Psychology 2310A 001

Psychopathology

If there is a discrepancy between the outline posted below and the outline posted on the OWL course website, the latter shall prevail.

 

WESTERN UNIVERSITY

LONDON               CANADA

Department of Psychology

2022-2023

 

Psychology 2310A   Section 001

Psychopathology

 

 

  • CALENDAR DESCRIPTION

 

This theory course is designed to introduce the wide-ranging theories of psychopathology in adults. Topics will include the major DSM diagnostic categories, as well as research and treatment. The course orientation is empirical, with an emphasis on recent research findings with this population.

 

Antirequisite: Psychology 2030A/B, Psychology 3310F/G, Psychology 3311  

 

Antirequisites are courses that overlap sufficiently in content that only one can be taken for credit. If you take a course that is an antirequisite to a course previously taken, you will lose credit for the earlier course, regardless of the grade achieved in the most recent course.

 

Prerequisite: A mark of at least 60% in 1.0 credits of Psychology at the 1000 level  

 

2 lecture hours; 1 tutorial hour; Course Weight: 0.5

 

Unless you have either the prerequisites for this course or written special permission from your Dean to enrol in it, you may be removed from this course and it will be deleted from your record. This decision may not be appealed. You will receive no adjustment to your fees in the event that you are dropped from a course for failing to have the necessary prerequisites.

 

 

2.0  COURSE INFORMATION

 

Instructor: Lindsay Bodell                                                         

Office and Phone Number:  WH 324 ext 80486     

Office Hours:    Mondays & Tuesdays 4-5pm       

Email:   lbodell@uwo.ca                                               

 

Teaching Assistant:TBD

Office: TBD                                                        

Office Hours: TBD   

Email:   TBD           

 

Time and Location of Lectures:   Tuesdays, 9:30-11:30am, SH-3345

 

Time and Location of Tutorials:

  • 002: Thursdays, 9:30-10:30am, SSC-3026
  • 003: Thursdays, 10:30-11:30am, SSC-3026
  • 004: Wednesdays, 11:30am-12:30pm, UCC-61
  • 005: Wednesdays, 12:30-1:30pm, UCC-61
  • 006: Fridays, 10:30-11:30am, SH-3305
  • 007: Fridays, 11:30am-12:30pm, SH-3305

 

Delivery Method: In-Person

 

Students who are in emotional/mental distress should refer to Health and Wellness @Western https://www.uwo.ca/health/ for a complete list of options about how to obtain help.

 

Please contact the course instructor if you require material in an alternate format or if you require any other arrangements to make this course more accessible to you. You may also contact Accessible Education at aew@uwo.ca  or 519-661-2147.

 

3.0  TEXTBOOK

 

Barlow, D.H., Durand, V.M., Hofmann, S.G., & Lalumière, M.L. (2018). Abnormal Psychology: An Integrative Approach (6th Canadian Edition). Toronto, ON: Nelson Education Ltd.

 

4.0  COURSE OBJECTIVES & LEARNING OUTCOMES

 

Course objectives: The concept of “psychological disorder” is a frequent topic in the popular media, but how realistic are these depictions? What really is a psychological disorder and what are the various types? What do we really know about their causes and treatments? How do we go about finding the answers to these questions? These are all important issues, because these types of problems touch many people’s lives, and society as a whole, either directly or indirectly. In this course, we will explore these questions with respect to some of the most common and controversial topics in the field. The general objectives of this course are to help students learn to think critically about and attain a basic level of understanding of what is known and what is not known about: 1) the definition of “abnormal” psychological functioning; 2) biological, psychological, and environmental factors that affect psychological functioning; 3) how scientists study and obtain knowledge about the occurrence, causes, and treatment of psychological disorders; 4) how we categorize psychological disorders; 5) the nature, prevalence, causes, and treatments of many of the syndromes.

 

 

Learning Outcome

Learning Activities

Assessment

Depth and Breadth of Knowledge.

