WESTERN UNIVERSITY
LONDON
CANADA
Department of Psychology
2014-2015
Psychology 3316F Section 001
Psychological Trauma
1.0 CALENDAR DESCRIPTION
This course covers the psychobiological theories and research aimed at helping us understand
the diversity of human responses to traumatic life experiences, including sexual assault,
childhood maltreatment and war.
Antirequisite: Psychology 3390G if taken in 2012/13 or 2013/14
Antirequisites are courses that overlap sufficiently in content that only one can be taken for
credit. So 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.
Prerequisites: Psychology 2820E or both Psychology 2800E and 2810
3 seminar hours, 0.5 course
Unless you have either the requisites 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: Paul Frewen, PhD, C.Psych.
Office and Phone Number: University Hospital A10-222, 519-685-8500 x77760
Office Hours: By Appointment
Email: pfrewen@uwo.ca
Teaching Assistant: TBA
Office:
Office Hours:
Email:
Time and Location of Lectures: Thursday Evenings 19:00 - 22:00 (7:00 - 10:00 PM) in SSC-3028
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
NO textbook will be used and there will be NO pre-assigned readings. Instead, students will be asked
to search, weekly, as assigned group members of 3, a single research article or case study on the
topic of each preceding lecture for possible impromptu presentation in class. Students must upload to
webct the actual published abstract of the article as well as a brief summary indicating the rationale,
primary results, and methodological strengths and limitations, using course templates provided.
4.0 COURSE OBJECTIVES
To survey assessment, treatment, and psychobiological research regarding the clinical significance
of traumatic life experiences in the etiology and clinical manifestation of mental health problems
including mood, anxiety, and dissociative disorders, as well as trait psychological resilience.
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% 2100-2990 level courses
75% 3000-level courses
80% 4000-level courses
The Psychology Department follows the University of Western Ontario grading guidelines, which are as
follows (see http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/handbook/general/grades_undergrad.pdf):
A+
A
B
C
D
F
90-100
80-89
70-79
60-69
50-59
below 50
One could scarcely expect better from a student at this level
Superior work that is clearly above average
Good work, meeting all requirements, and eminently satisfactory
Competent work, meeting requirements
Fair work, minimally acceptable
Fail
6.0 TEST AND EXAMINATION SCHEDULE
EXAMS
Cumulative Final Exam – covering all lecture and
reading material assigned
Factual Knowledge Poster (see below)
Media Presentation (see below)
Weekly Research Summary and Critique (see above
under textbook)
Self-Assessment Tasks and Essay - see below
WHEN
--- During final exam period
(scheduled by registrar)
Presented Nov 20
TBA
Weekly
WEIGHT
30%
Scheduled with Teaching Assistant &
Instructor
10%
Final Exam:
The final exam will cover all course content covered in multiple-choice question format.
30%
15%
15%
Factual Knowledge Poster: Canadian Psychological Association "Fact Sheet" on Psychological
Trauma
 Completed in student trios (3 students submit joint project)
 Complete equivalent of a Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) "Psychology Works Fact
Sheet" (http://www.cpa.ca/psychologyfactsheets/) from a list of trauma-related psychological
conditions
 Submitted as BOTH printed and electronic word document (due Nov 13, approx 8-10 pages
of text) AND poster presentation (given Nov 20)
• Follow course templates provided
 RefWorks (see lib.uwo.ca) must be used to compile references, and the RefWorks database
must be submitted with the paper (i.e., username & password)
 Presentation content is subject to inclusion on the final exam
Media Presentation - Fictional Case Study:
 Completed in student trios (3 students submit joint project)
 Present an approx. 2-5-min scene (DO NOT present longer scenes) from a movie/television
show that illustrates a concept presented in lecture/readings. To facilitate ease of presentations
and evaluation, the exact location of the clip (in minutes & seconds) within the film must be
submitted at time of presentation.
 Include an approximate 500-word description of the scene and general message/themes of the
movie/show as a whole
 Follow course templates provided
 An approximate 500-word description making reference to 3 scientific journal articles (expected
1 per student) published since 2010 of direct relevance to interpreting the scene/film
 Follow course templates provided
 Only a single group of 3 students may present on any particular movie; choice of movie will be on
reservation basis (first come first serve) as managed by the instructor in class (NOT by email, etc)
Attendance at other students' presentations is expected. Presentation content is subject to
inclusion on the final exam.
Self-assessment Essay: Complete self-assessment measures described in class and apply results to selfreflection via a 500 word essay. Essay must make detailed reference to course content.
7.0 LECTURE SCHEDULE
Sept 4
Sept 11
Sept 18
Sept 25
Oct 2
Oct 9
Oct 16
Oct 23
Oct 30
Nov 6
Nov 13
Nov 20
Nov 27
Dec 4
Introduction
Key Concepts
Special Topic #1: The Traumatized Self
Special Topic #2: Traumatic Memories
Special Topic #3: Affect Dysregulation
Special Topic #4: Dissociation
Special Topic #5: Psychosomatics & Health
Special Topic #6: Interpersonal Violence
***Study Day - No Class***
Special Topic #7: Childhood Maltreatment
Special Topic #8: Traumas of War
Factual Knowledge Poster Presentations
Review & Catch-up
***Study Day - No Class***
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/handbook/appeals/scholoff.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 The University of Western Ontario
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 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/undergradresponsibilities.htm
- 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
- 2014 Calendar References
No electronic devices, including cell phones, will be allowed during exams.