Laboratory courses are offered to accompany content courses in Cognitive Psychology and Psychology of Perception. The requested instructional scientific equipment was selected for its versatility for performing a wide variety of psychology experiments and its ease of use for students. These laboratory courses provide expanded opportunities for undergraduate psychology majors to actively participate in the SCIENCE of psychology. Students are introduced to the application of the scientific method to a content area of interest to them. They replicate experiments they are reading and hearing about in their content course, and ultimately design, carry out, and present in a research conference format an original research study. These courses benefit women and minority students particularly, since these students have shown a clear preference for enrolling in psychology courses rather than other science areas. Thus laboratory experiences in psychology can serve as a gateway to the sciences for traditionally underrepresented groups.
