PSYC100-02 (8.26.13)
Fall 2013
Introduction to Psychology
WF 12:30 – 1:45 PM | Stein 120
"Don't become a mere recorder of facts, but try to penetrate the mystery of their origin."
~Ivan Pavlov~
Instructor:
Office:
Phone:
Email:
Office Hours:
Prof. Stephenie Chaudoir
Beaven 326
508.793.3620
schaudoi@holycross.edu
Tuesdays, 2:00 – 4:00pm; Wednesdays, 3:30-5:00pm or by appointment
REQUIRED COURSE TEXT
Kalat, J. W. (2014) Introduction to Psychology (10th Ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
ADDITIONAL READINGS (PDFs available on Moodle)
Aronson, E. (2011). Reducing prejudice and building empathy in the classroom. In M. A. Gernsbacher, R. W.
Pew, L. M. Hough, & J. R. Pomerantz (Eds.), Psychology and the Real World: Essays Illustrating
Fundamental Contributions to Society (pp. 230-236). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.
Diamond, J. (1987, August). Soft sciences are often harder than hard sciences. Discover, 34-39. Available:
http://bama.ua.edu/~sprentic/607%20Diamond%201987.htm
Fong, B. Y. (2013, August 11). Bursting the neuro-utopian bubble. New York Times. Available: http://www.
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/11/bursting-the-neuro-utopian-bubble/?_r=1
Henig, R. M. (2010, August 18). What is it about 20-somethings? New York Times. Available:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/22/magazine/22Adulthood-t.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
Jamieson, J. J., Mendes, W. B., & Nock, M. K. (2013). Improving acute stress responses : The power of
reappraisal. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 22, 51-56. doi: 10.1177/0963721412461500
Hock, R. R. (2013). Reading 19: How moral are you? In Forty studies that changed psychology (pp. 143-150).
Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Loftus, E. (2011). Crimes of memory: False memories and societal justice. In M. A. Gernsbacher, R. W. Pew, L.
M. Hough, & J. R. Pomerantz (Eds.), Psychology and the Real World: Essays Illustrating Fundamental
Contributions to Society (pp. 83-88). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.
National Institutes of Health (NIH). (2013, August 23) BRAIN initiative. Available:
http://www.nih.gov/science/brain/index.htm
Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (2011). Lost in thought: The perils of rumination. In M. A. Gernsbacher, R. W. Pew, L. M.
Hough, & J. R. Pomerantz (Eds.), Psychology and the Real World: Essays Illustrating Fundamental
Contributions to Society (189-195). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.
Watters, E. (2010, Jan. 8). The Americanization of mental illness. New York Times. Available:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/10/magazine/10psyche-t.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
Wilson, T. (2012, July 12). Stop bullying the ‘soft’ sciences. Los Angeles Times. Available:
http://articles.latimes.com/2012/jul/12/opinion/la-oe-wilson-social-sciences-20120712
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Psychology (Ψ) is the scientific study (-ology) of the mind (psyche-). In this introductory course, we will
explore many of the core concepts, theories, and methodologies utilized within the broad discipline of
psychology. You will be introduced to a variety of subfields and perspectives within psychology. Just as
importantly, you will be introduced to how psychologists think about problems and find their answers
scientifically. Psychologists postulate theories, formulate hypotheses, run experiments, perform statistical
tests, and generate informed conclusions that they communicate to other scientists, educators, policy makers,
and the public.
As you can imagine, there are many questions that psychologists ask about how humans feel, think, and act.
In this course, we will explore questions such as “How does the brain give life to the mind?,” “How do
children develop a sense of morality?,” and “How is our behavior influenced by the presence of others?” In
essence, we will, as Pavlov suggests in the quote above, “penetrate the mystery” of the human mind, if only
briefly so. Further, we will consider how the various subfields of psychology approach answering these
questions in different, but complementary, ways.
1
PSYC100-02 (8.26.13)
Fall 2013
COURSE OBJECTIVES
Coursework will center on evaluating the extent to which you demonstrate mastery of the following three
course objectives:
1. Demonstrate understanding of psychological concepts, theory, and methodology.
2. Usefully apply psychological principles and perspectives to your personal life.
3. Employ multiple psychological perspectives to understand enduring and emergent questions about human
behavior; understand and analyze the strengths and weaknesses of each perspective.
STUDENT EVALUATION
Your mastery of course objectives will be assessed in the following formats:
1. Exams (160 points). There will be 3 in-class exams. Each will examine content presented in the previous
third of the course. Exams may consist of multiple choice, short answer questions, and the occasional
essay. In addition, Exam 3 will also include some questions designed to assess cumulative knowledge
gained across the entire semester. Exam content will come from lectures, readings, assignments, films,
and activities—anything covered in class or in any of the readings is fair game.
2. Quizzes (25 points). In order to help keep you up-to-date on the reading and lecture material, you will
be asked to complete six brief quizzes on a variable interval schedule (i.e., at random, making these
“pop” quizzes; see Ch. 6 for more information). The multiple choice quizzes will test your knowledge of
the material we have completed since the previous quiz. Quizzes will be given during the first five
minutes of class; if you arrive late, you will not receive extra time. Each quiz will be worth five points
and you will be able to drop the lowest of your quiz grades.
3. Assignments (30 points). You will be required to complete three written assignments throughout the
course, which are designed to give you an opportunity to demonstrate your understanding of and ability
to apply course concepts.
4. Participation (20 points). To ‘participate’ means to take part or share in something. In the context of
this class, participation will take many forms, and it includes both what you contribute to and what you
detract from the course experience (as experienced by both your colleagues and your professor).
Participation points will be assigned based on the following:
 Brief reflection responses on Moodle
 Completion of in-class activities
 Participation in class discussion
 Absence of distracting or otherwise inappropriate classroom behaviors such as web-surfing,
texting, etc.
