Social Psychology of Language (Psy 394V – 41380) Tentative Syllabus – Fall, 2001 James W. Pennebaker 436 Benedict 232-2781 Pennebaker@psy.utexas.edu Office hours: afternoons or by appointment Class meeting times: 1-4 Mondays Overview. The purpose of this class is to provide a very broad overview of how natural language use reflects and affects personality, social processes, and psychological state. Given that this approach has not been studied extensively, much of the reading and discussion will be based on material from allied areas, such as linguistics, sociology, anthropology, psychology, and medicine. The course is designed to be dynamic in that much of the course direction will be established by the students. Format. This is a discussion-based course that will be informed by weekly readings and individual and class projects. Much of this course will be based on electronic media. A common website will be established where everyone will be encouraged to post articles (a multi-feed scanner is now available on the 5th floor) and include references. We will also develop a listserve system for the class to encourage the sharing of ideas. Grading. There will be no tests or papers for the course. Attendance and participation in discussions are the only requirements. Date Topic* 8/31 Organizational meeting 9/10 Computerized text analysis: LIWC and related schemes 9/17 Psychoanalytic approaches to language 9/24 Semantic, semiotics, and meaning 10/1 Sociolinguistics 10/8 Discourse – Carlotta Smith from the Linguistics Department will visit 10/15 Particles, words, and brain mechanisms 10/22 Is a theory of language possible: Discussion organized by Pat Liehr 10/29 11/5 11/12 11/19 11/26 12/3 ___________________________________________________________________________ *Readings and discussion topics will be arranged during the first two weeks of classes. At that time a near-complete syllabus will be formed,