Describe Some Important Milestones In Psychology's Early Development
Professor: Leslie Adams Lariviere, Ph.D. Class time/location: MWF 12:30-1:20, Kennedy room 204
Office Hrs: M 10:30-12:20, W 10:30-11:20 Office Location: Kennedy 211
Office phone number: 508 767-2313 Email: llariviere@assumption.edu
I. Description: In this introduction to psychology, students learn the language, methods, theoretical perspectives, and research of the discipline. This course introduces students to a range of topics within psychology, such as the biological and social bases of behavior, as well as basic principles of perception, learning, and motivation.
II. Text
Myers, D. G. (2013). Psychology: Tenth Edition in Modules. Worth Publishers. III. Teaching Procedures and Course Goals
Teaching will primarily …show more content…
consist of lectures and handouts, but will also include videos, small group activities and individual activities. Materials covered in lecture will certainly be on the exams. Materials not covered in lecture may still be on the exams if they are part of the assigned reading. All materials will be available on Blackboard in addition to in class. Your grades are also posted on Blackboard. Be mindful of questions you have and be sure to ask them!
For a detailed list of specific course goals, please see the Schedule below. Overall course goals consist of knowing the major concepts and terminology of Psychology and being able to apply these concepts to daily life. You should also be able to articulate the importance of research to Psychology. IV. Grading Policy
Your final grade will include the following elements:
a. Exams
There will be three exams, consisting of approximately 30-40 multiple choice questions on each exam and possibly short answer questions. Each of the exams will be worth 14% of your final grade. Be prepared to apply the concepts you have learned. Prepare to attend every exam. Absence from an exam must be verified with a note from a dean or a doctor. Make up exams from absences not verified with a note may be an all essay format.
b. Final Exam
The final exam will cover the main points from the semester’s lecture and text materials and will consist of multiple choice questions and possibly short answer questions. The final exam will be worth 14% of your final grade.
c. Assignments
There are 19 questions throughout the semester that should be able to be answered in a paragraph or two. These are written on the schedule below in bold and are due on the date that they are written. Any late answers will be marked off by 10% per day. The answers to these questions are worth 18% of your final grade. There will also be a paper and a presentation. For the research paper, you will be asked to identify key parts of a research article by answering ten questions about the article. The article will be provided on the Blackboard website associated with our class. The Mental Illness and Movies assignment will be to watch a movie known to portray a character with a mental illness and to diagnose whether the character actually has the illness using the DSM criteria. You will present this information (the DSM diagnosis, evidence of the characteristics portrayed by the character in the film, your analysis of whether or not the character has the disorder) in class on the day that topic is outlined. I will also collect a paper copy of this information from everyone on the first day of presentations. The research paper will be worth 8% of your final grade. The movie presentation and paper together will be worth 8% of your final grade. For each class day an assignment is late, 10% will be deducted from the grade.
Letter and number grade equivalencies (based on the Assumption orientation packet)
A (94+) Displays a thorough understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, includes virtually all relevant details, is well developed and coherently presented. In addition, displays originality (not that you say what has never been thought before, but that you go beyond what was mentioned or developed in class) goes beyond class presentations and a certain elegance (that is, it is a well crafted thought.)
A-(90-93.99) Displays a thorough understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, includes virtually all relevant details, is well developed, and coherently presented. In addition, goes beyond class presentations and/or has a certain elegance.
B+ (87 to 89.99) Displays a thorough understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, includes virtually all relevant details, is well developed, and coherently presented. The essay shows a better than usual understanding of the text by being both precise and complete and a mastery of the class presentation.
B (84-86.99) Displays a good understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, includes virtually all relevant details, is fairly well developed, and coherently presented. The essay shows a better than usual understanding of the text by being both precise and complete.
B-(80-83.99) Displays an acceptable understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, but lacks some relevant details, is somewhat underdeveloped, and/or has minor problems with coherence.
C+ (77-79.99) Displays an acceptable understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, but has only a few relevant details, is underdeveloped, and/or lacks expected coherence. The essay shows that you basically got the material and made no glaring mistakes.
C (74-76.99) Displays a minimally acceptable understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, but lacks relevant details, is underdeveloped, and/or lacks expected coherence. There are some problems with this work; it is not up to what you should be able to produce.
C-(70-73.99) Displays a minimally acceptable understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, lacks relevant details, is notably underdeveloped, and/or lacks expected coherence. One wonders how seriously you are taking the course.
D+ (67-69.99) Displays an unacceptable understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, lacks relevant details, is notably underdeveloped, and/or lacks expected coherence.
D/D- (60-66.99) Displays virtually no understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, lacks relevant details, is notably underdeveloped, and/or lacks expected coherence. One no longer wonders how seriously you are taking the course.
