Introduction to Psychology: Honors
(PSY 101H, Section 301H, 4 credits):
High Achievers/Honors Students
SUMMER 2009
Office of Gifted and Talented Programs
Ingham Intermediate School District
Michigan State University Honors College
June 15-July 9, Mon, Tues, Wed, Thursday
9:00 AM to 11:44 AM, 315 Ernst Bessey Hall
11:40 AM to 12:40 PM 217 Ernst Bessey Hall
Instructor :
Professor Linda A. Jackson
Department of Psychology
308 Psychology
517 353-7207 jackso67@msu.edu
www.msu.edu/user/jackso67/
Course Home Page: www.msu.edu/course/psy/101/jackson/HiAchWebCourseSyllabusSum09.htm
Welcome !
Welcome to Introduction to Psychology for High Achievers and MSU Honors
College students. This purpose of this course is to provide a basic understanding of what psychology is all about, and how psychologists go about the business of studying human behavior. The course provides an overview of all areas of psychology, including biological, cognitive, social, developmental and personality psychology. The Schedule of
Topics and Activities (below) provides information about WHAT will be covered and
HOW it will be covered. Emphasize is given to student involvement in the learning experience. Toward this end, Internet-based activities, group discussion, and group activities are fundamental components of the course.
Overview of Class Format/Activities:
The 1 hour 15 minutes of class will be lecture format, focused on providing a broad overview of the topic for that day. Lectures will follow (approximately) the Unit outlines, which are posted on the Web (discussed later). Reviews of Group Web pages and the 4 course exams (discussed later) will also occur during the lecture hour.
The second 1 hour 15 minutes of class will consist of instructor-led technology activities . Specifically, the hour will include CD-ROM and Web-based interactive presentations of concepts discussed in lecture, as well as videos and film clips.
The remaining class time will be divided between group Web activities and individual Web activities . Students working in groups of 3-4 will discuss target questions about the lecture topic and post answers to these questions on their Group Web page. Students will then work individually on materials made available on the Web
(discussed later).

Course Grades :
Course grades will be determined as follows:
4 Exams: 100 questions/exam, 1 point/question = 400 points
EXAM 1 : Tues, June 23: Prologue, Chapters 1, 2, 3, 5, 6
EXAM 2: Mon, June 29, Chapters 7, 8, 9, 10, 11
EXAM 3: Mon, July 6, Chapters 12, 13, 15, 4
EXAM 4: Thurs, July 9, Chapters 16, 17, 14, 18
Group Web pages : 12 Target Question Sets, 10 points/set = 120 points
(Note that there are 13 Target Question Sets. The lowest grade will be dropped.)
Course Grade Determination: Maximum number of points = 520
Point Range Percentage Grade
468-520 90-100% 4.0
416-467 80-89% 3.5
364-415 70-79% 3.0
312-363 60-69% 2.5
260-311 50-59% 2.0
208-259 40-49% 1.5
156-207 30-39% 1.0 less than 156 <30% 0.0
(Note: Group Web pages will be evaluated based on the quality of responses to the target questions , NOT on quality of Web page design.)
Course Textbook/Reading Assignments
There is one required text for the course: Psychology , by David G. Myers, 8 h
edition,
2007, Worth Publishers, ISBN 0-7167-6428-8. The course textbook is available at the
Student Book Store, http://sbsmsu.com, 417 East Grand River Avenue, East Lansing, MI,
517-351-4210 or 800-968-1111. It is also available at Amazon.com. Just follow the
Psychology link. Text reading assignments are indicated in the Schedule of Topics and
Activities. Try to read the chapter BEFORE the topic is discussed in class. Each chapter contains a great deal of information so plan on spending a good deal of time working on each chapter. The Chapters and Topics are as follows:
Prologue: The Story of Psychology
Chapter 1: Thinking Critically About Psychological Science
Chapter 2; Neuroscience and Behavior
Chapter 3: The Nature and Nurture of Behavior
Chapter 4: The Developing Person
Chapter 5: Sensation
Chapter 6: Perception
Chapter 7: Consciousness
Chapter 8: Learning
Chapter 9: Memory

