W E S T E R N U N I V E R S I T Y. Department of Psychology PSYCHOLOGY 2550B - Section 001 PERSONALITY THEORY AND RESEARCH

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1 W E S T E R N U N I V E R S I T Y LONDON CANADA Department of Psychology PSYCHOLOGY 2550B - Section 001 PERSONALITY THEORY AND RESEARCH 1.0 CALENDAR DESCRIPTION A survey of the history, methodology and content of the study of individual differences. Topics to be covered include: evaluation of typical personality assessment methods and a consideration of modern empirical research in personality theory and assessment. 4 lecture hours; 0.5 course. Antirequisites: Psychology 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. Prerequisite: At least 60% in a 1000-level Psychology 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 prerequisites. 2.0 COURSE INFORMATION Instructor: S. Paunonen (paunonen@uwo.ca; ) Lectures: Mondays and Wednesdays, 4:30-6:30, Room 2024 SSC Office Hours: Mondays and Wednesdays, 3:30-4:30, Room 6304 SSC Teaching Assistant: Christina Eastwood (ceastwo2@uwo.ca) Office Hours: tba, Room 8424D SSC If you or someone you know is experiencing distress, there are several resources here at Western to assist you. Please visit: 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 (ext ) for any specific questions regarding an accommodation. 3.0 TEXTBOOK Mischel, W., Shoda, Y., & Ayduk, O. (2008). Introduction to personality (8th ed.). New York: Harcourt Brace. Paunonen, S. V. (2013). Psychology 2550 lecture notes. UWO Bookstore.

2 4.0 COURSE OBJECTIVES The primary objective of this course is to introduce the student to some of the major theories of personality that have been developed in an effort to understand individual differences in human behaviour. Those theories will be examined in terms of their contributions to the thinking about personality dynamics, personality structure and, especially, personality assessment. Similarities and differences between the theories will be noted, as will contemporary empirical studies that have either supported or failed to support them. 5.0 EVALUATION Students will be required to write three, two-hour, multiple choice examinations. All exams will be noncumulative in their content coverage. Graded midterms will not be returned to the students; however, the scoring key for an exam can be checked with the TA. An exam timetable is given below. Exact content coverage of each exam will depend on the material covered at the time of the exam and will include lecture, text, and reading material. No electronics except basic standalone calculators are allowed. Pencils are no longer provided. 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% 2100-level to 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 A One could scarcely expect better from a student at this level A Superior work that is clearly above average B Good work, meeting all requirements, and eminently satisfactory C Competent work, meeting requirements D Fair work, minimally acceptable F below 50 Fail 6.0 EXAM SCHEDULE (Exams I and II are during class time) Exam Date Weight Room Content I February 5 1/3 tba Ch. 1,2,7,9,8; CS 66; H 72 II March 12 1/3 tba Ch. 12,13,10,14; T 66 III April /3 tba Ch. 11,3,4,5; BBR 69; P&H LECTURE TOPICS AND ASSOCIATED READINGS Lecture topics and the associated readings are listed on a separate page. Note the order in which the textbook chapters are covered and the omitted chapters. Also, the Lecture Notes have blanks which the student must fill in. The assigned extra readings will be put onto Sakai.

3 8.0 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: As of Sept. 1, 2009, the Department of Psychology will take the following steps to detect scholastic offenses. (a) 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. (b) 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. (c) 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 The University of Western Ontario and 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 OTHER INFORMATION ATTENDANCE: Class attendance is optional but strongly recommended. The lecture material is very important for good performance on the exams, as that material constitutes up to 50% of examination content. Although the lecture notes will be available, they will be missing key parts that need to be filled in by the student. This is to encourage classroom attendance and close attention to the lectures. The instructor will not fill in these missing parts for individual students. TALKING IN CLASS: Talking to other students during a lecture (a) disrupts the attention of those around you, and (b) is discourteous to the lecturer. Talkers are reminded that class attendance is optional. Students who are prone to talking and who want to attend class should sit at the back of the classroom and keep their whispers to a minimum. Should you need clarification about the material during a lecture, you are encouraged to ask the instructor. MAKE-UP EXAMS: 1. Only under special circumstances will a student be allowed to write a make-up test or exam or be given an extension on an assignment. These include medical or compassionate reasons substantiated by the proper documentation (see below) approved by your faculty s Academic Counselling Office. 2. If the missed exam is the final examination (set by the Registrar s Office) the student must contact the Academic Counselling Office to request a permission form for writing a Special Final Examination. That form must be signed by the instructor, the department chairperson, and the Dean.