F (0-60) Displays virtually no understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text
d. Attendance and Participation
I expect you to attend every class, but attendance is not enough. Participation in class will be 10% of your final grade. If you do not attend a class, you are still responsible for obtaining notes for the class. All of the lectures are available on Blackboard. Do not expect the instructor to provide notes for classes missed or attended.
A = doesn’t miss a class; and/or participates with originality; comments reflect that you have read the material and have thought about it prior to attending class
B = misses one class or less; and/or participates in class discussions on a regular basis
C= misses one or two classes; and/or participates in class discussions less than most and/or does not appear to be taking the class seriously
D = misses two or more classes; and/or participation is rare; is not taking the class seriously
F = misses two or more classes; and/or never speaks in class
V. Honesty Policy
Academic honesty is expected at all times. Please see the Assumption College Student Academic Honesty Policy. This policy will be enforced in this class.
VI. Students with Disabilities
It is the policy of Assumption College to provide reasonable accommodations to students who have a documented disability. Students with disabilities are encouraged to contact the Director of Disability Services for a confidential discussion of their individual needs for academic accommodations. Please feel free to speak to the professor about these needs.
VII. Academic Support Center
The Academic Support Center, located on the second floor of the d’Alzon Library, offers free peer and professional tutoring in all subject areas of the curriculum and writing, as well as workshops in time management, study skills, and test taking. Call them at X 7071 to make an appointment.
Schedule (subject to change)
Date Module that should be read by this date
Objectives (What you should be able to do at the end of the reading/lecture)
Homework question that is due on this date. This is based on the reading.
9/4 Syllabus and introductions
In class: What kind of Psychologist are you?
9/6 Article will be available online today
Introduction to Psychology: History of Psychology and Psychology as a Science (Modules 1-3)
Module 1
Describe some important milestones in psychology’s early development.
Know which psychologists are associated with which major developments in history.
Describe how psychology continued to develop from the 1920s through today.
Summarize the nature–nurture debate in psychology.
Describe psychology’s three main levels of analysis and related perspectives.
Identify psychology’s main subfields.
Q1 Describe what five of the psychologists mentioned in Module 1 would appreciate about today’s society. Be specific (What movies, technology, songs, TV shows, etc. would each enjoy and why?)
9/9 Module 2 Explain how hindsight bias, overconfidence, and the tendency to perceive order in random events illustrate why science-based answers are more valid than those based on intuition and common sense.
Explain how the three main components of the scientific attitude relate to critical thinking.
Explain how laboratory experiments illuminate everyday life.
Discuss whether psychological research can be generalized across cultures and genders.
Identity the difference between independent and dependent variables.
In class: IV vs. DV …show more content…
assignment
9/11 Module 2 (continued)
Explain why psychologists study animals, and describe the ethical guidelines that safeguard human and animal research participants.
Discuss whether psychology is free of value judgments.
Module 3 Describe how psychological theories advance psychological science.
Describe how psychologists use case studies, surveys, and naturalistic observation to observe and describe behavior, and explain the importance of random sampling
Q2 Choose a specific topic. Explain how you could study it using each of the five common research methods (case study, naturalistic observation, experiment, correlation, survey).
9/13 Module 3 (continued)
Describe positive and negative correlations, and explain how correlational measures can aid the process of prediction but not provide evidence of cause-effect relationships.
Describe the characteristics of experimentation that make it possible to isolate cause and effect.
Explain how we know whether an observed difference can be generalized to other populations
For homework: Identify whether studies are correlations or experiments.
9/16 RESEARCH ASSIGNMENT DUE
Biological Aspects of Psychology (Modules 4-6, 11)
Module 4
Explain why psychologists are concerned with human biology.
Describe the parts of a neuron, and explain how its impulses are generated.
Describe how nerve cells communicate with other nerve cells.
Explain how neurotransmitters affect behavior, and how drugs and other chemicals affect neurotransmission.
Compare the functions of the nervous system’s main divisions.
Describe the nature and functions of the endocrine system and its interaction with the nervous system.
9/18 Module 5
Describe several techniques for studying the brain’s connections to behavior and mind.
Describe the components of the brainstem, and summarize the functions of the brainstem, thalamus, and cerebellum.
Describe the structures and functions of the limbic system.
Module 6 Identify the various regions of the cerebral cortex, and describe their functions.
Discuss the brain’s ability to reorganize itself, and define neurogenesis.
Describe what split brains reveal about the functions of our two hemispheres.
Q3 If you had to have an accident a la Phineas Gage, where would you choose to have the pole come through your brain? To have it identical to Gage’s accident is not an option.
9/20 Module 11
Describe genes and explain how behavior geneticists explain our individual differences.
