Psychology 1000-001
Introduction to Psychology
If there is a discrepancy between the outline posted below and the outline posted on the OWL course website, the latter shall prevail.
1.0 CALENDAR DESCRIPTION
An introductory survey of the methods and findings of modern scientific psychology. The following topics will be covered: history and methodology, biological psychology, sensation and perception, learning and motivation, verbal and cognitive processes, developmental psychology, social psychology, individual differences (intelligence and personality), and clinical psychology.
Antirequisites: Psychology 1100E, the former Psychology 1200
Antirequisites are courses that overlap sufficiently in content that only one can be taken for credit. So if this course has an antirequisite that you have previously taken, you will lose credit for the earlier course, regardless of the grade achieved in this one.
3 lecture hours, 1.0 course
2.0 COURSE INFORMATION
Instructor: Dr. Laura Fazakas-deHoog
Office and Phone Number: SSC 7302; 519-472-8430
Office Hours: Wednesday evening by appointment or after lectures
Email: lfazakas@uwo.ca OR llfazakas@hotmail.com
Course Coordinator: Dr. Mike Atkinson
Time and Location of Classes: Tuesdays and Thursdays 7:00 - 10:00 p.m. SSC 2036
If you or someone you know is experiencing distress, there are several resources here at Western to assist you. Please visit: http://www.uwo.ca/uwocom/mentalhealth/ for more information on these resources and on mental health.
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 wish to contact Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) at 519-661-2111 ext 82147 for any specific question regarding an accommodation.
3.0 TEXTBOOK
Passer, M.W., Smith, R.E., Atkinson, M.L., Mitchell, J. B., & Muir, D.W. (2017). Psychology: Frontiers and Applications. Sixth Canadian Edition. Toronto: McGraw Hill Ryerson
4.0 COURSE OBJECTIVES
This course is an introductory level survey of the methods and findings of modern scientific psychology. The goal is to provide students with an overview of various topic domains within the realm of psychology. As such, students will be exposed to diverse theoretical viewpoints and various methods and procedures for the scientific investigation of psychological issues. Note: Modern psychology is scientific in nature. Consequently, we will spend a lot of time discussing science-related topics such as research design, research findings, neural functioning, sensory mechanisms, etc.
4.1 STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
Each chapter in the text covers a major interest area in psychology. By the end of this course, the successful student will be able to:
o Identify the major concepts, theories and topics in Psychology
o Distinguish between and identify the relative strengths and weaknesses of various theories in Psychology
o Apply concepts and theories from Psychology to everyday problems
o Interpret statistical information presented in tables or graphs
o Ask questions about topics in Psychology
o Apply DSM criteria to provide the most plausible diagnosis for a set of psychological problems
o Identify common research designs used in Psychology
Learning Outcomes, Activities, and Assessment
|
Learning Outcome |
Learning Activity |
Assessment |
|
Identify major concepts, theories,& topics in Psychology |
Reading and attendance at lectures |
Multiple choice exams |
|
Distinguish between & identify the relative strengths & weaknesses of various theories of Psychology |
Reading and attendance at lectures |
Multiple choice exams |
|
Apply theories & concepts from Psychology to everyday problems |
Reading and attendance at lectures |
Multiple choice exams |
|
Interpret statistical information presented in tables or graphs
Apply DSM criteria to provide the most plausible diagnosis for a set of psychological symptoms
Identify common research designs used in Psychology |
Reading and attendance at lectures
Reading and attendance at lectures
Reading and attendance at lectures
|
Multiple choice exams
Multiple choice exams
Multiple choice exams |
5.0 EVALUATION
Although the Psychology Department does not require instructors to adjust their course grades to conform to specific targets, the expectation is that course marks will be distributed around the following averages:
70% 1000-level and 2000-level courses
72% 2190-2990 level courses
75% 3000-level courses
80% 4000-level courses
The Psychology Department follows Western's grading guidelines, which are as follows (see http://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
6.0 TEST AND EXAMINATION SCHEDULE
There will 4 exams during the course. Each exam is non-cumulative and consists of multiple-choice questions covering the material in the textbook as well as in the lecture.
