Department: Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

Code Name Description
PSYC111Q The Changing Face of "Mental Illness" in Women: Historical, Medical and Artistic Approaches In this seminar we want to take a look at women's lives beginning in the past century to the present and the many changes which occurred in conceptualizing and understanding mental illness. The female reproductive system has been linked to mental ill...
PSYC114 Frontier Technology: Understanding and Preparing for Technology in the Next Economy The next wave of technological innovation and globalization will affect our countries, our societies, and ourselves. This interdisciplinary course provides an introduction to frontier technology, the intersection where radical forward thinking and re...
PSYC120 Yoga Psychology for Resilience and Creativity In this integrative class, learn about the practice, psychology, and philosophy of yoga as a conceptual model for well-being. Supported by findings in modern neuroscience and psychological research, yoga is an ancient, holistic modality that integrat...
PSYC121 Current Topics in Machine Learning for Neuroimaging The discovery of biological markers in medical applications is a fast-growing field. For this purpose, different experimental and neuroscientific procedures are incorporated to detect biological signatures and improve diagnosis or treatment of comple...
PSYC124 Brain Plasticity Neuroplasticity refers to the brain's remarkable ability to modify its own structure and function. The brain does so in response to changes in the body or in the external environment, adjusting parameters from molecules to neurons. In this course, we...
PSYC125 The Brain and the Law How does neuroscience intersect with the making of laws, the punishment of criminals, and the development of rehabilitation? Is it a legitimate defense to claim that a tumor made you do it? How are the brains of minors different from adult brains?...
PSYC126 Literature and the Brain How does fiction make us better at reading minds? Why do some TV shows get us to believe two contradictory things at once? And can cognitive biases be a writer's best friend? We'll think about these and other questions in the light of contemporary ne...
PSYC135 Dement's Sleep and Dreams Dr. William Dement created Sleep and Dreams in 1971, the world's first university course devoted to the science of sleep. Upon his retirement he selected Dr. Rafael Pelayo to be his successor, but he continued to participate in class until his passin...
PSYC139 Understanding Relationships: A Couples and Family Therapy Perspective Considers the premises of the family-systems approach to intimate and family relationships, drawing on concepts from psychology, psychiatry, neurobiology, anthropology, and organizational behavior. Examines relationship formation and commitment, inti...
PSYC144 Islamic Psychology The first psychiatric hospitals in the world were established as early as the 8th century during the Islamic Golden Era. Despite the emergence of a highly sophisticated and interdisciplinary system of understanding the human psyche in early Islamic h...
PSYC149 The Neurobiology of Sleep The neurochemistry and neurophysiology of changes in brain activity and conscious awareness are associated with changes in the sleep/wake state. Behavioral and neurobiological phenomena include sleep regulation, sleep homeostasis, circadian rhythms,...
PSYC150N Climate Change and Mental Health The impact of climate change is far-reaching, extending beyond immediate and imminent ecological effects and into a range of human experiences, including physical and mental disease. This course uses an interdisciplinary approach to consider the inte...
PSYC180 Artificial Intelligence in Medicine and Healthcare Ventures The face of healthcare is changing - innovative technologies, based on recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI), are radically altering how care is delivered. Startups are offering entirely new ways to diagnose, manage, treat, and operate. How...
PSYC195 Special Laboratory Projects Assist Behavioral Neuroendocrinology Program with data entry, library organization, and study-related projects.
PSYC199 Undergraduate Research Students undertake investigations sponsored by individual faculty members. Prerequisite: consent of instructor.
PSYC20Q Human versus Machine: Artificial intelligence through the lens of human cognition This course will explore the promise and limits of artificial intelligence (AI) through the lens of human cognition. Amid whispers of robots one day taking over the world, it is tempting to imagine that AI is (or soon will be) all-powerful. But few o...
PSYC211 Developmental Psychopathology, Psychotherapy and Psychopharmacology and Neuroscience Common syndromes in child psychiatry. Topics include diagnosis, epidemiology, etiology, course, outcome and therapeutic interventions. Prerequisite: familiarity with the basics of psychiatric and psychological discourse; psychiatry clerkship or cour...
PSYC213 Policy Practicum: Alcohol Use Among Stanford Undergraduates (Same as LAW 806L) Client: Stanford University Vice Provost of Student Affairs, https://studentaffairs.stanford.edu/who-we-are/vice-provost-student-affairs. Excessive alcohol consumption among Stanford undergraduates creates ahealth, educational, so...
PSYC215 Introduction to Psychedelic Medicine The re-emergence of psychedelics in the academic arena has yielded insights which may profoundly impact our understanding of brain, mind, and the treatment of mental illness. This course will survey ongoing and developing clinical applications and sc...
