Psychology 2020A-001

Drugs and Behaviour (Intersession online)

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

Survey of the major drugs of abuse used to treat psychopathological disorders including a brief section on methods of administration, drug distribution and elimination, neurotransmitters. The history and patterns of use and abuse, clinic indications, neurochemical bases for action for a variety of licit and illicit drugs.

Two lectures posted per week; 0.5 course

 

2.0    COURSE INFORMATION

       Instructor:         Dr. John Campbell

       Office and Phone Number: SSC 7440

       Office Hours:    Tuesdays 11:30AM – 12:30PM

       Email:               jcampb7@uwo.ca

 

       Time of Classes:   Lectures will be posted on Tuesdays & Thursdays at 11AM

                                                                              

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

Drugs, Behaviour & Modern Society, First Canadian Edition

Charles F. Levinthal, Hofstra University

4.0    COURSE OBJECTIVES

The purpose of this course is to provide an overview of the major drugs of use and abuse. Concepts pertinent to Drugs and Behaviour in general will be presented first (factors for drug-taking behaviour, methods of administration, nervous system basics, basic pharmacological concepts, pharmacological research, and physiological & psychological basis of drug dependence). This will be followed by an overview of both the historical & current trends and patterns of use, regulation, and the neurochemical basis of effects on the brain and behaviour for specific drug categories.


   4.1    STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES 

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

  • Recognize and identify major drugs of abuse when they are discussed texts, news, public forums
  • Recognize and identify major concepts related to drug addiction

•           Recognize and identify major experimental procedures related to the study of drug addiction             •             Compare, classify, and interpret information about drugs and drug addiction as presented in texts, news media or public forums.

5.0     EVALUATION

The weighting of the tests will be as follows:

Test1 - 30%

Test2 - 30%

Final exam - 40%

 

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

Test 1 (Chapters 1,2, 3, 4) – May 21st

Test 2 (Chapters 5,6, 7,8,9) June 4th

Final Exam (Chapters 10,12,13,15,16) – June 18th

 

7.0   CLASS SCHEDULE

Topic

Readings

Date

Introductory Concepts

Chapter 1

Tues. May 11

How drugs work

Chapter 2 & 3

Thurs May 13

Biological basis of drug addiction Stimulants

Chapter 4

Tues. May 18

Test 1 – 1.5 hours

 

 

                                                                  

 

 

 

 

Thurs May 21

Narcotics

 

Hallucinogens      

Chapter 5

 

Chapter 6

Tues May 25

 

 

Marijuana

 

 

Chapter 7

Thurs. May 27

Alcohol

Chapter 8 & 9

Tues June 2

Test 2 – 1.5 hours

 

Thurs June 4

Inhalants

 

 

Chapter 13

 

 

Tues June 9

Steroids

Chapter 12

Thurs June 11

Nicotine

 

Chapter 10

 

Tues June 16

Medicinal drugs

Chapter 15

Thurs June 18

Substance Abuse Prevention

Chapter 16

Tues June 23

Final Exam

 

Thurs June 25

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:

  1. Submitting a Self-Reported Absence form (for circumstances that are expected to resolve within 48 hours);
  2. 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.