Course Syllabus

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Course Description:

Psychology is the scientific study of behavior and mental processes. The content focuses on the exploration of major psychological theories and concepts, methods, and research findings in psychology. Topics include the biological bases of behavior, perception, cognition and consciousness, learning, memory, emotion, motivation, development, personality, social psychology, psychological disorders and therapeutic approaches, and applied psychology. 

Student Learning Outcomes:

Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to:

  • Demonstrate familiarity with the major concepts, theoretical perspectives, research methods, core empirical findings, and historic trends in psychology.
  • Explain (including advantages and disadvantages) and compare major theoretical perspectives of psychology (e.g., behavioral, biological, cognitive, evolutionary, humanistic, psychodynamic and socio-cultural);
  • Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the following nine general domains: (1) biological bases of behavior and mental processes, (2) sensation and perception, (3) learning and memory (4) cognition, consciousness, (5) individual differences, psychometrics/measurement, personality, (6) social processes (including those related to socio-cultural and international dimensions), (7) developmental changes in behavior and mental processes that occur across the lifespan, (8) psychological disorders, and (9) emotion and motivation;
  • Describe and demonstrate an understanding of applied areas of psychology (e.g., clinical, counseling, forensic, community, organizational, school, health);
  • Draw the distinction between scientific and non-scientific methods of understanding and analysis.
  • Recognize and understand the impact of diversity on psychological research, theory and application, including (but not limited to): age, race, ethnicity, culture, gender, socio-economic status, disability, and sexual orientation.
  • Understand and apply psychological principles to personal experience and social and organizational settings.
  • Demonstrate critical thinking skills and information competence as applied to psychological topics.

Course Content:

  • Exploration of major theories, concepts, methods, and research findings in psychology.
  • Research methods, including the scientific approach, research design, the use of statistics, and ethics.
  • Major sub-disciplines in psychology including but not limited to: the biological bases of brain-behavior relationships, perception, cognition, learning, memory, emotion, motivation, development, personality, social psychology, psychological disorders, and therapeutic approaches, and applied psychology.

Textbook:

Great news: your textbook for this class is available for free online!
Psychology 2e from OpenStax, ISBN 978-1-975076-45-0

You have several options to obtain this book:

You can use whichever formats you want. Web view is recommended -- the responsive design works seamlessly on any device.

Classroom Etiquette & Procedures:

  • Arrive on time for class
  • Do not begin gathering your belonging to leave before the end of the lecture (I promise I am paying attention to the time) 
  • Please adhere to all COVID safety protocol at all times
  • It is expected that you will adhere to the HWS policies and standards while in class. Due to the nature of some course content, there may be discussions regarding sensitive topics. It is my expectation that these discussions remain respectful and kind. Any student who expresses disrespect toward another student, group of people, etc. will be asked to leave and marked absent for the class, regardless of how much time has elapsed. This is also the case for online classes & assignments. I have a zero -tolerance policy for racism, sexism, or discrimination of any other kind in the classroom.

Electronics: 

  • There is a plethora of research citing the harm of using electronics while in class. They are detrimental not only to the user, but to the students around them as well. For this reason, there will be no electronics permitted in class this semester. If you require an electronic device for a medical reason or as part of services for students with disabilities, please speak with me privately. If students are seen using electronics during class, they will be docked participation points for that class. If a student uses any electronics during the presentation of their peers, the highest grade they will be able to earn on their own project is a 50%.  

Attendance & Participation: 

  • Attendance is required for this course. Given the nature of both scheduling and course content, missing even one class will result in a great deal of missed material. Not all material will be found in the text, and you are responsible for any material that was missed during class time. However, I understand that as adults we must prioritize our obligations and energy, which may mean missing a class or two throughout the semester. For this reason, attendance will not be graded. Again: you are responsible for any material missed due to absence from class. If you participate in a sport, please get your schedule to me ASAP so we can make arrangements. 
  • DO NOT COME TO CLASS IF YOU ARE SICK OR EXPERIENCING ANY COVID-19 SYMPTOMS. 

