I took 127A with Christensen and it was pretty tough. Abnormal psychology is super interesting, but Christensen expects you to really know your stuff. His exams are super tricky and the questions can be pretty nitpicky. I think what happens is that everyone usually screws up on the third midterm and the final, so be sure you really, really study for that.

I really liked Professor Christensen. He seems like such a nice person and cares for his students. I didn't find the lectures to be boring, the subject material is interesting too. I got a C on his first exam because I wasn't familiar with his exam style. After exam 1 I got As on all the others plus the final. I realized he focuses strongly on symptoms and time frames for disorders. So if the book is still the same one: focus on those little summarizing boxes for each disorder! Yes, I studied - but with studying an A is totally doable.

He's an ok lecturer. Sometimes his class can get very boring. However, I have to tell you that the course material itself is very interesting. Just study the slides and actually read the book and you'll do fine. i got a B in the class from studying the slides AND reading the book. I think the issue with this class was how his tests are. Let me tell you, the tests are poorly phrased/worded. He had to an "item analysis" after every exam to weed out questions that few people answered correctly. This meant he gave us 2-3 questions for free because of the poor phrasing of the question. Overall, take it if you're interested in the material. Don't take it if you think it's an easy A.

Professor Christensen is a wonderful guy. You can see how genuine and nice he is from the get go. This class is really interesting and there is a lot to gain and learn from it, BUT he the class is really hard. There are three midterms and a commulative final. He allows you to drop your lowest midterm but if you dont realize how difficult his tests are until you take one or even two then you'll be screwed. So study hard from the very beginning! He test you on minute details and just looking at his lecture slides and reading the chapter quickly will not get you an A or even a B on some occasions. You have to read the book thoroughly. DO NOT WAIT to the last minute to study either.
The class is great you just need to study hard for it and you can do well.

He's a really genuinely good guy, a wonderful human soul. I wasn't really enthused with his class though. Maybe it's just simply how it is with clinical psychology in general, but I felt like all the humanity and soul was taken out of the picture when studying these disorders, it felt like a list of facts rather than a serious human condition. We were tested heavily on small minute details of how to diagnose the disorders, rather than the bigger picture itself of how these disorders can impair lives. This is one of the most important psychology classes in the curriculum, DON'T take it until you're ready. There is a lot of valuable knowledge to be gained here but wait when the situation is right and you have a couple upper divs already under your belt.

It's possible to get an A+.

Hardest class I've taken so far. Sure you'll learn the stuff if you try to get an A, but you won't get an A. Last time I checked, everyone wants an A because if you don't then you're in the wrong school. Take this class with anyone else so you can learn the stuff and get an A to feel good about it. This guy thinks a B+ is an A. No a B+ is a B+ retard!

One word. Wonderful. He is wonderful. take him if you really want to learn. Voice is very soothing, slides are very concise & organized, lesson content very interesting, VERY well planned and taught very clearly. I plan on saving his podcast videos because they can come in incredibly useful for reference in future. This is one class that I come off feeling like I really learnt solid. If you are serious about your major, take him, I'd personally rank him as one of the top ten psych professors to be taken in college. yea sure man, you have to work, of course, and work seriously (yes don't skim, don't study only 2 days before the exam!); but do you really want to pay for four years of easy-class skimming and come out of this school knowing only slightly more than the average layman? in that case you shldn't be doing psychology in ucla, it'll be a wasted education.

Professor Christensen is the most helpful professor in UCLA! He has great knowledge and the lecture is interesting. Most important of all, he's super nice and he concerns about students a lot! GO TO HIS OFFICE HOURS! He's very very helpful and patient! It's not an easy A class but you won't regret taking psych 127 with prof Christensen!

This class was sooooo interesting and Prof. Christensen was awesome! I'll have to warn you that the first couple of weeks WILL be boring because he talks about research methods and definitions of abnormality. But hang in there and don't drop the class just yet! When all that boring stuff is over, he starts talking about all the different types of mental disorders and it gets fascinating! He podcasted his lectures (audio only), but i recommend going to class because he frequently shows short video clips that he will ask you about on the exams. There is one “thought” paper, 3 midterms and one final. His third midterm and final are both given on the day of the final. He drops your lowest midterm grade. His exams are a lot harder than I expected so make sure you really study and know the material well. He is really a great professor and does a really good job at explaining the material. He is extremely nice and helpful at office hours. If you get a chance to take 127 with Christensen, do it! You won’t regret it.