·         Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes relevant to abnormal psychology

 

·         Recognize the general diagnostic features of some adult psychological disorders within the DSM-5

 

·         Identify concepts and current states of knowledge based on scientific research in psychology

 

·         Develop critical thinking skills about clinical psychology

Lecture, tutorials, and required textbook readings

Exams, Class discussions, Paper

Knowledge of Methodologies.

·         Evaluate the appropriateness of different research methods to address questions about psychopathology

 

Lecture, tutorials, and required textbook readings

Exams, Class discussions, Paper

Application of Knowledge.

·         Engage in critical scholarly discussion on psychological topics using evidence to support claims, and apply psychological principles to the understanding of everyday problems

Tutorials

Class discussions, Exams, Paper

 

 

5.0  EVALUATION

The evaluation and testing formats for this course were created to assess the learning objectives as listed in section 4.0 and are considered necessary for meeting these learning objectives.

 

Course grades are based on performance on three exams (27% each), one thought paper (13% of grade), and tutorial attendance/participation (6% of final grade).

 

Exams: Three exams will consist of items in multiple choice format.  The final exam is not cumulative per se, but answering some questions correctly will require integration of conceptual material covered on prior exams. Together, the exams represent 81% of your final mark.  

 

Tutorial Attendance: Your attendance at, and participation in, course tutorials will constitute 6% of your final mark. Your grade will reflect attendance at the tutorials, your thoughtful contributions to the discussion, and the extent to which you pay respectful attention to the TA and the group discussion.  Your own contributions should show critical thinking and that you have read, and thought about, the assigned readings for both the lecture and tutorial that week.

 

Paper: You will have one paper that will make up 13% of your final mark. The paper is to be submitted prior to the end of the last day of class (i.e, by 23:59 (11:59PM) ET on Tuesday, December 6th). The paper should be submitted through OWL. NOTE: Papers submitted after this deadline will receive a ZERO.

 

The paper will be a maximum of 2 pages in length (double spaced, 12-point font). For this assignment, you are to find a recent news article (e.g., The Canadian Press, London Free Press, Toronto Star, National Post, Globe and Mail, New York Times) or blog post that directly relates to some aspect of Abnormal Psychology in adults that is covered in this course. The article can be from a newspaper’s website or a blog or other type of website. For example, it could be a report of recently published research on the causes or treatment of a particular mental disorder that we are covering in the course, findings of a survey of public attitudes toward mental illness, an investigation of individuals living with a mental disorder in the community, etc. The article should have been published within the past 24 months.  An electronic copy (saved pdf file, web page, or scanned copy) of the article must be submitted with your assignment, containing the date and name of the newspaper. Your assignment is to critically discuss the significance of this article.

 

Your assignment should contain: (1) a very brief summary of the article/report; (2) critical discussion; (3) your personal reaction to the article. Your critical discussion should include such issues as: how the article confirms, complements, or contradicts something presented in class/tutorial; how the article does (or does not) contribute to our understanding of some aspect of mental disorders; potential implications for mental health care; issues that should be investigated further; weaknesses of the article, such as scientific inaccuracy or bias. Your reaction to the article could include something that was surprising to you, something you learned, how it made you think differently about an issue, etc.

 

The assignment must be in 12-point font with student name and number at the top of the page, and submitted on OWL by the deadline. Grades will be based on the clarity and organization of your writing, the accuracy and depth of your understanding of the topic, and the demonstration of critical thinking skills. Include a title page and references (if used). The title page and reference page are NOT counted toward the 2-page limit.

 

 

5.1 POLICY ON MISSING COURSEWORK

 

EXAMS:  Do not miss exams unless it is completely unavoidable and for legitimate reasons. Please refer to the Department of Psychology’s instructions for psychology students who are unable to write tests (https://psychology.uwo.ca/undergraduate/student_responsibilities/index.html#pmeed).  If you must miss an exam, contact academic counselling as soon as possible. After gaining an extension through academic counselling, you should contact the instructor (Dr. Bodell; lbodell@uwo.ca) for further instructions. You should understand that academic accommodation will NOT automatically be granted on request. Make-up exams will occur during a designated make-up exam time (TBD) arranged by the Department of Psychology or the instructor. Instructors are under no obligation to offer more than one opportunity to write a makeup exam. 

