UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT SPRING 2013 Psychology 262: Social Development Meets: Tuesday /Thursday 8:30-9:45 a.m. in Old Mill Annex A202 Instructor: Dr. SK Fenstermacher Office: 334 John Dewey Hall Email: sfenster@uvm.edu Office Hours: Thursdays 10:00 11:00 a.m. in Dewey 334 Required Text: Shaffer, D. (2009). Social and Personality Development (6 th edition). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. Additional readings (see course schedule) will be posted on Blackboard. Overview of the course: This course is intended to provide an overview of both classical and contemporary theory and research in social and personality development. In this course, we will explore a variety of topics related to how both biological and environmental factors, including contextual factors such as media, family, peer influences, and culture, can impact social development in children. A second goal of this course is to familiarize students with the methods used in social developmental research, to train students to approach this research with a critical eye, and to stimulate discussion and creative thinking by encouraging applications of the material to real world situations and experiences. Course requirements: Assignments in this course will primarily focus on application and integration of basic theoretical concepts and research related to social development. You will have opportunities to review and distill research findings on topics that interest you, to apply theoretical constructs to real world examples, and to propose your own research questions based on what you have learned. Your mastery of the material will be assessed through a combination of brief applied writing assignments and activities, a research article presentation, and three exams. Please note that emailed submissions of assignments will not be accepted. All written work should be submitted in hard copy format (typed, double spaced, in 12-point Times New Roman font and one-inch margins) at the beginning of class on the day it is due. Exams (3), 45% There will be three exams in this course: two midterm exams and a final exam administered on Friday, May 3, 2013 from 1:30-4:15 p.m. These exams will be primarily in multiple choice format with some short answer questions. The midterms and final exam are NOT cumulative. Weekly Reading Responses, 30% Every Friday afternoon, I will post one or more thought questions on Blackboard that ask you to reflect on and apply material from the following week s assigned readings. You will be asked to choose one of these questions and to write a thoughtful, succinct response of a few paragraphs (no more than 1-1.5 pages total) due at the start of class the following Tuesday. Each of these response papers will be worth 3 points total (3 = thoughtful response that effectively utilizes and may attempt to build upon, apply or integrate material from various sources; 2 = thoughtful response that adequately addresses the question and shows good evidence of having done the readings; 1 = satisfactory response that indicates a cursory examination of the readings, i.e., only those paragraphs pertaining to the question; 0 = no evidence of having done or considered the readings). Your lowest two grades will be dropped. Group presentation and writeup, 20% During some weeks, small groups of 2-4 students will present research of their own selection related to one of the broad topics in the course. Groups will be selected during the first week of class based on shared interests. I will ask all students to submit their first, second, and third choice of topic area during our first class meeting. Based on these choices, I will put together groups of students with similar interests. I will post these group assignments on Blackboard. Please note that while I will try my best to assign students to their first choice, this may not always be possible. In cases
where there are more than four students with the same first choice topic, I will randomly assign students to that topic s group and try to accommodate remaining students with their alternate choices. Your responsibilities for this assignment are as follows: First, the group members will decide together on a specific topic (for example, if your group s broad topic area is emotional development/temperament, your group might choose to focus on inhibitory control in young children) and area of research (for example, research examining adult outcomes related to high or low inhibitory control in childhood). Next, each member of the group will select one recent (i.e., published in the last 15 years) article from a peer-reviewed scholarly journal (e.g., Child Development, Adolescence, Infant Behavior and Development, etc.) relating to the group s specific topic, for which that student will be primarily responsible. Note that while review articles can be very helpful in finding primary sources of research and in preparing your overall presentation, I am asking each student to find an empirical article describing a specific piece of original research, including hypotheses, methods, results, etc. Each member of the group should submit his or her chosen article to me via email as an attached PDF or Word document(not a link or citation) no later than one week prior to the scheduled presentation date for approval. The group will then prepare a 30-40-minute presentation (using either PowerPoint or overheads) incorporating information from the articles. Each group member should plan to present the material on his or her own chosen article and will be considered the expert on that material; however, all group members should plan to contribute equally to class discussion of their topic during the presentation. The group s task as a whole for the presentation is to integrate the information that each member has gathered individually into a coherent overview of research on a single topic area related to the week s assigned readings. Your group should propose a solid thesis statement or theme regarding your chosen topic, and should present evidence from the collected articles in support of this group thesis. A second goal of the group is to encourage class involvement in the presentation by providing the class with open-ended questions for discussion. Each group should prepare questions and examples to encourage class discussion during the presentation, and should be prepared to field questions from both me and your classmates. On the day of your presentation, each member of the group is responsible for turning in the following: 1. A hard copy of your PowerPoint slides or overheads and notes from the presentation. 