Introduction to Psychology (Psyc 1051)MTWThF: 1:15 – 2:45Sci 4655Instructor Information: Dennis D. Stewart, Ph.D. Office: 4 West Annex Phone: 589 - 6196email: [email protected] web site: http://cda.mrs.umn.edu/~stewartd/Office Hours: Wed and Thur 11:00 to 12:00 or by appointmentRequired Text:Kassin, S. (2004). Psychology, 4th edition, Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. Course Description: Kassin (2004) defines psychology as “the scientific study of behavior and the mind” (p. 757). As this definitionimplies, psychology covers a wide range of topics. For example, we will cover such diverse topics as learning,aggression, psychological disorders, and personality. Moreover, we will approach these topics from a scientificperspective. In addition, we will examine how the theories and research of psychology contribute to our understandingof a number of applied problems. For example, we will examine how the theories and research in psychology apply tosuch topics as: sleep deprivation, ethics, camouflage, and eyewitness testimony. Finally after the completion of thiscourse, I believe you will have a better understanding of how psychology can be applied to your life and to problemsthat currently face our society. Course Format: The format of this course will be largely lecture. However, I encourage questions from the class and I expect to haveclass discussions or other classroom activities. We will use class time to accomplish three interrelated goals. 1. We will clarify the material from the class readings. Therefore, it is important that you come to class havingread the material for that day. You should bring your textbook to class because you will need to refer to it periodically. 2. We will elaborate and illustrate the material from the class readings. Therefore, you should think about how the material relates to your own experiences and be prepared to share these experiences in class. 3. I will add additional material to the class that cannot be found in the class readings. Therefore, you will need to be in class and to take notes to benefit from this additional material. Outside of class, I would recommend the following study habits. 1. Read the book: Reading the book will be beneficial because it will explain many of the topics covered in class from a different perspective. Also, there will be questions on the exams and final that are based on the material from the book that was not covered in class. 2. Ask questions. You should not be afraid to ask questions. 3. Take good notes. You should take detailed notes of what is said in class. If you miss class then you shouldget notes from someone else in the class. 4. Distributed learning: People learn best when they look at their notes and book frequently instead of trying to cram the material into their head the night before the exam. 5. Outlines: I will provide outlines for each class (see section that follows). You should use these outlines to organize your notes and your readings. Course Outlines:1. In order to help you accomplish the three goals listed in the class format section, I will prepare outlines that illustratethe major points in the readings and in my lectures. These outlines should help you focus on the main points of thereadings. These outlines should also help you organize your lecture notes. Finally, the outlines should help prepare youfor the exams. Although the outlines will serve as an excellent study guide for your exams, I should note a word ofcaution about using them exclusively. Ultimately, a student is responsible for all the material covered in class andin the readings. Occasionally, we will cover material that is NOT on the outline for a variety of reasons (e.g., currentevent, a topic that students want to discuss). Students are still responsible for knowing this non-outline material becauseit was covered in class. Additionally, students should keep in mind that an outline is simply a listing of the majorpoints. It is not intended to contain the depth of information that students need to understand about the topics. 2. These outlines will be made available on my website (http://cda.mrs.umn.edu/~stewartd/). 3. You must print off copies of the outlines and bring them to class. You will find it helpful to have the outlines in frontof you on the day we are covering the material in class. Course Requirements: 1. Percentages and PointsA. Exams (Best 3 out of 4):Points Your PointsExam 1 200 ________Exam 2 200 ________Exam 3 200 ________Exam 4 200 ________B. Final 280 ________(YOU CANNOT DROP THE FINAL)C. Homework/lab assignmentsAssignment 1 30 ________Assignment 2 30 ________Assignment 3 30 ________Assignment 4 30 ________2. Description A. Exams: There will be four non-cumulative exams during the term. These exams will be multiple-choice questions. I will count your three best exams and drop your lowest exam grade. B. Final: The final is partially cumulative. It will consist of multiple-choice questions. You cannot dropthe final. C. Homework/lab assignments: You will have a series of homework/lab assignments due during the term.Further details will be announced in class. Attendance and Participation. There is no formal attendance policy, but you should be aware that missing class might hurt your grade in several ways.First, you will miss information that will be covered on the exams. Second, if you do miss class then you, AND NOTTHE INSTRUCTOR, are responsible for finding out what you missed in class.Grades: Your grade is based on the 1000 points described in the above course requirements section. Your grade will be based onyour cumulative point total:Grade Points Grade PointsA 930 – 1000 C+ 770 - 799A- 900 - 929 C 710 - 769B+ 870 - 899 C- 690 - 709B 830 - 869 D+ 670 - 689B- 800 - 829 D 600 - 669F Below 600 pointsStudents often want to know whether I will curve the grades. My answer is that I reserve the right to curve grades, butI will make no guarantees or promises about this either. In other words, if you want a certain grade in this class thenyou should earn the points that correspond with that grade (e.g., if you want an A in this class then you need to earn atleast 930 points during the semester).Academic Policies 1. Late Assignments: All assignments will be due in the beginning of class on the assigned date. A late penalty