Identify the potential uses of molecular genetics research.
Describe heritability and compare how it relates to individuals and groups.
Discuss the interaction of heredity and environment.
In class: Genetics activity.
9/23 Sensation and Perception (Modules 17-22)
Module 17
Contrast sensation and perception, and explain the difference between bottom-up and top-down processing.
Identify the three steps that are basic to all our sensory systems.
Define absolute and difference thresholds and explain whether we can sense stimuli below our absolute threshold and be influenced by them.
Explain the function of sensory adaptation.
Explain how our expectations, contexts, emotions, and motivation influence our perceptions.
Q4 Do infants use primarily bottom up or top down processing? What do elderly people primarily use? How might this impact their interaction with the physical world?
9/25 Module 18
Describe how the eye transforms light energy into neural messages.
Explain how the eye and brain process visual information.
Discuss the theories that help us understand color vision.
9/27 Module 18 (continued)
Describe Gestalt psychologists’ understanding of perception, and explain how figure-ground and grouping principles contribute to our perceptions.
Explain how we use binocular and monocular cues to perceive the world in three dimensions and perceive motion.
Explain how perceptual constancies help us organize our sensations into meaningful perceptions.
Describe what research on restored vision, sensory restriction, and perceptual adaptation reveals about the effects of experience on perception.
List the claims of ESP, and discuss the conclusions of most research psychologists after putting ESP to the test.
Q5: How could a lawyer use the perception principles to make their client seem innocent?
9/30 Module 19
Explain how the ear transforms sound energy into neural messages.
Explain the theories that help us understand pitch perception.
Describe how we locate sounds.
Describe the sense of touch.
Describe how we best understand and control pain.
Describe the senses of taste and smell, and comment on their interaction.
Explain how we sense our body’s position and movement.
Q6: If you had a new sense, what would it have to have?
10/2 EXAM 1
10/4 Learning (Modules 20-22)
Module 20
Define learning, and identify some basic forms of learning.
Define classical conditioning and behaviorism, and describe the basic components of classical conditioning.
Summarize the processes of acquisition, extinction, spontaneous recovery, generalization, and discrimination.
Q7: Give an example of something you are afraid of. Try to use Pavlov’s work to show how you came to be afraid.
10/7 Module 21 Define operant conditioning, and describe how operant behavior is reinforced and shaped.
Discuss the differences between positive and negative reinforcement, and identify the different types of reinforcers.
Explain how different reinforcement schedules affect behavior.
Discuss how punishment and negative reinforcement differ, and explain how punishment affects behavior.
Q8: Give an example from life of each type of reinforcement schedule (fixed ratio, fixed interval, variable ratio and variable interval.) 10/9 Module 21, continued
Identify the characteristics that distinguish operant conditioning from classical conditioning.
Module 22 Explain how biological constraints affect classical and operant conditioning.
Explain how cognitive processes affect classical and operant conditioning.
Describe the process of observational learning, and explain how some scientists believe it is enabled by mirror neurons.
Discuss the impact of prosocial and antisocial modeling.
Q9 Who is influencing you? If there is a behavior you would like to change, how could you use observational learning to try to change it?
10/11 Learning review (Modules 23-25)
Compare and contrast operant and classical conditioning.
In class: Work through examples of conditioning, using the appropriate terms for each type of conditioning.
10/14 No School
10/16 Memory (Modules 23-26)
Module 23
Define memory.
Explain how psychologists describe the human memory system.
Distinguish between explicit and implicit memories.
Identify the information we process automatically.
Explain how sensory memory works.
Describe the capacity of our short-term and working memory.
Describe the effortful processing methods that help us remember new information.
Describe the levels of processing and their effect on encoding.
Q10 Give example of the effort processing methods that you have used in this class so far.
10/18 Module 24 Describe the capacity and duration of long-term memories. Describe the role of the frontal lobes and hippocampus in memory storage. Describe the role of the cerebellum and basal ganglia in our memory processing.
Discuss how emotions affect our memory processing.
Explain how changes at the synapse level affect our memory processing.
Q11: Knowing how the brain stores memories, how should you study?
10/21 Module 25 Describe how external cues, internal emotions, and order of appearance influence memory retrieval.
Module 26
Explain why we forget.
Explain how misinformation, imagination, and source amnesia influence our memory construction, and describe how we decide whether a memory is real or false.
Describe the reliability of young children’s eyewitness descriptions, and discuss the controversy related to claims of repressed and recovered memories.
Describe how you can use memory research findings to do better in this and other courses.
Q12: Given the information from the text, say what advice you would give to a depressed person.
10/23 Human Development (Modules 13-16)
Module 13
Identify three issues that have engaged developmental psychologists.
Discuss the course of prenatal development, and explain how teratogens affect that development.
