As a graduating senior, I can confidently say that he is my favorite professor from UCLA. I took Psych 135 and 137C with him, and I absolutely loved both of these classes. He is a great lecturer, no doubt about it. Honestly, I am not sure why people complain about his tests so much. I agree that his tests are not on the easy side, but they were NOT terribly difficult. As long as you understand the concept from the lecture and read the textbook, you should be fine. His tests are not meant to measure how good you are at memorizing definitions of concepts; they ask you to understand the concept and apply it to situations. I got A and A- from his classes. If you try, A is definitely in a range. Not an easy class, but very enjoyable and worthwhile.

EVERYONE says that 135 should be taken with Lieberman. I still vouch that Karney was not shabby at all, although I never did get to attend one of Lieberman's legendary lectures. Certain topics Karney went over just stunned me, leaving me sitting entranced at what I had just learned. It's the kind of emotional reverie you feel after a really good movie, and you just sit there letting the credits roll as you reflect on the past hour and a half. Certain other lectures were not so strong, but generally I would say that he's pretty passionate, lucid, and even inspiring at times.

Discussion sections are a joke, I learned basically nothing in these. I felt like the final was exponentially harder than the midterm, but maybe that's just me. Social Psych is one of the most entertaining classes you'll take at UCLA, make the most of it!

I'm going to prime this review by saying that I'm a terrible student but that shouldn't be a reflection of Karney's teachings.

Karney is probably one of the most engaging teachers I've had at UCLA. He's loud, articulate, and clear, so even if the lecture is bruincasted, I highly recommend going to class, mainly because bruincast's audio quality is somewhat mercurial. The course material is very fun and not terribly hard/easy so I highly recommend it for those looking for a fun psych upper div.

Grading wise, it is very similar to most Psych classes – a paper project outside of class and in class multiple choice questions. If you like memorization, this is your jam. There are some outside videos you should watch/pages in the textbook you should read, but the workload is still relatively low.

Karney is dope, and definitely the best lecturer I've had. He's very engaging and presents the material very well and is incredibly charismatic and lively. Personally, I didn't find the exams too hard - he provides a study guide and I just used that and did fine. The paper is simple, just follow the format. If you have the chance to take this class you should.

I absolutely loved Professor Karney and the way that he taught this class. Be forewarned: if you don't read the textbook, you won't do well on his tests. Still, the textbook is written so well that I'm going to keep it for years to come.
Karney is all around amazing. He remembers the name of every student, encourages questions, and his lectures are so engaging that you won't even notice the time passing. I would highly recommend this class.

loves it

TAKE THIS CLASS!! Professor Karney's lectures are super interesting and I've learned so much about intimate relationships from him. By far my favorite class in UCLA. The exams are pretty difficult though, you really need to go through all the textbook reading to do well in the exam.

This class is LIFECHANGING! Karney has more charisma than any professor I have ever known, and he deeply cares about understanding relationships. His lectures provide clarity, advice, and introspection for anyone who is in/will enter an intimate relationship!! I've read that people think his exams are very tough, but honestly, the book is an easy read and as long as you read it once -- you will be more than fine! There will be a link in the syllabus which provides textbook summary/quizzes for each chapter and they are HUGELY helpful (seriously, do them). The paper is really easy too, nearly everyone gets full credit. I highly recommend this class :)

I took Karney for both 135 and 137, and he is the most energetic lecturer I have ever had. His "Alright: Let's get started!" at the beginning of lecture has become something of a UCLA legend.

The concepts he covers in lecture are very easy to to understand, and his lectures are all organized and entertaining. That being said, the 135 book he uses is MUCH easier to study from than the 137C book (even though he wrote it). The Intimate Relationships book is just paragraphs of text with a few key terms bolded, nonspecific summaries, and it reads like a book. You're going to be asked to remember names and definitions of different concepts, and the 137 book isn't built for reviewing the way that the 135 book is.

His tests are also incredibly nitpicky, when they count. I can guarantee that at least four questions on each test will be about throwaway details that you wouldn't remember to review, though the other questions are pretty straightforward. He doesn't curve, but instead sets very high standards for grades: 93+ is an A, 90-92 is an A-, 86-89 is a B+, etc...And while the numbers look fair, this actually means that if you miss a total of 6 problems on his tests and write a great paper (e.g., 28/30, which is what most people get), you'll still land an A-.

That being said, you should easily be able to get at least a B in his class, and his lectures are great. Just remember that the tests are not as easy as the concepts are.

Karney was one of the best professors ive ever had in my life. Classes were podcasted but lecture was so much better. The lectures were engaging and karney always had enriching anecdotes to add to the topics we were discussing. The textbook that was required was written by karney himself and its a very easy read. it is as interesting and fun as karney himself. The textbook is also extremely useful, karney often says if you want to pass the class then read the book, and hes right. All his slides basically sum up key concepts in the book. so the book is very beneficial and worth the money, I ended up splitting the price to rent a book with a friend of mine so it was pretty affordable. The tests are very straightforward. The questions aren't meant to be trick questions, so if you know the answer you know the answer. Really study the slides and the parts in the book not discussed in class. The grade for the class is not curved and it consists of the first midterm, the second midterm, and a short paper. The paper is very easy and interesting to do. Most people get A's on the paper, as long as you follow the directions. All in all this was one of the best classes i have ever taken. the topic is extremely interesting and reveling. Plus its a complicated topic that everyone has thought of at least once. Karney leaves you excited for next lecture, and also makes you feel heard. If you ask a question in class, he'll ask for your name and then memorize it. That way he can call on you by name next time you have a question. I highly recommend everyone take this class