PSYC215B Introduction to Psychedelic Medicine The re-emergence of psychedelics has opened new explorations of brain, mind, and the treatment of mental illness. Research studies are underway globally investigating potential applications of psychedelics. This course will survey ongoing and develop...
PSYC216 Psychedelics and Social Justice This course will provide an overview of current social justice issues in psychedelic research, including the impact of colonization and systemic inequality on resource allocation during the multinational resurgence of interest in psychedelic medicine...
PSYC21N How we think as how we feel: Cognitive and emotional influences on mental health Plato described Reason and Emotion as two horses pulling a chariot in different directions. Was he right? By the end of this course, you will be able to decide for yourself, based on the latest scientific evidence. You will also be able to explain ho...
PSYC221 Current Topics in Machine Learning for Neuroimaging The discovery of biological markers in medical applications is a fast-growing field. For this purpose, different experimental and neuroscientific procedures are incorporated to detect biological signatures and improve diagnosis or treatment of comple...
PSYC223B Topics in Neurodiversity: Design Thinking Approaches The course provides essential background about neurodiversity, the design thinking process and the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework to guide students in developing projects that maximize the potential of neurodiversity. Through case stud...
PSYC225 Mentorship and Clinical Engagement in Child/Adolescent and Adult Psychiatry A mentoring program designed to expose first and second-year medical students to the rewarding fields of child/adolescent and adult psychiatry, and to increase awareness and education about child/adolescent and adult mental health issues. The early y...
PSYC229A Topics in Neurodiversity: Introduction and Advocacy, Part 1 This is part 1 of a year-long course which provides students with the foundation, knowledge, and essential skills for understanding, engaging with, and advocating for the neurodiverse population. In addition, this course will also provide direct inst...
PSYC229B Topics in Neurodiversity: Introduction and Advocacy, Part 2 This is part 2 of a year-long course which provides students with the foundation, knowledge, and essential skills for understanding, engaging with, and advocating for the neurodiverse population. In addition, this course will also provide direct inst...
PSYC229C Topics in Neurodiversity: Introduction and Advocacy, Part 3 This is part 3 of a year-long course which provides students with the foundation, knowledge, and essential skills for understanding, engaging with, and advocating for the neurodiverse population. In addition, this course will also provide direct inst...
PSYC230 How to Think Like a Shrink This course will teach you how to think (or experience) yourself and the communities around you as a therapist does. That means coming to understand why therapists focus on early life relationships and learning, why we privilege emotions, and why we...
PSYC233 Mindfulness: An Awareness-Based Stress Reduction Program in Medicine An experiential program in which the participants learn the techniques of mindfulness meditation and its application in the management of stress and in healthcare. Modeled after the MBSR, Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction, started by Jon Kabat-Zinn...
PSYC235 Dement's Sleep and Dreams Dr. William Dement created Sleep and Dreams in 1971, the world's first university course devoted to the science of sleep. Upon his retirement he selected Dr. Rafael Pelayo to be his successor, but he continued to participate in class until his passin...
PSYC239 Understanding Relationships: A Couples and Family Therapy Perspective Considers the premises of the family-systems approach to intimate and family relationships, drawing on concepts from psychology, psychiatry, neurobiology, anthropology, and organizational behavior. Examines relationship formation and commitment, inti...
PSYC240 Designing for the 2 Billion: Leading Innovation in Mental Health Nearly 50% of Americans will meet the criteria for a diagnosable mental illness during their lifetime, and such conditions are expected to be the primary cause of disease burden globally by 2030 (World Health Organization). This course - the first un...
PSYC242 Mental Health Innovation Studio: Entrepreneurship, Technology, and Policy This application-only course is the optional lab portion of PSYC 240. This is a higher intensity experience for students who want to apply the knowledge they gain in 240 to building a solution to some of the most pressing problems in mental health. S...
PSYC243 Thriving in Collegiate Athletics: Key Concepts in Student-Athlete Mental Health and Wellness Develops knowledge and personal awareness of the psychosocial aspects of the student-athlete experience, including unique stressors and cultural factors. Develops a basic understanding of interventions and techniques used to facilitate psychological...
PSYC244 Islamic Psychology The first psychiatric hospitals in the world were established as early as the 8th century during the Islamic Golden Era. Despite the emergence of a highly sophisticated and interdisciplinary system of understanding the human psyche in early Islamic h...
PSYC249 Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Subspecialty Areas In this lunch talk series, students will explore psychiatry and behavioral science subspecialty areas through the personal perspectives of psychiatrists and other specialists in behavioral health from a variety of practice settings. Some examples of...
