Jason Arndt
Professor of Psychology
- Office
- McCardell Bicen Hall 276
- Tel
- (802) 443-3404
- jarndt@middlebury.edu
- Office Hours
- Spring 2025: Tuesdays 9:00am - 11:00am; Wednesdays 2:15pm - 3:15pm
Jason Arndt is a Professor of Psychology at Middlebury College. He came to Middlebury in 2002, after completing a post-doctoral fellowship at Carnegie Mellon University. He received a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Kansas, and a Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
His research examines the processes that underlie human memory, including why memory errors occur, how memory errors can be limited, and how emotion influences memory. His lab also has ongoing projects seeking to understand how social collaboration influences memory and how memory retrieval (taking a test) enhances memory. Research students in Professor Arndt’s lab regularly attend regional and national conferences to present the lab’s work, as documented on his CV, and the Psychology Department’s list of faculty-student research collaborations. In addition to conducting research, he is currently serving on the editorial boards of Memory & Cognition and the Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory and Cognition.”
Courses Taught
NSCI 0500
Upcoming
Independent Research
Course Description
Independent Research
Students enrolled in NSCI 0500 complete individual research projects involving laboratory or extensive library study on a topic chosen by the student and approved in advance by a NSCI faculty advisor. This course is not open to seniors; seniors should enroll in NSCI 0700. (Approval required)
Terms Taught
NSCI 0700
Upcoming
Senior Research
Course Description
Senior Research
This course is for senior NSCI majors who plan to conduct one or more semesters of independent research, or who plan to complete preparatory work toward a senior thesis, such as researching and writing a thesis proposal as well as, if appropriate, collecting data that will form the basis for a senior thesis. Senior NSCI majors who plan to complete a senior thesis should register initially for NSCI 0700. Additional requirements may include participation in weekly meetings with advisors and/or lab groups and attending neuroscience seminars. (Approval required, open to seniors only)
Terms Taught
NSCI 0701
Upcoming
Senior Thesis
Course Description
Senior Thesis
Senior NSCI majors who have completed one or more terms of NSCI 0700, who have a GPA of 3.3 in their major courses, and who plan to complete a senior thesis should register for NSCI 0701 for the final semester of the senior thesis process. Students enrolled in NSCI 0701 write a thesis, give a public presentation of their research, and present an oral defense of the thesis before a committee of at least two Neuroscience faculty members. Faculty may recommend High honors in Neuroscience after considering the quality of these components of a student’s thesis and the student’s GPA in major courses. Additional requirements may include participation in weekly meetings with advisors and/or lab groups and attending neuroscience seminars. (NSCI 0700, Approval required)
Terms Taught
PSYC 0105
Introduction To Psychology
Course Description
Introduction to Psychology
This course will provide a general introduction to the field of psychology. The most central and important theories, concepts, findings, controversies, and applications in the following areas will be considered: biological bases of behavior, learning, perception, thinking, development, personality, psychological disorders, and social behavior. (Open to Juniors and Seniors by waiver only) 3 hrs lect./1 hr. disc.
Terms Taught
Requirements
PSYC 0202
Research Methods in Psychology
Course Description
Research Methods in Psychology
This course will provide students with an understanding of the research methodology used by psychologists. Students will learn to read psychological studies and other related research as informed consumers. Students will collect, analyze, and interpret data during lab assignments. They will also design an empirical study, review the related literature, and write a formal APA-style research proposal. (PSYC 0105 and PSYC 0201 or MATH 0116 or STAT 0201 or ECON 0111 (formerly ECON 0210); not open to first-year students; open to psychology and neuroscience majors) 3 hrs. lect./1.5 hr. lab
Terms Taught
Requirements
PSYC 0227
Cognitive Psychology
Course Description
Cognitive Psychology
Questions about the nature of the mind, thinking, and knowledge have a long and rich history in the field of psychology. This course will examine the theoretical perspectives and empirically documented phenomena that inform our current understanding of cognition. Lectures, discussions, demonstrations, and experiments will form the basis for our explorations of cognition in this class. Topics to be considered include attention, perception, memory, knowledge, problem solving, and decision making. (PSYC 0105; PSYC 0201 and PSYC 0202 recommended; not open to first-year students; open to psychology and neuroscience majors; others by waiver. Not open to students who have taken PSYC 0305) 3 hrs. lect./1.5 hrs. lab.
