BB H 310 ­ Research Strategies for Studying Biobehavioral Health Course Syllabus Fall 2014 Course Description: Surveys the various research methodologies used in biomedical research, including case, epidemiological, quasiexperimental and experimental approaches. Section 1 Time and Place: MWF from 1:25­2:15 in 22 BBH Building Instructor: Joseph Gyekis, 206 Biobehavioral Health Building Office Hours: Tuesday, 1:00­2:00, visit office or call 814­865­8443 Email anytime: j99@psu.edu Section 2 Time and Place: MWF from 9:05­9:55 in 103 BBH Building Instructor: Bill Gerin, 208 Biobehavioral Health Building Office Hours: by appointment Email anytime: wxg17@psu.edu Graduate Teaching Assistant: Russel Nye Contact: rtn111@psu.edu Office: Hours: Undergraduate Teaching Assistants: Liz Park Contact: egp5042@psu.edu Brianna Titus Contact: bet5097@psu.edu Kelsea Day Contact: kyd5117@psu.edu Goals and Objectives BB H 310 surveys the various research methodologies used in biomedical and behavioral research, including case, epidemiological, quasi‐experimental and experimental approaches. The goals of this course are: (1) to provide students with a basic understanding in research methods; (2) to familiarize students with research strategies for studying Biobehavioral health; (3) be critical thinkers and informed consumers of scientific research and health information; (4) to have basic understanding of the available approaches to research and interventions that are needed in order to address the complex set of determinants associated with public health problems that affect populations generally and those factors associated more specifically with racial and ethnic disparities in health. The specific objectives of the course are to: (1) recognize and use basic principles, concepts, terminology, and techniques in research methodology as applied to the study of Biobehavioral health; (2) have a basic understanding of the statistical tools available for research which aims to answer questions related to disease prevention, reversal, treatment and control; (3) examine the validity and applicability of various health interventions used to improve health status and the barriers for successful interventions; (4) interpret and critique published research reports on the identification of risk factors and causal factors for diseases in populations; (5) foster the adoption of a personal culture of lifelong learning and media literacy regarding the factors related to individual and population health. (6) foster the learning experience whereby the student will develop a new and/or better understanding as to why and how research is carried out. We will also talk about how research data are analyzed and interpreted into meaningful results in the form of a scientific paper, while addressing many of the important issues and concerns behind statistical assessments and outcomes. In addition, the subject of research ethics and responsibility of conducting of human research will also be discussed. Some of the perils of research, including issues associated with a study’s method and design, to publishing and sometimes even selling a study’s findings will also be discussed. This is a required course in the Biobehavioral Health major. The course is appropriate for students intending to advance to post‐baccalaureate graduate and professional programs in medicine, public health, health policy and planning, and other health‐related careers. Requirements ●
Prerequisites: BBH 101 and Stat 200 (or Stat 250). ○ If you want to review statistics, see these free lectures ● Textbook: No purchases required. ○ Required readings will be distributed online. ● Have an internet enabled device (laptop, some pad, or smartphone) in class each day. Class activities will require you to be able to search the internet and submit information online for your attendance grade. ● Check your ANGEL and regular PSU email every day or two. ○
You can set up your ANGEL email to automatically forward to any email address by following these instructions: http://kb.its.psu.edu/cms/article/137 and http://studentblog.worldcampus.psu.edu/index.php/2012/09/how­to­forward­penn­
state­and­angel­course­email/ Hybrid In­Class+Online Format This course is essentially “flipped”. Instead of lecturing you in class and asking you to do homework at home, we’re providing the instruction in the online modules and asking you to do practice questions and activities in class. You will have plenty of opportunity to ask questions about the material presented online in the face­to­face setting, of course. Statements on Student and Instructor Responsibilities Student Responsibilities Students are responsible for attending class, taking notes, paying attention to course email, and obtaining other materials provided by the instructor, taking tests, and completing assignments as scheduled by the instructor. Students are responsible for understanding the syllabus and the academic integrity guidelines. Requests for taking exams or submitting assignments after the due dates require documentation of events such as illness, family emergency or a university sanctioned activity. Conflicts with dates on which examinations or assignments are scheduled must be discussed with the instructor or TA prior to the date of the exam or assignment. Students are responsible for keeping track of changes in the course syllabus made by the instructor throughout the semester. Students are responsible for monitoring their grades. Students must contact the instructor as soon as possible if they anticipate missing multiple classes due to events such as chronic illnesses, travel related to team sports, or