Psychology 3301G-001
Clinical 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
This course offers a survey of major topics in clinical psychology, including assessment and intervention approaches; experimental psychopathology; ethical, professional and theoretical issues; and emerging trends.
Prerequisites: Psychology 2820E (or both Psychology 2800E and Psychology 2810), AND one of Psychology 2310A/B or Psychology 2320A/B.
Unless you have either the prerequisites for this course or written special permission from your Dean to enrol 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.
Antirequisite: Psychology 2301A/B
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/seminar hours; 0.5 course
2.0 COURSE INFORMATION
Instructor: Dr. Erin Ross, C.Psych.
Email: eross67@uwo.ca
Office Hours: 7440 Social Science Centre; office hours by appointment
Time and Location of Lectures: Tuesdays, 9:30am to 12:20pm; B&GS-1056
Students who are in emotional/mental distress should refer to Mental Health@Western
http://www.uwo.ca/uwocom/mentalhealth/ for a complete list of options about how to obtain help.
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 Student Accessibility Services (formerly known as Services for Students with Disabilities) at 519-661-2147.
3.0 TEXTBOOK
Lee, C.M. & Hunsley, J. (2018). Introduction to Clinical Psychology: An Evidence-Based Approach (4th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
4.0 COURSE OBJECTIVES
This course will provide an overview of the field of clinical psychology covering:1) Definitions and history of clinical psychology
2) Clinical psychology research methods
3) Psychopathology and abnormal behaviour
4) Clinical assessment including clinical diagnosis and the assessment of intelligence, personality and behaviour
5) Intervention methods used by clinical psychologists
6) A review of subspecialties within clinical psychology including neuropsychology, forensics, paediatric and child psychology
7) Professional issues and training in clinical psychology
4.1 STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
5.0 EVALUATION
The expectations and evaluation process for this course are clearly specified. Grading of all assignments will be done with transparency and integrity. If you have concerns about your grades, you are welcome to raise them. Please see “10.0) Understanding and Appealing Marks” for more details.
5.1) ESSAY
The essay is worth 30% of your final grade. See page 8 for further information. It is due on March 17, 2020.
5.2) EXAMS
The format of the mid-term and final exams will be the same. A combination of multiple choice and short answer questions will be used. Midterm exam will be 2 hours in length; Final exam is three hours in length. ANY material from the readings or lectures may be selected for the exams. No "aids" are allowed in exams.
5.2.A) Mid-term Exam (25%)
This exam will cover all material from the textbook (chapters 1-9, excluding chapter 4), and class lectures prior to the mid-term. It will take place during normal class time on February 11, 2020.
5.2.B) Final Exam (40%)
This exam will be a cumulative examination of all material from the class lectures and assigned readings. It will take place during the Final Exam period, April 6-26, 2020.
PLEASE NOTE: Because this is an essay course, as per Senate Regulations, you must pass the essay component to pass the course. That is, the average mark for your written assignments must be at least 50%.
This course is exempt from the Senate requirement that students receive assessment of their work accounting for at least 15% of their final grade at least three full days before the date of the deadline for withdrawal from a course without academic penalty. As scheduled, however, you will have your midterm results back prior to this date.
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 Western's 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
6.0 ASSESSMENT/EVALUATION SCHEDULE
|
Assignment Schedule |
||
|
Assignment |
Deadline |
Grade (%) |
|
Attendance and Participation |
Ongoing |
5% |
|
Mid-term exam |
February 11, 2020 In class |
25% |
|
Essay |
March 17, 2020 |
30% |
|
Final exam |
TBA April 6-26, 2020 |
40% |
7.0 CLASS SCHEDULE
|
Session/Date |
Topic |
Chapters |
|
1 – Jan 7
|
Course Orientation History of Clinical Psychology |
1 |
|
2 – Jan 14 |
Contemporary Clinical Psychology Classification and Diagnosis |
2 3 |
|
3 – Jan 21 |
Assessment: Overview Assessment: Interview and Observation |
5 6 |
|
4 – Jan 28
|
Assessment: Intellectual and Cognitive Measures Assessment: Self-Report and Projectives |
7 8 |
|
5 – Feb 4 |
Assessment: Integration and Decision-Making Mid-term Review |
9
|
|
6 – Feb 11 |
MIDTERM EXAM (covering all lectures to date and chapters 1-9, excluding chapter 4)
|
|
|
Feb 18 |
READING WEEK
|
|
|
7 – Feb 25 |
Intervention: Overview Intervention: Cognitive-Behavioural Approaches |
11 |
|
8 – Mar 3 |
Intervention: Process-Oriented Approaches Intervention: Insight-Oriented Approaches |
|
|
9 – Mar 10 |
Intervention: Adults and Couples Intervention: Children and Adolescents LAST DAY FOR ESSAY TOPIC APPROVAL |
12 13 |
|
10 – Mar 17 |
Intervention: Elements of Change Clinical Health Psych, Neuropsych, and Forensic Psych ESSAYS DUE |
14 15 |
|
11 – Mar 24 |
Prevention Research Methods in Clinical Psychology |
10 4 |
|
12 – Mar 31 |
Grad school and comparing the disciplines Exam review |
|
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
Computer-marked multiple-choice tests and/or exams may be subject to submission for similarity review by software that will check for unusual coincidences in answer patterns that may indicate cheating.