Exam 1 (Ch. 1, 2, 3, 4, & Appendix) Tues. May. 29, 2018 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. 25%.
Exam 2 (Ch. 5, 6, 7, & 8) Tues. June 19, 2018 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. 25%
Exam 3 (Ch. 9, 10, 11, & 12) Tues. July 10, 2018 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. 20%
Final Exam (Ch. 13, 14, 15, 16, & 17) TBA (July 30-31) 30%
7.0 CLASS SCHEDULE
Classes may include lectures, demonstrations, films, etc., and may be used to present material not contained in the textbook. Lectures are intended to highlight certain areas of each topic -- there is not enough time available to us to cover all the material in the textbook. However, students are responsible for reading and understanding the assigned portions of the textbook, even if this material is not covered in the class lectures. Any difficulties encountered should be brought to the attention of the instructor.
Topics will be covered in the following order during the year. Approximate lecture dates are given so that you can keep up with the readings. Ideally, you should do the required readings before the topic is covered in class. Please note that there is a fairly heavy reading load in this course. Thus, it is important for you to keep up with the readings.
LECTURE CHAPTER TOPIC
Tues. May 08 1 Introduction/History of Psychology
Thurs. May 10 2/Appendix Methodology/Data Analysis/Statistics
Tues. May 15 3 Brain/Nervous System/Neurophysiology
Thurs. May 17 3 Brain/Nervous System/Neurophysiology
Tues. May 22 4 Genetics & Evolution
Thurs. May 24 5 Sensation/Perception
TUESDAY MAY 29 MIDTERM EXAM 1 (in class)
Thurs. May 31 5 Sensation/Perception
Tues. June 05 6 Consciousness
Thurs. June 07 7 Learning
Tues. June 12 8 Memory
Thurs. June 14 8/9 Memory/Language and Thinking
TUESDAY June 19 MIDTERM EXAM 2 (in class)
Thurs. June 21 10 Intelligence
Tues. June 26 11 Motivation & Emotion
Thurs. June 28 12 Development (Prenatal/child Development)
Tues. July 03 12 Development (Adolescent/Adult)
Thurs. July 05 13 Behavior in a Social Context
TUESDAY JULY 10 MIDTERM EXAM 3 (in class)
Thurs. July 12 13 Behavior in a Social Context
Tues. July 17 14 Personality
Thurs. July 19 16 Psychological Disorders
Tues. July 24 16/17 Psychological Disorders/Treatment
Thurs. July 26 17/15 Psychological Treatment/Stress & Health
FINAL EXAM (Date TBA: on either /July 30 or July 31)
8.0 STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC OFFENCES
Students are responsible for understanding the nature and avoiding the occurrence of plagiarism and other scholastic offenses. Plagiarism and cheating are considered very serious offenses because they undermine the integrity of research and education. Actions constituting a scholastic offense are described at the following link: http://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 offenses. 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
Possible penalties for a scholastic offense include failure of the assignment, failure of the course, suspension from the University, and expulsion from the University.
9.0 POLICY ON ACCOMMODATION FOR MEDICAL ILLNESS
Western’s policy on Accommodation for Medical Illness can be found at:
http://westerncalendar.uwo.ca/PolicyPages.cfm?Command=showCategory&PolicyCategoryID=1&SelectedCalendar=Live&ArchiveID=#Page_12
Students must see the Academic Counsellor and submit all required documentation in order to be approved for certain accommodation:
http://counselling.ssc.uwo.ca/procedures/medical_accommodation.html
10.0 OTHER INFORMATION
Office of the Registrar web site: http://registrar.uwo.ca
Student Development Services web site: http://www.sdc.uwo.ca
Please see the Psychology Undergraduate web site for information on the following:
http://psychology.uwo.ca/undergraduate/student_responsibilities/index.html
- Policy on Cheating and Academic Misconduct
- Procedures for Appealing Academic Evaluations
- Policy on Attendance
- Policy Regarding Makeup Exams and Extensions of Deadlines
- Policy for Assignments
- Short Absences
- Extended Absences
- Documentation
- Academic Concerns
- 2018 Calendar References
No electronic devices, including cell phones and smart watches, will be allowed during exams.