 Attendance
 Participation justification papers
Participation points will be awarded at two times during the semester, representing amount and quality
of participation in the preceding half of the semester.
IMPORTANT POLICIES
Extra Credit
There may be opportunities to earn extra credit by participating in optional research studies conducted by
researchers at the College or by attending relevant talks/activities. There are no guarantees on the
availability of these opportunities, but I will notify you about these opportunities as they arise.
Absences
In cases of unforeseen absence, you should contact me as soon as possible. Coursework (e.g., assignments,
exams) that occurs during these absences will only be accepted or rescheduled in the event that you have an
extenuating circumstance (e.g., medical emergency, death in the family) that is also documented by your
Class Dean. Arrangements for foreseen absences (e.g., participation in college-sponsored athletic events)
should be made with me well in advance of the anticipated absence. If you are unable to attend class, it is
your responsibility to obtain notes from another student. Notes will not be provided by the instructor.
Educational Accommodations
My goal is to create a classroom environment that is conducive to everyone’s success. If there is an
accommodation that will optimize your learning experience, please provide me with appropriate
2
PSYC100-02 (8.26.13)
Fall 2013
documentation from the Office of Disability Services. If you require special accommodations for exams,
please contact me at least 2 weeks in advance in order to make appropriate arrangements.
Academic Dishonesty
Per college guidelines, I enforce ZERO TOLERANCE for academic dishonesty. Any instance of academic
dishonesty will result in a grade of zero for the assignment or exam. All instances of academic dishonesty will
be reported to the department chair and Class Dean who will administer the procedures outlined in the
College’s official Academic Honesty Policy which may result in further penalization. For further information,
visit this document: http://www.holycross.edu/catalog/academic-honesty-policy.pdf
 Plagiarism is the act of taking the words, ideas, data, illustrative material, or statements of someone
else, without full and proper acknowledgment, and presenting them as one’s own.
 Cheating is the use of improper means or subterfuge to gain credit or advantage. Forms of cheating
include the use, attempted use, or improper possession of unauthorized aids in any examination or
other academic exercise submitted for evaluation; the fabrication or falsification of data;
misrepresentation of academic or extracurricular credentials; and deceitful performance on
placement examinations. It is also cheating to submit the same work for credit in more than one
course, except as authorized in advance by the course instructors, or to submit the same work
completed by anyone other than oneself.
 Collusion is assisting or attempting to assist another student in an act of academic dishonesty.
NO LATE PAPERS
Much of your life’s success depends on being able to produce “deliverables” in a specified amount of time. In
order to help you refine your ability to meet deadlines, I have a strict NO LATE PAPERS policy. I will not
accept any late papers unless you have an appropriately documented emergency situation.
GRADING
Grades will be made available on Moodle.
Evaluation
Exam 1
Exam 2
Exam 3
Assignments
Quizzes
Participation
TOTAL POINTS
Points
Possible
50
50
60
30
25
20
235
Percentage of
Final Grade
21%
21%
25%
14%
11%
8%
100%
Points
Earned
Final Percentage
Final Grade
94.00 – 100.00%
A
90.00 – 93.99%
A87.00 – 89.99%
B+
83.00 – 86.99%
B
80.00 – 82.99%
B77.00 – 79.99%
C+
73.00 – 76.99%
C
70.00 – 72.99%
C67.00 – 69.99%
D+
60.00 – 66.99%
D
59.99% or below
F
Note. I do not round up final grade percentages. If you earn 93.8% of
the points, that is an A-, not an A.
3
PSYC100-02 (8.26.13)
Fall 2013
TIMELINE OF COURSE TOPICS, READINGS, EXAMS, AND ASSIGNMENTS
Date
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5
Week 6
Week 7
Week 8
Week 9
Week 10
Week 11
Week 12
Week 13
Finals
Topic
W
F
W
F
W
F
W
F
W
F
W
F
W
F
W
F
W
F
W
F
W
F
Aug. 28
Aug. 30
Sept. 4
Sept. 6
Sept. 11
Sept. 13
Sept. 18
Sept. 20
Sept. 25
Sept. 27
Oct. 2
Oct. 4
Oct. 9
Oct. 11
Oct. 16
Oct. 18
Oct. 23
Oct. 25
Oct. 30
Nov. 1
Nov. 6
Nov. 8
What is Psychology?
““
Scientific Methods
““
Biological Psychology
““
Sensation & Perception
Stress & Coping
***********EXAM 1***********
Learning
Learning
Memory
Memory
Cognition
Fall Break
Fall Break
Cognition
Motivation
Emotion
***********EXAM 2***********
Development
““
W
F
W
F
W
F
W
F
Nov. 13
Nov. 15
Nov. 20
Nov. 22
Nov. 27
Nov. 29
Dec. 4
Dec. 6
TBD
Personality
““
Social
““
Thanksgiving Break
Psychological Disorders & Tx
““
***********EXAM 3***********
Readings
Assignments
Ch. 1
Ch. 2.1, 2.2
Ch. 2.3, Diamond; Wilson
Ch. 3.1, 3.3
NIH, 2013; Fong, 2013
Ch. 4.3
Ch. 12.3; Jamieson et al., 2013
Correlation or Causation
Ch. 6.2, 6.3
Ch. 6.1
Ch. 7
Loftus, 2011
Ch. 8.1, 8.2
Operant Conditioning
Ch. 11
Ch. 12.1, 12.2
Ch. 5
Henig, 2010
Ch. 14
Ch. 13
Aronson, 2011
Ch. 15.1, 15.2, 15.4, 15.5
Nolen-Hoeksema, 2011; Watters, 2010
4
Being Borat