PSYCHOLOGY OF EVERYDAY LANGUAGE

FIVE-WEEK COURSE

Dates: Five Mondays, February 18–March 24 (no class March 10)
Time: 6–7:30 p.m.
Location: See Course Locations and Parking page
Course Fee: $130 (discounted to $104 for select groups)

James W. Pennebaker, Ph.D., Psychology, UT Austin

The words people use in their daily lives reflect who they are. Thanks to advances in computer sciences and the Internet, we are now in the midst of a revolution in thinking about word use and psychological state. This course presents a number of new perspectives and findings surrounding words and language. Using new text analysis methods, the lectures will explore when and how certain types of words can reveal emotional state, such as depression, motivation, biological levels, leadership, and personality in general.

James W. Pennebaker is Professor and Chair of Psychology at The University of Texas at Austin, where he received his Ph.D. in 1977. He and his students are exploring the links between natural language use, traumatic experiences, and physical and mental health. Through the use of his own computerized text analysis programs, he has been applying his work to linguistic lie detection, author identification, and the understanding of healthy writing. Author or editor of eight books and over 200 articles, Pennebaker has received numerous research and teaching awards and honors.

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