Plagiarism & Academic Dishonesty: 

  • Just don't do this. See the academic integrity policy here

Research Participation: 

Research Participation Requirement: One of the most effective ways to learn about the strengths and limitations of scientific work is through the direct experience of being a participant in different research studies. During the semester, Psy100 students are required to participate in 8 credits of psychological research studies. Each credit corresponds to approximately 30 minutes of time.

**Participation in research studies is worth 5% of the final course grade in Psy100. Failure to acquire the required number of course research credits will result in earning partial credit for the research participation portion of your final grade in Psy100.

Signing-Up for Research Studies: To participate in studies, you need to create an account at http://hws.sona-systems.com/.  Look for the link on the bottom left corner of the screen. For your USER ID, enter the first part of your HWS email address (before the @). You will get a randomly-generated password in your email. You will then be able to login and search for opportunities to participate in research studies. You are strongly encouraged to create your SONA account before the end of the second week of the semester.

You should plan on participating early in the semester with the goal of completing @ half of your credits by mid-semester.

Credits: You will receive one credit for a short study (up to 30 minutes) and additional credits for longer ones. You will know how many credits each study is worth before you sign up to participate.

Standard, in-person Research Study Requirement: Unless you have obtained written permission from the SONA administrator, at least four of your research credits must be earned by participating in standard lab studies. Standard lab studies are those that involve in-person, on-campus participation and labelled accordingly on SONA. Online studies do not meet in-person and do not count toward the standard lab study requirement. Of the eight required credits, up to four credits may be earned through online participation. There is no restriction on the number of credits you may earn for standard lab studies (i.e., you may earn more than 4 credits through standard lab studies).   

Student No-Shows: When you sign-up for a study, a specific time-slot is allocated and you are responsible for punctual attendance. It is imperative that you show-up for your appointment as scheduled. You will be considered a no-show if you fail to show up for a study or arrive more than 15 minutes late. If you no-show, you will earn zero credits for the study, and will need to sign-up for another time slot (in the same or a different study) to earn your credit. If you acquire two unexcused no-shows, you will be prevented from participating in future studies, including studies that you may have signed up for but have not yet participated in. You will either need to make arrangements with your Psy100 professor to complete the alternative assignment (see below) or contact the SONA administrator with written documentation outlining any extenuating circumstances accounting for the no-shows. The SONA administrator will consider releasing the restriction from your account. If your account is reinstated and you earn a third unexcused no-show, the SONA administrator will restrict your account for the remainder of the semester. However, if you complete your first 7 credits without being a no-show, you will receive a bonus of 1 credit, bringing you to the required total of 8 (at least four of these 7 credits must come from standard lab studies).

Student Cancellations: A student may cancel or reschedule an appointment via the SONA system or by emailing the researcher with at least a 24-hour notice of the canceled appointment. Cancelling with 24 hours’ advance notice or rescheduling does not constitute a no-show. If you cannot provide at least 24-hours’ advance notice, you should still contact the researcher as soon as possible out of courtesy. The researcher may excuse you from the study and permit you to reschedule the appointment.

Researcher No-Shows: If a researcher does not arrive within 15 minutes of a scheduled appointment, the student who showed up will receive credit for that study. The student should email the principal investigator and researcher with the name of the study and date/time of the appointment.

Deadline for Completing Credits: You have until the last day of the semester to participate in studies. However, it is unlikely that there will still be studies running at that late point. Plan to check the SONA website often for new studies and start early in the semester. A few studies are often available in the beginning of the semester; typically the maximum number of studies is conducted between weeks 5 through 12 of the semester. There will be enough studies offered for all students to earn required credits, but only if you start toward this goal early in the semester and work gradually throughout the semester. Students who wait until mid-semester and later to start earning SONA credits are at risk of not completing the participation requirement.

Alternative Experience: If you do not want to participate in research studies, you may earn the credit through an alternative assignment. The assignment involves reading several published research studies and answering questions about them. If you plan to complete the alternate activity you need to discuss it with your instructor before the end of the second week of classes. All completed alternative assignments are due by the last day of the semester.

