Syllabus

LESSONS:

1. Lesson 1: What is Psychology?
2. Lesson 2: Scientific Methods in Psychology
3. Lesson 3: Biological Psychology
4. Lesson 4: Sensation and Perception
5. Lesson 5: States of Consciousness
6. Lesson 6: Learning
7. Lesson 7: Memory
8. Lesson 8: Cognition and Language
9. Lesson 9: Portfolio Assignments
10. Lesson 10: Intelligence and its Measures
11. Lesson 11: Human Development
12. Lesson 12: Motivation
13. Lesson 13: Emotions, Health Psychology, and Stress
14. Lesson 14: Personality
15. Lesson 15: Social Psychology
16. Lesson 16: Abnormality, Therapy, and Social Issues
17. Lesson 17: Psychological Disorders
18. Lesson 18: Portfolio Assignments

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Course Overview

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Course Objectives

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Course-Specific Objectives

1. Define and explain the major philosophical issues in psychology, differentiate the various specialties in psychology, and contrast the major eras of psychology, noting the contributions of influential figures.
2. Discuss the stages and principles of theory development and good research, identify the strengths and limitations of research designs, and name the types of statistics used to summarize and evaluate results.
3. Describe the principles of genetics, the basic physiology and functions of the brain and nervous system, and the steps in neural communication, with special emphasis on the interaction between brain and behavior.
4. Diagram the path and process of vision and the nonvisual senses, understand the concept of sensory threshold, and apply the basic principles of perception.
5. Describe and differentiate between the characteristics and effects of sleep, dreaming, hypnosis, and drug use.
6. Differentiate between types of conditioning, define (and be able to explain) aspects of behaviorism, and describe other theories of learning.
7. Discuss and give examples of theories about memory and memory loss, components of memory, strategies for memory improvement, and issues associated with memory reconstruction.
8. Understand and explain the interaction of cognition, learning, and language, and their unique developments and characteristics.
9. Evaluate theories of intelligence and the tests meant to measure it, identify confounding factors in intelligence testing, and apply the appropriate evaluation techniques to intelligence tests.
10. Outline the physical, intellectual, social, and emotional development of human beings, and the factors that influence that development.
11. Differentiate between different theories and principles of motivation, and explain different motivators and how they affect individuals.
12. Discuss the interplay of emotion and physiology, the influence of emotions on the body, theories of anger and violence, and techniques for coping with stress.
13. Define "personality," differentiating between states and traits, and evaluate personality theories and tests meant to define and categorize personality.
14. Discuss the effect of social interaction on perception, behavior, attitudes, and interpersonal attraction.
15. Explain "abnormality"; compare and contrast the major approaches to psychotherapy, including major theorists, techniques, issues, and effectiveness; address the legal issues involved in mental illness and treatment.
16. Gain an understanding of, be able to differentiate characteristics of, and explain the treatments for anxiety and avoidance disorders, substance-related disorders, mood disorders, and schizophrenia.

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Course Organization

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Course Structure

Read and enjoy your text. I loved this book from the moment, nine years ago, when I opened the covers and started reading. The introductory material included a note from the author James Kalat who explained, "Remember, Kalat rhymes with ballot." As I read the words, I could almost hear his voice--he wove a narrative that was humorous, engaging, clear, and thought-provoking. I felt as though a teacher were in the room with me.

Since we don't meet as a class--most of you I will never see in person--I feel that it is particularly important that a teacher "joins you" every time you pick up the text. The book is, indeed, "student friendly, with academic integrity." But, you will appreciate the interactive style only if you follow a few guidelines:

• Accept Kalat's invitation: Start at the beginning of each chapter with the page that looks like "fluff." These are the paragraphs that will hook you, so don't skip them.
• Avoid skimming: If your eyes do nothing but scan the pages in search of the answers to the questions in the Speedback lessons, you will be bored and retain very little.
• "Try It Yourself": These activities are scattered throughout the chapters. Most of them take only a few moments and are really fun. I promise you that the material you study will have much more meaning if you do "try it yourself." The principles and concepts will be easier to remember for a longer period of time.
• Take "A Step Further": Immerse yourself in the "Critical Thinking" boxes. There are no "right answers" in the back of the book, but you will grow as you ponder the questions.
• Participate in the frequent "Concept Checks": See if you can respond to these questions correctly. (There ARE answers in the book for these reviews, so you can check your understanding and receive immediate feedback.) If you consistently have problems, slow down your pace and ask yourself these types of questions as you read. This allows you to rehearse the concepts and to process them on a deeper level, increasing the likelihood that you will remember them later.
• Savor the summaries: They occur at the end of each module, not only at the end of each chapter. This is your chance to consolidate material. These are also excellent sources of review for the final exam.