other university activities. The instructor will determine the minimal attendance and participation required in order to meet course responsibilities. Behaviors that disrupt other students’ learning are not acceptable (e.g., arriving consistently late for class; cell phone use, reading non­course related materials, or social conversation during class), and will be addressed by the instructor. Educators Code of Conduct The instructor subscribes to the following four norms to govern teaching: Honesty. Honesty and integrity must be practiced during all aspects of the education process. Promise­Keeping. Promise keeping requires the educator to fulfill the “promises” made at the beginning of the semester or any other learning activity. Syllabi, assignments, grading principles, and class and appointment schedules each involve promises that are made to students and that must be adhered to under normal circumstances. Respect for Persons. The educator must approach the learner with personal respect. In addition, the educator ought to encourage mutual respect among students. In particular, respect for race, religion, sexual orientation, disability, gender, age, marital status, cultural differences, and political conviction should be supported and encouraged in all aspects of the educational process. Additionally, educators ought to show respect and common courtesy for students both during interpersonal interactions and in responding promptly to students’ need for guidance and feedback. An environment free from harassment and discrimination, verbal abuse, physical violence, and intimidation in any form must also be provided for all learning activities. Fairness. Recognizing the inherent subjectively involved in grading, an educator ought to ensure that their grading practices are as objective as possible by creating and adhering to unambiguous criteria. Principles of Ethical University Teaching Content Competence. An educator maintains a high level of subject matter knowledge and ensures that the content of the educational experience is current, accurate, representative, and appropriate to the position of the learning experience within the students’ program of study. The educator must be capable of approaching each learner with a commitment to meeting his or her educational needs. Pedagogical Competence. A pedagogically competent educator communicates the objectives of the educational experience to students, is aware of alternative instructional methods or strategies, and selects methods of instruction that are effective in helping students to achieve the course objectives. Dealing with Sensitive Topics. Topics that students are likely to find sensitive or discomforting are dealt with in an open, honest, and positive way. Student Development. The overriding responsibility of the educator is to contribute to the intellectual development of the student, at least in the context of the educator’s own area of expertise, and to avoid actions such as exploitation and discrimination that detract from student development. Dual Relationship with Students. To avoid conflict of interest, an educator does not enter into dual­role relationships with students that are likely to detract from student development or lead to actual or perceived favoritism on the part of the educator. The establishment of a romantic/sexual relationship between an educator and a student should be reported to the immediate supervisor of the educator. Such relationships should be dealt with consistent with Penn State Policy on Sexual Harassment (AD41): http://guru.psu.edu/policies/AD41.html Student Confidentiality. Student grades, letters of evaluation, attendance records, and private communications are treated as confidential materials and are released only with student consent, for legitimate academic purposes, or if there are reasonable grounds for believing that releasing such information will be beneficial to the student or will prevent harm to the student or to others. Respect for Colleagues. An educator respects the dignity of his or her colleagues and works cooperatively with colleagues in the interest of fostering student development. Valid Assessment of Students. An educator is responsible for taking adequate steps to ensure that the assessment of a student’s performance is valid, open, fair, and congruent with the course/educational experience objectives. An educator must be aware that such assessments are important in students’ lives and in the development of their careers. Respect for Institution and Profession. In the interest of student development, an educator is aware of and respects the educational goals, policies, and standards of the institution in which he or she teaches and the profession which he or she represents. Citing Sources of Educational Material. An educator acknowledges and documents, as appropriate, the sources of information and other materials used for teaching. Violations of the Educator’s Code of Conduct Should a student experience conduct that is inconsistent with the Educator’s Code of Conduct, he/she is encouraged to first address the issue with either the educator responsible for the inconsistency or the director of the program in which the educator teaches. Students should go to the department’s website to locate appropriate individuals but are encouraged to begin with their instructor. University Statement of Academic Integrity (Policy 49­20) Academic integrity is the pursuit of scholarly activity in an open, honest and responsible manner. Academic integrity is a basic guiding principle for all academic activity at The Pennsylvania State University, and all members of the