Spring 2011 Psychology 491

1.5 credits Dr. John Norcross

History & Literature of Psychology II

Catalog Description: (Prerequisites: Senior standing; a grade of C or higher in Psyc. 490) This seminar, designed for students with a major or minor in Psychology, will entail critical reading, analysis, and discussion of selections from the seminal literature in psychology, including selected works of William James, Sigmund Freud, and B. F. Skinner. Individual professors will choose additional readings on the basis of their interests and student preferences. Spring only. (The course is designated writing intensive.)

Faculty Information:

Instructor: John C. Norcross, PhD, Professor of Psychology

Office hours: Monday 11:30 - 12:45, Tuesday 9:00 - 10:30, and by appointment

Office location: 224 Alumni Memorial Hall

Contact numbers: 941-7638 (office); norcross@scranton.edu (e-mail)

Web page: http://academic.scranton.edu/faculty/norcross/

Textbooks:

Freud, S. (1966; originally published in 1917). Introductory lectures on psycho-analysis. New York: Norton.

James, W. (1890). Principles of psychology. http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/James/Principles/index.htm

Skinner, B. F. (1976; originally published in 1948). Walden two. Indianapolis, IN: Hackett.

Gilligan, C. (1993; originally published in 1982). In a different voice: Psychological theory and women's development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Wilson, E. O. (1978). On human nature. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Performance and Evaluation: Your performance in this capstone course will be assessed through your class participation, written assignments, quiz performance, and class co-facilitation.

Regular attendance and participation are essential for understanding the subject matter and for attaining a passable grade. Indeed, approximately 33% of your final grade will be determined by the quality and quantity of your in-class participation, as jointly assessed by yourself, your peers, and your professor. The criteria by which you will be evaluated are demonstration of: faithful attendance; familiarity with text assignments; content mastery (understanding of facts, concepts, and theories); communication skills (clear and persuasive communication); ability to disagree constructively; synthesis/integration (connection among course material and other bodies of knowledge); creativity (beyond the obvious to produce your own insights); application (relating the material to other psychological contexts and pursuits); and valuing (identifying the values inherent in the material).

Your written work will consist of five brief papers. The papers are to be typed (double-spaced) with 1” margins and are due at the beginning of class. Record the word count at the end of your papers. Please place your name on the back of the last page. The minimum length of the reaction papers is 750 words; the maximum length is 1,000 words. Guidelines for their preparation are attached. The papers will be evaluated on a four-point scale: 4 (an A) is outstanding and/or excellent work; 3 (a B) is good work; 2 (a C) is satisfactory work; and 1 (a D) is below standards.

The final written assignment (paper #7) is required as one of your five papers and consists of "A Letter to Incoming Psychology Students." The letter will summarize your own experiences, offer some advice, and perhaps share some regrets about your years as a University of Scranton psychology major. These letters will be shared with incoming psychology students during next year’s Freshmen Seminar.

Alternatives to the written assignments are encouraged and are to be approved by the professor. Some possibilities include meeting of the minds dialogues between people holding disparate views, imagined interviews with an author, and classroom debates with another student.

In addition to the reaction papers, you will be asked to co-facilitate one class with the professor. A schedule for the co-facilitation will be constructed on the first day of class. You do not prepare a formal paper for the class that you co-facilitate; instead, you will prepare three discussion questions that will assist you in cofacilitating the class. Guidelines for cofacilitating the class are attached.

Five multiple-choice quizzes will be administered at the beginning of the respective class periods. These quizzes are designed to reward your reading and to evaluate your comprehension of the assigned material on weeks when no written work is due.

Thus, best five papers (20 possible points)

one class co-facilitation (4 possible points)

best four quizzes (16 possible points)

class participation (20 possible points)

Course Policies: This course is intended as a capstone experience or senior seminar for psychology majors, and your behavior should reflect the commitment and passion of a senior psychology major. You are responsible for all announcements made and material covered in class. Make-up quizzes are not offered. Late papers are not accepted. You must personally attend class to submit written assignments; they may not be turned in by a fellow student or slipped under my office door.

Please refer to the University’s Academic Code of Honesty. Plagiarism or dishonest quiz behavior on your part will result in the assignment of a grade of F for the course.

You are encouraged to participate fully and civilly in class. At the same time, we will not tolerate disruptive or offensive behavior that is antithetical to our university ideals or that is contrary to a conducive learning environment.

Any student who, because of a disability, may require special arrangements in order to meet the course requirements, should contact the professor privately as soon as possible so that she may consider and then make appropriate accommodations. In order to receive accommodations, students with disabilities must register with the Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence.

Kindly turn off your cell phone while in class. Violation of this policy will demand punishment – though one that does not infringe on your eighth amendment rights – that will enhance our learning.

