Instructor: Dr. Debbie McNeely Email: dmcneely@midland.edu Phone Number: 432-685-6827 Office Hours: email or by appointment General Psychology: PSYC 2301 Textbook: Psychology, Ciccarelli & White, 5 th edition (access code for REVEL account required); ISBN: 978-0134715308 Course Description General Psychology is a survey of the major psychological topics, theories and approaches to the scientific study of behavior and mental processes. *Even if you are not a psychology major, this course is something that you can apply to any major or area of your life. I truly hope you enjoy this course and are able to relate it to your own life in some way. Psychology is certainly a lot more than what most people think: therapy! Learning Outcomes Upon successful completion of this course, students will: 1. Identify various research methods and their characteristics used in the scientific study of psychology. 2. Describe the historical influences and early schools of thought that shaped the field of psychology. 3. Describe some of the prominent perspectives and approaches used in the study of psychology. 4. Use terminology unique to the study of psychology. 5. Describe accepted approaches and standards in psychological assessment and evaluation. 6. Identify factors in physiological and psychological processes involved in human behavior. Prerequisites None. Participation Statement For Online courses, students MUST actively participate by completing an academic assignment by the official census date. Students who do not do so, will be reported as not attending.
Necessary Skills for Course Success Minimum Technical Skills: To successfully complete the course, students must be able to log in and use the Canvas Learning Management System, navigate and search the internet, use email, attach and upload documents, download and save files, and have access to use Microsoft Word. Students must also be able to log in and use REVEL. Inclusion of Core Curriculum Objectives PSYC 2301 is a Core Course in the 42-Hour Core of Midland College. As such, students will develop proficiencies in the appropriate Intellectual Competencies. Critical thinking skills To include creative thinking, innovation, inquiry, and analysis, evaluation and synthesis of information. Psychological concepts and theories are presented, compared, analyzed, and evaluated. This is accomplished through the formal or informal evaluation of class discussion, student projects, written assignments and exams. Communication skills To include effective development, interpretation and expression of ideas through written, oral and visual communication. Students in all sections are required to successfully participate in one or more of the following at the discretion of the instructor: * Written papers * Essay questions on exams * Group projects * Class presentations * Class discussions * Video presentations * Interpretation of graphs, tables, models, and diagrams. Students are evaluated on their performance on these activities. Empirical & Quantitative skills To include the manipulation and analysis of numerical data or observable facts resulting in informed conclusions. Research design and data analysis is the topic of an entire chapter of the textbook. This topic is discussed in class and appears on tests for the course. In addition, research on psychological topics is presented throughout the course. Social Responsibility To include intercultural competence, knowledge of civic responsibility, and the ability to engage effectively in regional, national, and global communities. This course includes social psychological concepts such as conformity, altruism, obedience, bystander effect, and social roles. Intercultural differences in human behaviors are also presented. These concepts are included in assignments and student knowledge of them is evaluated in exams. Students will observe, research, or
participate in a voluntary organization to gain a better understanding of social responsibility. Course and Institutional Policies Netiquette: The term "Netiquette" refers to the etiquette guidelines for electronic communications, wuch as e-mail and discussion board postings. This covers not only rules to maintain civility in discussions, but also special guidelines unique to the electronic nature of messages. Please review Virginia Shea's "The Core Rules of Netiquette (link is external)" for general guidelines that should be followed when communicating in this course. Academic dishonesty: Academic dishonesty includes cheating, fabrication, plagiarism, and facilitating academic dishonesty. Disciplinary options include, but are not limited to, suspension and dismissal. (See the Midland College Student Handbook for a complete explanation of college policy). Student Authentication in Online Courses: Midland College is required to have measures in place to address student authentication in online courses. This means that Midland College must implement measures to ensure that the person who enrolls in an online course is the same person who is logging in and submitting the work. Midland College utilizes multiple strategies to identify and deter acts of academic dishonesty and fraud. Email Use: Midland College provides each student with a free e-mail account that is to be used in communication with College personnel. This will be the default e-mail used by Canvas unless you change it to your preferred e-mail account. You are responsible for maintaining a working e-mail address and configuring the Canvas Notification Preferences so that you receive course announcements. Withdrawal from Class: Requests for withdrawal must be made through the student s VCT college. Academic Grievance Procedures: Procedures for grade appeal can be found in the MC Catalog & Handbook, Academic Responsibilities section. Incomplete Grades: A student who does satisfactory work in this course but does not finish due to extenuating circumstances may be eligible to receive an Incomplete ( I ). An I grade is given after the student has had a conference with the instructor, as well as permission from the student s VCT college, and an Incomplete Contract has been completed and signed. If the work is not completed within the specified time frame, the incomplete grade will become an F. Refer to the Incomplete Grade section of the MC Catalog & Handbook. ADA statement: Students with disabilities should notify the student s VCT college.
