Introduction to Psychology: Developmental, Social and Clinical Psychology (PSYC1030)

Course overview

The School of Psychology recommends only two of the three first year courses is undertaken in the first semester of study. Psychology is the scientific study of how people behave, think and feel. This course spans a variety of topics including the development of thought, language and personality as well as issues in clinical psychology. The course also covers social issues including communication, aggression, and altruism, Students will be given the opportunity to participate in both classic and state-of-the-art psychological research and to demonstrate their understanding of the research process.

This course will give you an overview of topics in developmental, social and clinical psychology. Lectures are presented online in the form of a series of videos with associated activities. Each week there will be a 2-hour lecture in person (RECORDED) and in most weeks, you will also have a 1-hour tutorial (NOT RECORDED). There will also be optional online lectures available (UQ Extend),

Study Tips

Important: You will need to spend between 6 to 10 hours per week doing the in person and online lectures, relevant readings, and ﾠpreparing for tutorials for this course. Assessment is spread throughout the semester, so you need to work consistently and regularly to keep up.

If you want to take notes, focus on the main points that are being covered, rather than trying to write down every word. Transcribing lectures word-for-word will be very time consuming and remember the lectures are recorded and so you can always return to check a point!

Tutorials ﾠwill not be recorded as they are designed to be interactive. A significant proportion of the tutorial hours will be dedicated to activities and discussion Therefore, you will need to be present in class for the duration of each ﾠtutorial, and we expect that you will engage with your classmates and tutors.ﾠ

Class attendance and participation are an integral part of this course.ﾠﾠ

ASSESSMENT

Rationale for assessment: ﾠThe assessment for this course is based on some of the principles of effective learning identified by scientific research.

If you want to learn more about the science behind effective learning, we highly recommend that you read the following book:

"Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning" (2014) by Peter C. Brown, Henry L. Roediger III, and Mark A. McDaniel.

The very brief summary is that learning is more effective when:

• Repeated testing is used;
• Feedback on performance is delayed;
• Recall rather than recognition is used;
• Learning is interleaved with other topics;
• Learning is spaced out over time.

In this course, we will test you throughout the course to encourage spaced learning, including an end of semester exam. We would also encourage you to keep up to date with lectures, and try not to try and watch multiple lectures in a single sitting.

Students will also be able to gain course credit for participation in psychological studies being conducted in the School of Psychology. This is a great opportunity to gain first-hand experience of how research is conducted, and what sorts of questions psychologists ask.

Course contact

Course staff

Timetable

The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.

Additional timetable information

Lectures

Lectures will be delivered in person and then be available via Blackboard. You will be given instructions through Blackboard on how to sign up.

Tutorials

Tutorials commence in Teaching Week 2 - there may be preparation reading that you need to complete before tutorials. You must sign up for a tutorial via Allocate+. Tutorial selection or change of preference can only be made via Allocate+.

Some course material will be available only in tutorials and not in the online lectures, and this includes assessable materials. If you don't attend, you will not be able to access all the information. Tutors in PSYC1030 do not have weekly consultation times outside of the scheduled tutorials. If you need to ask your tutor about course content or assessment, please try to do so during tutorials or ask your questions on the Tutorial Forum on the Blackboard site or send your tutor an email. Tutor emails can be found on Blackboard -> Course Staff.

Online videos

Students in PSYC1030 this semester will have the opportunity to watch additional online videos on the topics discussed in class. These videos are designed to complement the material presented in the online lectures and tutorials and for you to gain a further appreciation of the three areas of psychology covered in the course (Developmental, Clinical, and Social). This content will not be assessable.

Aims and outcomes

Learning outcomes

After successfully completing this course you should be able to:

Assessment

Assessment summary

A hurdle is an assessment requirement that must be satisfied in order to receive a specific grade for the course. Check the assessment details for more information about hurdle requirements.

Assessment details

In class assessment

• In-person

Mode

Activity/ Performance, Written

Category

Essay/ Critique, Tutorial/ Problem Set

Weight

20%

Due date

Assessment 1 16/03/2026 - 20/03/2026

Assessment 2 20/04/2026 - 24/04/2026

Assessment 3 25/05/2026 - 29/05/2026

Students will complete the assessment within their tutorials during the allocated week.

Other conditions

Student specific, Time limited.

See the conditions definitions

Learning outcomes

L02

Task description

Submission guidelines

Students will submit their written work to their tutor.

Deferral or extension

You cannot defer or apply for an extension for this assessment.

As this is a best two of three assessment, there is no deferral available.

Late submission

This assessment must be completed in class.

