Psychology 1000-002

Introduction to Psychology

If there is a discrepancy between the outline posted below and the outline posted on the OWL course website, the latter shall prevail.

1.0    CALENDAR DESCRIPTION

An introductory survey of the methods and findings of modern scientific psychology. The following topics will be covered: history and methodology, biological psychology, sensation and perception, learning and motivation, verbal and cognitive processes, developmental psychology, social psychology, individual differences (intelligence and personality), and clinical psychology.

Antirequisites: Psychology 1100E, the former Psychology 1200

Antirequisites are courses that overlap sufficiently in content that only one can be taken for credit. So if you take a course that is an antirequisite to a course previously taken, you will lose credit for the earlier course, regardless of the grade achieved in the most recent course.

3 lecture hours, 1.0 course

2.0    COURSE INFORMATION

Instructor: Dr. Laura Fazakas-DeHoog            
Office and Phone Number:  SSC 7302
519-472-8430    
Office Hours: Wednesday by appointment or after lecture    
Email:  lfazakas@uwo.ca  or llfazakas@hotmail.com     
Course Coordinator: Dr. Mike Atkinson    

Teaching Assistants:

Fall:
Haopei Yang                            haozi078@gmail.com 
Alex Yan                                  ayan8@uwo.ca 
Clara Stafford                          cstaffo2@uwo.ca 
Amber Robinson                     amber.robinson93@outlook.com 
Julia McMenamin                    jmcmenam@uwo.ca 
Melanie Mac Eacheron            mmaceac3@uwo.ca 
Kevin Doyle                             kdoyle32@uwo.ca     

Winter:
Haopei Yang                            haozi078@gmail.com 
Rima Tarraf                             rtarraf@uwo.ca 
Clara Stafford                          cstaffo2@uwo.ca 
Amber Robinson                     amber.robinson93@outlook.com 
Xuan Pan                                xpan55@uwo.ca 
Julia McMenamin                    jmcmenam@uwo.ca 
Hyan Young (Gloria) Cho        hcho88@uwo.ca 


Offices and Office hours to be posted on OWL

Time and Location of Lectures: Mondays and Wednesdays 4:30-6:30 p.m. NCB 101        

If you or someone you know is experiencing distress, there are several resources here at Western to assist you. Please visit:  http://www.uwo.ca/uwocom/mentalhealth/ for more information on these resources and on mental health.

Please contact the course instructor if you require material in an alternate format or if you require any other arrangements to make this course more accessible to you. You may also wish to contact Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) at 519-661-2111 ext 82147 for any specific question regarding an accommodation.

COURSE WEBSITE
    The course website is located at:  https://owl.uwo.ca/portal

3.0  TEXTBOOK

Passer, M.W., Smith, R.E., Atkinson, M.L., Mitchell, J. B., & Muir, D.W. (2014). Psychology: Frontiers     and Applications. Fifth Canadian Edition.  Toronto: McGraw Hill Ryerson

4.0    COURSE OBJECTIVES

This course is an introductory level survey of the methods and findings of modern scientific psychology. The goal is to provide students with an overview of various topic domains within the realm of psychology. As such, students will be exposed to diverse theoretical viewpoints and various methods and procedures for the scientific investigation of psychological issues. Note: Modern psychology is scientific in nature. Consequently, we will spend a lot of time discussing science-related topics such as research design, research findings, neural functioning, sensory mechanisms, etc.