Describe some abilities of the newborn, noting how researchers are able to identify their mental abilities. Module 14 Describe some developmental changes in brain and motor abilities during infancy and childhood..
Describe how a child’s mind develops from the perspectives of Piaget, Vygotsky, and today’s researchers.
Q13: Give real life examples of assimilation and accommodation.
10/25 Module 14, continued
Explain how parent-infant bonds form.
Explain how psychologists have studied attachment differences and what they’ve learned.
Describe how childhood neglect, abuse, or family disruption affect children’s attachments.
Q14 What is your own attachment style? Your roommate’s?
10/28 Module 14, continued
Describe three parenting styles, and explain how children’s traits relate to them.
Module 15 Define adolescence, and identify the major physical changes during this period.
Describe adolescents’ cognitive and moral development, according to Piaget, Kohlberg, and later researchers
Q15 Give examples from the media of each of Baumrind’s parenting styles.
10/30 Module 15, continued
Identify Erikson’s eight stages of psychosocial development and their accompanying issues.
Q16 Give 5 pieces of advice to parents based on any four of Erikson’s stages.
11/1 Module 16
Describe the physical changes that occur in middle and late adulthood.
Assess the impact of aging on memory.
Describe the themes and influences that mark our social journey from early adulthood to death.
Describe trends in people’s self-confidence and life satisfaction across the life span.
Q17 What might your advice be for your own parents based on this reading (not Erikson)?
11/4 EXAM 2
11/6 Personality (Modules 40-41)
Module 40
Describe Freud’s view of personality.
Identify Freud’s developmental stages.
Describe Freud’s views on how people defended themselves against anxiety.
Describe projective tests and how they are used, and discuss some criticisms of them.
In class: Projective test activity.
11/8 Module 41
Explain how humanistic psychologists viewed personality and describe their goal in studying personality.
Describe how humanistic psychologists assessed a person’s sense of self.
Explain how the humanistic perspective has influenced psychology and describe the criticisms it has faced.
In class: Humanistic psychologist activity.
11/11 Module 42
Explain how psychologists use traits to describe personality.
Define personality inventories and discuss their strengths and weaknesses as trait-assessment tools.
Identify the traits that seem to provide the most useful information about personality variation.
In class: Myers Briggs activity
11/13 Module 41, continued
Explain whether research supports the consistency of personality traits over time and across situations.
Identify the psychologist who first proposed the social-cognitive perspective, and describe how these theorists view personality development.
Discuss some evidence for self-serving bias, and contrast defensive and secure self-esteem.
In class: LOC activity and discussion.
11/15 Abnormal Psychology (Modules 47-51)
Module 47
Discuss how we draw the line between normality and
disorder.
Contrast the medical model with the biopsychosocial approach to psychological disorders.
Explain how and why clinicians classify disorders.
Explain why some psychologists criticize the use of diagnostic labels.
Discuss the prevalence of psychological disorders, and summarize the findings on the link between poverty and serious psychological disorders.
11/18, 11/20, 11/22, 11/25, (No School 11/27 or 11/29), 12/2 Mental Illness and Movie Paper Assignment DUE 11/18 Mental Illness and Movie Presentations Begin 11/18 (continue until 12/2)
Module 48 Identify the different anxiety disorders.
Describe how the learning and biological perspectives explain anxiety disorders. Module 49 Define mood disorders, and contrast major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder. Describe how the biological and social-cognitive perspectives explain mood disorders.
Module 50
Describe the patterns of thinking, perceiving, feeling and behaving that characterize schizophrenia.
Discuss how brain abnormalities and viral infections help explain schizophrenia.
Discuss the evidence for genetic influences on schizophrenia, and describe some factors that may be early warning signs of schizophrenia in children.
Module 51
Describe the dissociative disorders and explain why they are considered controversial.
Contrast the three clusters of personality disorders.
Explain how anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder demonstrate the influence of psychological forces.
12/4 Social Psychology (Modules 43-44, 46) Module 43
Identify what social psychologists study, and discuss how we tend to explain others’ behavior and our own.
Explain whether what we think affects what we do or vice versa.
In class: FAE activity.
12/6 Module 44 Describe automatic mimicry, and explain how conformity experiments reveal the power of social influence.
Describe what we learned about the power of social influence from Milgram’s obedience experiments.
Discuss what we learned from the Asch and Milgram studies.
Describe how our behavior is affected by the presence of others.
Q 18 How would you use this information? For example, as a teacher? As a politician?
12/9 Module 46 Explain why we befriend or fall in love with some people but not with others.
Describe how romantic love typically changes as time passes.
Identify the times when people are most—and least—likely to help.
Discuss how social exchange theory and social norms explain helping behavior.
Q19 Describe the perfect first date.
