12 Free Online Courses in Psychology with Certificates in 2023

Even though you previously psychology, you can surely gain from learning a lot about the human mind and behavior by taking online courses in psychology for free. Yes, for FREE. We will provide you with the information you need to access them in this article.

If you ask some questions, you will notice that in many universities it is compulsory for students to take a minimum of 1 class in psychology or a related topic like sociology.

Moreover, you may ask, why is psychology often included as part of a core general education requirement?  There are some reasons psychology is important, even if you don’t plan to further in it as a career.

Why a Psychology Course is Important 

Understanding Others Better

If you are in a career that will involve you to work directly with many different people such as teaching or police officer, it will be very critical to understand how people think and behave. This is what taking an online course in psychology will help you achieve.

Better Understand Yourself

Just like it psychology will help you better understand others, taking an online psychology class can also help you understand yourself.  Even in areas such as what motivates you, what kind of personality you have, and how your personality contributes to the way you think and behave.

Moreover, this will help foster better and stronger relationships with your family, friends, and co-workers.

Improve Critical Thinking Skills

Taking online psychology courses will help you learn how to evaluate sources of information, and how to think critically about the information you encounter on a daily basis. These online classes can help you sharpen these skills, which will prove valuable to many people in different career paths and various areas of life.

12 Free Online Courses in Psychology 2023

We have curated a list of 12 Free Online Courses in Psychology to consume.

Here is the list of the psychology courses below:

1. Monash University: The History and Science of Psychology Course

In this course, you will explore the origins of psychology and investigate the early schools of thought. Additionally, you will look into some of the key individuals who shaped the field, and then learn how it emerged as the discipline it is known today.

Furthermore, you will examine what it means for a discipline to be a science, find out how modern psychology evolved. Then, master the basic principles of the scientific method that can be applied in any career in either the professional or academic field.

Take This Course

2. University of Toronto: Introduction to Psychology Course

This course highlights experiments within the field of psychology and it explains what those studies imply for the understanding of the human mind and human behavior. You will also examine the brain and its cognitive abilities.

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You will study how humans develop in terms of growing up and growing old. Also, join in the discussion of the way in which the behavior of other people affects our own thoughts and behavior.

Finally, you will analyze various forms of mental illness and their treatments.

Take This Course

3. Monash University: Developmental Psychology

In this psychology course by Monash University, you will review the different stages of development. You will analyze the psychological changes and explore the causes of the changes.

In addition, you will examine whether development is continuous or discontinuous and to what extent development is influenced by nature or the environment. You will also explore designs and considerations for undergoing research in the field of psychology.

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4. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: Psychology of Popularity

This course helps you understand how psychologists study popularity and how the concepts they use can be used in adulthood to be more successful at work. You will be better informed about how adults become better parents and have happier lives. Popularity is changing our DNA expression and social information processing, you will realize how at the end of this course.

In this course, you will understand how popularity is studied scientifically, why some people are more popular than others, the role of human physical attractiveness in terms of popularity.  Also, the links connecting psychopathology and popularity will be discussed. As well as, how popularity changes one’s moods, behaviors, and feelings.

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5. San Jose State University: Intro to Psychology Course

The intro to psychology course is a journey within all the major psychological theories and principles. The knowledge you will gain from this course will enable you to critically assess psychological research and have a more in-depth understanding of human thought and behavior.

Subsequently, at the end of the course, you will be able to identify and analyze the social dimension of society as a context for human life. The processes of social continuity and social change, the function of human agency in those processes will be analyzed too.

In this course, you will understand how to place up-to-date developments in different contexts.

More so, you will be able to identify the dynamics of ethnic, cultural, gender/sexual, age-based, class, regional, national, global identities, and their relationships.

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6. University of Queensland: The Psychology of Criminal Justice

This course will expose you to the law and justice system from a psychological viewpoint. You will learn about the psychology of law and the misunderstandings usually held about criminal justice. While experiencing a fictional case first-hand.

