PSY
3360 / CGS 3325 Historical Perspectives on Psychology – Summer 2009
·
Quiz (10%). Selected classes will include a brief,
unannounced quiz covering material from preceding classes. Their purpose is to
help prepare for the exams. No makeup quizzes are provided.
·
Midterm exam (30%). Mixture of short-answer,
medium-length, multiple choice, and essay questions covering material from the
lectures and assigned reading. There will be a choice of questions to answer,
and study questions will be provided. Makeup exams will be provided only in
case of medical and family emergencies or related circumstances. In such cases
you must notify the professor in advance of the scheduled time of the exam to
avoid a grade of F.
· Final exam (40%). Same format and rules as the midterm exam.
·
Term paper (20%). There will be a term paper of 7-8
(typed, double-spaced) pages. The paper should grow out of your reading of one
of the recommended books below, and should relate some aspect of the book to
something outside of the book, either in the course or in your more general
experience. Choose one of the books from the list, read it early in the
semester, and begin to think about an aspect of the book that will serve as the
focus for your paper. Late papers will result in lowering the paper grade by
one notch per class period (that is, from A to A-, or from A- to B+). We will
be happy to discuss ideas with you as you begin working on your paper. (Note: the paper should not be a
"book report". It should focus on a single aspect, relating it to
something outside the book. Do not summarize the whole book. A printed copy of
the paper must be presented in class and an electronic version must be
submitted to turnitin.com (a plagiarism detection service) by July
23. Details for online submission of
the term paper will be provided in class and posted on the class web page. Note: late papers will result in
lowering the paper grade by one notch (e.g. from A- to B+) per class period.
Required
textbook:
Fancher R. E. 1996. Pioneers of Psychology. 3rd
edition. New York: Norton.
·
Term paper texts (choose one):
(1)
Marc
Hauser (2006). Moral Minds: How Nature
Designed Our Universal Sense of Right and Wrong.
(2)
Jonah
Lehrer (2009). How We Decide.
(4)
Michael
S. Gazzaniga (2008) Human: The Science Behind What
Makes Us Unique.
·
Grading policy.
Grading is based on the following criteria:
|
A+ |
96 |
B+ |
84 |
C+ |
70 |
D+ |
55 |
|
A |
93 |
B |
80 |
C |
65 |
D |
50 |
|
A- |
89 |
B- |
75 |
C- |
60 |
F |
<50 |
·
Attendance. Class
attendance is mandatory and will count toward the course grade (through quiz
grades). If there are circumstances that lead to missed classes please see us
to discuss the situation.
·
Research credits. All core courses in Psychology and Cognitive Science include a
research participation requirement. This requirement is described in the accompanying
flier. The research credit sign-up system is online:
https://utdallas.sona-systems.com. Use your UTD NetID to login and sign up for
experiments. New experiments appear every few days throughout the semester;
keep checking the schedule if you cannot find a suitable time slot.
Student
Learning Objectives:
After
completing this course, students should be able to:
1.1 Describe and explain the nature of psychology as a
scientific discipline.
1.2 Describe and analyze major theoretical
perspectives and overarching themes of psychology and their historical
development.
1.3 Understand, apply, and analyze five selected
content areas within psychology.
2.1 Identify and explain different research methods
used by psychologists.
4.1 Demonstrate effective writing skills in
various formats (technical reports) and for various purposes (e.g., informing,
persuading, evaluating).