Introductory Psychology for Health Sciences Students

PSY 100.3 (Section 02) 2012 MWF 1:30-2:20; Thorv 271

Instructor: Tracey Carr, PhD(c) Office Hours: MW 12:00-1:00 or by appointment Office: ARTS 75 E-mail: tracey.carr@usask.ca Course Material: Required: Baird & McCarthy. (2010). Think Psychology. Toronto: Pearson _________________________________________________________________

What this Course is about: Summary and Objectives

What is Well-being? What is Illness? How do the two relate to one another? What is healthy development? Healthy personality? Healthy social relationships? These are some of the questions that psychologists ask as they explore how much our psychological processes contribute to our experiences of illness and wellness; when they ask how we stay well, why we become unwell, and the way we respond when we do get ill. Since psychologists operate within diverse research backgrounds, ranging from the humanities to the social, health, and natural sciences, they provide an exciting range of answers to these questions. This course is designed for students in the various fields of health, including Kinesiology, Nursing, Nutrition, and Pharmacy. It offers an introduction to health-related issues from the perspective of psychology. You will be introduced to current viewpoints in psychology (as well as their history), some of the different methods by which psychologists perform their research, as well as (changing) assumptions that guide psychologists. The next pages explain how this course is taught and how you can get the most out of it.

One Very Important Note!

This course does NOT count towards a psychology degree. It may not be used as a prerequisite for upper psychology courses. If you think you might want to take other psychology courses in the future you need to take the 6-credit full-year General Psychology course PSY110.6 as a prerequisite. Exceptions can not be made. Students may take both PSY100.3 and PSY110.6 for credit.

1. Lectures and Course Evaluation

The lectures will highlight parts of the assigned textbook chapters. Relevant material and upto-date research will be added that is not in the textbook. Two Midterms will cover the assigned textbook material as well as the lecture materials that are not in the textbook. Overhead notes will be available when chapters are completed, at: http://paws.usask.ca.

2 Grades for this course will be based on 2 midterms (worth 20% and 30%) and a final exam worth 50%. All exams will be multiple choice. The midterms will not be cumulative. That is, each midterm will only cover material that you have not been tested on previously. However, in accordance with College of Arts and Science regulations, the final is cumulative and will cover all material from the entire course. Make-up midterms will not be given nor will you be able to take a midterm at a time other than the assigned class (it is just too difficult to make up an alternative midterm that is as fair as the one you have missed). Upon receipt of official documentation (compassionate or medical reasons only), students who have missed a midterm will have their marks reassigned to the final. For example, if you miss the first midterm (20%) and you can provide official documentation, then your final exam will be worth 70% (50% + 20%). If you cannot take part in a midterm you need to speak to me in person, not via e-mail. Documentation outlining the reason for the missed midterm normally must be dated prior to the time of the midterm. You must submit your official documentation no later than 48 hours after the missed midterm, except in unusual circumstances. If you miss a midterm and do not provide adequate documentation, you will be given a grade of 0 for that midterm. Recording of lectures is not permitted, except with my written permission. The Department of Psychology requires that all introductory classes have an over-all average somewhere between 65% and 71% (students individual marks of course range across the whole spectrum). This is actually where over-all averages seem to fall naturally. Basically, this policy is in the interest of fairness for you, so that you can be sure to get the same mark for your hard work, independent of the section you are in or the instructor you are studying with. Bonus Credits: Students in PSY 100.3 can receive up to 5 extra credits, that is, 5%, as a bonus on top of your mark, by choosing one or the other, or some combination, of the following two choices (see more detail in the appendix): o participate in ongoing research studies in the psychology department that are posted at http://usask.sona-systems.com on the departmental website o write 5 research summaries (1 credit each) of basic research articles and answer questions that accompany these articles. The articles will be held in a folder at the Main Library desk for this purpose. The summaries will be graded on a pass/fail basis. Only summaries that receive a pass will be credited.

