Katherine Dowdell, M.S.

Chair, Psychology Dept. West Campus

Des Moines Area Community College

5959 Grand Avenue

West Des Moines, IA 50266

515-633-2421

Email: kdowdell@dmacc.edu

Office: West Campus Room 217 E

Office Hours:

• Mon/Wed 9:30-10am
• Tues 8:30-9:30am
• Thurs 11:15am-12:45pm
• Friday 9:40-10:40am; 12:30-1:00pm

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PSY 251 Social Psychology: Spring 2008

Section WB1 (CRN 23802) MW 11:15am-12:10pm West Campus Room 219E

This is a web-blended course which means that we will meet for only a portion of the typical 3 hours per week of a non-blended class. Success in a web-blended class requires commitment, organization, initiative and time management skills. You will need regular, reliable access to the Internet in order to complete the course.

Class sessions will focus on group work and discussion of course content; however, you should not expect that every topic in every chapter will be covered in class. You will be required to read the assigned chapters in the text and are responsible for the content, regardless of whether it is covered in class. Workbook assignments and journals will be completed online in WebCT.  You may log in to WebCT using the quick link on the DMACC home page (www.dmacc.edu) or via the portal (http://my.dmacc.edu).

PSY 251 Spring 2008 Syllabus

Schedule:

Date	Class Schedule	Workbook Assignments Due on Friday
Mon 1/7	Introduction
Wed 1/9	1 Introduction to Social Psychology
Mon 1/14	2 Methods of Social Psychology
Wed 1/16	2	Workbook Ch. 2
Mon 1/21	MLK Day: No class
Wed 1/23	3 Social Cognition	Workbook Ch. 3
Mon 1/28	3
Wed 1/30	4 Social Perception	Workbook Ch. 4
Mon 2/4	4
Wed 2/6	Exam 1 : Journal 1 by 11pm
Mon 2/11	6 Attitudes and Social Behavior
Wed 2/13	6	Workbook Ch. 6
Mon 2/18	7 Attitude Change
Wed 2/20	7	Workbook Ch. 7
Mon 2/25	Attitude Assessment presentations
Wed 2/27	8 Conformity, Compliance, Obedience	Workbook Ch. 8
Mon 3/3	8
Wed 3/5	Exam 2: Journal 2 by 11pm
Mon 3/10	5 Self-Concept, Gender and Disposition
Wed 3/12	5	Workbook Ch. 5
3/17 & 19	Spring Break
Mon 3/24	9 Stereotypes, Prejudice and Discrimination
Wed 3/26	9	Workbook Ch. 9
Mon 3/31	10 Group Dynamics & Intergroup Conflict
Wed 4/2	10	Workbook Ch. 10
Mon 4/7	11 Aggression and Violence
Wed 4/9	11	Workbook Ch. 11
Mon 4/14	Exam 3: Journal 3 by 11pm
Wed 4/16	12 Helpful Social Behavior	Workbook Ch. 12
Mon 4/21	12
Wed 4/23	13 Liking, Loving and Close Relationships	Workbook Ch. 13
Mon 4/28	Finals Week begins: No class
Wed 4/30	Exam 4 at 12 noon

Chapter Notes: Click on the chapter title to access power point notes for each class. You should print these out and bring them with you to class. I would recommend that you choose “handouts” instead of “slides” in the ‘Print what?’ drop down menu; otherwise you will end up with only one slide per page!

1 Introduction

2 Methods of Social Psychology

3 Social Cognition

4 Social Perception

6 Attitudes and Social Behavior

7 Attitude Change

8 Conformity, Compliance, Obedience

5 Self-Concept, Gender and Disposition

9 Stereotypes, Prejudice and Discrimination

10 Group Dynamics & Intergroup Confllict

11 Agggression and Violence

12 Helpful Social Behavior

13 Liking, Loving and Close Relationships

14 Social Psychology in Your Life

Course Evaluation:

Your grade will be based on the total number of points earned from unit exams, in-class mini projects, journal entries, workbook assignments, and a team application project.

In class: Mini projects, Team Application Project, Unit Exams

• Mini Projects: Individual or group project activities will be completed regularly in class. You must be present in class to participate in a mini project; no make-up or late assignments. These will contribute approximately 50-60 points towards your total grade.

• Team Application Project: A group project to design an Attitude Assessment instrument will contribute up to 60 points to your course grade. Partial participation will earn partial points. Several class sessions will be devoted to this project; however, you should expect to meet with your teammates outside of class as well. A detailed assignment sheet and scoring rubric will be available in class and online.

The total number of points available for Team Application Project/Attitude Assessment is 60 points:

Choosing Target: 5 points

+/- Statements: 10 points

Testing Statements: 10 points

Admin Surveys: 10 points

Class Presentation: 25 points

• Unit Exams There will be 4 unit exams consisting of multiple choice and short answer essay questions. Exams require the use of a #2 pencil and a pen. Students who arrive late to class will not be allowed additional time. A make-up exam will be allowed only with advance permission of the instructor and will require documentation of the reason for the absence (i.e., doctor’s excuse, subpoena). Unexcused and/or undocumented absences will result in a loss of half the points earned on the make-up exam. Any exception to this policy will be at the sole discretion of the instructor.

WebCT: Workbook Assignments and Journals

Examples of Assignments: workbook, Journal 1, Journal 2

• Journals: There will be 3 personal reflection journals to be completed in WebCT. Each journal should be approximately 1 page in length and is worth up to 10 points. Journals must be submitted before 11pm on the date of the associated Unit Exam. Late journals will not be accepted. For detailed instructions, log in to the course home page in WebCT.

• Workbook Assignments: These will be assigned from the Social Psychology Alive workbook for chapters 2 – 13. Each 10 point assignment is due on Friday by 11pm; late work may be submitted within 1 week after the due date for up to half credit. Submissions will not be accepted after one week late. For detailed instructions, log in to the course home page in WebCT.

Extra Credit You may earn up to 20 points of extra credit. Opportunities for extra credit will be announced in class; you need to be present to receive the assignment and points. All extra credit must be submitted by Wed. April 23, 2008.

Extra Credit Opportunity: https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit

Participate in one or more of the “Demonstration Tasks” to measure implicit attitude. Print a copy of your results page (this comes up after the demographic questions at the end). Write a report on your experience. Each lab report is worth up to 5 points. You may earn 20 points of extra credit. If you need further explanation of the implicit attitude test, see pages 169-170 in your workbook.