5.0     EVALUATION

October Midterm will consist of 75 multiple choice questions based on both the text
(Chapters 1-4 and Appendix A) and lecture material.  The October midterm is worth ………………. 20%
 
December Exam will consist of 75 multiple choice questions based on both the text
(Chapters 5-8) and lecture material. The December midterm is worth …………………..……………. 20%

March Midterm will consist of about 75 multiple choice questions based on both the text
(Chapters 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13) as well as lecture material. The March midterm is worth  ...…….…. 20%
 
The Final Exam will consist of 100 multiple choice questions based on material from the text
(chapters 14 -17) as well as the lecture material. The Final midterm is worth ……..…………………. 30%
 
Assignment Component is worth (Details will be posted on OWL) .................................................10%

___________________________________________________________________________
Assignment:
Students are expected to complete (an) assignment(s) worth 10%. Further details, deadlines, and grading criterion will be covered in lecture and posted on OWL.   ___________________________________________________________________________________
REQUIRED RESEARCH COMPONENT

In addition to the exams and the assignment, there is a research participation requirement. Please note that this is a Department of Psychology requirement and does not add marks to your grade. Failure to meet the research requirement will result in a loss of 10 points on your final grade.

To fulfil this research requirement, students must either

    (i) participate in 6 research studies in the department of Psychology (i.e., obtain 6 full research     credits). Instructions for this research component will be reviewed in the lectures.
    
    OR

    (ii) Complete a written one page review of 6 different research articles in the area of         Psychology. Packages of articles and related questions may be obtained from:  
    Daniella Chirila (SSC 7416) 519-661-2111 (x84690) or from the research participation website.

NOTE: It is also possible to combine participation and article review (e.g., do 5 studies and review 1 article).

ALSO NOTE: a  maximum of 2 of the research credits may be earned through online research studies.

Although the Psychology Department does not require instructors to adjust their course grades to conform to specific targets, the expectation is that course marks will be distributed around the following averages:

70%    1000-level and 2000-level courses
72%     2190-2990 level courses
75%     3000-level courses
80%     4000-level courses
   
The Psychology Department follows the University of Western Ontario grading guidelines, which are as follows (see http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/handbook/general/grades_undergrad.pdf):

A+    90-100    One could scarcely expect better from a student at this level
A    80-89        Superior work that is clearly above average
B    70-79        Good work, meeting all requirements, and eminently satisfactory
C    60-69        Competent work, meeting requirements
D    50-59        Fair work, minimally acceptable
F    below 50    Fail



6.0  TEST AND EXAMINATION SCHEDULE

OCTOBER EXAM         Saturday October 24 from 9-11 a.m.

DECEMBER EXAM     During December examination period in December- TBA

MARCH MIDTERM     Saturday March 5  from 3-5 p.m.

FINAL EXAM                 During the final examination period in April - TBA    

7.0   CLASS SCHEDULE

LECTURE             CHAPTER        TOPIC                 

Mon. Sept. 14              1            Introduction
Wed. Sept. 16             1            History of Psychology
Mon. Sept. 21              2/Appendix        Methodology/Data Analysis/Statistics
Wed. Sept. 23             2/Appendix        Methodology/Data Analysis/Statistics
Mon. Sept. 28              3            Brain/Nervous System/Neurophysiology
Wed. Sept. 30             3            Brain/Nervous System/Neurophysiology
Mon. Oct. 05               3            Brain/Nervous System/Neurophysiology
Wed. Oct. 07             3            Brain/Nervous System/Neurophysiology
Mon. Oct. 12             -            THANKSGIVING
Wed. Oct. 14            4            Genetics & Evolution
Mon. Oct. 19            4            Genetics & Evolution
Wed. Oct. 21            5            Sensation/Perception

SATURDAY  OCTOBER 24                OCTOBER EXAM    

Mon. Oct. 26            5            Sensation/Perception
Wed. Oct. 28             5            Sensation/Perception            
Mon. Nov. 02    6            Consciousness    
Wed. Nov.04    6            Consciousness    
Mon. Nov. 09    6            Consciousness
Wed. Nov. 11     7            Learning
Mon. Nov. 16    7            Learning    
Wed. Nov. 18            8            Memory
Mon. Nov. 23            8            Memory
Wed. Nov. 25            8            Memory
Mon. Nov. 30            8            Memory
Wed. Dec. 02            -            Study/Review
Mon. Dec. 07            -            Study/Review
Wed. Dec. 09            -            Study/Review
TBA            DECEMBER EXAM    