 

PAPER ASSIGNMENT: The paper should be submitted by the last day of class (December 6th). Given that you have the entire semester to complete the assignment, late papers will not be accepted and will receive a score of zero.

 

LECTURE/TUTORIAL ATTENDANCE: I cannot give you notes for classes you miss, so I strongly recommend that you get the names, phone numbers, and email addresses of at least 3 people in this course. That way, if you should miss a class, you would have several people to contact from whom you can get notes, etc. I suggest that, if you do miss class, you get the notes, go over those notes and the corresponding material in the text, and then come see me during office hours, if you need further clarification.

 

The expectation for course grades within the Psychology Department is that they will be distributed around the following averages:

 

70%      1000-level to 2099-level courses

72%      2100-2999-level courses

75%      3000-level courses

80%      4000-level courses

 

The Psychology Department follows Western’s grading guidelines, which are as follows (see: https://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/general/grades_undergrad.pdf

 

A+        90-100              One could scarcely expect better from a student at this level

A          80-89                Superior work that is clearly above average

B          70-79                Good work, meeting all requirements, and eminently satisfactory

C          60-69                Competent work, meeting requirements

D          50-59                Fair work, minimally acceptable

F          below 50           Fail

 

Note that in the event that course grades are significantly higher or lower than these averages, instructors may be required to make adjustments to course grades. Such adjustment might include the normalization of one or more course components and/or the re-weighting of various course components.

 

Policy on Grade Rounding: Please note that although course grades within the Psychology Department are rounded to the nearest whole number, no further grade rounding will be done. No additional assignments will be offered to enhance a final grade; nor will requests to change a grade because it is needed for a future program be considered. To maximize your grade, do your best on each and every assessment within the course.

 

6.0  ASSESSMENT/EVALUATION SCHEDULE

 

Exam or Assignment

Date

Weight

Attendance/participation

Ongoing (weekly)

6%

Exam #1

Tuesday, October 4th 2022

27%

Exam #2

Tuesday, November 8th 2022

27%

Paper

Due by Tuesday, December 6th 2022

13%

Exam #3 (Final)

TBD – Fall Semester Exam Session

27%

 

 

 

Total

100%

 


 

7.0  CLASS SCHEDULE

 

Week

Date

Topic

Text Chapters

1

Sept. 13

Introduction to ‘Abnormal’ Psychology

Chapter 1

2

Sept. 20

Conceptual models of psychopathology

Chapter 2

3

Sept. 27

Diagnosis & Assessment

Chapter 3

4

Oct. 4

Exam 1 (no tutorial this week)

Exam Chapters (1-3)

5

Oct. 11

Research Methods

Chapter 4

6

Oct. 18

Anxiety Disorders

Chapters 5

7

Oct. 25

Obsessive-Compulsive and Trauma-Related disorders

Chapters 6 & 7

8

Nov. 1

Fall Reading Week-No Class & No Tutorial

 

9

Nov. 8

Exam 2 (no tutorial this week)

Exam (Chapters 4-7)

10

Nov. 15

Mood Disorders

Chapter 7

11

Nov. 22

Psychosis

Chapter 14

12

Nov. 29

Eating Disorders

Chapter 11

13

Dec. 6

Substance Use Disorders (no tutorial this week; paper due)

Chapter 12

 

Dec. 10-22

Final Exam: To Be Determined by exam schedule

Exam (Chapters 7, 11, 12, & 14)

 

 

8.0  Land Acknowledgement

 

We acknowledge that Western University is located on the traditional lands of the Anishinaabek, Haudenosaunee, Lūnaapéewak and Attawandaron peoples, on lands connected with the London Township and Sombra Treaties of 1796 and the Dish with One Spoon Covenant Wampum.