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/PolicyPages.cfm?PolicyCategoryID=1&Command=showCategory&SelectedCalendar=Live&ArchiveID=#Page_12
The full policy for consideration for absences can be accessed at: https://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/appeals/Academic_Consideration_for_absences.pdf
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
If you experience an extenuating circumstance (e.g., illness, injury) sufficiently significant to temporarily make you unable to meet academic requirements, you may request accommodation through the following routes:
- Submitting a Self-Reported Absence form (for circumstances that are expected to resolve within 48 hours);
- For medical absences, submitting a Student Medical Certificate (SMC) signed by a licensed medical or mental health practitioner in order to be eligible for Academic Consideration;
For non-medical absences, submitting appropriate documentation (e.g., obituary, police report, accident report, court order, etc.) to Academic Counselling in their Faculty of registration in order to be eligible for academic consideration. Students are encouraged to contact their Academic Counselling unit to clarify what documentation is appropriate.
Students must see the Academic Counsellor and submit all required documentation in order to be approved for certain accommodation. The self-reported absence form may NOT be used for absences longer than 48 hours; coursework/tests/exams/etc., worth more than 30% of the final grade; or exams scheduled in the December or April final-exam periods: http://counselling.ssc.uwo.ca/procedures/medical_accommodation.html
Students seeking academic consideration:
- are advised to consider carefully the implications of postponing tests or midterm exams or delaying handing in work;
- are encouraged to make appropriate decisions based on their specific circumstances, recognizing that minor ailments (upset stomach) or upsets (argument with a friend) are not normally an appropriate basis for a self-reported absence;
must communicate with their instructors no later than 24 hours after the end of the period covered by either the self-reported absence or SMC, or immediately upon their return following a documented absence
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
- 2019-2020 Calendar References
No electronic devices, including cell phones and smart watches, will be allowed during exams.
Copyright Statement: Lectures and course materials, including power point presentations, outlines, and similar materials, are protected by copyright. You may take notes and make copies of course materials for your own educational use. You may not record lectures, reproduce (or allow others to reproduce), post or distribute lecture notes, wiki material, and other course materials publicly and/or for commercial purposes without the instructor’s written consent.
Essay Assignment - Essays are due March 17, 2020
For this assignment, you are to write a paper of 2500-3000 words, which is approximately 10 pages (typed, double spaced). The paper should follow the APA style (e.g., format of citations and references), but does not include an abstract. Late papers will be penalized by deduction of one point (out of 30) per day.
Your assignment is to choose a particular topic in clinical psychology and write a review of recent research findings and theoretical developments relating to that topic. Some suggested topics are listed below. Your topic should relate to some aspect of the discipline of Clinical Psychology. Note that the amount of existing research varies widely with domain of interest, so the breadth or specificity of your topic will depend on the particular issue that you choose. Be careful not to choose a topic that is either too broad or too narrow.
If you do not select a topic from the selections below, please get approval for your essay topic from me. Approval must be received by March 10 at the latest.
Your essay should include references to at least 10 empirical journal articles or book chapters. Referencing websites is rarely advisable. If possible, include some review articles as well as some articles presenting original empirical studies. The mark will be based on such factors as the comprehensiveness of the review, level of understanding of the issues, critical evaluation of empirical research, accuracy of the information, innovativeness of thinking, clarity of presentation, and overall writing style.
Example Topics
- Ethical challenges in clinical psychology
- What makes psychotherapy effective?
- Emerging roles for clinical psychologists
- Should clinical psychologists seek prescription privileges?
- How does our increasing understanding of neuropsychology influence therapeutic intervention?
- Technology and therapy – online therapy, teletherapy etc.
- Publication-bias/positive results bias in psychology and its effect on the theory and/or practice of psychology
- Participatory research/activist research and its role in the field of psychology
- Challenges in accessing psychological help in Canada
- Is there a role for projective measures in contemporary assessment?
The impact of client-report progress monitoring and outcome measures in therapy
