Psychology 3130A-650
Psychology of Thinking
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
Theoretical and empirical studies on problem solving, reasoning, concept formation, thinking and cross-cultural variations in thinking processes.
Prerequisites: Psychology 2820E or both Psychology 2800E and 2810, and one of Psychology 2115A/B, 2134A/B or 2135A
0.5 course
Unless you have either the requisites 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. Mark Holden
Office and Phone Number: SSC 9242B
Office Hours: By appointment
**please note that I am happy to meet with students, but that I am only on campus on certain days of the week. I will try my best to work with you to meet at a time that is convenient. I am also more than happy to answer questions via e-mail.
Email: mholde3@uwo.ca
Course Website: http://owl.uwo.ca/portal
***Here you will find audio lectures, lecture notes, supplemental materials, and important announcements. Please check it often.
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
Minda, J.P. (2015). The Psychology of Thinking: Reasoning, Decision-Making, and Problem Solving. London, UK: SAGE Publications, Ltd.
**Note: This book is available at the Western bookstore, as well as on Amazon.ca for ~$72.
4.0 COURSE OBJECTIVES
This course covers thought and knowledge. We will study how people think and how psychologists study thinking and reasoning. We will also investigate thinking and reasoning in applied settings. The course will be taught as a combination of virtual lectures and online discussion.
The primary delivery of course content will be through the assigned readings and the accompanying online audio “lectures”. The lectures will be slides accompanied by audio commentary that go into depth on the topic. The intention is that students enrolled in the distance version will have an experience that is comparable (though not exactly) to a traditional lecture. In addition, copies of the lecture slides will be available for download.
5.0 EVALUATION
Your grade in this course will comprise of a midterm exam, and non-cumulative final exam. The midterm exam will count for 40% of your final grade, while the final exam will count for 60% of your final grade.
Although there is substantial overlap between lecture and textbook material, it is not complete overlap. Some material that I cover in the slides is not in the textbook, and some textbook content will not be covered in the lecture slides (although I generally try to cover as much of the material as possible). Still, I expect that my students will be able to answer questions from both the textbook and lecture material. Therefore, exams will test the material covered in the assigned readings from the textbook, as well as the material covered in the lecture slides/notes.
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
6.0 TEST AND EXAMINATION SCHEDULE
Midterm Exam (40%) Saturday, June 4
Chapters 2-5 Time: TBA
Short Answer Questions (60 points) Location: TBA
Final Exam (60%) Date: TBA (August 2nd-5th)
Chapters 6-11 Time: TBA
Short Answer Questions (60 points) Location: TBA
7.0 CLASS SCHEDULE
During this semester, topics will be covered in the order outlined below. All Supplementary lecture material will be delivered through OWL. On each Monday of each week of the term, audio lectures and lecture slides will be posted on our class website, in the topic order outlined below. The online lectures are intended to highlight certain areas of each topic – there is not enough time available to cover all of the material in a single lecture. However, you are responsible for all of the material in the assigned chapters (dates for readings are outlined below). Please note that there is a fairly heavy reading load in this course – we will cover one chapter each week. Thus, it is very important for you to try to keep up with the readings.
In addition to keeping up with the course readings, you are expected to log in to Owl each week for supplementary materials. You are also asked to use the forums to post your own questions, or respond to those of your classmates (I will have more on Forum Use and Conduct on the OWL course page). As would be expected for an in-person class, you are expected to keep your posts professional.
I will be monitoring the class forums, and responding to student e-mails within 48 hours during regular business hours.
|
Topic |
Chapter |
Date |
|
Course Introduction – no audio lecture |
Chapter 1 |
May 9 |
|
Similarity |
Chapter 2 |
May 9 |
|
Knowledge & Memory |
Chapter 3 |
May 16 |
|
Concepts & Categories |
Chapter 4 |
May 23 |
|
Language & Thought |
Chapter 5 |
May 30 |
|
FEBRUARY MIDTERM EXAM (40%) |
Ch. 1-5 |
June 4 |
|
No lecture immediately following Midterm exam |
--- |
--- |
|
Inference and Induction |
Chapter 6 |
June 13 |
|
Deductive Reasoning |
Chapter 7 |
June 20 |
|
Context, Motivation & Mood |
Chapter 8 |
June 27 |
|
Canada Day - No lecture this week |
--- |
--- |
|
Decision-Making |
Chapter 9 |
July 11 |
|
Problem Solving |
Chapter 10 |
July 18 |
|
Expertise and Expert Thinking |
Chapter 11 |
July 25 |
|
FINAL EXAM (45%) |
Ch. 6-11 |
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.
