
Mission Statement
The Department of Psychological Sciences values diversity, equity and inclusion as integral to excellence in discovery, learning, engagement and community. We seek to foster and sustain an inclusive community that welcomes and supports people from all social identity groups. Our department is committed to recognizing, confronting and reducing prejudice, intolerance and discrimination in both overt and subtle forms. We are also committed to identifying and combating systemic biases that are rooted in our structures, policies and practices.
Director and Committees
Director for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Franki Kung
Director for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Department of Psychological Sciences
Committees
Faculty and Staff Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee
- Eboni Bradley (Student Liaison)
- Kim Haskett
- Laurie Hitze
- Sarah Karalunas
- Teri Kirby
- Franki Kung (Director)
- Nancy O’Brien
- Tom Redick
- David Rollock
- Chelsea Song
Graduate and Postdoctoral Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee
- Caroline Balling
- Eboni Bradley
- Dante Bruno
- Layla Dang
- Andy Fordyce
- Shabeba Islam
- Allycen Kurup (Committee Co-Chair)
- Phuc Le
- Liz Noland
- Adilene Osnaya (Committee Co-Chair)
- Tyra Protho
- Junming Zhang
DEI Programs and Learning
As a student in the Department of Psychological Sciences, you’ll have a variety of opportunities to grow your diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) knowledge within your field of study, from courses with a DEI emphasis to department-specific DEI programming.
Undergraduate Students
Undergraduate Mentorship
Courses with emphasis on diversity, equity and inclusion
- PSY 23900 (Psychology of Women)
The purpose of the course is to provide an overview of the psychology of women. Topics include stereotyping, women and achievement, aggression and power, the psychological concept of androgyny, and attitudes toward feminism. - PSY 24000 (Introduction to Social Psychology)
This course offers a broad survey in current knowledge about human social behavior. Topics covered include aggression; attraction and love; social influence; attitudes and attitude change; nonverbal communication; leadership; prejudice and discrimination; and application of social psychology to law, medicine and other fields. - PSY 24400 (Introduction to Human Sexuality)
This course will provide a broad survey of research on human sexuality from a psychosocial perspective. Topics covered include research methods, gender identity, sexual orientation, reproductive anatomy, typical and atypical sexual behavior, and sexual difficulties and their treatments. - PSY 33500 (Stereotyping and Prejudice)
This course examines the topics of stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination from a social psychological perspective. Relying on empirical findings and relevant theoretical approaches, the course moves beyond lay opinions to explore the social psychological foundations and forms of stereotyping and prejudice and to examine various strategies for reducing intergroup biases. - PSY 39200 (Diversity and Inclusion)
Topics may change from semester to semester and are presented by Department of Psychological Sciences faculty. - PSY 43200 (Social Psychology in Film)
This course examines theory and research in experimental social psychology and uses popular films to assist in provoking thought and analysis of the theory and research. - PSY 46400 (Research Ethics in Psychological Sciences)
Research ethics broadly refers to the application of everyday values, such as fairness, honesty and objectivity, to scientific research. This course is designed to provide broad coverage of the ethical standards that research scientists must follow and allow exploration of various real-world ethical issues in the psychological sciences.
Purdue research opportunities for minority students
Graduate Students
Organizations
Courses with emphasis on diversity, equity and inclusion
- PSY 59100 (Seminar on Ostracism)
The aim of this course is to introduce students to the theories and research on ostracism, social exclusion and rejection as well as the impact of inclusion (and possibly over-inclusion). Theories, paradigms and research developments will be introduced through lectures and readings. You will hone your critiquing and presentation skills and develop and receive feedback on your creative and theory-advancing group projects and presentations. - PSY 59100 (Cross Cultural Social Psychology)
This seminar examines the impact of acceptance and inclusion (or lack thereof) in several contexts. Course topics include the psychology and neuroscience of belonging and acceptance; the polarization that often occurs when people discuss issues of acceptance and inclusion; how internet access affects attitudinal polarization; sex differences, stereotyping and possible bias in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) contexts; workplace issues and interventions related to increasing diversity; issues of inclusion, student success and free speech on college campuses, such as Purdue; and marginalization in voting behavior and citizenship status. - PSY 63000 (Stereotyping and Prejudice) — counts toward the Inclusive Excellence Graduate Certificate
This course provides an in-depth examination of issues related to stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination. After a general introduction and historical overview, students will be exposed to a detailed study of the social psychological foundations of stereotyping and prejudice to include their impact and reduction strategies. - PSY 64000 (Survey of Social Psychology)
This course offers an extensive survey of methods, research and theory in social psychology. - PSY 68200 (Culture and Diversity at Work) — counts toward the Inclusive Excellence Graduate Certificate
This course aims to familiarize graduate students with the basic theoretical and methodological issues in the scientific study of culture and diversity in organizations. Readings are drawn primarily from the socio-organizational psychology and organizational behavior literature. Discussions focus on contemporary questions related to the understanding and management of diversity in the workplace: What is culture/diversity? How do psychologists approach these constructs? Why does diversity lead to both synergy and problems? How can people and organizations transform cultural collision into synergy? Given most psychology research been largely developed and tested in WEIRD (i.e., western, educated, industries, rich and democratic) populations, discussion will focus on the extent to which a phenomenon will translate across cultural and majority/minority groups. - PSY 69200 (Ethnic Minority Issues)
This seminar provides an introduction to roles of ethnocultural experience in psychological phenomena, particularly as they address foundations for the science and practice of professional psychology. The course focuses on American domestic minority group members of African, Asian, Hispanic/Latinx and Native American Indian/Alaskan Native heritages. Intersections of ethnicity and culture with other key demographic and socialization characteristics that shape behavior also will be considered. Readings, presentations and exercises will explore basic paradigms and research methods to characterize behavior, socialization and normative human development, social relations, adjustment and psychopathology, and educational and community intervention.
Faculty
In their persistent pursuit of improving health and well-being, many faculty members in the Department of Psychological Sciences specialize in topics related to diversity, equity and inclusion across a variety of research areas.
The following faculty have research interests and expertise in DEI: