PSY 301 Movies and the Modern Mind

Credits

3

Notes

Movies and the Modern Mind will apply basic social psychological perspectives to character studies in major motion pictures.  Perhaps more than any other discipline, psychology and its constructs are often conveyed in film, many times correctly and completely, but sometimes dramatic effect takes precedence.  We will investigate how psychological principles are illustrated for the everyday movie-goer.  Major topics to be covered include attitudes, prejudice, loving relationships, social influence, altruism and aggression.  In short, we will examine how psychological research corresponds to current pop cultural portrayals in film.  What we know about psychology, based on empirical evidence, is not always what is illustrated for entertainment value