2. A 3-4 page presentation writeup. This writeup should include: a. An overview of the chosen article including a brief summary of hypotheses, methods, and results, critique (e.g., any parts of the methodology that you thought were especially good or not so good, what could have been done differently to answer the research questions), and any questions raised by the article that you will share with the class to stimulate discussion. b. A statement describing the thesis or theme of your presentation and how each of the articles presented by you and your group members supports this thesis or theme. How does the research described in your selected article relate to those of your group members and to the week s topic? You may also choose to include an overall evaluation of the group collaboration process. Finally, the group will be responsible for turning in a list (a single list compiled collaboratively by the group) of three or more multiple choice questions pertaining to your presentation. I will review these questions and select at least one to be used on an upcoming midterm exam, so it is to your advantage to construct your questions carefully and thoughtfully. You should focus on main themes covered in your presentation rather than small details from the articles in other words, the take home points, rather than statistics or facts that are not a focal point of the presentation. In addition to group members overall ability to synthesize and integrate their articles into a coherent, interesting and insightful presentation, your grade for the presentation will be based on the quality of your writeup, preparation and clarity of your individual article and group presentation, generation of thoughtful questions for discussion, and ability to respond to comments and questions from me and from the class. Class Contributions, 5% The final 5% of your grade will be based on your contributions to the class. In addition to attendance and regular participation in lecture discussions, your class contributions include your attention, thoughtful feedback and contributions to discussion during classmates presentations.
Tentative Course Schedule (Please note that topic dates/readings are subject to change pending addition of presentations). Week Date Topic Readings 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 January 15 January 17 January 22 January 24 January 29 January 31 February 5 February 7 February 12 Introduction to the course and overview; submit presentation topic interests Classic and contemporary theoretical perspectives on social and personality development Text, pages 1-12 Text, pages 37-65; Text, pages 67-100 Research Methods; evaluating research Text, pages 13-36 Emotional Development and Temperament February 14 Midterm Exam 1 February 19 February 21 February 26 February 28 March 5 March 7 March 12 March 14 March 19 March 21 March 26 Attachment and parenting Development of Self and Social Cognition SPRING BREAK NO CLASS MEETINGS Development of Self and Social Cognition (continued) Achievement and School March 28 Midterm Exam 2 April 2 April 4 April 9 April 11 April 16 April 18 April 23 April 25 16 April 30 FINAL Friday, May 3 1:30-4:15 p.m. Gender Development Text, pages 101-132 Article: Caspi, 2000 Text, pages 133-166 Text, pages 369-386; Article: Gibbs, 2009 Text, pages 168-205 Article: Bronson & Merryman, 2009 Text, pages 168-205 Article: Bronson & Merryman, 2009 Text, pages 207-238; 433-449 Article: Doskosh, 2005 Text, pages 239-282 Aggression Text, pages 284-321 Moral Development and Prosocial Behavior Text, pages 325-367 Media Influences Final Exam in Old Mill Annex A202 Text, pages 413-430 Article: Fisch, Truglio, & Cole, 1999
Course Expectations and Responsibilities You are responsible for knowing and following the course policies listed below. 1. Prerequisite: This is an advanced course in social development designed for students in psychology and related fields who have completed General Psychology (Psyc001). Please see me if you have not taken this prerequisite but you believe you have a sufficient background in psychology to be prepared for this course. 2. Attendance: Please come to each class ready to engage in the day s lesson. This includes having the assigned reading completed and any assignments ready to turn in at the start of class. 3. Special Accommodations: Students with special needs that affect their ability to participate fully in class, to meet all course requirements, or that require special exam administration should contact Accommodation, Consultation, Counseling & Educational Support Services (ACCESS; A170 Living/Learning Center; phone: 656-7753) and me within the first two weeks of class. I will provide reasonable accommodations for documented disabilities in accordance with college policies. 4. Grade Concerns: If you have concerns regarding your grade at any point, please make an appointment to see me to discuss ways to improve your mastery of the course material. The sooner you contact me regarding concerns, the better. I will not be able to accommodate students who contact me at the end of the semester with concerns about their grade. I also encourage students to visit the Learning Co-op (Living/Learning Center, 244 Commons) for help with writing, study skills, and exam-taking skills. The Learning Cooperative in Living & Learning Commons Room 244 has peer tutors available for this course. Cost is $10.00 per hour (free for some students), and appointments can be arranged at convenient sites on campus at a wide variety of days and times, even after hours and on weekends. Please call the Co-op (656-4075), visit their web site http://www.uvm.edu/~subtutor/, or stop by M-Th 8a-9p, F 8a-5p, Sun 6p-9p for additional information. 