Chapter 10: Thinking and Language
Chapter 11: Intelligence
Chapter 12: Motivation and Work
Chapter 13: Emotion
Chapter 14: Stress and Health
Chapter 15: Personality
Chapter 16: Psychological Disorders
Chapter 17: Therapy
Chapter 18: Social Psychology
Course Material On the Web:
The Course Home Page contains links to materials created by the instructor to enhance your understanding, appreciation, and performance in the course.
For the Prologue (short introductory chapter) and for each of the 18 chapters in the textbook the following online materials are provided:
Objectives
Narrative Summary
Outline
Overview (Powerpoint presentation)
Practice Quiz (multiple choice)
Practice Essay Questions
Review
Web Links
In addition, many chapters have additional Powerpoint presentations that focus on one or more topics in that chapter.
It is strongly recommended that you use ALL of the online course materials , in addition to reading the chapters in the textbook . Using all of the online materials AND reading the textbook is the best way to prepare for the 4 course Exams.
Student Participation in Technology-based Activities :
All students registered for the course have received an MSU e-mail account. This is the preferred e-mail account for instructor-student communication. Please activate it immediately and check it daily during this course.
Group Web Pages : Groups of 3 to 4 students will participate in group discussion
(in class) focused on answering the "target questions" for each lecture topic. Group answers will be posted on the Group's Web page. Each Group's Web page will be linked to the Course Home Page so that group answers will be available for class discussion.
Students are encouraged to go beyond answering the target questions to include additional information about the topic, such as links to resources or related topics.
Students may decorate their Group Web Pages and/or add information/links of particular interest to them and relevant to psychology. However, NO PERSONALLY
IDENTIFYING INFORMATION may be included on the Group Web Page.
Individual Web Activities : As time permits, students may work individually on the course materials available on the Web (i.e., Objectives, Narrative Summary, Overview

(Powerpoint presentation), Practice Quiz (multiple choice), Practice Essay Questions,
Review, Web Links). You are encouraged to work through these materials at home as well.
GROUP WEB PAGES WILL GO HERE
Schedule of Topics and Activities
WEEK 1
Mon, June 15
Lecture : Course Overview: History of Psychology
Instructor-led Technology Activities :
Course Materials on the Web
CD: AWLMind: History of Psychology
Group Activities : How to Create a Web Page
Individual Activities : Prologue materials on the Web
Text Reading Assignment : Prologue
Tues, June 16 :
Lecture : Research Methods
Instructor-led Technology Activities :
CD: AWLMind: Research Methods
Group Activities :
Target Question Set #1
Consider the following common beliefs:
“Good looking people have better social lives.”
“Smart people have better professional lives.”
Choose ONE and address the following two questions:
1) What evidence (data) might you collect in the “real world” to support or refute this belief?
2) Design an experiment to test this belief.
Individual Activities : Chapter 1 materials on the Web
Text Reading Assignment : Chapter 1
Weds, June 17 :
Lecture : The Nervous System
Instructor-led Technology Activities :
Film: All in the Mind: Understanding the Complexity of the Brain (50 minutes)
CD: AWLMind: Biopsychology
Group Activities:
Target Question Set #2:
1) Choose one frequently abused psychoactive drug (e.g., alcohol, cocaine) and describe its mode of action (e.g., does it mimic a neurotransmitter?).
2) Choose one part of the brain and describe its role in behavior. What behavioral changes would you expect from injury to that part of the brain?
Individual Activities: Chapter 2 materials on the Web

Text Reading Assignment: Chapter 2
Thurs, June18
Lecture : Genes and Behavior
Instructor-led Technology Activities :
CD: AWLMind: Biopsychology
Group Activities :
Target Question Set #3:
1) Choose a behavior that you consider to be largely determined by genes. Explain why you think so. What evidence is there to support your belief?
2) Do the same for a behavior you consider to be largely determined by experience.
Individual Activities: Chapter 3 materials on the Web
Text Reading Assignment : Chapter 3
WEEK 2
Mon, June 22 :
Lecture : Sensation and Perception
Instructor-led Technology Activities :
CD: AWLMind: Perception
Film: Understanding the Senses (56 minutes)
Film: Perception: The Theories (45 minutes)
Group Activities:
Target Question Set #4
1) How do we see? Describe the steps in the process by which a visual sensory stimulus becomes a psychologically meaningful representation.
2) Many people believe in ESP (Extra Sensory Perception). What is ESP and why does this belief persist, despite the absence of scientific support?
Individual Activities: Chapters 5 and 6 materials the Web
Text Reading Assignment : Chapters 5 and 6