12/11 EXAM 3
FINAL EXAM DATE TBA
Office Hrs: M 10:30-12:20, W 10:30-11:20 Office Location: Kennedy 211
Office phone number: 508 767-2313 Email: llariviere@assumption.edu
I. Description: In this introduction to psychology, students learn the language, methods, theoretical perspectives, and research of the discipline. This course introduces students to a range of topics within psychology, such as the biological and social bases of behavior, as well as basic principles of perception, learning, and motivation.
II. Text
Myers, D. G. (2013). Psychology: Tenth Edition in Modules. Worth Publishers. III. Teaching Procedures and Course Goals
Teaching will primarily …show more content…
consist of lectures and handouts, but will also include videos, small group activities and individual activities. Materials covered in lecture will certainly be on the exams. Materials not covered in lecture may still be on the exams if they are part of the assigned reading. All materials will be available on Blackboard in addition to in class. Your grades are also posted on Blackboard. Be mindful of questions you have and be sure to ask them!
For a detailed list of specific course goals, please see the Schedule below. Overall course goals consist of knowing the major concepts and terminology of Psychology and being able to apply these concepts to daily life. You should also be able to articulate the importance of research to Psychology. IV. Grading Policy
Your final grade will include the following elements:
a. Exams
There will be three exams, consisting of approximately 30-40 multiple choice questions on each exam and possibly short answer questions. Each of the exams will be worth 14% of your final grade. Be prepared to apply the concepts you have learned. Prepare to attend every exam. Absence from an exam must be verified with a note from a dean or a doctor. Make up exams from absences not verified with a note may be an all essay format.
b. Final Exam
The final exam will cover the main points from the semester’s lecture and text materials and will consist of multiple choice questions and possibly short answer questions. The final exam will be worth 14% of your final grade.
c. Assignments
There are 19 questions throughout the semester that should be able to be answered in a paragraph or two. These are written on the schedule below in bold and are due on the date that they are written. Any late answers will be marked off by 10% per day. The answers to these questions are worth 18% of your final grade. There will also be a paper and a presentation. For the research paper, you will be asked to identify key parts of a research article by answering ten questions about the article. The article will be provided on the Blackboard website associated with our class. The Mental Illness and Movies assignment will be to watch a movie known to portray a character with a mental illness and to diagnose whether the character actually has the illness using the DSM criteria. You will present this information (the DSM diagnosis, evidence of the characteristics portrayed by the character in the film, your analysis of whether or not the character has the disorder) in class on the day that topic is outlined. I will also collect a paper copy of this information from everyone on the first day of presentations. The research paper will be worth 8% of your final grade. The movie presentation and paper together will be worth 8% of your final grade. For each class day an assignment is late, 10% will be deducted from the grade.
Letter and number grade equivalencies (based on the Assumption orientation packet)
A (94+) Displays a thorough understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, includes virtually all relevant details, is well developed and coherently presented. In addition, displays originality (not that you say what has never been thought before, but that you go beyond what was mentioned or developed in class) goes beyond class presentations and a certain elegance (that is, it is a well crafted thought.)
A-(90-93.99) Displays a thorough understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, includes virtually all relevant details, is well developed, and coherently presented. In addition, goes beyond class presentations and/or has a certain elegance.
B+ (87 to 89.99) Displays a thorough understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, includes virtually all relevant details, is well developed, and coherently presented. The essay shows a better than usual understanding of the text by being both precise and complete and a mastery of the class presentation.
B (84-86.99) Displays a good understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, includes virtually all relevant details, is fairly well developed, and coherently presented. The essay shows a better than usual understanding of the text by being both precise and complete.
B-(80-83.99) Displays an acceptable understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, but lacks some relevant details, is somewhat underdeveloped, and/or has minor problems with coherence.
C+ (77-79.99) Displays an acceptable understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, but has only a few relevant details, is underdeveloped, and/or lacks expected coherence. The essay shows that you basically got the material and made no glaring mistakes.
C (74-76.99) Displays a minimally acceptable understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, but lacks relevant details, is underdeveloped, and/or lacks expected coherence. There are some problems with this work; it is not up to what you should be able to produce.
C-(70-73.99) Displays a minimally acceptable understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, lacks relevant details, is notably underdeveloped, and/or lacks expected coherence. One wonders how seriously you are taking the course.
D+ (67-69.99) Displays an unacceptable understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, lacks relevant details, is notably underdeveloped, and/or lacks expected coherence.
D/D- (60-66.99) Displays virtually no understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text, lacks relevant details, is notably underdeveloped, and/or lacks expected coherence. One no longer wonders how seriously you are taking the course.
