Introduction to Psychology: Grading, Course Conduct, and Course Objectives

1. Psychology 111 Grading and Course Conduct

2. Course Objectives • Introduction to psychological content and perspective • Familiarity with scientific methodology and reasoning • Awareness of the relationship of theory, research, and generalizations • Ethics and inclusiveness • Communication skills

3. Student Assessment • Unit Exams (60%); best 3 of 4 • Final Exam (15%); take-home critical thinking essay • Writing Assignments (15%) • Experiencing Psychology Labs and Discussions (10%)

4. Letter Grade Determination • At mid point and course close, weighted average will be computed, e.g., • Weighted %age= [(.50 x exam average) + • (.15 x final score) + (.20 x Assign. avg.) + • (.15 x lab average)] • Weighted %age then translated into letter grade by ‘90-80-70-60’ criteria

5. But what does a grade mean? • “A” distinctly superior performance • “B” consistently above average performance • “C” average performance • “D” consistently below average performance • “F” failing performance • Grades are not a reflection of your personal worth, but my assessment of your performance

6. Important Class Policies • First Amendment-level protections of free speech • Question, Question, Question (Skeptical Inquiry) • This class first, illness, sports, debate, choir, music, travel, friends, family second • Not that these things are unimportant… • Performance, not effort, is measured and evaluated

7. Some Intangibles for All Your Classes • Civility enhances learning. • Your enthusiasm is contagious • Be involved in class. • The "too cool for school" posture is unacceptable and offensive • When a fellow student speaks, it is not an opportunity to "tune out," take a break, or start a conversation

8. Dress appropriately for class. • Never close your books or rustle your papers to signal the end of class • Don't wait until it's "too late" to seek help • Come to my office hours with definite questions, concerns, or problems in mind • Never ask "Did I miss anything important in class the other day?” Of Course You Did! • Regardless of what you might think, grading is not easy, nor do Profs take sadistic pleasure in it

9. What is Psychology? • Psychology as a Natural Science and a Social Science • As a natural science, psychology involves the study of the laws of nature. • As a social science, psychology involves the study of the laws of the thoughts, feelings, and behavior of humans and other organisms.

10. The Evolution of Ideas • Dialectic • Thesis • Antithesis • Synthesis

11. Psychological Perspectives: The 1850s and Beyond • The Merging of Philosophy and Physiology Into Modern Psychology (1850–1900) • Psychology’s Youth: A Study in Diverging Perspectives • Structuralism, Functionalism, Pragmatism, and Associationism: Studying Behavior, Not Mental States

12. Evolving Twentieth-Century Perspectives on Psychology • From Associationism to Behaviorism • Behaviorism—A Search for Rigor and Reduction • Gestalt Psychology: The Whole is Different • Cognitivism: Returning to Mental Acts • Current Frontiers: Biological and Evolutionary Psychology—The Brain and Body Reunited (Sort Of) • Psychodynamic Psychology: Conscious Behavior as the Tip of the Iceberg • Humanistic Psychology

13. Interest in psychological topics is ubiquitous • 1879: Establishment of 1st laboratory for Psychological Study in Leipzig • Wm. Wundt: Goal was the identification of “mental elements”; a “periodic table of sensory events” • Structuralism

14. Functionalism • Typically American emphasis on purposes and application • Key Question: What is consciousness for? • Emphasis on adaptation • Conceptually related to Evolutionary theory • Wm. James • ‘stream of consciousness’

15. Behaviorism • Even more ‘typically American’ in its emphasis on practical applications • Restricted psychological topics to observable events • Brought psychology away from speculative treatises to observing measurable events • John B. Watson

16. Psychoanalytic • Sigmund Freud • Emphasis on unconscious processes evidenced through behavior • Used a ‘clinical method’ in which hypotheses are evaluated by patient behavior

17. Gestalt • Emphasized the unity of consciousness and perceptual events • Focused on identifying perceptual rules such as…

18. Good Continuation

19. Closure

20. Proximity

21. Where are the schools now? • No psychologist would be an adherent to any particular school • Best seen as progenitors to current psychological interests • Psychoanalysis Clinical Practice • BehaviorismLearning • Gestalt, Structuralism Sensation and Perception • FunctionalismCognition