Psychology

Rice’s Department of Psychology is known for the unique way in which it blends two basic psychological traditions: the study of psychological processes within individuals and the study of the individual in a cultural and social context.

At Rice, the former is termed cognitive psychology, and it focuses on perception, learning, memory, and language, as well as on the physiological underpinnings of such processes. The latter tradition includes developmental, social, industrial/organizational, abnormal, and personality psychology. Although the department is especially strong in industrial/organizational psychology, human–computer interaction, and cognitive psychology, Rice psychology majors are required to take a broad range of courses covering both traditions.

The study of human–computer interaction is an especially fertile new field that draws researchers from psychology and computer science to understand how people use—and deal with—digital devices and to facilitate the design of more effective operating systems for computers, transportation vehicles, and other computer-based products. Current research includes determining the effectiveness of animation and multimedia training and looking at the possibility of using other senses besides vision, such as sound, when interacting with computers.