F (0-60) Displays virtually no understanding of the main arguments and/or issues of the text
d. Attendance and Participation
I expect you to attend every class, but attendance is not enough. Participation in class will be 10% of your final grade. If you do not attend a class, you are still responsible for obtaining notes for the class. All of the lectures are available on Blackboard. Do not expect the instructor to provide notes for classes missed or attended.
A = doesn’t miss a class; and/or participates with originality; comments reflect that you have read the material and have thought about it prior to attending class
B = misses one class or less; and/or participates in class discussions on a regular basis
C= misses one or two classes; and/or participates in class discussions less than most and/or does not appear to be taking the class seriously
D = misses two or more classes; and/or participation is rare; is not taking the class seriously
F = misses two or more classes; and/or never speaks in class
V. Honesty Policy
Academic honesty is expected at all times. Please see the Assumption College Student Academic Honesty Policy. This policy will be enforced in this class.
VI. Students with Disabilities
It is the policy of Assumption College to provide reasonable accommodations to students who have a documented disability. Students with disabilities are encouraged to contact the Director of Disability Services for a confidential discussion of their individual needs for academic accommodations. Please feel free to speak to the professor about these needs.
VII. Academic Support Center
The Academic Support Center, located on the second floor of the d’Alzon Library, offers free peer and professional tutoring in all subject areas of the curriculum and writing, as well as workshops in time management, study skills, and test taking. Call them at X 7071 to make an appointment.
Schedule (subject to change)
Date Module that should be read by this date
Objectives (What you should be able to do at the end of the reading/lecture)
Homework question that is due on this date. This is based on the reading.
9/4 Syllabus and introductions
In class: What kind of Psychologist are you?
9/6 Article will be available online today
Introduction to Psychology: History of Psychology and Psychology as a Science (Modules 1-3)
Module 1
Describe some important milestones in psychology’s early development.
Know which psychologists are associated with which major developments in history.
Describe how psychology continued to develop from the 1920s through today.
Summarize the nature–nurture debate in psychology.
Describe psychology’s three main levels of analysis and related perspectives.
Identify psychology’s main subfields.
Q1 Describe what five of the psychologists mentioned in Module 1 would appreciate about today’s society. Be specific (What movies, technology, songs, TV shows, etc. would each enjoy and why?)
9/9 Module 2 Explain how hindsight bias, overconfidence, and the tendency to perceive order in random events illustrate why science-based answers are more valid than those based on intuition and common sense.
Explain how the three main components of the scientific attitude relate to critical thinking.
Explain how laboratory experiments illuminate everyday life.
Discuss whether psychological research can be generalized across cultures and genders.
Identity the difference between independent and dependent variables.
In class: IV vs. DV …show more content…
assignment
9/11 Module 2 (continued)
Explain why psychologists study animals, and describe the ethical guidelines that safeguard human and animal research participants.
Discuss whether psychology is free of value judgments.
Module 3 Describe how psychological theories advance psychological science.
Describe how psychologists use case studies, surveys, and naturalistic observation to observe and describe behavior, and explain the importance of random sampling
Q2 Choose a specific topic. Explain how you could study it using each of the five common research methods (case study, naturalistic observation, experiment, correlation, survey).
9/13 Module 3 (continued)
Describe positive and negative correlations, and explain how correlational measures can aid the process of prediction but not provide evidence of cause-effect relationships.
Describe the characteristics of experimentation that make it possible to isolate cause and effect.
Explain how we know whether an observed difference can be generalized to other populations
For homework: Identify whether studies are correlations or experiments.
9/16 RESEARCH ASSIGNMENT DUE
Biological Aspects of Psychology (Modules 4-6, 11)
Module 4
Explain why psychologists are concerned with human biology.
Describe the parts of a neuron, and explain how its impulses are generated.
Describe how nerve cells communicate with other nerve cells.
Explain how neurotransmitters affect behavior, and how drugs and other chemicals affect neurotransmission.
Compare the functions of the nervous system’s main divisions.
Describe the nature and functions of the endocrine system and its interaction with the nervous system.
9/18 Module 5
Describe several techniques for studying the brain’s connections to behavior and mind.
Describe the components of the brainstem, and summarize the functions of the brainstem, thalamus, and cerebellum.
Describe the structures and functions of the limbic system.
Module 6 Identify the various regions of the cerebral cortex, and describe their functions.
Discuss the brain’s ability to reorganize itself, and define neurogenesis.
Describe what split brains reveal about the functions of our two hemispheres.
Q3 If you had to have an accident a la Phineas Gage, where would you choose to have the pole come through your brain? To have it identical to Gage’s accident is not an option.
9/20 Module 11
Describe genes and explain how behavior geneticists explain our individual differences.
Identify the potential uses of molecular genetics research.
Describe heritability and compare how it relates to individuals and groups.