University community are expected to act in accordance with this principle. Consistent with this expectation, the University's Code of Conduct states that all students should act with personal integrity, respect other students' dignity, rights and property, and help create and maintain an environment in which all can succeed through the fruits of their efforts. Academic integrity includes a commitment not to engage in or tolerate acts of falsification, misrepresentation or deception. Such acts of dishonesty violate the fundamental ethical principles of the University community and compromise the worth of work completed by others. Violations of Academic Integrity Policy Violations of the University’s Academic Integrity Policy include the following: Cheating: using crib sheets of any kind, preprogrammed calculators or cell phones, use of notes during a closed book exam Copying on tests: looking at other students’ exams, copying with a plan with another student, passing notes during exams; exchanging exams with another student Tampering with work: changing one’s own or another student’s work; tampering with work either as a prank or to sabotage another’s work Acts of aiding and abetting: Facilitating academically dishonest work by others; unauthorized collaboration on work; permitting another to copy from one’s exam; writing a paper for another; inappropriately collaborating on home assignments or exams without permission or when prohibited Unauthorized possession: Buying or stealing of exams or other materials; failing to return exams on file or reviewed in class; selling exams; photocopying exams; any possession of an exam without the instructor’s permission Submitting previous work: Submitting a paper, case study, lab report, or any assignment that had been submitted for credit in a prior class without the knowledge and permission of the instructor Ghosting or misrepresenting: Taking a quiz or exam or performing a class assignment in place of another student; having another student do the same in one’s place; signing in as present in class for another student or having another student do the same in one’s place Altering exams: Changing incorrect answers and seeking favorable grade changes when instructor returns graded exams for in­class review and then collects them; asserting that the instructor make a mistake in grade. Other forms include changing the letter and/or numerical grade on a test. Computer theft: Electronic theft of computer programs or other software, data, images, art, or text belonging to another. Plagiarism: fabricating information or citations; copying from the Internet of submitting the work of others from journals, articles and papers, or books; submitting other students’ papers as one’s own. Any material, regardless of length, that is the work of somebody else and who is not given explicit credit by citation and/or quotation marks as appropriate, submitted as one’s own, is plagiarized material. Notes about Plagiarism The University has a website that specifically instructs students (and faculty) about plagiarism and especially cyber­plagiarism. See http://tlt.its.psu.edu/plagiarism/student­tutorial/ In addition to the PSU IStudy module another excellent source for training on plagiarism is the Purdue OWL (Online Writing Lab). The plagiarism page can be found at http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/589/01/ Examples of common violations of academic integrity in relations to plagiarism. (These are just a few examples and DO NOT include all of the violations that might be deemed as plagiarism. It is important to carefully read the instructions for your writing assignments as the instructor may be providing specific rules about the assignment (e.g., no use of quoted materials, no citations of websites, etc.) that may affect your evaluation. a. Wholesale Copying. When text or other material is copied from a web site, a printed journal, a paper written by a student, (even if given permission by the original author!), or some other source, this is clearly plagiarism because you did not do any original research or writing, and 2) the work was created by another author, yet you put your own name on it. b. Cutting and Pasting. Another more common type of plagiarism involves copying pieces of text from one or more original sources and inserting it into the assignment. If you are cutting and pasting for the purposes of quoting the author you must remember to provide quotes and appropriate citations. c. Inappropriate Paraphrasing. Inappropriate paraphrase is where text is altered only slightly from the original and no acknowledgment of the original author or source is given. The Purdue OWL site (see above) provides additional helpful examples of what it means to inappropriately paraphrase something. [Note to students: most violations in previous semesters of BBH 411W occurred because people didn’t pay attention to are this yellow part] This course will use plagiarism detection software with Turnitin.com. Instructions for submitting your papers to that website will be described as we near the appropriate due dates. If you have any questions about how to cite your sources, please review the materials available at http://www.libraries.psu.edu/psul/researchguides/citationstyles.html or take a training module (e.g., http://tlt.its.psu.edu/plagiarism/student­tutorial/ Additional information about the Turnitin.com plagiarism prevention tool is available at http://turnitin.com and at http://turnitin.com/en_us/training/student­training Most problems can be addressed by simply understanding this diagram: Sanctions for Violations of Academic Integrity. Penn