5. Makeup Exam Policy: Make-up exams will be administered ONLY in the case of a valid, documented excuse (e.g., illness for which you can provide a doctor s note, car accident or family emergency for which I will be notified by the Dean s Office) and MUST be accompanied by official written documentation from a physician, therapist, and/or the Dean s Office. If you do not have this documentation, you will not be permitted to take a makeup exam. Please note that events such as sleeping through your alarm or traveling to a family wedding, vacation, or similar event do not constitute valid or acceptable excuses for missing an exam in this course. Please do not expect to receive permission to make up an exam if you lack the required written documentation described above. 6. Returned Assignments: Hold on to all graded assignments after they have been returned until the end of the semester. They will help you keep track of how you are doing in the course and will serve as your record of your grade. In the case that a grade is missing for an assignment that you turned in and that was returned to you, you will need to produce a copy of the graded assignment. 7. Late Assignments: Late assignments will be docked 10% of total points for each day late. If you need to submit an assignment outside of class, it should be hand-delivered to a member of the Psychology Department staff in the main Psychology office, where it will be held for me or placed in my mailbox. Please note that the faculty mailroom is off-limits to students. Papers submitted via email or slipped under the office door will NOT be accepted. If you are submitting a paper outside of class, you must also contact me by email to let me know that you have turned in the assignment. 8. Extensions. In the rare case that you feel you need an extension, please discuss this with me as soon as you anticipate a problem. Extensions will be granted only in cases of extenuating circumstances for which students must be able to provide written documentation. 9. Academic Misconduct: The University of Vermont requires academic honesty from all students, and academic misconduct will not be tolerated. Academic misconduct includes cheating on assignments or exams, plagiarizing (misrepresenting someone else s work as your own), submitting the same or similar papers for more than one course without the permission of all instructors involved, submitting work on which you have collaborated with other students except in cases when this is specifically encouraged or required, or sabotaging another student s work or access to necessary class resources. Please remember that plagiarism occurs whenever you present another person s ideas as your own. In written assignments, students must NOT duplicate passages of more than five words from another source without quotation marks AND proper attribution. If you paraphrase someone else s words, you do not use quotation marks, but you still need to give the reference. See the following resource for additional information on plagiarism: http://www.uvm.edu/~agri99/plagiarism.html. Please
avoid problems by understanding what behaviors constitute academic misconduct and asking me for any clarification. You are responsible for knowing and understanding the Plagiarism policies of the University Vermont, which are available in the Code of Academic Integrity on-line at http://www.uvm.edu/~uvmppg/ppg/student/acadintegrity.pdf. If a student engages in academic misconduct, the case will be forwarded to the Center for Student Ethics & Standards and may involve sanctions such as receiving a zero on the assignment or failing the course. 10. Religious Holidays: Students have the right to practice the religion of their choice. Each semester, students should submit in writing to their instructors by the end of the second week of classes their documented religious holiday schedule for the semester. Faculty must permit students who miss work for the purpose of religious observance to make up this work. UVM Department of Psychology Code of Classroom Conduct Faculty and students will at all times conduct themselves in a manner that serves to maintain, promote, and enhance the highquality academic experience befitting the University of Vermont. The essential characteristic of this policy is respect. Student responsibilities Students are expected to attend every class, arriving promptly and remaining alert and involved until dismissed by the instructor. Students are expected to come having not only read and completed assignments but also having thought about them, and be prepared to engage in discussion and pose meaningful questions. During class, students will refrain from using laptop computers or other web-enabled devices. While the use of laptops, tablets and smart phones in the classroom has potential benefit, the Department of Psychology does not allow the use of these devices in classrooms for courses that enroll 100 or more students. This policy may be waived at an individual faculty member s discretion. Faculty and student responsibilities Faculty and students will promote academic discourse and the free exchange of ideas by listening with civil attention to all individuals. Faculty and students will treat all members of the learning community with respect and will not discriminate on the basis of characteristics that include race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, or gender identity or expression. Mutual respect extends to turning off cell phones or other web-enabled devices prior to the beginning of class, refraining from leaving the room in the middle of class, and, when authorized, using laptops for course-related activities only.