PSYC250 Methodology of Research in Behavioral Sciences Statistical and methodological issues in three major psychiatric research themes: clinical psychiatric research (Aut), neuroimaging research (Win), and statistical genetics and general statistical modeling (Spr). Autumn series includes: basics of in...
PSYC261 The Neurobiology of Sleep The neurochemistry and neurophysiology of changes in brain activity and conscious awareness are associated with changes in the sleep/wake state. Behavioral and neurobiological phenomena include sleep regulation, sleep homeostasis, circadian rhythms,...
PSYC270 The Future of Mental Health According to the Lancet Commission, the world's failure to respond to the global mental health crisis has resulted in a "monumental loss of human capabilities and avoidable suffering." The sheer scale of this crisis is a need that cannot be met by th...
PSYC277 Psychiatry and Behavioral Science Perspectives in Medicine In this lunchtime discussion series (lunch provided), learners will explore a sampling of psychiatry and behavioral science topics relevant to medicine through the perspectives of attending psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, and other specialists...
PSYC282 The Literature of Psychosis One of the great gifts of literature is its ability to give us insight into the internal worlds of others. This is particularly true of that state clinicians call "psychosis." But psychosis is a complex concept. It can be terrifying and devastating f...
PSYC286 Culture and Madness: Anthropological and Psychiatric Approaches to Mental Illness Unusual mental phenomena have existed throughout history and across cultures. Taught by an anthropologist and psychiatrist, this course explores how different societies construct the notions of "madness": What are the boundaries between "normal" and...
PSYC290 Teaching in Psychiatry Practical experience in teaching by serving as a teaching assistant in a psychiatry course. Unit values are allotted individually to reflect the level of teaching responsibility assigned to the student.
PSYC299 Directed Reading in Psychiatry Prerequisite: consent of instructor.
PSYC300A Psychiatry Core Clerkship VISITING: Closed to visitors. TYPE OF CLERKSHIP: Required. DESCRIPTION: The clerkship is designed to solidify the knowledge of psychiatry students have acquired in the Practice of Medicine courses, as students gain practical skills in the application...
PSYC308E Trauma Psychiatry VISITING: Closed to visitors. TYPE OF CLERKSHIP: Selective 1. DESCRIPTION: The Trauma Psychiatry clerkship teaches how trauma impacts the lives and health of patients; lessons learned are generalizable to all areas of medicine (i.e., "trauma-informed...
PSYC30N The Terrible Toll of Close Combat: Fact and Myth from Xenophon to Fallujah to the X-Box "Close Combat" is the direct, violent encounter of troops at short range. Commanders, historians, and politicians may view grand elements of strategy, logistics or tactical maneuver to assess armed conflict. But in close combat, soldiers on that "t...
PSYC326A Child Psychiatry Clerkship VISITING: Open to visitors. TYPE OF CLERKSHIP: Elective. DESCRIPTION: Exposes the student to advanced principles and concepts of child psychiatry. The student is based primarily on the inpatient pediatric psychiatry consultation-liaison service at L...
PSYC328B Addiction Treatment Services VISITING: Open to visitors. TYPE OF CLERKSHIP: Selective 1. DESCRIPTION: In this rotation, medical students observe and participate in our outpatient addiction medication management, office-based opioid replacement therapy, group psychotherapy, mult...
PSYC333A Sleep Medicine for Medical Students VISITING: Closed to visitors. TYPE OF CLERKSHIP: Elective. DESCRIPTION: This clerkship offers a comprehensive experience in sleep medicine for those interested in pursuing a future career in sleep medicine. Students shadow sleep specialists in their...
PSYC353A Psychosomatic Medicine (Psychiatry Consultation Service) Clerkship VISITING: Open to visitors. TYPE OF CLERKSHIP: Elective. DESCRIPTION: Psychosomatic Medicine (PM) comprises the area of psychiatry concerned with the psychobiological care of the medically ill, which includes persons of all ages and those cared for i...
PSYC355A Geriatric Psychiatry VISITING: Open to visitors. TYPE OF CLERKSHIP: Elective. DESCRIPTION: Consists of the evaluation of older individuals with psychiatric illness in an inpatient setting. The inpatient program offers students opportunities to learn about evaluation and...
PSYC358A Subinternship in Inpatient Psychiatry VISITING: Open to visitors. TYPE OF CLERKSHIP: Selective 2. DESCRIPTION: The inpatient psychiatry subinternship at Stanford is designed to provide a training experience similar to that of PGY1 psychiatry residents on an inpatient rotation. Subinterns...