2. Student Responsibilities
Attendance: Attendance is crucial to your success in our course since lectures cover not only materials that are in the textbook but also relevant materials that are in addition to the textbook, including the latest research updates. Also, changes to the course schedule may be announced in class; exam contents will be announced in class; and we will have short reviews in class before a day with a midterm or the final exam. Conduct in Class: As youve noticed our classroom is a large lecture hall. Sometimes you may feel like talking to your neighbour or text messaging. This is disruptive to others and

3 disruptive to me. I request that you do not chat verbally or electronically during class. If you cannot stop the urge, you may be asked to step outside to continue your conversation. Adding or Dropping Class: Please consult http://students.usask.ca/academic/registration/changes/ for further info. Students are responsible for making changes to avoid financial penalties. E-mail Etiquette: When writing e-mails please make sure to follow this e-mail etiquette: o the subject line in the header must include the course number (PSY 100.3). o the body of the e-mail starts with an address, at least a Hi, and/or my name. o the e-mail ends with a salutation that includes your full name (without signatures I often enough can not tell who is writing because e-mail addresses can be quite imaginative, e.g. quirky123@aol.com) and there is often more than one student with the same first name). o Please be courteous in your requests as I will be courteous to you. o If you have an important request (e.g., you cannot attend a midterm or exam) please discuss it with me in person after class and not by e-mail (particularly not by anonymous e-mail). o Always double-check and edit your e-mail before you hit the Send button. o The university website http://www.usask.ca/its/services/email/email_etiquette.php has further helpful information. Academic Dishonesty: All materials that a student presents for grading must be the result of his/her own honest effort. In particular, all written materials submitted for grading must be a students own work, all citations and sources must be properly referenced, and the material cannot have been previously submitted elsewhere for academic credit. Should a student be suspected of academic misconduct, the matter will be referred immediately to the appropriate Dean. You are directed to http://www.usask.ca/honesty to review the Universitys policy with regard to plagiarism and cheating. Academic dishonesty (e.g., cheating, plagiarism, etc.) is a very serious offence and will be dealt with according to the Universitys respective policies. See: http://www.usask.ca/university_secretary/pdf/dishonesty_info_sheet.pdf

3. Resources for Students

Learning Strategies: Particularly if you are just coming from high school new to the university you will find that you may need to develop quite different study skills. Our university website http://students.usask.ca/support/learning/studyskills/ provides helpful information regarding study habits. Student Counseling Services: It is not uncommon to experience difficulties with adjusting to university life, particularly if you are in your first year. In that case the university provides Student Counseling Services. Their services are free of charge and absolutely confidential. There is also a university website that provides helpful information about anxiety and stress: http://students.usask.ca/wellness/info/mentalhealth/examanxiety Disability Accommodations: If you have a disability, please contact Disability Services for Students to discuss your eligibility for note-taking services and/or accommodation for exams. See more at: http://www.students.usask.ca/disability/

4. Other Information
Finals: The final will be scheduled by the registrar. I am not able to change the dates of the final and cannot give the final at any earlier date. Deferred final exams must be applied for through the Deans office. Subject to Change: Short notice changes to the schedule may be necessary another reason to attend classes regularly. How to be successful in this class: o Read the current chapter by the date indicated in the course outline o Attend the class, participate, and engage in discussions o Please, always ask whenever you have a question about the course material. If you have a question, others actually often have the same or similar question. o Be aware of the dates for midterms and the final exam o Ask your fellow students for their notes in case you miss a class.

5. Tentative Order of Topics & Schedule of Midterms

Textbook Chapter and Topic Introduction Ch. 01 Research Methods Ch. 02 The Human Brain Ch. 03 Sensation and Perception Ch. 04 ***Midterm 1 (20%)*** Human Development I & II Ch. 06 & 07 Emotion & Motivation Ch. 09 Learning Ch. 11 Memory Ch. 12 ***Midterm 2 (30%)*** Social Psychology Ch.14 Personality & Individual Differences Ch. 15 Psychopathology Ch. 16 Health Ch. 18 Approx. Dates wk 1-2 wk 2-3 wk 4-5 wk 5 Fri Feb 3 wk 6-8 Important Other Dates

