Engineering Psychology Major Engineering Psychology Major Engineering psychology is an empirically based discipline that requires cadets to critically and systematically apply their knowledge of human behavior to the design of complicated systems.Offered by the Department of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership. Breadcrumb academics majors and minors engineering psychology major academics-sidebarnav MENU Academic Program Majors & Minors Departments Internships Study Abroad Scholars Program Service Academy Exchange Program Annual Theme Overview Courses Enrichment Engineering psychology bridges the disciplines of experimental psychology and engineering by providing cadets with a strong foundational knowledge of the psychology of human performance and how these principles of behavior can be used to engineer and evaluate more effective systems. This major has an honors option.What is Engineering Psychology? Have you ever used technology or a piece of equipment that was confusing, frustrating, and just didn’t work the way that it should? That’s because the designer forgot to keep you, the user, in mind. When it’s your phone, it’s an inconvenience; on the battlefield, it can be disastrous. Poorly designed equipment could cause costly errors or even injure soldiers. Engineering Psychology teaches you how people process information. Then you take that knowledge and design safe, effective, and efficient technology. We make intuitive technology and improve human performance. The products of Engineering Psychology are all around us, from the well-designed Stryker Remote Weapon System (done well) to the confusing CIS interface (done not so well). E-Psych cadets work on projects that make a tangible impact including: Afghan Army Camo re-design ARES Augmented Reality Sand table Room-clearing Robots Virtual Reality therapist (Ellie) working with soldiers suffering from PTSD Why Engineering Psychology? Technology is everywhere and is an integral part of our lives—from phones in our pockets to an Apache cockpit. We rely on it, and Engineering Psychology will teach you humans’ capabilities and limitations, how to identify good and poor designs, and how to integrate technology to improve performance in daily life and on the battlefield. Engineering Psychology is the only academic program at West Point that combines an in-depth understanding of human behavior and integrates that with engineering principles designed to improve how we interact with technology. Resources:Follow BS&L on social mediaView the Engineering Psychology Library GuideContact us:LTC Lolita Burrell, 845-938-5640MAJ Chelsea Frazier, 845-938-5635 To learn more about this area of study, visit the Department of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership. The initial courses in the major focus on developing (1) an understanding of the basic theories and processes of human behavior as applied to human centered design, and (2) competence in applying experimental methods, principles of design and statistical analyses to design, build and evaluate systems optimize soldier performance.Course work that builds knowledge of human behavior includes Biopsychology (PL390), Sensation and Perception (PL391), Cognitive Psychology (PL392), and Anthropometrics and Biomechanics (PL394). Courses that teach research and statistics are Experimental Psychology (PL386) and Applied Statistics (MA376). During their final year in the program, cadets complete courses in Human Computer Interaction (PL475), Human Factors Engineering (PL485), a Colloquium that applies their knowledge to contemporary issues in Engineering Psychology (PL488E), and Engineering Psychology (PL490), an integrative capstone course that integrates the knowledge and skills acquired in other coursework toward achieving the overarching program objectives.Cadets choose among complementary support courses that provide broadening experiences in interdisciplinary electives that support their interests in Engineering Psychology (see heuristic). These course provide depth and breadth in Language (fully support/encourage semesters abroad with distance learning as necessary), Quantitative Modeling, Physiologic Status, Workspace and Equipment, Physical Stature & Cognitive Process, Health Hazard Assessment, and Team Dynamics.Required CoursesMA376 APPLIED STATISTICSPL386 EXPERIMENTAL PSYCHOLOGYPL390 BIOLOGICAL PSYCHOLOGY PL391 SENSATION/PERCEPTN/PSYCPHYS PL392 COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGYPL394 ANTHROPOMETRICS & BIOMECHANICS PL475 HUMAN-COMPUTER INTERACTIONPL488E COLLOQUIUM-BSL-ENGIN PSYCHSample ElectivesCH383 ORGANIC CHEMISTRY ICY460 CYBER POLICY, STRATEGY, & OPNSDS345 MILITARY INNOVATIONEM481 SYSTEMS SIMULATION EN352 POWER AND DIFFERENCEEV397 AIR POLLUTION ENGINEERINGLW482 NATIONAL SECURITY LAWMA476 MATHEMATICAL STATISTICSME202 COMPUTER AIDED DESIGNNE474 RADIOLOGICAL SAFETYPL360 PSYCH ELITE PERFORMANCEPY326 CYBER ETHICSSE485 COMBAT MODELINGSM484 SYSTEM DYNAMICS SIMULATIONSS464 HOMELAND SECURITYTo learn more, view the full Engineering Psychology curriculum. Engineering psychology majors are afforded the opportunity to attend various academic conferences around the country to present their research. National Honor Societies:Omicron Delta Kappa - National Leadership Honor SocietyPsi Chi - The International Honor Society in PsychologyGolden Key - International Honour SocietyPhi Kappa Phi - Oldest and Largest Collegiate Honor SocietyTo learn more about enrichment for this area of study, visit the Department of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership or the West Point Leadership Center.