Liberal Arts - Area of Emphasis for Social and Behavioral Science AA Degree
The Social and Behavioral Science area of emphasis allows students to take courses that prepare them for possible majors within the fields of criminology, business, economics, geography, psychology, history, sociology, political science, and related disciplines. The student is provided the opportunity to learn a variety of theories and perspectives, behavioral and sociological concepts, historical context with respect to particular times, places, events and significant figures, production and distribution analysis, and American and comparative government. This area of emphasis prepares students for baccalaureate majors including but not limited to: Chicano studies, child development, criminology, economics, geography, history, mass communication and journalism, political science, psychology, and sociology and social work.
Upon completion of the social and behavioral science program, the student will be able to:
- Understand the global significance of past political, cultural, and economic issues and how they have impacted contemporary events.
- Recognize will analyze and differentiate between different economic solutions to social issues.
- Demonstrate an understanding of how physical systems affect human systems and of how human actions affect physical systems.
- State different types of governments and explain their historical developments and political processes within a given country.
- Identify different theories on personality development.
- Recognize the various types of sources used within the social science discipline, including primary and secondary sources.
- Analyze the legitimacy and validity of the various sources used within the social science discipline, including discerning facts from opinions, biases, the validity of data collection, and public opinion polls
Students must fulfill the following requirements to qualify for an associate degree:
- Complete the Associate Degree requirements
- Complete major course requirements as specified in the catalog with a C or better
- Complete electives to reach a total of 60 degree applicable units
- Maintain a grade point average of 2.00 overall
- Complete the English and math competency requirements with a C or better
Required Courses (Select at least 18 units from the following courses. Courses must be selected from two or more disciplines listed below:
| Course # | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| AGBUS-040 | Introductory Agricultural Economics | 3 |
| AOJ-001 | Introduction to Criminal Justice | 3 |
| AOJ-029 | Criminology | 3 |
| BUS-020 | Introduction to Business | 3 |
| CD-002 | Teaching in a Diverse Society | 3 |
| CD-005 | Child Development | 3 |
| CD-006 | Child and Adolescent Development | 3 |
| CD-010 | Child, Family and Society | 3 |
| CD-021 | Infant and Toddler Caregiving | 3 |
| CD-024 | School-Age Development | 3 |
| COM-005 | Interpersonal Communication | 3 |
| COM-006 | Intercultural Communication | 3 |
| CRPSCI-019 | California Water | 3 |
| ECON-001A | Macroeconomics | 3 |
| ECON-001B | Microeconomics | 3 |
| GEOG-002 | World Regional Geography | 3 |
| GEOG-003 | Cultural Geography | 3 |
| GEOG-018 | Geography of California | 3 |
| HIST-004A | Western Europe to 1700 | 3 |
| HIST-004B | Western Europe from 1700 | 3 |
| HIST-017A | History of the U.S. 1492-1877 | 3 |
| HIST-017B | History of the U.S. 1865-Present | 3 |
| HIST 020 | World History I | 3 |
| HIST-021 | World History II | 3 |
| HIST-032 | Cultural History of the Chicano | 3 |
| HIST-044 | Women’s Role in United States History | 3 |
| KINES-002 | Introduction to Sport and Exercise Psychology | 3 |
| LING-011 | Introduction to Linguistics | 3 |
| POLSCI-001 | American Government | 3 |
| POLSCI-002 | Comparative Government | 3 |
| POLSCI-004 | Introduction to International Relations | 3 |
| POLSCI-005 | Introduction to Political Theory | 3 |
| POLSCI-010 | Modern Politics | 3 |
| POLSCI-020 | Legal and Judicial Reasoning | 3 |
| PSYCH-001 | Introductory Psychology | 3 |
| PSYCH-002 | Abnormal Psychology | 3 |
| PSYCH-003 | Developmental Psychology | 3 |
| PSYCH-004 | Personal Psychology | 3 |
| PSYCH-005 | Biological Psychology | 3 |
| PSYCH-006 | Research Methods in Psychology | 3 |
| SOC-001 | Introduction to Sociology | 3 |
| SOC-002 | Critical Thinking and Social Problems | 3 |
| SOC-003 | Marriage and Family Relations | 3 |
| SOC-005 | Cultural Sociology | 3 |
| SW-020 | Introduction to Social Work and Human Services | 3 |
| Total | 18 |