Research Participation

Mode

Activity/ Performance

Category

Participation/ Student contribution

Weight

6%

Due date

23/02/2026 - 29/05/2026

Learning outcomes

L05

Task description

Submission guidelines

Using SONA portal as per email instructions in Week 2. Alternative research participation assessments should be submitted via the submission portal in the Blackboard Assessment -> Research Participation folder.

Deferral or extension

You cannot defer or apply for an extension for this assessment.

Cultural Safety Module 1

• Hurdle

Mode

Written

Category

Quiz

Weight

P/F Required to pass the course

Due date

23/02/2026 - 29/05/2026

Learning outcomes

L06

Task description

Hurdle requirements

Submission guidelines

Submission is via the online quiz on blackboard before the due date.

Deferral or extension

You cannot defer or apply for an extension for this assessment.

Lecture reflections

• Online

Mode

Written

Category

Reflection

Weight

14%

Due date

6/03/2026 2:00 pm

13/03/2026 2:00 pm

20/03/2026 2:00 pm

27/03/2026 2:00 pm

Week 6 reflection due on week 7 due to Easter public holiday 13/04/2026 2:00 pm

17/04/2026 2:00 pm

24/04/2026 2:00 pm

1/05/2026 2:00 pm

11/05/2026 2:00 pm

22/05/2026 2:00 pm

29/05/2026 2:00 pm

Learning outcomes

L01

Task description

Submission guidelines

Submit via blackboard.

Deferral or extension

You cannot defer or apply for an extension for this assessment.

Best 9 of 11 reflections will be counted towards final grade

Science communication

• In-person
• Online

Mode

Written

Category

Paper/ Report/ Annotation, Essay/ Critique, Participation/ Student contribution, Tutorial/ Problem Set

Weight

20%

Due date

28/05/2026 5:00 pm

Other conditions

Student specific.

See the conditions definitions

Learning outcomes

L03, L04

Task description

Submission guidelines

Submit via blackboard

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

The maximum extension allowed is 14 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.

For full details please review the School of Psychology Student Guidelines - Extensions and Deferred quiz/exam (the web link can be found on the Policies and Procedures tab)

Final Exam

• In-person

Mode

Written

Category

Examination

Weight

40%

Due date

End of Semester Exam Period

6/06/2026 - 20/06/2026

Other conditions

Time limited.

See the conditions definitions

Learning outcomes

L01

Task description

Exam details

Submission guidelines

Deferral or extension

You may be able to defer this exam.

Course grading

Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.

Additional course grading information

Students cannot pass the course without passing the Cultural Safety Module 1 and its assessment.

Supplementary assessment

Supplementary assessment is available for this course.

Additional assessment information

Appealing Marks

If you are unhappy with your mark for the lecture reflections in the course, or would like more feedback, you must correspond with ﾠyour tutor first. We ask that you wait for at least 48 hours and read the comments carefully before you contact your tutor.

If you still feel that there are points of contention after taking the time to reflect on your work in light of your tutor's comments, we ask that you write an email to your tutor specifying your justification for why you believe your mark should be re-evaluated.

If you are unable to resolve your queries via written correspondence with your tutor, you can then apply for worksheet to be remarked. Please note that, as part of your application for remark, you will be required to attach a copy of the written correspondence with your tutor. Applications without evidence for written correspondence with your tutor will not be accepted. Please consult myUQﾠfor information on how to apply for a remark (UQ Policy and Procedures (PPL) Assessment Procedure, Section 3, Part G Assessment

Procedure / Document / Policy and Procedure Library (uq.edu.au).ﾠAlso note that this remark is final and your mark (and possibly your grade for the course) can go up or down.

Academic Integrity

Written assessment in the course will be electronically screened for potential academic misconduct (e.g., plagiarism, collusion) using TurnitIn. Any assignments that are flagged by TurnitIn to have substantial overlap in content with other sources will then be manually examined by the course coordinator and the course tutor(s). If the nature of overlap is deemed to be of valid concern by course staff, then your assignment, along with the TurnitIn report and any other relevant documentation (e.g., overlapping sources) will be sent to the UQ School of Psychology's Academic Integrity Officer to be formally investigatedﾠfor academic misconduct. You will not receive any marks for the criteria (based on the marking rubric) whichﾠcontainﾠwork concluded as non-original. Further penalties may apply depending on the nature of the case. For the Lab Report Introduction, all students will be required to submit an originality statement along with their assignment--more information on this will be provided on Blackboard and in the tutorials.

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Learning resources

You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.

Library resources

Library resources are available on the UQ Library website.

