| Course | PSYC 648 Leadership and Motivation (PSYC648) |
|---|---|
| Credit hours | 3 |
| Program | MS in Industrial/Organizational Psychology |
| Length | 8 Module/Weeks, online |
| Weeks with written work | 6 of 8 |
| Samples on this site | 6 week sample papers |
| Sources | Liberty's 2026-2027 catalog and the published PSYC 648 course guide |
| Updated | October 2026 |
What PSYC 648 covers
Each module's group forum thread carries the student's Weekly Summary, at least 250 words citing a textbook and a journal article, with 5 to 10 takeaways; a rotating Presenter posts a research question, and every member answers it at least twice in 100 words or more, naming an earlier responder.
Case Studies from Northouse come in Modules/Weeks 2 to 4, the 3 to 5 page Leadership Assessment Project in Module/Week 5, the 4 to 5 page Motivational Theory Intervention with 5 to 8 research articles in Module/Week 7 and a six-essay final exam in Module/Week 8.
Review of psychological theories of and research on motivation and their application to work. Highlights how leadership relates to motivation, workplace climate and attitudes, and group performance. (Crosslisted with MSPS 658 )
PSYC 648 week by week, with the sample for each
| Week | Written work in the course guide | Points | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Group DB Forum 1 with Weekly Summary 1 (Course Requirements Checklist and Class Introductions also due) | 50 | Read the Week 1 sample |
| Week 2 | Group DB Forum 2 with Weekly Summary 2 (Case Study 1 also due) | 50 | Read the Week 2 sample |
| Week 3 | Group DB Forum 3 with Weekly Summary 3 (Case Study 2 also due) | 50 | Read the Week 3 sample |
| Week 4 | Group DB Forum 4 with Weekly Summary 4 (Case Study 3 also due) | 50 | Read the Week 4 sample |
| Week 5 | Leadership Assessment Project (Group DB Forum 5 and Weekly Summary 5 also due) | 120 | Read the Week 5 sample |
| Week 6 | Group DB Forum 6 and Weekly Summary 6 (summarize Latham chapters named only by number in the public guide; not sampled) | No written paper this week | |
| Week 7 | Motivational Theory Intervention (Group DB Forum 7 and Weekly Summary 7 also due) | 200 | Read the Week 7 sample |
| Week 8 | Group DB Forum 8, Weekly Summary 8 and Final Exam (not sampled) | No written paper this week |
Where PSYC 648 papers lose points
PSYC 648 work loses points when a weekly summary lists headings instead of ideas, when takeaways repeat the summary, when a reply ignores the classmate it should build on, when an assessment project picks an instrument that does not fit the leader's problem and when a motivation plan sets goals with no safeguard against gaming them.
Using a PSYC 648 sample well
The samples cite Northouse, Latham, Kaiser and colleagues, Judge and colleagues, Judge, Piccolo and Ilies, Dulebohn and colleagues, Gerstner and Day, Judge and Piccolo, Hoch and colleagues, Graen and Uhl-Bien, Henderson and colleagues, Locke and Latham, Latham and Pinder, Seijts and Latham, Kleingeld and colleagues, Kluger and DeNisi and Ordóñez and colleagues.
PSYC 648 questions, answered
What textbooks does PSYC 648 use?
Northouse's Leadership: Theory and Practice for leadership theories in Modules/Weeks 1 to 4 and Latham's Work Motivation for motivation theory and research in Modules/Weeks 5 to 8.
How do PSYC 648 group forums work?
Each student posts a thread with the Weekly Summary and takeaways, a rotating Presenter posts a research question and every member replies to it at least twice.
What is on the PSYC 648 final exam?
Six essay questions on the reading for Modules/Weeks 1 to 8, open book and open notes, with a two-hour time limit.
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