wk 8-9

Spring Break February 20 - 24

Mon Mar 5 wk 10-12

wk 13

6. Participant Pool Instructions (Bonus Marks)

Students in Psychology 100 have an opportunity to earn up to 5 bonus marks by participating in research or by completing journal article summaries. The instructions on how to use the participant pool web site to sign up for studies is printed below. Students are awarded one bonus credit for each 30 minutes they spend completing the study (or portion thereof) or for each journal article summary they complete. *If they wish to complete the journal summaries they can find the articles and instructions on how to complete the summaries in the reserve section of the main library under Psychology 100. Please note: Students will not be imported into the system until AFTER the last day for making changes in registration for winter term classes (January 17, 2012). Therefore, the Participant Pool will not be running until after this date. The participant pool system is located at http://usask.sona-systems.com. A login page will appear that asks for your username and password. This system is NOT the same as the Arts and Science Computer accounts, so while your username will be the same as your NSID, your password will be different. This password will be emailed to your University email accounts. When you log into the participant pool site, if you wish to change your password click on MY PROFILE and then enter in your new password into the appropriate field You can check which experiments are running by clicking on Experiment Sign-up. When you do, the next screen will show you a list of experiments that you can sign up for. If the first column says timeslots available then you can click on the experiment, click on timeslots at the bottom of the page, and then click on Sign-up to the right of the timeslot you wish to participate in. If you cannot attend an experiment timeslot that you have signed up for, then you must cancel at least 1 hour before the experiment is to occur. If you dont, you will be penalized 1 credit. This means that with one penalty, you must participate in 6 credits worth of studies in order to get 5 bonus credits. To cancel a timeslot, click on My Schedule/Credits, and click on Cancel to the right of the experiment you cannot attend. Then click on the button that confirms your cancellation. You can also click on My Schedule/Credits at any time to determine how many credits you have earned, and which experiments you have received credit for. **Please do not panic if you cannot find available timeslots as new timeslots and experiments are posted throughout the year. However, it is strongly encouraged that you do not wait until the end of the year to participate. If you ever forget your password, there is a text box that reads Lost Your Password? Click here to retrieve it on the left of the login page. Click on this text box and enter in your NSID. Your password will then be emailed to you. If you have any questions regarding the participant pool or questions about your rights as participants, please email the participant pool administrator, Sean Sacher at research.admin@usask.ca or call 9666697.

7. Instructions for Summarizing Research Articles (Bonus Marks)

The Research Articles are available at the Library Reserve Desk to be picked up Summaries should be a maximum length of 1 typewritten page (double-spaced), or 1 handwritten pages (double-spaced). Each summary must be presented on a separate page. At the top of each page on which a summary begins, the following information must be present: - your full name - your student number and NSID - your instructors name and class section number - the title of the article you are summarizing Summaries must be in paragraph form (point form will be marked as fail.) In two or three paragraphs, you are to answer the following questions: 1. Why did the researchers do their study? In other words, what did they hope to find or accomplish? 2. What did the researchers actually find? 3. What was the relevance or importance of what the researchers found? Indeed, was there any importance to what the researchers found? 4. If the article you chose is a review article (i.e., the authors did not conduct an experiment), summarize the article highlighting the major points. All summaries are graded as pass/fail. Each summary that is graded as pass will count as one credit toward your maximum of 5 credits in Psychology 100. There are four ways you can fail a research article summary: 1. 2. 3. 4. If you miss the point of the article completely. If you have copied the articles abstract or any part of the article (plagiarism). If you and another student submit identical summaries. If your summaries are not handed in by the deadline.

If you fail a summary for either of the first two reasons, you can recover this credit, either by submitting another summary, or by serving as a research participant in an experiment in the Department of Psychology. If you fail a summary for the third reason, you cannot recover this credit, and these cases will be brought directly to the attention of your 100 instructor. You may hand these summaries in to Sean Sacher by taking them to Arts 46. If you wish to hand your summary in after 5:00pm, please slide it under the door of Arts 46 (Cognitive Science Lab). Your summaries will be graded, and credit will be assigned within two business days if the summary receives a pass mark. Please make sure you submit your summaries on or before the last day of classes in April (before 5 pm). Questions may be sent to the Participant Pool Administrator (research.admin@usask.ca).