 

With this, we respect the longstanding relationships that Indigenous Nations have to this land, as they are the original caretakers. We acknowledge historical and ongoing injustices that Indigenous Peoples (e.g. First Nations, Métis and Inuit) endure in Canada, and we accept responsibility as a public institution to contribute toward revealing and correcting miseducation, as well as renewing respectful relationships with Indigenous communities through our teaching, research and community service.

 

 

9.0  STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC OFFENCES

 

Students are responsible for understanding the nature and avoiding the occurrence of plagiarism and other scholastic offences. Plagiarism and cheating are considered very serious offences because they undermine the integrity of research and education. Actions constituting a scholastic offence are described at the following link: https://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/appeals/scholastic_discipline_undergrad.pdf

 

As of Sept. 1, 2009, the Department of Psychology will take the following steps to detect scholastic offences. All multiple-choice tests and exams will be checked for similarities in the pattern of responses using reliable software, and records will be made of student seating locations in all tests and exams. All written assignments will be submitted to TurnItIn, a service designed to detect and deter plagiarism by comparing written material to over 5 billion pages of content located on the Internet or in TurnItIn’s databases. All papers submitted for such checking will be included as source documents in the reference database for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of papers subsequently submitted to the system. Use of the service is subject to the licensing agreement, currently between Western and Turnitin.com (http://www.turnitin.com).

 

Computer-marked multiple-choice tests and/or exams will be subject to submission for similarity review by software that will check for unusual coincidences in answer patterns that may indicate cheating.

 

In classes that involve the use of a personal response system (PRS), data collected using the PRS will only be used in a manner consistent to that described in this outline. It is the instructor’s responsibility to make every effort to ensure that data remain confidential. However, students should be aware that as with all forms of electronic communication, privacy is not guaranteed. Your PRS login credentials are for your sole use only. Students attempting to use another student’s credentials to submit data through the PRS may be subject to academic misconduct proceedings.

 

Possible penalties for a scholastic offence include failure of the assignment/exam, failure of the course, suspension from the University, and expulsion from the University.

 

10.0      POLICY ON THE USE OF EXAM PROCTORING SOFTWARE

 

If a remote proctoring service is used, the service will require you to provide personal information (including some biometric data). The session will be recorded. In the event that in-person exams are unexpectedly canceled, you may only be given notice of the use of a proctoring service a short time in advance. More information about remote proctoring is available in the Online Proctoring Guidelines. Please ensure you are familiar with any proctoring service’s technical requirements before the exam. Additional guidance is available at the following link: https://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/onlineproctorguidelines.pdf

 

* Please note that Zoom servers are located outside Canada. If you would prefer to use only your first name or a nickname to login to Zoom, please provide this information to the instructor in advance of the test or examination. See this link for technical requirements: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us  

 

11.0 POLICY ON ACCOMMODATION FOR ILLNESS OR OTHER ABSENCES

 

Western’s policy on Accommodation for Medical Illness can be found at:
https://www.westerncalendar.uwo.ca/PolicyPages.cfm?PolicyCategoryID=1&Command=showCategory&SelectedCalendar=Live&ArchiveID=#Page_12

 

If you experience an extenuating circumstance (e.g., illness, injury) sufficiently significant to temporarily make you unable to meet academic requirements, you may request accommodation through the following routes:

  1. For medical absences, submitting a Student Medical Certificate (SMC) signed by a licensed medical or mental health practitioner in order to be eligible for Academic Consideration;
  2. For non-medical absences, submitting appropriate documentation (e.g., obituary, police report, accident report, court order, etc.) to Academic Counselling in their Faculty of registration in order to be eligible for academic consideration. Students are encouraged to contact their Academic Counselling unit to clarify what documentation is appropriate.

 

Students must see the Academic Counsellor and submit all required documentation in order to be approved for certain accommodation.