Terms Taught
Requirements
PSYC 0350
Upcoming
Directed Research
Course Description
Directed Research in Psychology
Directed research provides opportunities for advanced students to become familiar with and participate in ongoing research projects under the direction of a faculty member. The student will first read background literature on the content area to be investigated and experimental methodologies to be used. Procedures involved in conducting psychological research will then be learned through firsthand experience. Potential activities include the design of research and the defining of conceptual variables and the gathering, analyzing, and interpretation of data. Finally, students will learn how to write technical articles in psychology by preparing a paper describing the project, using APA style. (Approval required; not open to first-year students) 3 hrs. lect.
Terms Taught
PSYC 0430
Memory: A User's Guide
Course Description
Memory: A User's Guide
How can I remember names better? How can I best study for an exam? How accurate are our memories? A deep understanding of how people remember will allow us to answer these and many other questions. Topics covered in this course include working memory, the nature of encoding and retrieval, applied aspects of remembering, and neuroscientific approaches to understanding memory. Readings will be a mixture of textbook and journal articles. The class will have a seminar format, with emphasis on student-led discussions and contributions. Additionally, student research groups will design and execute a research study examining human memory. Evaluations will be based on the research project, student-led discussions, and reaction papers. (PSYC 0105 and PSYC 0201 or ECON 0210 or MATH 0116 or BIOL 0211; open to junior and senior psychology and neuroscience majors only) 3 hrs. sem.
Terms Taught
PSYC 0500
Upcoming
Advanced Research
Course Description
Advanced Research
A program of research arranged to meet the needs of advanced students majoring in psychology. (Approval required)
Terms Taught
PSYC 0700
Upcoming
Senior Research
Course Description
Senior Research
A program of research arranged to meet the needs of advanced senior majors in psychology. (PSYC 0201 and PSYC 0202; Approval required)
Terms Taught
PSYC 0701
Upcoming
Senior Thesis Proposal
Course Description
Senior Thesis Proposal
Students hoping to be considered as candidates for departmental honors must enroll in PSYC 0701 under the sponsorship of a department faculty member. Their semester’s work will culminate in the submission of a formal, written research proposal by the due date as specified by the department. If the proposal is approved, the student will enroll in PSYC 0702 during the winter term and PSYC 0703 during the spring term of their senior year. (Feb graduates should consult with their advisors about the appropriate semester in which to begin a thesis.) (PSYC 0201 and PSYC 0202; Approval required)
Terms Taught
PSYC 0702
Upcoming
Senior Thesis Second Semester
Course Description
Senior Thesis Second Semester
Students whose honors thesis proposal (PSYC 0701) has been approved will collect, analyze, and interpret their data. This is the second semester of the 3-semester senior thesis. (PSYC 0201, PSYC 0202, and PSYC 0701; Approval required)
Terms Taught
PSYC 0703
Upcoming
Senior Thesis
Course Description
Senior Thesis*
This is the third and final semester of the senior thesis. Students will finish analyzing and interpreting their data. This process culminates in a written thesis to be submitted by the due date as specified by the department, a presentation, and an oral defense. The decision about awarding departmental honors will be made after the student submits the thesis. (PSYC 0201, PSYC 0202, and PSYC 0702; Approval required)
Terms Taught
Publications
Arndt, J. (2012). False recollection: Empirical findings and their theoretical implications. In B.H. Ross (Ed.) Psychology of Learning and Motivation, Vol. 56, pgs. 81-124. USA: Academic Press.
Arndt, J. (2012). The influence of forward and backward associative strength on false recognition. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 38, 747-756.
Giammattei, J.*, & Arndt, J. (2012). Hemispheric asymmetries in the activation and monitoring of memory errors. Brain and Cognition, 80, 7-14.
Arndt, J. (2010). The Role of Memory Activation in Creating False Memories of Encoding Context. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 36, 66-79.
Guillet, R.* & Arndt, J. (2009). Taboo words: The effect of emotion on memory for peripheral information. Memory & Cognition, 37, 866-879.
Arndt, J., & Jones, T.C. (2008). Elaborative processing and conjunction errors in recognition memory. Memory & Cognition, 36, 899-912.
Arndt, J., Lee, K.*, & Flora, D.B. (2008). Recognition Without Identification for Words, Pseudowords and Nonwords. Journal of Memory and Language, 59, 346-360.
Arndt, J., & Gould, C.* (2006). An examination of two-process theories of false recognition. Memory, 14, 814-833.
Park, H., Arndt, J., & Reder, L. (2006). A contextual interference account of distinctiveness effects in recognition. Memory & Cognition, 34, 743-751.