University of Santa Clara - Redwood Yearbook (Santa Clara, CA)

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NW ff Max Mancini Finding interesting research projects to use as class curriculum is a task on which Robert Numan, Ph.D., and other professors spend much time. EXPLGRI Psychology students participate in department experiments and attempt to gain insights into the world of clinical psychology. G THE PSY HE mages of mad sci- entists in white coats, aided by nunchbacked assistants .nd performing night- marish experiments, may have crept into he imaginations of a ew psychology stu- lents. Yet despite the light apprehension felt ny some, the course re- luirement of participa- ion in a minimum of hree Psychology De- Iartment experiments 'er quarter was not he cause of too much istress. On the con- rary, most students ound it rather enlight- ning. The purpose of this equirement was for tudents to learn some- hing about psychology hrough experimenta- lon. According to Mar- 'in L. Schroth, Ph.D., it was the best way to find out how psycholo- gists really work. The student is actually in- volved rather than a passive observer. The students partici- pated as subjects in two types of depart- ment research. The first kind was the fac- ulty-initiated project, the majority being ba- sic research in either social behavior or, as in the case of Dr. Schroth, testing condi- tions for learning. The second kind involved the experiments con- ducted by more ad- vanced students under the supervision of a faculty member. This gave these students the chance to imple- ment the knowledge they received in class and to discover what the world of psycholo- gy was like outside of the classroom. These experiments proved a valuable opportunity for students to earn credit and expand their knowledge. Students were also given the alternative of attending lectures or volunteering for off- campus organizations. Sherrie Crouch, a freshman biology major who considered chang- ing her major to psy- chology, fulfilled her requirement by volun- teering at the Chil- dren's Health Council in San Jose where she observed young chil- dren. And although the experience she got did not directly apply to the introductory psy- chology course she was taking, she felt it I would be helpful in further studies. Many of the stu- dents, such as fresh- man Robert Chamber- lain, agreed that direct participation in re- search was a good ex- periencej' but not all those involved saw the value of participation from a learning point of view. Michelle Mul- lin, freshman biology major, said I think our participation helped the student's research project, but the pur- pose was never clearly explained to us. The students' impres- sions of the experi- ments were as varied as were the experi- ments themselves. And each student received insights to the world of psychology through their participation. by Kathl Coad een Y Exploring the Psyche

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Participation in experiments, Whether on a one to one basis or in a group, is required for all students taking a psychology course. Mala Matacin gained insight into these experiments after a discussion with Kate Conway, Ph.D. Conducting a required psychology experiment on reactions to certain situations and stimuli, juniors Amy Shumway and Dennis La Torre use data gathered from Watching a rat and try to relate it to human responses. 'WW nv

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Handcarved statues of monks and saints on angel wings are among the mission artifacts that were taken from the dig This dig was part of the Anthropology Departments field study program J-ft' A -can , .Lf WValls were Constructed to mark the boundaries of the old missions. This site is one of the five original areas of the Mission Santa Clara, Original pieces of tile. handcrafted pottery, and drinking pitchers are many of the artifacts taken from the Mission dig, All iirtifgiets were on display in the deSaisset Museum on the SCU campus. 28 Academics