Grading Policy: Point System Discussion Questions 150 points Quizzes 150 points Perspectives Paper 100 points Study Analysis Assignment 200 points Experiment Simulations 200 points Final Exam 200 points Total Points: 1000 points Discussion Questions: You will have 5 online discussion questions posted on Canvas covering material from specific chapters (discussion question is assigned every 3 chapters). For each discussion, you will first respond to the discussion question that I have posted (each original response is worth 20 points). The original response needs to be 250 words! Then, you will reply to a classmate s post (reply is worth 10 points). Your reply to a classmate s post should be 150 words including: 3 things that you learned from the post 2 things that you found interesting 1 question that you still have This is also an opportunity to earn extra credit! For each discussion question, you can reply to 1 additional classmate s post for 2 points of extra credit. Overall, can earn 10 points extra credit! 5 POINTS ARE DEDUCTED EACH DAY YOUR DISCUSSION POST IS LATE! Quizzes: Chapter quizzes are assigned for each chapter. These are 10 question quizzes worth 10 points. You have 2 attempts to take each quiz; highest score counts. I WILL NOT ACCEPT ANY LATE QUIZZES! Perspectives Paper: A psychological perspective paper is required for this course. The paper must be typed, double spaced, completed in APA format, include a cover page, between 3-4 pages in length, and include a reference page with at least one source. The paper must be submitted in Word format (.doc file). Select any three of twenty-first
century perspectives to explain human behavior and mental processes. There isn t any one perspective that explains human behavior from a psychological approach. Identify, explain and compare the perspectives. See guidelines for more detailed instructions and rubric as a grading guide. Study Analysis Paper: A study analysis paper is required for this course. Submit study analysis as a word document (.doc file). Adhere to the following guidelines: 1. Paper must be 5-7 pages (including cover page and reference page) 2. This paper must be typed and double spaced (12/Times New Roman) 3. This paper must have a cover page & a reference page 4. Citations must be included in this paper 5. This paper must include a scholarly source (selected article) 6. This paper must be in APA format 7. Refer to the template provided under the assignment details as a guide for writing your paper Here are the general directions for the project: 1. Select an article from a previewed list for this assignment 2. Review the abstract and paraphrase the study 3. Identify the experiment(s) and select the one that will be analyzed 4. Summarize the introduction and/or literature review 5. Identify participants and procedures (methodology) and explain how the research was conducted 6. Interpret the graph (results) and explain how it answers the research question(s) 7. After a review of the discussion section, identify the limitations of the study 8. How would you extend the research? 9. Develop additional research question 10. Who will be your sample population (participants)? 11. How would you conduct your research? 12. Explain what results you would expect with a graph 13. Complete the paper with a conclusion Experiment Simulations: Your REVEL account has 12 different experiment simulations for you to complete. You are to select any 5 of these experiments to complete. For each experiment simulation, you will give a brief introduction of the experiment; complete the experiment; report your results of the experiment; discuss the importance of the experiment. Each of your 5 experiments that you select is worth 40 points. See assignment instructions on Canvas for more information about this assignment. Final Exam: A 100 multiple choice question final exam covering content from the whole course will be due at the end of the semester. Worth 200 points. Division Information: Social & Behavioral Sciences; MHAB 176; 685-6829
Course Schedule Week Chapters Assignments Due 1 1: The Science of Psychology Chapter 1 Quiz Discussion Question 1 2 2: The Biological Perspective Chapter 2 Quiz Perspectives Paper rough draft (optional) 3 3: Sensation & Perception Chapter 3 Quiz Perspective Paper final draft 4 4: Consciousness Chapter 4 Quiz Discussion Question 2 5 5: Learning Chapter 5 Quiz 6 6: Memory Chapter 6 Quiz 7 7: Cognition Chapter 7 Quiz Discussion Question 3 8 8: Development Across the Lifespan Chapter 8 Quiz 9 9: Motivation & Emotion Chapter 9 Quiz 10 10: Sexuality & Gender Chapter 10 Quiz Discussion Question 4
Study Analysis paper rough draft (optional) 11 11: Stress & Health Chapter 11 Quiz Study Analysis Paper final draft 12 12: Social Psychology Chapter 12 Quiz Discussion Question 5 13 13: Theories of Personality Chapter 13 Quiz 14 14: Psychological Disorders Chapter 14 Quiz 15 15: Psychological Therapies Chapter 15 Quiz Experiment Simulations Project Final Exam!