Mon. Jan. 04                             9             Language & Thinking    
Wed. Jan. 06                             9             Language & Thinking
Mon. Jan. 11                             10             Intelligence
Wed. Jan. 13                             10             Intelligence
Mon. Jan. 18                             11             Motivation & Emotion    
Wed. Jan. 20                             11             Motivation & Emotion
Mon. Jan. 25            12            Development (Prenatal/child Development)
Wed. Jan. 27                             12            Development (Prenatal/child Development)
Mon. Feb. 01             12            Development (Adolesecence/Adulthood)
Wed. Feb. 03                             12            Development (Adolesecence/Adulthood)
Mon. Feb. 08             13            Behavior in a Social Context
Wed. Feb. 10                             13            Behavior in a Social Context

Feb. 15 - Feb. 19        -            NO CLASSES (READING WEEK)

Mon. Feb. 22            13            Behavior in a Social Context
Wed. Feb. 24                             13            Behavior in a Social Context
Mon. Feb. 29            14            Personality
Wed. Mar. 02            14            Personality
SATURDAY MARCH 05                MARCH EXAM        

Mon. Mar. 07            16            Psychological Disorders
Wed. Mar. 09            16            Psychological Disorders
Mon. Mar. 14            16            Psychological Disorders
Wed. Mar. 16            17            Psychological Treatment
Mon. Mar. 21            17            Psychological Treatment
Wed. Mar. 23            17            Psychological Treatment
Mon. Mar. 28            15            Stress Health Coping
Wed. Mar. 30            15            Stress Health Coping
Mon. Apr. 04            -            Study/Review
Wed. Apr. 06            -            Study/Review
                                        
FINAL EXAM     (Date TBA)

8.0     STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC OFFENCES

Students are responsible for understanding the nature and avoiding the occurrence of plagiarism and other scholastic offenses. Plagiarism and cheating are considered very serious offenses because they undermine the integrity of research and education. Actions constituting a scholastic offense are described at the following link:  http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/appeals/scholastic_discipline_undergrad.pdf

As of Sept. 1, 2009, the Department of Psychology will take the following steps to detect scholastic offenses. All multiple-choice tests and exams will be checked for similarities in the pattern of responses using reliable software, and records will be made of student seating locations in all tests and exams. All written assignments will be submitted to TurnItIn, a service designed to detect and deter plagiarism by comparing written material to over 5 billion pages of content located on the Internet or in TurnItIn’s databases. All papers submitted for such checking will be included as source documents in the reference database for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of papers subsequently submitted to the system. Use of the service is subject to the licensing agreement, currently between Western and Turnitin.com http://www.turnitin.com

Possible penalties for a scholastic offense include failure of the assignment, failure of the course, suspension from the University, and expulsion from the University.

9.0    POLICY ON ACCOMMODATION FOR MEDICAL ILLNESS

The University of Western Ontario’s policy on Accommodation for Medical Illness can be found at:
http://www.westerncalendar.uwo.ca/2015/pg117.html

Students must see the Academic Counsellor and submit all required documentation in order to be approved for certain accommodation:
http://counselling.ssc.uwo.ca/procedures/medical_accommodation.html


10.0        OTHER INFORMATION

Office of the Registrar web site:  http://registrar.uwo.ca

Student Development Services web site: http://www.sdc.uwo.ca

Please see the Psychology Undergraduate web site for information on the following:

    http://psychology.uwo.ca/undergraduate/student_responsibilities/index.html

- Policy on Cheating and Academic Misconduct
- Procedures for Appealing Academic Evaluations
- Policy on Attendance
- Policy Regarding Makeup Exams and Extensions of Deadlines
- Policy for Assignments
- Short Absences

- Extended Absences
- Documentation
- Academic Concerns
- 2015 Calendar References

No electronic devices, including cell phones, will be allowed during exams.