Additional learning resources information

PSYC1030 eLearning Blackboard site

This site contains information about the course (including this course profile), online lectures, Zoom links to learning enrichment sessions, recordings from the learning enrichment sessions, tutorial forums, assessment resources and results, and important announcements. Your myUQ login and password (the same ones you use for mySi-net and your UQ student email account) will allow you access to the PSYC1030 Blackboard site. To access the site log onto MyUQﾠhttps://student.my.uq.edu.au/ﾠand select 'Learn.UQ'.

Suggestions for Approaching Your Learning in PSYC1030

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General Approach to Learning

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You will need to be organised in your approach to learning PSYC1030. Below are some hints for learning in PSYC1030. These hints will also be useful for other courses.

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University study is more demanding than Year 12. You are required to cover a considerable amount of material in each course, and you are responsible for your own study. The key toﾠthriving at university is to be organised. If you adopt a methodical approach to your study, then you are more likely to have time to enjoy the wider aspects of university life, in addition to achieving well in your course work.

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Study habits that were encouraged by your secondary school teachers are just as important at university. It is beneficial to regard university study as an occupation. You should develop a regular routine that enables you to maintain pace with current material, and to prepare for assignments well in advance of the due date. Set aside fixed times for your studies, so that you do not fall behind in any of your courses. Plan for written assignments in advance, so that you do not have to miss important work to meet the due date, or fall behind in other courses in the weeks in which those assignments are due. It is also a good idea to vary your working day, rather than spending all of one day on a particular course. It is also more effective to limit study sessions to no more than two hours without taking a rest or coffee break in which you actually leave your desk.

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At all times, prepare before attending the tutorials so that you can most effectively engage with your classmates and your tutors/lecturersﾠduring in-class hours. Active engagement during your classesﾠwill help you better process and understand the material which, in turn, will be reflected in your performance on the assessments for the course. If there are any points that are unclear when taking notes, you may want to put a question mark in the margin.ﾠBy doing this, you can easily clarify the unclear concepts soon after class with the lecturer, a tutor, or a classmate. Each week's material builds on each other, so it is essential that you are engaging with the material in a timely manner (i.e., week-by-week) and that you clarify any points of confusion before moving ontoﾠsubsequent weeks.

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Some Frequently Asked Questions

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Do I have to sign on for a tutorial?

Yes, you need to sign on to a tutorial via Allocate+. You must attend the same tutorial session you are signed on for each week.ﾠThe tutor who runs the tutorial you sign on for is the person who will be marking your written assessment, so you want to get instruction directly from that person.

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Should I really attend all my tutorials?

Yes! Tutorials include activities that are assessable and can only be completed and submitted during tutorials and form a significant proportion of the available marks for the course.

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I can’t make it to my usual tute this week.ﾠWhat can I do?

Tutorial groups are full so unfortunately, there are no opportunities to sit alternative tutorials. If you cannot make it to a tutorial that has an assessment, then you will forfeit that assessment. In order to allow for such circumstances, only the best 2 of your 3 in tutorials will count towards your final mark.

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How do I contact my tutor?

Tutors don’t have weekly consultation times outside of tutorials. You can talk to your tutor in class, and you can also use the Tutorial Forum on Blackboardﾠto raise questions about course content and to communicate your queries to your tutor and other students in your tutorial.

I’ve lost my password for the Research participation system.

To login to the SONA system you will need your 8 digit student number (username) and the password which will be sent to you during orientation week. Once you have successfully logged into the system you will be able to change your password. If you have lost your login details for the SONA system there is a 'lost password' link in the system and your password will be emailed through to you. The email address the system recognises is your student email address which is in the formatﾠs1234567@student.uq.edu.au. Once you have access to the system please do not change email address as this is the only email address the SONA system recognises.

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I participated in a research study but I still haven’t got the credit.

Contact the researcher who conducted the research. The researchers' contact details can be found on the SONA system.

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I received an overall failing grade of 3ﾠin this course.ﾠWhat can I do?

You may be eligible to sitﾠa supplementary exam.ﾠSee point 5.4 of this outline for instructions

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Can I change the way I have assigned the research credits?

Yes – up to Friday of week 13.

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For other research system queries email:ﾠresearch-participation@psy.uq.edu.au

Learning activities

The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.

Policies and procedures

University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:

• Student Code of Conduct Policy
• Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
• Assessment Procedure
• Examinations Procedure
• Reasonable Adjustments for Students Policy and Procedure
• AI for Assessment Guide

Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.

School guidelines

Your school has additional guidelines you'll need to follow for this course:

• School of Psychology Student Guidelines