Northeastern University
PSYC 1101- Foundations of Psychology
Fall 2011
Course Information
Meeting Times: Tuesday & Friday, 1:35pm - 3:15pm
Class Location: Snell Engineering Center 108
Prerequisites:
None
Course credits:
4
Instructor Information
Instructor:
Mark Prokosch, Ph.D.
Office:
429 Nightingale
Office Phone: 617-373-3072
Office Hours: Thursdays 12:00pm – 1:30pm and by appointment
E-mail:
m.prokosch@neu.edu
Teaching Assistant Information
TA:
Jeffrey Nador
Office:
201 Nightingale
Office Phone: 617-373-3076
Office Hours: Mondays 11:00am – 1:00pm
E-mail:
nador.j@husky.neu.edu
Textbook & Readings
Weiten, W. (2010). Psychology: Themes and Variations (8th ed.).
Wadsworth Publishers. ISBN: 978049560197
There is a free companion site found through http://www.cengagebrain.com/
Reading requirements for each class are listed on the course schedule and should be read prior to
the session for which they are listed. The reading is listed on the syllabus on the day it is due.
Please review the reading requirements carefully with reference to the study guides.
Course Description
Can people repress terrible childhood memories? Can you trust the eyewitness testimony of a
young child who witnessed a murder? Do men and women differ in their mating preferences?
Why are some people depressed? Why are we influenced so much by peer pressure? This course
tries to answer these questions and more, providing a comprehensive overview of the scientific
study of thought and behavior. Central topics will include biological, cognitive, affective,
developmental, personality, and social psychology. Discussion will focus on both theoretical
ideas and empirical findings and how they relate to everyday life.
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Course Website: Blackboard (blackboard.neu.edu)
You will find everything you need to know about the course when you log on at the link above.
The website contains course information, assignment guidelines, the course syllabus (this
document), exam study guides, and various other documents. You will also find a grade book,
which will help you to keep check of your progress throughout the semester. I will occasionally
post reminders or announce changes in the schedule, topics or supplemental readings as we move
through the semester – so you should make a point of checking the site regularly. I will be glad
to assist you if you have problems accessing the website.
Course Objectives
The course aims to give you a thorough introduction to the field of Psychology. The topics and
subdisciplines that comprise this field are very diverse and this is reflected in the span and scope
of the course. You will be introduced to the core ideas and theoretical foundations of Psychology
- from neuroscience and the brain, to social and philosophical theories about behavior. You will
also be introduced to methods of research in Psychology and will learn how empirical research
and analysis supports or refutes established and emerging theory. And you will explore how
psychological theory can be applied in a real-world context. The objective is to give you (i) a
thorough overview of the field, (ii) a theoretical foundation for more advanced studies in
psychology, (iii) an understanding of the methods and analyses that support psychological theory
and (iv) an ability to apply psychological theory to understanding and explaining human
behavior in everyday life.
Class Format
Classes will be held twice per week, on Tuesdays and Fridays, from 1:35pm – 3:15pm. Classes
will follow a lecture/discussion format and may include a group activity or demonstration. Class
participation will be an essential part of the course experience and you are encouraged to ask
questions and to contribute to the discussion.
Coursework
• Exams: There will be three midterm exams. Each exam will cover materials from lecture
and from the assigned readings. The midterm exams are NOT cumulative. Each exam will
consist of multiple-choice questions. There will be NO make-up exams unless you have
approved documentation (e.g., special needs, doctor’s note). Exam grades are posted on the
Blackboard course site. Every effort will be made to make sure that your exam grades will be
posted within one week of the exam date. The exams will be worth 75% of your total grade.
•
Course Assignment: There will be one major course assignment this semester. This will
involve a project covering a very important topic in psychology: Drug Awareness.
National Drug Facts Week (http://drugfactsweek.drugabuse.gov/ ) runs from October 31st to
November 6th. In anticipation for this event, you are to complete the following:
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1) A 2-page, double-spaced paper focusing on one drug (or class of drugs) that you are
interested in writing about. You should include information about drug action in the
brain and drug epidemiology, including the health consequences of abusing the drug.
You must cite the sources used for gathering your information. Use proper APA
formatting. See http://www.apastyle.org/learn/tutorials/basics-tutorial.aspx for
appropriate citations in text and creating a proper Reference list.
2) Create a unique piece of work to honor Drug Fact Week. You can go about this in
several ways. Examples include:
- Write a newspaper piece and submit it to the Op-Ed section of a local newspaper
- Conduct interviews of students and edit a news piece (video or written)
- Paint, draw, sculpt or use some other visual art to generate recognition of this
event
- Write a song, poem, blog, or use some other written art form to honor the event
- Act out a skit, compose and sing a song, post a video on YouTube
- Form a small group and organize an event in recognition of drug fact week (see
http://drugfactsweek.drugabuse.gov/planyourevent.php
The course assignment will be worth 25% of your course grade.
Grade Breakdown
Course Material
Exam 1
Exam 2
Exam 3
Course Assignment
Total
Percentage of Grade
25%
25%
25%
25%
100%
I use the following guide for assigning letter grades:
Letter Grade
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD
F
Percent
93% and up
90 - 92%
88 - 89%
83 - 87%
80 - 82%
78 – 79%
73 – 77%
70 – 72%
63 – 69%
Below 63%
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Important Reminders
Snow Days: If the University officially closes due to inclement weather, any scheduled exam or
assignment for that day will be postponed until the next day of class. NO EXCEPTIONS.