Course Grading: 

Quizzes: 20%
Midterm & Final Exam: 30%
Paper: 30%
Research Participation: 5%
In-class Participation: 15%

 

A+:    97-100%        A:    93-97%,     A -:    90-92%
B+:    87-89%,            B:    83-86%,        B- :    80-82%    
C+:    77-79%,            C:    73-76%,        C- :    70-72%
D+:    67-69%,            D:    63-66%,        D- :    60-62%

Important Notes:

At Hobart and William Smith Colleges, we encourage you to learn collaboratively and to seek the resources that will enable you to succeed.  The Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) is one of those resources:  CTL programs and staff help you engage with your learning, accomplish the tasks before you, enhance your thinking and skills, and empower you to do your best.  Resources at CTL are many: Teaching Fellows provide content support in 16 departments, Study Mentors help you manage your time and responsibilities, Writing Fellows help you think well on paper, and professional staff help you assess academic needs. 

I encourage you to explore these and other CTL resources designed to encourage your very best work.  You can talk with me about these resources, visit the CTL office on the 2nd floor of the library to discuss options with the staff, or visit the CTL website.

The CTL resource(s) of most use for this class include. . . [please see supplemental statements, below.]

 

Supplements to the CTL Syllabus Statement:

 

Teaching Fellows

CTL works with the ______ Department to offer one resource that will be essential to your learning in this course, the ______ Teaching Fellows. The Teaching Fellows are accomplished ______ majors and minors who are paid to assist other students.  They hold regular study hours Sunday—Thursday (I will post this term’s hours as soon as they are available). To get the most out of this resource, I recommend that all students in this course begin attending the TF hours next week and attend once or twice weekly (to study, to ask questions) throughout the semester.

 

Writing Fellows

The CTL resource that will be most essential in enhancing learning in this course is the Writing Fellows program. Writing Fellows help students develop their writing by providing feedback on essay drafts, offering strategies for the writing process, and enhancing students’ understanding of what good college writing means.  In this class, Writing Fellow assistance with our ______ and ______  will be extremely helpful to you, and I suggest that you make an appointment via StudyHub on the CTL website this week/ by [date] to begin work on _______.

 

Study Tables

For our class, CTL also offers a group Study Table for help with course content.  This Study Table is facilitated by ______, an accomplished student who has already taken this class; he/she will help you engage with the complexities of ____, and the group-study opportunity will enhance your study time.

 

Study Mentors

The CTL resource especially valuable to students either just starting college OR adjusting to the demands of their choice of Major is the Study Mentor program.  Study Mentors engage directly with each student in the process of adjusting to new academic demands:  they help you find the time you need for both your academic and co-curricular activities, and can help you find strategies to accomplish the tasks in front of you and enhance your reading and study time.  Study Mentors may be especially important for those of you who are involved in many activities, work on or off campus, are studying for Teaching Certification, graduate school exams, or prepping for fellowships, or who have one or more unusually demanding courses on your schedule. To meet with a Study Mentor, make an appointment via StudyHub on the CTL website. You can also contact Ingrid Keenan, x3832, keenan@hws.edu, or drop in at the CTL office on the 2nd floor of the library.

Disability Accommodations:  If you are a student with a disability for which you may need accommodations and are new to our office, you should self-identify for services by scheduling a Welcome meeting (link to do so is on the top right of our webpage) with Disability Services at the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL).  Disability related accommodations and services will be provided when the registration and documentation process is complete. The guidelines for documenting disabilities can be found at the following website: http://www.hws.edu/academics/ctl/disability_services.aspx

Returning students may request their accommodation letter by emailing the request to the CTL@hws.edu or by using the link on the top right of our webpage to schedule a meeting should you feel one is necessary.

 Please direct questions about this process or Disability Services at HWS to ctl@hws.edu or x 3351. Jamie Slusser, Disability Services Administrator & Accommodation Specialist and Christen Davis, Associate Director of CTL for Disability Services are the main contact staff for Disability Services

Course Summary:

Date Details Due