	1
Learning	4	1		3
Memory & Cognition			1
Natural Science	1
Personality	1
Physiological		2		1
Senior Seminar/Project	1	1		1

a Courses are placed in the capstone category only when the catalog course description
spmentions an integrative or capstone experience.

b Any two of the above serve as prerequisites, usually Introductory and Class Rank.

Table 18

Titles of Distributional Course Groups for the Major for All Institutional Types

 

	# of Depts.	Courses in Group To Choose From	Courses Required
		M	M
Group Title
Addiction/Counselin	1	13	13
Adjustment	1	7	2
Applied Experimental	1	6	1
Applied Research	1	3	1
Assessment	1	2	1
Athletic Training	1		10
Basic Processes	1	7	1
Basic Psychology	2	7	4
Behavior Analysis	1	14	1
Biotropic	1	4	1
Complex Human Behavior	1	5	1
Counseling	1	4	4
Criminal Justice	2	12	7
Cultural Diversity	2		1
Developmental Education	1	11	1
Early Childhood Education	1	12	3
Educational	2	7	6
Elementary Education	1	12	3
Experience Core	1	2	1
Experimental Theoretical	1	8	2
Forensic	1	4	2
Foundations	1	6	1
Fundamental Processes	1	4	1
General	2	7	1
Graduate School Preparation	1	8	5
History/Systems	2	7	2
Human Factors	1	4	4
Human Services	1	6	2
Individual	1	6	3
Individual Differences	1	3	1
Individual Situation and Psychology of Health	1	5	2
Industrial	2	8	3
Integrated (Theory)	2	11	2
Laboratory Courses	3	6	2
Learning	2	3	1
Learning/Historical	1	3	1
Learning/Physiological	1	3	1
Life Oriented	1	24	15
Major	4	17	11
Marriage and Family	1	8	5
Natural Science	6	5	2
Normal/Abnormal	1	3	1
Perception/Cognition	1	7	6
Phenomenological	1	7	1
Professional	1	24	14
Psychology as Empirical Science	1	7	2
Public Opinion	1	5	1
Quantitative/Psychometrics	2	5	1
Research	1	4
Research/Internship	1	4	1
Research Methods/Design	5	4	2
Seminars	1	23	2
Social Clinical	1	5	1
Social Science	5	5	2
Sociocultural	1	6	2
Sociotropic	1	3	1
Specialized Inquiries	1	18	2
Standard Major	1	20	13
Survey Courses	2	7	3
Theory	2	7	1
Theoretical/Philosophical	1	5	2

Table 19

Required Courses By Institutional Type

	Baccalaureate (N = 134)	Comprehensive (N = 133)	Doctoral (N = 133)
Course Abnormal Advanced Introductory Advanced Research Methods Advanced Research Seminar Advanced Statistics Biologicalc Capstoned Childe Cognitive Experimental Experimental Design History and Systemsf Human Growth/Development Introductory Learningg Personality Physiological Psychology as Social Science Psychometric Methodsh Research Methods Research Project Sensation/Perception Social Statistics Testing Adult Development/Aging Advanced Experimental Applied Bases of Mind and Behavior Computers in Psychology Counselingi Educational Effective Behavior Ethics Independent Study Motivation Personal Adjustment/Growth Psychology and Christianity Sexuality Writing Interpersonal Careers in Psychology Contemporary Issues/Topics Freshmen Seminar 1 (1) F Junior Seminar Psychology as Natural Science	n (%) Levela % 37 (28) J,SR(74) 8 (6) F,S (86) 8 (6) S,J (71) 2 (1) SR (100) 2 (1) J (100) 8 (6) J,SR(75) 110 (82) SR (82) 20 (15) F,S (53) 10 (7) S,J (78) 52 (39) S,J (81) 10 (7) S,J (50) 26 (19) J,SR(82) 32 (24) S,J (83) 125 (93) F (86) 33 (25) J,SR(61) 40 (30) J,SR(57) 13 (10) J,SR(67) 2 (1) F (100) 18 (13) J (50) 56 (42) S,J (73) 2 (1) J,SR(100) 7 (5) J,SR(96) 28 (21) S,J (76) 65 (49) S,J (89) 3 (2) J,SR(100) 4 (3) S,J(100) 3 (2) S,J (67) 4 (3) F (100) 1 (1) 2 (1) S (100) 19 (14) J,SR(100) 1 (1) J 1 (1) F,S 1 (1) S 1 (1) S 2 (1) J,SR(100) 5 (4) F,S (80) 1 (1) J 1 (1) S,J 1 (1) F 1 (1) F 1 (1) F 3 (2) S,J (100) 1 (1) F 1 (1) J 1 (1) S	n (%)b Level % 40 (30) J,SR(79) 12 (9) F,S(100) 6 (4) S,J (67) 4 (3) J,SR(100) 6 (4) S,J (83) 16 (12) J,SR(25) 103 (77) SR (81) 10 (8) F,S (63) 13 (10) S,J (92) 57 (43) S,J (88) 9 (7) S,J (78) 29 (22) J,SR(85) 30 (33) S,J (77) 122 (92) F (87) 38 (29) J,SR(47) 37 (28) J,SR(51) 23 (17) J,SR(48) 1 (1) J (100) 15 (11) J (40) 54 (41) S,J (76) 2 (2) SR (100) 2 (2) S,J(100) 24 (18) S,J (82) 79 (59) S,J (73) 1 (1) J (100) 4 (3) J (75) 8 (6) S,J (75) 1 (1) F,S (100) 1 (1) J 3 (2) S,J (100) 14 (11) J,SR (73) 1 (1) SR 1 (1) S 3 (2) J,SR(100) 1 (1) 2 (2) F,S (100) 3 (2) S (100) 2 (2) S,J (100) 1 (1) 1 (1) J,SR 1 (1) J 3 (2) F,S (100) 2 (1) S,J (100) 1 (1) J 1 (1) F,S	n (%) Level % 10 (8) J,SR(70) 6 (5) F,S(100) 6 (5) S,J(100) 1 (1) SR (100) 4 (3) S,J(100) 9 (7) J,SR(29) 37 (28) SR (75) 2 (2) F,S (50) 12 (9) S,J (56) 41 (30) S,J (85) 8 (6) S,J (75) 9 (7) J,SR(100) 13 (10) S,J (45) 125 (94) F (87) 15 (11) J,SR(75) 12 (9) J,SR(73) 16 (12) J,SR(57) 2 (2) F,S(100) 4 (3) J (25) 51 (38) S,J (90) 1 (1) SR (100) 8 (6) J,SR(91) 17 (13) S,J (53) 87 (65) S,J (82) 1 (1) J,SR(100)