State University and the College of Health and Human Development have policies on dealing with academic integrity problems. The University procedures for dealing with a violation are described in detail at this website: http://www.psu.edu/dept/oue/aappm/G­9.html The College’s website for procedures relating violations of academic integrity can be found at: http://www.hhdev.psu.edu/policies/academicintegrity/ Please note that it is the responsibility of the student to be sure that they understand what constitutes a violation of academic integrity and what the policies are with respect to such violations. Faculty may assign a wide range of sanctions to a student found responsible for violating academic integrity. Your instructor may choose to utilize academic sanctions (the modification of grades due to misconduct), but when referring cases to Student Conduct, faculty have the option to also recommend a full range of disciplinary sanctions available to Student Conduct such as: Disciplinary Warning; Disciplinary Probation; Suspension, Indefinite Expulsion or Expulsion; or the "XF" transcript notation (see: Sanctioning Guidelines for Academic Integrity Violations and Explanations for Disciplinary Sanctions). It is important that you know that the Department of Biobehavioral Health­­and the faculty course instructors, and the Teaching Assistants­­ are committed to the principles of academic integrity and that students who violate the principles of academic integrity will be reported and appropriate sanctions will be taken. Disability Access Statement Penn State welcomes students with disabilities into the University's educational programs. If you have a disability­related need for reasonable academic adjustments in this course, contact the Office for Disability Services (ODS) at 814­863­1807 (V/TTY). For further information regarding ODS, please visit the Office for Disability Services Web site at http://equity.psu.edu/ods/. In order to receive consideration for course accommodations, you must contact ODS and provide documentation, see the documentation guidelines at http://equity.psu.edu/ods/guidelines. If the documentation supports the need for academic adjustments, ODS will provide a letter identifying appropriate academic adjustments. Please share this letter and discuss the adjustments with your instructor as early in the course as possible. You must contact ODS and request academic adjustment letters at the beginning of each semester.​
Diversity Statement With our focus on the improvement of the quality of individuals' lives within their families and communities, the College of Health and Human Development naturally places the understanding of diversity in a central position in both its mission and vision. Through teaching, research, and outreach programs, we strive to communicate the importance of diversity to both College and community members. “Diversity” is broadly defined by the College as “human differences,” including differences in age, social class, disability, race, ethnicity, immigrant status, gender, gender expression, religion, veteran status, and sexual orientation. Rules for Gathering Data and Presenting Findings for Class Projects Rule 1. No distribution outside of class. Class projects are not generalizable research. You may not share results or data from these projects to anyone outside of our class group. If you want to do something that you can distribute to the public, present at conferences, or publish in scientific journals, you need to work with a professor’s lab and have your project plan approved by an Institutional Review Board before you even start your work. Rule 2. Get informed consent from all participants. Even though your class projects are not formal research, we should still strive to be ethical. So get informed consent if you are gathering data on others. The first step of recruiting is to let each person know what you will do and who will see the data. Give them the option to refuse before you start anything else. Rule 3. Carefully avoid harming participants. Don’t do any project that could lead to anyone (even yourself) ingesting dangerous substances (no alcohol or tobacco), don’t ask questions of others that are embarrassing or stigmatized unless complete anonymity is assured, don’t do anything else that has a foreseeable risk of harming people, think about risk from all angles before starting the project. Please be especially careful to avoid doing projects that could increase people’s risk of accidents (especially in traffic), like fatigue or intoxication. Rule 4. Don’t coerce people to participate. Don’t push people for participation just because you have some leverage over them, like a significant other who is not interested or a mom who will reluctantly do anything if you say it’s for school. Try to choose people who are genuinely willing. Grading and Attendance The total grade across the semester is based off of 100 course points, 30 for exams, 30 for quizzes, 30 for modules, and 10 for class activities. Since you are guaranteed full credit for modules and class activities assuming you show up to do them and complete them, almost half of the course grade should be 100%. Therefore, quizzes and tests will only be curved to 70%. Exams ● Mid­term 1 (10 points) ● Mid­term 2 (10 points) ● 1 Final (10 points) ● Make­up exams are essay format Quizzes ● 12 offered, drop the worst 2 (don’t give excuses if you miss a quiz, make ups are not offered­­just get a 0 and drop it if you have to miss class on quiz day) ● Keep 10 (worth 2 points each, so quizzes account for 20% of the course grade) Modules ● 30 online modules (worth 1 point each) ● Late modules are not accepted ● One missing module will be forgiven automatically Class Activities ● Completion of class activities (such as practice questions, data or written response submissions, and brief presentations); approximately 20 opportunities across the semester (can be any days with no quiz or exam; i.e. Mon/Fri) ● 20 points of final course grade (worth ~1 point each) ● Instructors can award merit points for outstanding work on any class activities, which add a point to the class activity score (allowing one to miss a future class activity or add to the total course grade) ● Students can also earn up to four make­up credits by attending a research seminar or lecture on campus ○
