Psychology 380: Introduction to Social Psychology
Winter 2000
Section 002: Wednesday, 9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m., Rm. 432 West Hall
Section 003: Wednesday, 11:00 a.m.- 1:00 p.m., Rm. 1096 East Hall
GSI: Catherine Maroney
Office: 412B East Hall
Phone: T B A
Email: cmaroney@umich.edu
Office Hours: 10:00 am to 11:00 am Tuesday, or by appointment
Goals and Expectations
This discussion section will focus on each week's lectures and readings. Its purpose is to help you understand the social psychological concepts covered in class and to develop your scientific writing skills. You will be expected to attend and participate in this section to meet all requirements.
Schedule
Following is a tentative schedule of exam and paper due dates. The time and rooms for the three exams will be announced during lectures while the papers are to be turned in during discussion section.
January 26: Experimental Research Proposal Materials distributed
February 3: Exam One
February 16: Film Analysis Materials distributed
February 23: Experimental Research Proposal due
March 14: Exam Two
March 29: Film Analysis paper due
April 13: Exam Three
Course Grading
40% of your final grade is based on the discussion section:
15% Experiment Proposal Paper
15% Film Paper
10% Participation
Papers
All papers are to be typed and double-spaced, using 1" margins, 12 point-size and Times New Roman font. To ensure fairness, papers will be graded anonymously. Please use the last 6 digits of your social security number (do not use your name).
Papers are due at the beginning of section. Late papers are not accepted. If you have a personal reason for not meeting the above deadlines, you must contact me immediately. You must be able to show me that you have been working on the paper and have a legitimate reason for not meeting the deadline. Unless I have granted you an extension, late papers will be downgraded 1/3 of a grade for each day that it is late (i.e. One day late, an A becomes an A-; two days late, an A becomes a B+, etc.).
Plagiarism
Papers are expected to have proper citations within the text and a list of references included. Plagiarism consists of turning in a paper, or a portion of a paper, that someone else wrote. However, plagiarism also occurs when thoughts and ideas, that are not cited, are not your own. Please see the student handbook for a more complete definition for plagiarism. I will be available to help ensure proper documentation, but if any student is found plagiarizing or cheating, he or she will be reported to the Academic Judiciary Board.
The Writing Center (1139 Angell Hall, 4-0429, www.lsa.umich.edu/ecb/help/owl.html) is one resource you can use for reviewing drafts and improving your writing.
Participation
Your 10% participation grade will be determined by the extent you meet the requirements and expectations for discussion section. You should to come to class with the appropriate materials and having read the assigned textbook chapter and/or coursepack articles. In addition, asking and/or answering questions and actively participating in discussions is expected.
For each section we meet, starting January 19th, you are responsible for turning in a short reaction paper for the weekly readings. Reaction papers should be one page long, printed in Times New Roman 11pt font, and double-spaced. Below you will see what is assigned for each meeting:
Week / Date / Section / Topic / Reaction Paper Assignment
Week 3 / Jan 19 / Experimentation, Social Cognition / Gilovich (CP)
Week 4 / Jan 26 / Impression Formation, Attribution, Exam 1 Review / Chapter 4, 5
Week 5 / Feb 02 / The Self / Lau & Russell (CP)
Week 6 / Feb 09 / The Self continued, Attitudes & Persuasion / Snyder et al. (CP)
Week 7 / Feb 16 / Cognitive Dissonance / Chapter 6
Week 8 / Feb 23 / Social Influence & Compliance / Santos et al. (CP)
Week 9 / Mar 01 ** Break, no meeting--- --- --- --- ---
Week 10 / Mar 08 / Conformity & Obedience, Exam 2 Review / Chapter 8
Week 11 / Mar 15 / Group Processes / Chapter 9
Week 12 / Mar 22 / Stereotyping & Prejudice / Word et al. (CP)
Week 13 / Mar 29 / Attraction, Close Relationships / Chapter 10
Week 14 / Apr 05 / Aggression, Prosocial Behavior, Review for Exam 3 / Darley & Batson (CP)
* CP = Coursepack reading
The reaction paper is an opportunity for you to describe your impression of the assigned coursepack or textbook chapter reading. You are not to merely summarize the material. The purpose of the paper is to develop and utilize your critical thinking skills. For example, explain why you think the piece was interesting, why you agree/disagree, discuss how the findings relate to everyday life, and/or what the future implications of the findings are.
When a textbook chapter is assigned, choose any topic or social psychological phenomenon from the chapter for this week. Write about a personal experience and how this psychological topic relates to that experience. What did you find interesting? How does this apply to everyday life?
Reaction Paper Grading
Check + = 1.0 point
Check = .75 point
Check - = .50 point
Reaction papers are only accepted during section times (i.e. you will not be able to drop the paper off in a mailbox). No late reaction papers are accepted and reaction papers not turned in will receive zero points. If you need to miss a section, realize you will receive a zero for the reaction paper for that week. At the end of the term, the lowest two grades of the eleven reaction papers will be dropped.
Finally, I encourage that you utilize my office hours and/or e-mail me with questions or concerns regarding course material.