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Speedback Assignments

There are sixteen Speedback assignments corresponding to sixteen of the lessons in the course manual: lessons 1-8 and 10–17. Each Speedback assignment consists of twenty-five multiple choice questions based on material in the text. These questions are generally designed to assess higher-level thinking. Basically, this means that you will seldom find an answer word-for-word as it appears in your reading. Since you are allowed to use your book as you work on these lessons, it is expected that you will demonstrate higher-order learning in determining the right answers: you might summarize research that you read, provide examples of concepts, apply principles to new situations, or synthesize material from more than one area of the chapter. The development of these skills will make it possible for the course to have more meaning in your life.

Speedback assignments are processed by computer, enabling you to receive immediate scoring of your assignment and feedback tailored to any wrong responses you may make. If you are having great difficulty with a concept, you are welcome to e-mail or phone me to discuss the problem.

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Portfolio Assignments

At two times during the course you will be asked to submit a portfolio consisting of the eight written assignments for the previous eight lessons. You will submit your written assignments for lessons 1 through 8 in lesson 9, and for lessons 10 through 17 in lesson 18. For each lesson, you will complete one written assignment selected from among those offered in the lesson. In each set of submissions, you must have at least:

• one "On the Internet" assignment
• one discussion assignment
• one personal project
• one application assignment
• one demonstration

Three assignments will then be duplicate types. You can choose to complete the rest of the assignments in the categories you like most. For example:

A person who enjoys exploring the Internet and sharing personal opinions might submit:

• three "On the Internet" assignments
• two discussion assignments
• one personal project
• one application assignment
• one demonstration

A student who is intrigued by more self-analysis might complete:

• four personal projects
• one "On the Internet" assignment
• one discussion assignment
• one application assignment
• one demonstration

Note: Be aware that not every lesson has assignment options in each of the five categories, so you do need to plan in order to have each category covered. The chart in the Assessment and Grading section will assist you.

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Application Assignments

These assignments are an interesting way of applying book learning to the world around you. As you complete these assignments, you may find examples of monocular cues for depth perception in the paintings hanging in an art gallery, or you might locate newspaper articles that confuse causation with correlation. You might evaluate TV ads to determine ways in which classical conditioning is used to sell "power" or "friendship" along with soap or perfume, or you might peruse magazine advertisements to detect current male/female stereotypes. You may find yourself listening for "slips-of-the-ear" in the lyrics of some of your radio favorites or visiting a nursing home that uses "pet therapy."

Follow the directions in the specific assignment you have selected and, unless otherwise noted, write a one-half to one-page double-spaced paper describing your findings and your insights.

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Demonstration Assignments

The various demonstrations all require you to serve as the "experimenter" and to gather other people's responses. You may ask them to complete a questionnaire, read a list of words, solve a problem, work a puzzle, or offer an opinion. You will then summarize and discuss your findings in a manner that is meaningful to you. Some students may find it useful to create a chart or table to present results. Of course, these are not formal experiments, but simply demonstrations that allow you to involve other people in some way.

Sometimes you will be trying to determine the extent to which your participants exhibit a phenomena discussed in your text, such as the "fundamental attribution error" or the "Barnum effect." Other demonstrations may illustrate a concept such as "perceptual set" or "perceptual bias."