PSYC362B Subinternship in Inpatient Psychiatry VISITING: Closed to visitors. TYPE OF CLERKSHIP: Selective 2. DESCRIPTION: The inpatient psychiatry subinternship at the Palo Alto VA is designed to provide a training experience similar to that of PGY1 psychiatry residents on an inpatient rotation....
PSYC370 Medical Scholars Research Provides an opportunity for student and faculty interaction, as well as academic credit and financial support, to medical students who undertake original research. Enrollment is limited to students with approved projects.
PSYC398A Advanced Clinical, Research Elective in Psychiatry VISITING: Open to visitors. TYPE OF CLERKSHIP: Elective. DESCRIPTION: For students who wish to pursue the study of a specific research or clinical experience in the field of psychiatry are encouraged to arrange for this four week clerkship elective....
PSYC399 Graduate Research Students undertake investigations sponsored by individual faculty members. Prerequisite: consent of instructor.
PSYC51N The Science of Sleep in Cognition and Mental Health We live in a society that continues to deprioritize sleep by embracing the "I'fll sleep when I'm dead" mentality. But what actually happens to your brain when you miss a night of sleep? How does this then impact your ability to recall the test materi...
PSYC51Q Culture, Psychology, and Mental Health Treatment Focuses on a critical analysis of Western approach to psychology and psychiatric terms of understanding mental illness, psychiatric phenomena, and treatment of mental health disorders. Includes an orientation to and critique of western clinical psych...
PSYC52N The Neuroscience of Stress and Reward: Circuit Fundamentals of Emotional Arousal How do our brains translate thoughts and experiences into feelings of pain or pleasure? Why do some people struggle more than others with social isolation, addictive habits, poor quality sleep, unexpected life challenges, or societal pressures? More...
PSYC53N Your Secret Mind: Getting to Know and Living with your Unconscious Focuses on the motivational unconscious. Topics include the science of the unconscious mind and the techniques used to gain conscious access to these psychological process, as well as methods of exploring students' own unconscious for creative purpos...
PSYC54N Genes, Memes and Behavior Examines how natural selection operates to shape successful genes in the gene pool, how cultural selection operates to shape successful "memes" in the pool of cultural ideas, and how selection by consequences operates to shape successful behaviors in...
PSYC55N Secrecy What is a secret and why do we keep them? What is the cost - and the burden - of secret-keeping? The focus of this seminar will be professional secrecy, as we explore corporate confidentiality and the secret-keeping expected of all of us as professio...
PSYC56N The Personal Genomics Revolution: Focus on Mental Health The Human Genome Project transformed the field of medicine and launched the "Personal Genomics Revolution". It is now possible to view your DNA in minute detail for only $99. Height, weight, educational attainment, depression risk, and much more, can...
PSYC60N The Psychology of Stoked Examines the biological, psychological and social aspects of what it means to live a positive, life-affirming existence. Drawing from a wide range of sources, from psychiatry and psychology, to spirituality and philosophy, seminar informs on the late...
PSYC61 Advanced Stoke - Applying "the Psychology of Stoke" This course applies techniques learned in the Introductory Studies seminar: Psychology of Stoked (PSYC 60N) to promote student wellbeing during the 2020 COVID19 (coronavirus) pandemic. Spring Quarter 2020, the members of the Stoked Lab will explore t...
PSYC63Q Artificial Intelligence in Mental Health Over 900 million individuals worldwide suffer from a mental health disorder. Human and financial costs associated with the management of individuals with mental health disorder are substantial and constitute a growing public health challenge. Yet the...
PSYC78Q Mental Health in Collegiate Athletes Developmental, psychological, social, and performance issues in collegiate sports. Topics include transition to Stanford, time management, optimizing mental fitness, coping with injuries.
PSYC802 TGR Dissertation No Description Set
PSYC82 The Literature of Psychosis One of the great gifts of literature is its ability to give us insight into the internal worlds of others. This is particularly true of that state clinicians call "psychosis." But psychosis is a complex concept. It can be terrifying and devastating f...
PSYC83 Addictions in our World: From Physiology to Human Behavior Addiction is a powerful brain-based behavioral disorder that interferes with many lives. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health has estimated 21.5 million Americans aged 12 and older are classified as having a substance use disorder, an extraordi...
PSYC84Q Neurobiology of Depression:Why Depression Is A Brain Disorder And How Brain Stimulation May Treat It The course is a basic review of how we define depression, and a description of a new 'systems model' to understand the neurobiology of depression. We will consider the model in the context of the illness and why brain stimulation treatments work. Det...
PSYC86Q Psychology of Xenophobia What is the current U.S. socio-political climate like for Muslims? How is it affecting their mental health? Executive Order 13769, dubbed the "Muslim Ban", suspended the entry of citizens from multiple Muslim-majority countries and banned the entry o...