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Attend a research seminar on campus and write a 200 word summary including a heading with the the presentation title and speaker’s name, then a brief summary of the major topics covered (about half of the body of writing) and some commentary on what resonated with you and how aspects of the lecture relate to content we have covered in our class (about half should be your impressions and thoughts). To find seminars, the best choice is to attend the BBH department colloquium, which happens most Mondays at 3:30 in room 22 BBH. You can also get emails about seminars on campus. One way is to subscribe the to the College of Health and Human Development seminar announcement list by emailing a blank message to L­HHD­SON­SEMINARS­subscribe­request@lists.psu.edu or you can subscribe for science seminars from across the university by emailing SCIENCE­SEMINARS­SUBSCRIBE­REQUEST@LISTS.PSU.EDU­­both send weekly emails with date/time/location/speaker/topic and easy instructions for how to unsubscribe. Extra Credit and Independent Study Options ● Independent Study Option ○ If you are already involved in doing research through a professor’s research lab, speak with me about doing an independent project option to replace the exams in this course. It will involve writing a big research paper. ● Course Bonus Points ○ Students who design and run a small study or write a paper applying the research principles taught in this course to a topic of their own choosing will be offered an opportunity to expand their work to receive +1% added to the final course grade BBH Academic Integrity Certification: Mandatory Completion ● Students must complete an Academic Integrity Certification quiz through ANGEL. Failure to complete the ANGEL assessment will result in failure of the course. Details will be released as the due date approaches. Letter Grades Final letter grades will be assigned based on this point distribution, rounding up from 0.5 as is typical: A = 93­100; A­ = 90­92; B+ = 87­89; B = 83­86; B­ = 80­82; C+ = 77­79; C = 70­76; D = 60­69; F = Below 60 Schedule Date
Week 1 August 25
August 27
August 29
Week 2 In­Class
Online Homework Due Midnight Course Overview/Syllabus, Grading Plan Course Overview/Content Find false health information on the internet activity Sunday night modules 1­2
Labor Day, No Class Tuesday night modules 3­4 September 3
Review Modules 1­4, take Quiz 1 Drop­Add Deadlines
Modules 1­4 final deadline Thurs September 5
Random data activity, null hypothesis Week 3 Sunday night module 5
September 8
Random data results presentation, operational examples Tuesday night module 6 September 10
Review Modules 5­6, Quiz 2 September 12
Data project planning, Wikipedia challenge Week 4 Sunday night module 7
September 15
Review, Literature Activity 1 Tuesday night module 8 September 17
Review, Quiz 3 September 19
Data collection day 1 Week 5 Sunday night module 9
September 22
Review, Literature Activity 2 Tuesday night module 10 September 24
September 26
Week 6 Review, Quiz 4 Data collection day 2 Sunday night module 11
September 29
Exam Review October 1
October 3
Exam 1 Tuesday night module 12 Engaging the real world­­finding areas where BBH research matters to people who matter to you Week 7 Sunday night module 13
October 6
Review, Literature Activity 3 Tuesday night module 14 October 8
October 10
Week 8 October 13
October 15
October 17
Week 9 Review, Quiz 5 Engaged scholarship idea sketches Sunday night module 15
Review, Data Analysis Activity 1 Instructions Tuesday night module 16 Review Quiz 6 Data Analysis Activity 1 Sunday night module 17
October 20
Review, Literature Activity 4 October 22
October 24
Review Quiz 7 Tuesday night module 18 Guest speaker, Renee Brooks, BBH Alumni Mentoring Chair and Director of the Western Reserve Reading Project at OSU Week 10 October 27
October 29
October 31
Week 11 Sunday night module 19 and Academic Integrity Certification Due
Review, Data Analysis Activity 2 Instructions Tuesday night module 20 Review Quiz 8 Data Analysis Activity 2 Sunday night module 21
November 3
Exam Review Tuesday night module 22 November 5
November 7
Week 12 Exam 2 Engagement Project Work Day Sunday night module 23
November 10
Review, Literature Activity 5 Tuesday night module 24 November 12
November 14
Week 13 Quiz review Quiz 9 Engagement Project Presentations Sunday night module 25
November 17
Activity? Literature? Tuesday night module 26 November 19
Quiz review Quiz 10 November 21
Data collection day 3 November 23 ­ 29 Thanksgiving Break Week 14 December 1
December 3
December 5
Week 15 Sunday night module 27
Review, Data Analysis Activity 3 Instructions Tuesday night module 28 Review Quiz 11 Data Analysis Activity 3 Sunday night module 29
December 8
Review Tuesday night module 30 December 10
December 12
Finals Week Review Quiz 12 Exam Review Final exam option 2 (for one hour, starting at time scheduled by registrar)