3185F-001

Psychology 3185F-001

Research in Cognitive 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

Cognitive theorists face a unique problem: the understanding of mental structures and processes that are not directly observable. A variety of methods used to address this problem will be surveyed, by introducing research questions of enduring interest. Students will be expected to use the techniques learned. Cognitive domains to be examined include attention, memory, problem-solving, and thinking.

 

Prerequisites: Psychology 2800E, 2810 and one of Psychology 2115A/B, 2134A/B or 2135A/B, plus registration in third or fourth year Honours Specialization in Psychology or Honours Specialization in Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience.

 

Third or fourth year Psychology Majors and Psychology Special Students who receive 70% or higher in Psychology 2820E (or 60% or higher in Psychology 2800E and 2810), plus 60% or higher in one of Psychology 2115A/B, 2134A/B or 2135A/B also may enrol in this course.

2 lecture hours, 2 laboratory hours, 0.5 course.

 

Unless you have either the prerequisites for this course or written special permission from your Dean to enroll in it, you may be removed from this course and it will be deleted from your record. This decision may not be appealed. You will receive no adjustment to your fees in the event that you are dropped from a course for failing to have the necessary prerequisites.


2.0    COURSE INFORMATION

Instructor:                                                                                   Dr. Patrick Brown

Office and Phone Number:                                                      SSC 7328 / Ext. 84680

Office Hours:                                                                              Tuesday 1:30 – 3:30 and by appointment

Email:                                                                                           brown5@uwo.ca

 

Teaching Assistant:                                                                  Hamad Alazary

Office:                                                                                           Announced in first lab

Office Hours:                                                                              Announced in first lab

Email:                                                                                           halazary@uwo.ca

Time and Location of Classes:     Monday & Wednesday 4:30 – 6:30 / SSC 3120

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.

3.0  TEXTBOOK

In lieu of a textbook we shall read recent papers from the broader cognitive psychology literature.

4.0    COURSE OBJECTIVES

By the end of the course students should have:

  • Knowledge of the fundamental concepts in human cognition.
    • Extensive exposure to human cognition research paradigms.
  • Hands-on experience in designing research projects (including one experiment), data collection and analysis, and preparing research reports on human experimental research.

   4.1    STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this course, the successful student should be able to:

 

Outcome

Evaluation

Articulate the concepts and current states of knowledge in relevant natural and social science aspects of cognitive psychology

Exam short answer and essay questions

Access, interpret, and critically evaluate appropriate research in cognitive psychology

Lab assignments (literature review; proposal; experiment report); Exam short answer and essay questions based on weekly readings

Evaluate the appropriateness of different methodological approaches to address a specific question in cognitive psychology

Exam short answer and essay questions; lab assignments, particularly experiment proposal

Formulate a research hypothesis to address a psychological question and design a research project to test that hypothesis

Lab assignments (Literature review, research proposal, poster presentation, written report)

Apply relevant quantitative skills to the analysis and interpretation of psychological phenomena

Analysis of experiment project data, evaluated in the form of Results section of final report paper

Engage in a critical scholarly discussion or debate on a psychological topic

Lab assignment – research proposal, poster presentation, and final paper; Final exam essay questions

Apply ethical standards to the practice of their own research

Research proposal and ethics review form are graded

Communicate in writing accurately, clearly and logically, using the discourse of the discipline of cognitive  psychology

Lab assignment – research proposal and final paper; Exam short answer and essay questions

Communicate orally accurately, clearly and logically, using the discourse of the discipline of cognitive  psychology

Lab assignment – poster presentation

5.0     EVALUATION


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/pdf/academic_policies/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

Final course grades will be based on two major components – lab grades and exam grades. The lab component, which is described in detail in the lab outline, will be worth 50% of the final course grade. The other 50% will be based on two exams, a midterm and a final exam, each worth 25% of the final course grade. The midterm exam will feature a combination of short answer and essay questions. The final exam will be a take-home exam featuring essay questions. Final exam papers must also be uploaded to the course OWL site for Turnitin.com analysis.



6.0  TEST AND EXAMINATION SCHEDULE

The Midterm exam will be held in class on Wednesday, November 2. It will cover readings and lectures up to and including October 19. Final Exam questions will cover all readings for the whole term and will be posted on the course OWL site on Thursday, December 8. Papers are due no later than 5:00 p m on Tuesday, December 21st.


7.0   CLASS SCHEDULE

The schedule for lab meetings will be given in the first lab class. Here is the schedule of readings for the lecture classes:

 

September 21

September 28

October 5

October 12

October 19

October 26

November 2 – Midterm Exam (in class) – covers all readings and lectures from September 21 to October 19.

 November 9

November 16

November 23

November 30

December 7


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

Western’s policy on Accommodation for Medical Illness can be found at:
http://www.westerncalendar.uwo.ca/2016/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
- 2016 Calendar References

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