a F = Freshman, S = Sophomore, J = Junior, SR = Senior.

b % computed on number of departments requiring the course.

c Biological, Neuropsychology, Neuroscience.

d At 20% (n = 41) of the departments with a required capstone, students can choose between courses.

e Infant and Child, Child, Child and Adolescent.

f Not a capstone experience.

g Learning, Learning and Memory, Learning and Motivation.

h Tests, measurement, and analysis of behavior.

i Counseling, Counseling and Clinical, Therapy.

Table 20

Courses Required Only By Baccalaureate Colleges

	n	Levela %
Course Advanced Testing Animal Behavior Any Lab Assessment and Referral Behavior Analysis Behavior Disorders Behavior Management Behavior Modification Colloquium Crisis Situations Cross Cultural Development, Learning, & Memory Exploration of Psychology Exploring Psychology Groups Guidance Helping Relationships Human Services Individual Differences Marriage and Family Methodology of Life Span Development Methods of Inquiry Motivation and Emotion Psychology of African Americans Psychology of Women Psychological Perspectives on Reality Religion Research Labs Science of Psychology Scientific and Philosophical Seminar in Humanity Teaching/Learning Testing Practicum	1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 2 1 2 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1	SR J J,SR J,SR J J S,J (100) S (100) SR S,J S F (100) S,JR J,SR J F,S (100) J S,J (100) F S SR S J,SR (100) S SR F JR S,J J

a F = Freshman, S = Sophomore, J = Junior, SR = Senior.

Table 21

Courses Required Only By Comprehensive Universities

	n	Levela	%
Course
Assessment	4	J,SR	(75)
Behavior Change	1	F
Chemical Dependency and Addiction	1	S
Critical Thinking	1	S
Death and Dying	1	SR
Health and Environment	1
Human Social Behavior	1	F,S
Introductory and Methods	1	S,J
Lab Experiments	1	S
Methods of Inquiry	1	S
Model Methods Projects	1	S
Nature of Persons	1	J
Professional Psychology	2	F,S	(100)
Psychodynamics	1	F
Religion and Ethics	1	SR
Report Writing	1	J
Research Intern	1	J

 a F = Freshman, S = Sophomore, J = Junior, SR = Senior.

Table 22

Courses Required Only By Doctoral Universities

	n	Levela	%
Course
Advanced Lab	1	F
Advanced Statistics and Methods	3	S,J	(67)
Behavioral Models	1	SR
Drugs and Behavior	1	S,J
Exceptional Child	1	S,J
Experimental Cognitive Processes	1	SR
Experimental Social Processes	1	SR
Field Research Methods	1	S
Industrial	1	J
Introduction to Applied Research	1	S
Introductory Applications	1	F
Memory	1	SR
Orientation to Psychology	1	F
Outreach	1	S
Psychoanalysis	1	J
Scientific Inquiries in Psychology (Research Processes)	1	J,SR
Thinking and Verbal Learning	1	SR

a F = Freshman, S = Sophomore, J = Junior, SR = Senior.

c Core courses recommended at the St. Mary's Conference (McGovern, 1993).

d Percentages based on exact count of 230 departments offering a Capstone
SPexperience.

e Two of the above. For Design, Tests and Measurement, and Experimental
SPthe combination is almost always Introductory and Statistics. For the Capstone
SPcourse the combination is almost always Introductory and Class Rank.

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