Course Syllabus, Spring 2004

Psychology 2606:   Social Psychology

Call Number 20734, M W, 3:00 – 4:15, DUAN G1B30

Class Website available at: http://psych-swiki.colorado.edu:8080/

Professor:     Dr. Angela Bryan                                       T.A.:                Vyga Kaufmann

Office:             Muenzinger D351C / IBS#1 Room 117 Office:             Muenzinger D320D

Phone:           735-1587 / 735-2099                                Phone:           735-6144

Email:             abryan@psych.colorado.edu                   Email:              kaufmanv@psych.colorado.edu

Office Hours: after class or by appt.                               Office Hours:1:30-3:00 W, or by appt.

Course Description: In the field of social psychology, we study the effects of the real or imagined presence of others on the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors of individuals.   The questions asked by social psychologists have to do with our daily lives in the social world, and often seek to find answers to social mysteries.   For example, why would a teenage boy confess to a murder he never committed?   Why are we more generous towards people from our own group and less so to people in other groups? Why would a woman in her 20's be attracted to an elderly man?   In this course, we will answer these questions and many others by studying the five major perspectives of social psychology.   In the context of these perspectives, we will look at the features of the person, the situation, and the interaction between the person and the situation that govern social behavior.   The three specific goals of this course are for you to: (1) Learn the major perspectives, theories, and issues in the field of social psychology, (2) Learn how social psychologists derive their hypotheses and test these hypotheses via both laboratory and applied research, and (3) Learn how social psychological theories and findings apply to your daily life.

Text (required):    Kenrick, D.T., Neuberg, S., & Cialdini, R. (2002). Social Psychology: Unraveling the Mystery, 2/e . Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Teaching philosophy: Research about learning, and my teaching experience, has shown that students learn and retain material better in a situation in which learning is active rather than passive, and cooperative rather than individual.   I have incorporated some of the principles of active and cooperative learning into my class, and try to be sensitive to the various types of learning styles that might exist among my students.   To this end, we will do active group learning exercises in this class that involve your participation.   Oftentimes these in-class group exercises will have associated extra credit.   These activities will not be announced ahead of time, and you must be in class to receive the extra credit.

Tests: There will be four non-cumulative tests. The fourth test will be given during the final exam period on May 3 rd .   You must take all four tests .   None will be dropped and there will be no makeup exams.   The only excuse accepted for missing a test is your illness, verified in writing by a physician's note, a very serious family problem, or a blizzard that dumps four feet of snow on the ground the night before an exam.   All tests will include both multiple-choice questions (bring a #2 pencil to all exams) as well as a few short answer/essay questions.

Students with Disabilities: If you have specific physical, psychiatric, or learning disabilities and require accommodations, please let me know early in the semester so that your learning needs may be appropriately met.   You will need to provide documentation of your disability to the Disability Services Office in Willard 322 (phone 303-492-8671).

Grading:   Your final grade in the course is based on your total points accumulated on the four tests. There is no opportunity for out-of-class extra credit in this class .   There will be opportunities in class to obtain extra credit points by participating in group activities. Your grade will then be determined based on the percentage of total points you earned in class.

Cheating/plagiarism: Any form of academic dishonesty, including cheating on exams, copying answers off of other students during exams, and having other students falsify your attendance on group activity days will absolutely not be tolerated in this class.   At the very least, you will receive a zero on the assignment.   All incidences of academic dishonesty will also be referred to the University's Committee on Academic Ethics, where you may face expulsion from the university.

Important University Dates to Remember:

MKL Day - no class	January 19, 2004
Spring Break	March 22-26, 2004
Last Day of Classes	Friday, April 30, 2004
Final Exam	Monday, May 3, 2004, 7:30am-10:00am

Tentative Lecture and Exam Schedule:

Unit #1

Unit #2

Unit #3

Unit #4

Note: I reserve the right to change any or all of this schedule as I see fit.   Changes in the schedule will be announced in class and posted on the class website.