Course Outline and Assignments:

Date Required Reading Assignment

Jan. 31 Welcome, Capstone Experience, Great Books none

Feb. 7 Freud, 4-9, Lectures I through III Paper #1

Feb. 14 Freud, Lectures V through VII Quiz #1

Feb. 21 Freud, Lectures IX through XII Paper #2 (dream analysis)

Feb. 28 James (online pages TBD) Quiz #2

March 7 Skinner, pages v-xvi, Chapters 1 through 14 Paper #3

March 14 Skinner, Chapters 15 through 25 Quiz #3

March 21 Spring Break; no class

March 28 Skinner, Chapters 26 through 36 Paper #4 (no-TV paper)

April 4 Gilligan, pages ix to 63 Quiz #4

April 11 Gilligan, pages 128 to 174 Paper #5

April 18 Wilson, Preface, Chapters 1, 2, and 4 Quiz #5

April 25 Easter Monday; no class

May 2 Wilson, Chapters 6, 7, 8, and 9 Paper #6

May 9 Evaluation, Closure, and Celebration Paper #7

(letter to freshmen)

Guidelines for Cofacilitating

Ψ Each student is asked to cofacilitate one class meeting with the professor. You do not prepare a paper for the class that you co-facilitate, but you do complete the quiz if one is scheduled for that day.

Ψ Meet with the professor the week before you are scheduled to cofacilitate in order to receive a copy of the professor’s notes/resource materials. After the class, return the notes to the professor.

Ψ Read the assignment and prepare 3 discussion questions before reading the professor’s notes. After the class, hand the professor your questions.

Ψ The professor will begin the class with announcements and an introduction, and he will end the class as well. In between, you are primarily responsible for facilitating the class discussion.

Ψ You typically have time to ask five to eight discussion questions during the class period. Please plan accordingly. Select several questions from the professor’s notes and ask one or two of the discussion questions you have prepared.

Ψ Your task is to facilitate discussion, not to lecture. Accordingly, engage your peers in addressing the questions, as opposed to answering the questions yourself. When cofaciliating, learn to hold back on your own thoughts.

Ψ When posing a question, please provide a context and introduction for it. Instead of simply asking the question, give a few sentences explaining it or placing it in the context of the assigned readings.

Ψ Many of the interesting points in the reading will generate multiple questions. However, when posing questions in class, please ask one at a time. Avoid asking multiple-part questions.

Ψ We seek informed discussion and respectful debate among graduating psychology majors. If your peers respond with a simple “I agree” or “I don’t see it that way,” gently prompt and encourage them to elaborate on their responses. “What makes you say so?” “Could you elaborate on your reasons?”

Ψ Try to involve all students in the class discussions; learn to draw out contributions. Do not let a single student dominate. Instead, call on different students; ask quiet students for their opinions; and perhaps go around the seminar table and ask everyone for a focused response.

Ψ Thought-provoking questions require time to answer. Pause before expecting or requesting responses; we all need time to formulate answers to questions of any complexity. Offer encouragement, maintain eye contact, and let the question stand for 20 seconds.

Ψ Reward and praise students for contributing. A simple “thank you” typically suffices. The reward is contingent on a genuine effort to contribute, not on providing a “correct” or super answer.

Ψ Your cofacilitation will be graded on the same scale as your papers: 4 (an A) is outstanding/excellent work; 3 (a B) is good work; 2 (a C) is satisfactory work; and 1 (a D) is below standards.

Ψ The grading rubric for evaluating the cofaciliation follows (adapted from Lathrop, 2006). Think of these as your performance goals.

Facilitation: Asks questions and uses strategies that draw out peers’ knowledge of the assigned reading; relates the readings to experience and psychology.

Preparation: Masters the material under discussion and has plenty of questions at hand.

Organization: Structures the questions and the class in a clear and logical sequence.

Interest: Tries to make the questions and ensuing discussion interesting, practical, and innovative.

Engagement: Encourages respectful and inclusive participation; asks all students to participate.

Initiative: Asks own questions and discussion points; goes beyond repeating professor’s questions.

Guidelines for Written Assignments

The reaction papers afford you a rich opportunity to grapple with the readings, to reflect on their implications, and to integrate this information with previous psychology courses, research and clinical practica, and personal experiences. Your written work should be concise, lively, and thoughtful. Stimulating will assume equal precedence with scholarly.

The purpose of these written assignments is not to abstract or summarize the article. We shall assume that you, your classmates, and I have read the material. Instead, you are asked to react and respond to the material. Remember: these are reaction papers, not summary papers.

Some helpful hints on preparing your reaction papers:

(1) Let Us Know You Read It

This can be accomplished through many means. Some of the more frequent means are thoughtful analyses, inclusion of occasional quotes, and reference to specific or unusual details. Select points throughout the assigned pages, in contrast to a single chapter, to demonstrate that you absorbed the entire assignment.

(2) Let Us Know You Thought About It

General impressions of the material, amplification of central points, agreement or disagreement with the author, questions you would like answered -- all are ways of expressing your analytical reasoning. Avoid the pedestrian summary; stretch your mind and wrestle with the material.

(3) Let Us Know You Related It to Something

The "something" is varied and of your choosing. Examples include previous courses, research studies, controversial issues in psychology, current events, and life experiences. We want the written assignments to reflect operative knowledge in addition to declarative knowledge.

(4) Let Us Know You Are Engaged in Active Questioning

Knowledge acquires its vitality through active questioning, not through passive knowing. Try to broach provocative matters by raising questions, try to be creative in penetrating the core of disciplined thought, try to become caught up in constructive inquiry. In other words, catch the fever! (Refer to the attached page for hints on wording your questions to enhance our critical thinking.)