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Going further, you will learn how to identify some of the myths about how the criminal justice system works from a psychological perspective. You will learn the empirical evidence that can inform our understanding of criminal justice. And finally, how to improve the way justice is administered.

http://edx.org/course/the-of-criminal-justice

7. The Open University: Forensic Psychology- Witness Investigation

Notwithstanding the advances in forensic science, eyewitness testimony remains an essential element of criminal investigations. However, psychological research has shown that there are vulnerabilities of depending on witness testimony and how careful the police must be during witness interrogation.

Subsequently, you will explore the forensic psychology behind eyewitness testimony using videos of real witnesses, from behind the scenes of a police investigation.

Also, you will have the opportunity to test your cognitive skills and discover if your investigative skills are as good as that of the police officers.  In the end, you will try to solve a crime using nothing but eyewitness evidence.

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8. University of Pennsylvania: Positive Psychology by Martin E. P. Seligman

This course exposes you to the history, contemporary, and future of positive psychology as a journey through the major scientific leaps headed by Dr. Martin E.P. Seligman (known worldwide as the renowned worldwide as the father of Positive Psychology) and his colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania.

Furthermore, while taking this course you will understand the scientific foundations of Positive Psychology. You will be able to explain how skills of well-being can be learned and taught. Describing why the mind and body flourish together will become clearer at the end of the course.

Finally, you will join the discussion of inspiring new developments in the field of Positive Psychology.

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9. University of Pennsylvania: Positive Psychology – Character, Grit and Research Methods

In this particular course, as a student, you will discover how to apply to research methods to the study of Positive Psychology.

In the course, you will study and explore the works of  Dr. Angela Duckworth and Dr. Claire Robertson-Kraft, “True Grit” and their interviews with researchers and practitioners. You will develop a research thesis and learn how to understand the difference between internal and external validity. During the course, you will begin to understand and apply the strengths and weaknesses associated with different types of measurements and evaluation designs. Then, you will interpret the results in an empirical study.

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10. University of Queensland: Introduction to Clinical Psychology

Have you ever queried what causes mental illness, or why you react to stress the way you do? Or maybe what to expect when you get older? Even though we want to give you value, we might not have the best answers. However, this course will give you the right answers.

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Clinical psychology is the study of psychological disorders and the treatments designed to improve the day-to-day lives of people suffering from the disorders. In that regard, this course is centered on common psychological disorders, like schizophrenia, and the symptoms of each. The course will explore the underlying role of stress and how it affects people mentally and physically. Also, you will study more general issues and theories on personality and intelligence.

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11. University of Liverpool: Psychology and Mental Health- Beyond Nature and Nurture

This free online course in psychology provides an introduction to how psychologists understand emotions, behaviors, and thinking patterns. It also shows how this helps clinical psychologists make sense of their clients’ problems.

Over the period of the course, you will explore some of the current challenges and debates in the area of diagnosis and treatment You will see new ways of thinking about mental health psychologically.

Lastly, this course will help you gain new perspectives on the debate of nature vs nurture.  You will understand how we as humans are affected by life experiences. More so,  you will engage in the discussion of new research that promises to help us improve our own mental health and well-being.

Take This Course

12. University of Queensland: Introduction to Social Psychology

Many persons may have had a strong belief about why people think and behave the way they do. Occasionally, our intuitions are correct, though oftentimes they are not.

It is established that social psychology helps us understand how people think about themselves, other people, and what motivates their behavior in social settings.

Consequently, this course will offer you the chance to explore a range of topics in social psychology. From how we think about ourselves to how we think about others, and how we interact and communicate with others. The ways that we can influence others and be influenced by others will also be discussed in this online psychology course.

Finally, you will study some problematic aspects of human behavior like prejudice and aggression.

Take This Course

Conclusion 

Psychology will help people understand why people act the way they do.  Professionally, a psychologist can help you improve your decision making, manage stress, and behavior based on how much they know about your past behaviors to better predict how you will behave in the future. Therefore, taking these courses can help you build a career, better relationships with people, and gain self-confidence no matter your career.

Check for other online courses in the link below.

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