Discuss the interaction of heredity and environment.
In class: Genetics activity.
9/23 Sensation and Perception (Modules 17-22)
Module 17
Contrast sensation and perception, and explain the difference between bottom-up and top-down processing.
Identify the three steps that are basic to all our sensory systems.
Define absolute and difference thresholds and explain whether we can sense stimuli below our absolute threshold and be influenced by them.
Explain the function of sensory adaptation.
Explain how our expectations, contexts, emotions, and motivation influence our perceptions.
Q4 Do infants use primarily bottom up or top down processing? What do elderly people primarily use? How might this impact their interaction with the physical world?
9/25 Module 18
Describe how the eye transforms light energy into neural messages.
Explain how the eye and brain process visual information.
Discuss the theories that help us understand color vision.
9/27 Module 18 (continued)
Describe Gestalt psychologists’ understanding of perception, and explain how figure-ground and grouping principles contribute to our perceptions.
Explain how we use binocular and monocular cues to perceive the world in three dimensions and perceive motion.
Explain how perceptual constancies help us organize our sensations into meaningful perceptions.
Describe what research on restored vision, sensory restriction, and perceptual adaptation reveals about the effects of experience on perception.
List the claims of ESP, and discuss the conclusions of most research psychologists after putting ESP to the test.
Q5: How could a lawyer use the perception principles to make their client seem innocent?
9/30 Module 19
Explain how the ear transforms sound energy into neural messages.
Explain the theories that help us understand pitch perception.
Describe how we locate sounds.
Describe the sense of touch.
Describe how we best understand and control pain.
Describe the senses of taste and smell, and comment on their interaction.
Explain how we sense our body’s position and movement.
Q6: If you had a new sense, what would it have to have?
10/2 EXAM 1
10/4 Learning (Modules 20-22)
Module 20
Define learning, and identify some basic forms of learning.
Define classical conditioning and behaviorism, and describe the basic components of classical conditioning.
Summarize the processes of acquisition, extinction, spontaneous recovery, generalization, and discrimination.
Q7: Give an example of something you are afraid of. Try to use Pavlov’s work to show how you came to be afraid.
10/7 Module 21 Define operant conditioning, and describe how operant behavior is reinforced and shaped.
Discuss the differences between positive and negative reinforcement, and identify the different types of reinforcers.
Explain how different reinforcement schedules affect behavior.
Discuss how punishment and negative reinforcement differ, and explain how punishment affects behavior.
Q8: Give an example from life of each type of reinforcement schedule (fixed ratio, fixed interval, variable ratio and variable interval.) 10/9 Module 21, continued
Identify the characteristics that distinguish operant conditioning from classical conditioning.
Module 22 Explain how biological constraints affect classical and operant conditioning.
Explain how cognitive processes affect classical and operant conditioning.
Describe the process of observational learning, and explain how some scientists believe it is enabled by mirror neurons.
Discuss the impact of prosocial and antisocial modeling.
Q9 Who is influencing you? If there is a behavior you would like to change, how could you use observational learning to try to change it?
10/11 Learning review (Modules 23-25)
Compare and contrast operant and classical conditioning.
In class: Work through examples of conditioning, using the appropriate terms for each type of conditioning.
10/14 No School
10/16 Memory (Modules 23-26)
Module 23
Define memory.
Explain how psychologists describe the human memory system.
Distinguish between explicit and implicit memories.
Identify the information we process automatically.
Explain how sensory memory works.
Describe the capacity of our short-term and working memory.
Describe the effortful processing methods that help us remember new information.
Describe the levels of processing and their effect on encoding.
Q10 Give example of the effort processing methods that you have used in this class so far.
10/18 Module 24 Describe the capacity and duration of long-term memories. Describe the role of the frontal lobes and hippocampus in memory storage. Describe the role of the cerebellum and basal ganglia in our memory processing.
Discuss how emotions affect our memory processing.
Explain how changes at the synapse level affect our memory processing.
Q11: Knowing how the brain stores memories, how should you study?
10/21 Module 25 Describe how external cues, internal emotions, and order of appearance influence memory retrieval.
Module 26
Explain why we forget.
Explain how misinformation, imagination, and source amnesia influence our memory construction, and describe how we decide whether a memory is real or false.
Describe the reliability of young children’s eyewitness descriptions, and discuss the controversy related to claims of repressed and recovered memories.
Describe how you can use memory research findings to do better in this and other courses.
Q12: Given the information from the text, say what advice you would give to a depressed person.
10/23 Human Development (Modules 13-16)
Module 13
Identify three issues that have engaged developmental psychologists.
Discuss the course of prenatal development, and explain how teratogens affect that development.