 

https://www.registrar.uwo.ca/faculty_academic_counselling.html

 

Students seeking academic consideration:

  • are advised to consider carefully the implications of postponing tests or midterm exams or delaying handing in work;  
  • must communicate with their instructors no later than 24 hoursafter the end of the period covered SMC, or immediately upon their return following a documented absence

 

Students seeking accommodation for religious purposes are advised to contact Academic Counselling at least three weeks prior to the religious event and as soon as possible after the start of the term.

 

12.0      Contingency Plan for Return to Lockdown: IN-Person & Blended classes

 

In the event of a COVID-19 resurgence or any other event that necessitates the course delivery moving away from face-to-face interaction, all remaining course content will be delivered entirely online, either synchronously (i.e., at the times indicated in the timetable) or asynchronously (e.g., posted on OWL for students to view at their convenience). The grading scheme will not change. Any remaining assessments will also be conducted online, as determined by the course instructor.

 

13.0      STATEMENTS CONCERNING ONLINE ETIQUETTE

 

In courses involving online interactions, the Psychology Department expects students to honour the following rules of etiquette:

  • please “arrive” to class on time
  • please use your computer and/or laptop if possible (as opposed to a cell phone or tablet)
  • please ensure that you are in a private location to protect the confidentiality of discussions in the event that a class discussion deals with sensitive or personal material
  • to minimize background noise, kindly mute your microphone for the entire class until you are invited to speak, unless directed otherwise
  • In classes larger than 30 participants please turn off your video camera for the entire class unless you are invited to speak
  • In classes of 30 students or fewer, where video chat procedures are being used, please be prepared to turn your video camera off at the instructor’s request if the internet connection becomes unstable
  • Unless invited by your instructor, do not share your screen in the meeting

 

The course instructor will act as moderator for the class and will deal with any questions from participants. To participate please consider the following:

  • If you wish to speak, use the “raise hand” function and wait for the instructor to acknowledge you before beginning your comment or question.
  • Please remember to unmute your microphone and turn on your video camera before speaking.
  • Self-identify when speaking.
  • Please remember to mute your mic and turn off your video camera after speaking (unless directed otherwise).

 

General considerations of “netiquette”:

  • Keep in mind the different cultural and linguistic backgrounds of the students in the course.
  • Be courteous toward the instructor, your colleagues, and authors whose work you are discussing.
  • Be respectful of the diversity of viewpoints that you will encounter in the class and in your readings. The exchange of diverse ideas and opinions is part of the scholarly environment. “Flaming” is never appropriate.
  • Be professional and scholarly in all online postings. Use proper grammar and spelling. Cite the ideas of others appropriately.

 

Note that disruptive behaviour of any type during online classes, including inappropriate use of the chat function, is unacceptable. Students found guilty of Zoom-bombing a class or of other serious online offenses may be subject to disciplinary measures under the Code of Student Conduct.

 

14.0 OTHER INFORMATION

 

Office of the Registrar: https://registrar.uwo.ca 

 

Student Development Services: www.sdc.uwo.ca

 

 

If you wish to appeal a grade, please read the policy documentation at: https://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/appeals/appealsundergrad.pdf

Please first contact the course instructor. If your issue is not resolved, you may make your appeal to the Undergraduate Chair in Psychology (psyugrd@uwo.ca).

 

Copyright Statement: Lectures and course materials, including power point presentations, outlines, videos and similar materials, are protected by copyright. You may take notes and make copies of course materials for your own educational use. You may not record lectures, reproduce (or allow others to reproduce), post or distribute any course materials publicly and/or for commercial purposes without the instructor’s written consent.

 

Policy on the Recording of Synchronous Sessions: Some or all of the remote learning sessions for this course (if scheduled) may be recorded. The data captured during these recordings may include your image, voice recordings, chat logs and personal identifiers (name displayed on the screen). The recordings will be used for educational purposes related to this course, including evaluations. The recordings may be disclosed to other individuals participating in the course for their private or group study purposes. Please contact the instructor if you have any concerns related to session recordings. Participants in this course are not permitted to privately record the sessions, except where recording is an approved accommodation, or the student has the prior written permission of the instructor.