A few words of caution:

• The exercise you choose should be presented to the participants as a "demonstration," not an "experiment." It would be misleading to imply otherwise. After studying chapter two, you will realize that we are not using an appropriate sample, and we are neither controlling variables nor randomly assigning participants.
• Use ONLY willing participants. If a person is even slightly hesitant to be involved, don't try to force cooperation. Even licensed psychologists with IRB (Institutional Review Board) approval don't have that right!
• Get in the habit of preserving privacy. Identify individuals as "A," "B," "C," etc., or use initials; real names should not appear on anything you submit to me, and results should not be shared with other participants unless all are in agreement.
• Respect a person's right to withdraw from the demonstration at any time and for any reason. I have purposely included demonstrations that involve no personal risk to the participants, but people may become embarrassed for reasons totally unknown to you.
• Do not solicit participants who are unknown to you. Use a "convenience sample"--such as roommates, family members, friends, etc. Don't create a problem for your employers by asking co-workers to participate.

If the demonstration you select requires participants to complete a form or survey, you do not need to include their original papers with your submission, which should be less than one page in length.

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Discussion Assignments

Ponder the discussion questions for the lesson, and write a one-page, double-spaced response to one or more of the questions. The purpose of this assignment is to help you consider complex issues that are related to the text readings, but which are not addressed directly in the text. You are being asked to express your opinions regarding questions for which there is no single correct answer. While you need to support your opinions with evidence, this is not intended to be a research paper.

• Your paper should reflect serious thought on the issues, drawing on your own life experiences, observations, past readings, and so forth. As such, it may be written in either the first person ("I . . ."), the third person ("People often . . ."), or a combination of both.
• You do not need to restate the question(s) at the top of your paper.
• You may consider more than one of the questions, but the total length should not exceed one page.
• Your thoughts should be well-articulated so that the paper is clear, concise, fluent, interesting, and free from technical and grammatical errors.

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Personal Projects

The personal projects are designed to give you the opportunity to apply to your own life the concepts and principles studied in the text. One project may require you to keep a log or journal related to some aspect of your functioning in order to discover patterns. Another may ask you to design and implement a project to increase the frequency of a desired behavior or to reduce a fear. You may need to search your memory for experiences in your life that illustrate a concept, or you may be directed to make observations of a principle at work in the people around you. Analyzing a skill or talent may be the focus of yet another project.

What these projects share in common is the opportunity to look inward--to observe, understand, and/or analyze something about you and the influences in your life. In each case, you should follow the specific requirements of the project and, unless directed otherwise, write a one-half to one-page double-spaced paper summarizing your efforts and your insights.

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"On the Internet" Assignments

Explore one internet resource from either the Web/Technology Resources listed in the text at the end of each chapter or from the sites listed with each lesson in the Independent Study course manual. Some entries are of a serious nature, providing valuable information or directing you to resources that help answer questions on a given subject matter. Others may be more entertaining, introducing you to new psychological concepts in an intriguing manner.

Write a brief paper (about one-half page double-spaced) describing your experience with the Web site you chose to explore, focusing especially on its value to you. I already have access to the content of the various Web sites; I want to know how you benefit from one of them.

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Exams

You will have two opportunities to share with me principles that have made it into your long-term memory--the midcourse exam and the final. You will be amazed at the progress you have made in your understanding of psychological research, concepts, and theories as you take these tests. In this sense, they are celebrations of learning!

The midcourse exam covers only chapters one through eight of the text, while the final is taken solely from chapters nine through sixteen. Each test consists of 101 multiple-choice questions, about a dozen from each chapter. Tests are scored on the basis of one hundred points, so you can miss one question without penalty. The items on the exam are NOT the same as the items in the Speedback assignments. There is an important reason for this distinction; the lesson questions are designed to make you think deeply, connect concepts you are learning, reread certain passages, and compare ideas. The exams, on the other hand, are aimed to test the lesson objectives in a more straightforward manner; you may be asked to apply a principle, identify the best example of a concept, or recognize a major research finding. It would be totally unreasonable of me to expect the same kind of in-depth analysis on a closed-book final exam covering three hundred pages of text as I do on an open-book lesson covering forty pages.

Test items correspond very closely to the lesson objectives. Therefore, the best way to study comprehensively is to run through these stated objectives. When time constraints make this impossible, a review of many major points can be gleaned from each chapter's summaries. Remember, chapters are divided into three to five modules, each module having its own summary section. Studying the key terms at the end of each chapter is yet another strategy for exam preparation. However, you would need to know these terms, concepts, and principles well enough to apply them.

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Assessment and Grading

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