4 9.0 OTHER INFORMATION (continued) 3. A student missing an exam or assignment must notify the instructor on the day of the exam or deadline, or on the following day at the latest. 4. The student should try to notify the instructor in person or by telephone, rather than by . If leaving a phone mail message, be sure to leave your telephone number. 5. A student who misses an exam or deadline for other than medical or compassion reasons, or who is unable to substantiate a claim, or who fails to notify the instructor by the day following the exam or deadline will be assigned a grade of zero for that evaluation. 6. Make-up exams or extensions to deadlines will not be scheduled to accommodate students travel or work plans. ELECTRONIC AIDS: The only electronic aids allowed during the exams are basic basic standalone calculators. Computers, cell phones, PDAs, MP3 players or other digital devices will not be permitted. MEDICAL NOTES: In May, 2008, The University of Western Ontario s Senate approved a new medical note policy, which affects all students. The following is an outline of that policy. For more detailed information and forms, please visit: For further policy information please visit: Notes from Family Physicians and Walk-In Clinics A Western Student Medical Certificate (SMC) is required where a student is seeking academic accommodation. This documentation should be obtained at the time of the initial consultation with the physician or walk-in clinic. An SMC can be downloaded under the Medical Documentation heading of the following website: The completed SMC should be returned to the student s home Faculty Academic Counselling Service. Notes from Student Health Services Students must request an SMC be filled out by the attending physician. There is a charge for this service. The completed SMC should be returned to the student s home Faculty Academic Counselling Service. Notes from Hospital Urgent Care Centres or Emergency Departments Students should request that an SMC be filled out. Students may bring this form with them, or request alternative Emergency Department documentation. Documentation should be secured at the time of the initial visit to the Emergency Department. Where it is not possible for a student to have an SMC completed by the attending physician, the student must request documentation sufficient to demonstrate that his/her ability to meet his/her academic responsibilities was seriously affected. An SMC can be downloaded under the Medical Documentation heading of the following website:

5 9.0 OTHER INFORMATION (continued) ONLINE INFORMATION: The Office of the Registrar web site is: The Student Development Services web site is: The Psychology Undergraduate website is: See the above websites regarding the following topics: POLICY ON CHEATING AND ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT PROCEDURES FOR APPEALING ACADEMIC EVALUATIONS POLICY ON ATTENDANCE POLICY ON MAKEUP EXAMS AND EXTENSIONS OF DEADLINES POLICY FOR ASSIGNMENTS SHORT ABSENCES EXTENDED ABSENCES DOCUMENTATION ACADEMIC CONCERNS CALENDAR REFERENCES

6 LECTURE TOPICS AND ASSOCIATED READINGS I. INTRODUCTION Mischel, Chapter 1 - Orientation to personality Chapter 2 - Data, methods, and tools Campbell, D. T., & Stanley, J. C. (1966). Experimental and quasiexperimental designs for research. Chicago: Rand-McNally, pp (Q175.C ) II. THE PSYCHODYNAMIC LEVEL Mischel, Chapter 7 - Psychodynamic theories: Freud Chapter 9 - Post-Freudian psychodynamics Chapter 8 - Psychodynamic applications Holmes, D. S. (1972). Repression or interference? A further investigation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 22, (also in H. Mischel, Readings in personality, BF698.M553) III. THE PHENOMENOLOGICAL LEVEL Mischel, Chapter 12 - Phenomenological conceptions Chapter 13 - The internal view Truax, C. B. (1966). Reinforcement and nonreinforcement in Rogerian psychotherapy. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 71, 1-9. IV. THE BEHAVIORAL LEVEL Mischel, Chapter 10 - Behavioral conceptions Chapter 14 - Social cognitive conceptions Chapter 11 - Analyzing and modifying behavior Bandura, A., Blanchard, E. B., & Ritter, B. (1969). Relative efficacy of desensitization and modeling approaches for inducing behavioral, affective, and attitudinal change. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 13, V. THE TRAIT AND BIOLOGICAL LEVELS Mischel, Chapter 3 - Types and traits Chapter 4 - The expressions of dispositions Chapter 5 - Heredity and personality Paunonen, S. V., & Hong, R. Y. (in press). On the properties of personality traits. In M. Mikulincer & P. R. Shaver (Eds.), APA handbook of personality and social psychology: Vol. 3. Personality processes and individual differences (pp. xxx-xxx). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. (pp. 1-6) Note chapter order and omitted chapters. Specific readings will be assigned before each class. The articles listed above can be found in the library or on Sakai.