Describe some abilities of the newborn, noting how researchers are able to identify their mental abilities. Module 14 Describe some developmental changes in brain and motor abilities during infancy and childhood..
Describe how a child’s mind develops from the perspectives of Piaget, Vygotsky, and today’s researchers.
Q13: Give real life examples of assimilation and accommodation.
10/25 Module 14, continued
Explain how parent-infant bonds form.
Explain how psychologists have studied attachment differences and what they’ve learned.
Describe how childhood neglect, abuse, or family disruption affect children’s attachments.
Q14 What is your own attachment style? Your roommate’s?
10/28 Module 14, continued
Describe three parenting styles, and explain how children’s traits relate to them.
Module 15 Define adolescence, and identify the major physical changes during this period.
Describe adolescents’ cognitive and moral development, according to Piaget, Kohlberg, and later researchers
Q15 Give examples from the media of each of Baumrind’s parenting styles.
10/30 Module 15, continued
Identify Erikson’s eight stages of psychosocial development and their accompanying issues.
Q16 Give 5 pieces of advice to parents based on any four of Erikson’s stages.
11/1 Module 16
Describe the physical changes that occur in middle and late adulthood.
Assess the impact of aging on memory.
Describe the themes and influences that mark our social journey from early adulthood to death.
Describe trends in people’s self-confidence and life satisfaction across the life span.
Q17 What might your advice be for your own parents based on this reading (not Erikson)?
11/4 EXAM 2
11/6 Personality (Modules 40-41)
Module 40
Describe Freud’s view of personality.
Identify Freud’s developmental stages.
Describe Freud’s views on how people defended themselves against anxiety.
Describe projective tests and how they are used, and discuss some criticisms of them.
In class: Projective test activity.
11/8 Module 41
Explain how humanistic psychologists viewed personality and describe their goal in studying personality.
Describe how humanistic psychologists assessed a person’s sense of self.
Explain how the humanistic perspective has influenced psychology and describe the criticisms it has faced.
In class: Humanistic psychologist activity.
11/11 Module 42
Explain how psychologists use traits to describe personality.
Define personality inventories and discuss their strengths and weaknesses as trait-assessment tools.
Identify the traits that seem to provide the most useful information about personality variation.
In class: Myers Briggs activity
11/13 Module 41, continued
Explain whether research supports the consistency of personality traits over time and across situations.
Identify the psychologist who first proposed the social-cognitive perspective, and describe how these theorists view personality development.
Discuss some evidence for self-serving bias, and contrast defensive and secure self-esteem.
In class: LOC activity and discussion.
11/15 Abnormal Psychology (Modules 47-51)
Module 47
Discuss how we draw the line between normality and
disorder.
Contrast the medical model with the biopsychosocial approach to psychological disorders.
Explain how and why clinicians classify disorders.
Explain why some psychologists criticize the use of diagnostic labels.
Discuss the prevalence of psychological disorders, and summarize the findings on the link between poverty and serious psychological disorders.
11/18, 11/20, 11/22, 11/25, (No School 11/27 or 11/29), 12/2 Mental Illness and Movie Paper Assignment DUE 11/18 Mental Illness and Movie Presentations Begin 11/18 (continue until 12/2)
Module 48 Identify the different anxiety disorders.
Describe how the learning and biological perspectives explain anxiety disorders. Module 49 Define mood disorders, and contrast major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder. Describe how the biological and social-cognitive perspectives explain mood disorders.
Module 50
Describe the patterns of thinking, perceiving, feeling and behaving that characterize schizophrenia.
Discuss how brain abnormalities and viral infections help explain schizophrenia.
Discuss the evidence for genetic influences on schizophrenia, and describe some factors that may be early warning signs of schizophrenia in children.
Module 51
Describe the dissociative disorders and explain why they are considered controversial.
Contrast the three clusters of personality disorders.
Explain how anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder demonstrate the influence of psychological forces.
12/4 Social Psychology (Modules 43-44, 46) Module 43
Identify what social psychologists study, and discuss how we tend to explain others’ behavior and our own.
Explain whether what we think affects what we do or vice versa.
In class: FAE activity.
12/6 Module 44 Describe automatic mimicry, and explain how conformity experiments reveal the power of social influence.
Describe what we learned about the power of social influence from Milgram’s obedience experiments.
Discuss what we learned from the Asch and Milgram studies.
Describe how our behavior is affected by the presence of others.
Q 18 How would you use this information? For example, as a teacher? As a politician?
12/9 Module 46 Explain why we befriend or fall in love with some people but not with others.
Describe how romantic love typically changes as time passes.
Identify the times when people are most—and least—likely to help.
Discuss how social exchange theory and social norms explain helping behavior.
Q19 Describe the perfect first date.
12/11 EXAM 3
FINAL EXAM DATE TBA