Final Exam: If there is a conflict in your final exam schedule (i.e., having 3 or more exams
scheduled on the same day or having two exams scheduled at the same time), you must submit a
“Final Exam Conflict Form,” with the Registrar’s Office.
Academic Integrity: It is the responsibility of each individual student to achieve the highest
standards of academic integrity. Refer to your NU Student Handbook. Lapses in such integrity
(i.e., cheating, plagiarism, etc.) will not be tolerated and will result in appropriate course
penalties and referral to the Office of Student Conduct & Conflict Resolution.
Plagiarism – presenting as one’s own the ideas or work of another without citation – or
Cheating – any attempt to defraud, deceive, or mislead the instructor in arriving at an honest
grade assessment – is against Northeastern’s academic policy as well as society’s standards and
will not be tolerated. For more information see
http://www.northeastern.edu/osccr/academichonesty.html.
TRACE: At the end of this course, you are expected to participate in the student survey known
as TRACE (Teacher Rating and Course Evaluation). More information on this will be given
towards the end of the semester.
Research Participation: The NU Psychology Department includes a six-hour research
participation requirement in PSYC-1101. The Psychology Department uses its PsyLink website
(http://psylink.psych.neu.edu) to handle experiment sign-ups and credit tracking. To access the
PsyLink system, follow the detailed instructions found in the PSYC-1101 Participant Pool
Scheduling System (PsyLink) Student Manual. You will be able to see available experiments and
sign up for them, and you will be able to track your current status (how many experiment hours
you've completed, how many you have left, etc.). Most of the experiments give you a 1-hour
credit, but occasionally an experiment offers a 2- or 3-hour credit. Just sign up for enough
experiments so that the total number of hours of credit comes to 6. If you have objections to
participation, an Alternative Assignment of equivalent length is offered. This option involves
reading an assignment on ethics in research and answering questions on it in essay format. If you
prefer, you may do the Alternative Assignment instead, in which case you should contact Prof.
Hall (225 NI, x3790, j.hall@neu.edu).
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Week 1
Friday, Sept 9
Week 2
Tuesday,
Sept 13
Friday,
Sept 16
Week 3
Tuesday,
Sept 20
Friday,
Sept 23
Week 4
Tuesday,
Sept 27
Friday,
Sept 30
Week 5
Tuesday,
Oct 4
Friday,
Oct 7
Week 6
Tuesday,
Oct 11
Friday,
Oct 14
Week 7
Tuesday,
Oct 18
Friday,
Oct 21
Week 8
Tuesday,
Oct 25
Course Schedule (tentative and may change throughout the semester)
Background to the Study of Psychology: An Introduction to the Field
Topic
Reading
Assignment
Introduction to the Course
Syllabus
Background to the Study of Psychology: Methods & Mechanisms
Topic
Reading
Foundations for the Study
Weiten; Ch. 1
of Psychology
Methods in Psychology
Weiten; Ch. 2
Appendix B
Genes & Development
Topic
Reading
Genetic and Evolutionary
Weiten; Ch. 3, pp. 110-115
Foundations of Behavior
Social & Emotional
Weiten; Ch. 11; pp. 439-451
Development
Development & Physiological Mechanisms of Behavior
Topic
Reading
Cognitive Development
Weiten; Ch. 11; pp. 453-460
The Neural Control of
Behavior
Neuroscience & Exam
Topic
The Neural Control of
Behavior
Exam 1
Weiten; Ch. 3; pp. 78-89
Reading
Weiten; Ch. 3; 78-89
Exam Study Guide
Drugs
Topic
Drugs & Behavior
Reading
Weiten; Ch. 5; pp. 214-221
The Brain
Weiten; Ch. 3; pp. 89-104
Brain & Senses
Topic
The Senses
Reading
Weiten; Ch. 4
Sensation & Perception
Weiten; Ch. 4
Learning & Memory
Topic
Learning
Reading
Weiten; Ch. 6
6
Friday,
Oct 28
Week 9
Tuesday,
Nov 1
Friday,
Nov 4
Week 10
Tuesday,
Nov 8
Friday,
Nov 11
Week 11
Tuesday,
Nov 15
Friday,
Nov 18
Week 12
Tuesday,
Nov 22
Friday,
Nov 25
Week 13
Tuesday,
Nov 29
Friday,
Dec 2
Week 14
Tuesday,
Dec 6
TBA
Memory
Weiten; Ch. 7
Memory & Sleep
Topic
Memory, Sleep, & Dreams
Reading
Weiten; Ch. 5; pp. 184-208
Exam 2
Exam Study Guide
Exam & Emotion
Topic
Emotions, Stress, &
Happiness
Reading
Weiten; Ch. 10; pp. 419-433
Ch. 13; pp. 533-557, 565569
No Class
(Veterans’ Day)
Happiness & the Human Intellect
Topic
Reading
Intelligence & Creativity
Weiten; Ch. 9
Language
Weiten; Ch. 8; pp. 320-326
Language & Thanksgiving Break
Topic
Reading
Personality
Weiten; Ch. 12; pp. 489496, 508-513
No Class
(Thanksgiving Break)
Personality
Topic
Reading
Social Psychology
Weiten; Ch. 16; pp. 688-703
Psychological Disorders
Weiten; Ch. 14, 15
Social Psychology & Psychological Disorders
Topic
Reading
Psychological Disorders
Weiten; Ch. 14, 15
Exam 3
Exam Study Guide
Drug Awareness
Assignment due