Tues, June 23 :
EXAM 1: Prologue, Chapters 1, 2, 3, 5, 6
Lecture : Consciousness
Instructor-led Technology Activities :
Film: Human Consciousness and Computers (30 minutes)
Film: The Final Mystery: What is Consciousness? (50 minutes)
CD: PsycSim: EEG and Sleep
Group Activities :
Target Question Set #5
1) Do you think a very, very smart computer (e.g., Big Blue) has consciousness?
Defend your answer (why or why not?)
2) Why do we dream?
Individual Activities: Chapter 7 materials on the Web
Text Reading Assignment: Chapter 7
Weds, June 24:
Lecture : Learning and Memory
Instructor-led Technology Activities :
AWLMind CD: Learning and Memory
Film: Learning and Memory (50 minutes)
Group Activities :
Target Question Set #6
1) Describe a behavior that you learned by classical conditioning. What is maintaining this behavior (i.e., preventing extinction)?
2) Describe several techniques to help you remember the material in these chapters.
Individual Activities: Chapters 8, 9, 10 and 11 and materials on the Web
Text Reading Assignment: Chapters 8, 9, 10 and 11
Thurs, June 25:
Lecture: Thinking, Language, Intelligence
Instructor-led Technology Activities
Video: Language
Group Activities:
Target Question Set # 7
1) First defend, then refute the statement “Anyone can become as intelligent as
Albert Einstein.”
2) Do chimps have language? Explain why or why not. Are they capable of thought? Explain why or why not, relating to your answer about language
WEEK 3
Mon, June 29
EXAM 2: Chapters 7, 8, 9, 10, 11
Lecture : Emotion and Motivation
Instructor-led Technology Activities :

Film: Stress and Emotion (55 minutes)
Film: In the Heat of the Moment: The Biochemistry of Feelings (50 minutes)
Group Activities :
Target Question Set # 8
1) Can we control our emotions? Consider the physiological and psychological determinants of emotions in answering this question.
2) Provide a motivational explanation for your presence in class today.
Individual Activities: Chapters 12 and 13 materials on the Web
Text Reading Assignment: Chapters 12 and 13
Tues, June 30 :
Lecture : Personality
Instructor-led Technology Activities :
Personality Inventories on the Web
Group Activities :
Target Question Set #9
1) What personality type are you? How do you know? Respond for every member of your group.
2) Argue in favor of Freud's theory of personality development.
Individual Activities: Chapter 15 materials on the Web
Text Reading Assignment: Chapters 15
Wed, July 1
Lecture : Development
Instructor-led Technology Activities :
Film: Theories of Development (29 minutes)
Film: Cognitive Development (60 minutes)
Group Activities :
Target Question Set #10
1) Design an experiment to determine an infant's ability to do one of the following: a) Distinguish between pictures of Julia Roberts and Meryl Streep. b) Distinguish between a Beetle's song and a Madonna song.
2) How would Piaget explain the cognitive development of a child who is paralyzed from birth? For example, would there be an deficits in cognitive development for such a child?
Individual Activities : Chapter 4 materials on the Web
Text Reading Assignment: Chapter 4

Thurs, July 2
EXAM 3, Chapters 12, 13, 15, 4
Lecture: Psychological Disorders and Treatment
Instructor-led Technology Activities :
Video: Back from Madness (53 minutes)
Film: Broken Minds
Group Activities :
Target Question Set #11
1) If there is a biological basis for depression, how can we prevent ourselves from becoming depressed?
2) Refute the statement "There is one best type of psychotherapy."
Individual Activities: Chapters 16 and 17 materials on the Web
Text Reading Assignment : Chapters 16 and 17
WEEK 4
Mon, July 6 :
EXAM 3, Chapters 12, 13, 15, 4
Lecture : Stress and Health
Instructor-led Technology Activities :
Film: The Science of Stress (50 minutes)
CD: PsychQuest: Stress and Coping
Group Activities :
Target Question Set # 12
1) What does it mean to be "stressed out?"
2) Discuss the relationship between personality, stress and health.
Individual Activities: Chapter 14 materials on the Web
Text Reading Assignment : Chapters 14
Tues, July 7 :
Lecture : Social Psychology
Instructor-led Technology Activities :
Video: Quiet Rage: The Stanford Prison Experiment (50 minutes)
Group Activities :
Target Question Set # 13
1) Is prejudice inevitable? Defend your answer.
2) Discuss the determinants of social behavior (e.g., altruism, conformity, aggression).
Individual Activities: Chapter 18 materials on the Web
Text Reading Assignment : Chapters 18
Wed, July 8 :
REVIEW: Open Question Session
Group Activities :
Complete Group Web Page activities

Individual Activities: Materials on the Web for Exam 4
Thurs, July 9
EXAM 4, Chapters 15, 17, 14, 18
CELEBRATION