50249 Psychology

Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
Credit points: 8 cp
Result Type: Grade, no marks

Handbook description

This subject is designed to introduce students to the theories, principles and practices of psychological research and to explore the application of psychological concepts to everyday life and to the workplace. Students examine how people perceive, interact and influence each other in social situations, the biological bases of human behaviour, including perception, memory, learning and motivation, and the nature of individual differences. Learning strategies include lectures, small group and experimental work.

Subject objectives/outcomes

On completion of this subject students are expected to be able to:

gain an appreciation of psychology's scientific nature including the advantages of empiricism
understand psychological theories, concepts and principles and their contribution to a variety of disciplines
explain behavior from different theoretical perspectives.
apply psychological concepts/theories to everyday life and the workplace
apply critical reasoning skills to psychological theory in its application to understanding human behavior.
gain an appreciation of the effect groups and culture have on our behavior and understand how different cultural systems can construct different patterns of attitudes, thinking, and subjective experience.
understand how our experience of the world is highly subjective.
appreciate the complexity and multifactorial causation of human behavior.

Contribution to graduate profile

In this subject, students will gain an understanding of the complexity of human behaviour and be able to apply psychological theories to everyday life and to the workplace.

Teaching and learning strategies

Learning will take place by way of lectures, and tutorials utilizing videos, class presentations, practical activities including class experiments as well as class discussion of class presentations.

Content

The lecture series attempts to show how psychologists, from different theoretical perspectives, attempt to explain human behavior, thoughts and feelings.(Objectives a,b,c,d,e,f,g and h).

The lecture content includes:

The historical roots of psychology and how psychology is distinguished from such fields as psychiatry, sociology and social work
evolutionary and biological bases of behavior
introduction to a variety of often divergent psychological perspectives
evolutionary and biological bases of behavior
learning
cognitive psychology
memory
motivation and emotion
personality and psychodynamics
social and societal psychology
psychological treatments

The tutorial programme attempts to:

enhance the student's appreciation of psychology's scientific nature through discussion of research methodology which is supplemented by class experiments and practical exercises. Students will also be introduced to a variety of ways that psychologists gather data, e.g. experiments, surveys, observation etc.
show how psychological theory and concepts can be related to everyday life and the workplace. This is achieved by way of class discussion generated from student presentations and from lecture/text content. (Objectives a,b,c,d,e,f,g and h)..

Assessment

There are three assessment items.

Further details will be discussed in class.

Assessment item 1: Report and class presentation

Objectives	b,c,d, and h.
Value	Presentation: 30%; Report 10%
Due	Presentations: from weeks 4 to 13; Reports:- due at the time of the class presentation.
Task	There are two components to this task. This is an individual assignment, where students examine and interpret the contents of a current media item/issue from different psychological perspectives and then relate the content/theoretical perspectives to issues in everyday life or the workplace. Your task is to examine and report upon some salient literature or readings associated with your topic presenting an account of a significant research study on that topic and you may also choose to develop creative ways of involving other students to enable them to expand their understanding of your topic: such activities may include class debates, hypotheticals, role plays, brainstorming, group work, audio-visual materials or other stimulus material. You should discuss your topic and manner of approach with your tutor at least a week prior to your tutorial session.
Task 1 - Report (2,000 words)	You should submit at the time of your presentation a 2000-word Report summarising your examination of the issue and presenting some salient literature concerning your topic, and this is to made available to all participants by posting to the UTSOnline site.
Assessment criteria	Appropriate choice of media article etc. in that the content can be directly applied to psychological theory and can therefore be interpreted from a variety of psychological perspectives and applied to everyday life or the workplace. Ability to critically evaluate the application of theory to the media item Evidence of wide and relevant reading. Correct acknowledgment of sources Appropriate presentation in report format.
Task 2 - Class Presentation	The report will provide the basis for a 10-minute class presentation. The presentation component will be graded on a Pass/Fail basis.
Assessment criteria	Relevant content Clear presentation with appropriate use of overhead and board Evidence of a clear understanding of the theories to which referred Ability to generate class discussion and respond to student/tutor questions

Assessment item 2 In-class review test

Objectives	a,b,d, and e.
Value	25%
Due	Week 7
Task	This test will be up to one hour in length and entails multiple choice questions on topics covered in lectures and tutorials up to that time.
Assessment criteria	evidence of knowledge of psychological terminology, concepts, theories, principles, and research findings ability to use facts to interpret information, analyse relationships, and apply concepts to novel scenarios not discussed in the text. ability to link, synthesize, and interrelate information from different theoretical perspectives.

Assessment item 3: Final InClass Review

Objectives	d,e,f,g, and h.
Value	35%
Due	Week 14
Task	This will be 50 minutes in length and will involve short-essay answers to questions, guides for which will be distributed one week prior to the examination and will predominantly relate to topics covered since the review test.
Assessment criteria	ability to integrate information from both lecture content and set text readings evidence of a sound understanding of psychological concepts, theories, principles and how they operate in everyday life and in the workplace ability to support assertions with logical argument (based on theory) and/or research findings.

Minimum requirements

Students are expected to read the subject outline to ensure they are familiar with the subject requirements. Since class discussion and participation in activities form an integral part of this subject, you are expected to attend, arrive punctually and actively participate in classes. If you experience difficulties meeting this requirement, please contact your lecturer. Students who have a reason for extended absence (e.g., illness) may be required to complete additional work to ensure they achieve the subject objectives.

Attendance is particularly important in this subject because it is based on a collaborative approach which involves essential workshopping and interchange of ideas. Students who attend fewer than ten classes are advised that their final work will not be assessed and that they are likely to fail the subject.

Required text(s)

The set text is:

Weiten, W. (2006) Psychology: Themes and Variations (7th ed. CA; Brooks/Cole).

Indicative references

Further relevant readings include the following, and others that will be offered for each lecture:-

Abramson, L.Y., Alloy. L. B., & Metalsky, J. I. (1995). Hopelessness depression. In J.N. Buchanan, & M. E.P. Seligman (Eds.), Explanatory style. Hillsdale, NJ: Erbaum

Asch, S.E. (1995). Opinions and social pressures. Scientific American,193(5), 31-35.

Baddeley, A.D. (1989) The uses of working memory. In P.R. Solomon, G.R. Geothals, C.M. Kelley, & B.R. Stephens (Eds.), Memory: Interdisciplinary approaches. New York: Springer-Verlag.

Bandura, A. (1999). Social cognitive theory of personality. In L.A. Pervin, & O.P. John (Eds.), Handbook of personality: Theory and research. New York: Guilford Press.

Banyard, P. and Grayson, A. (2008) Introducing Psychological Research 3rd ed. Palgrave Macmillan

Barlow, D.H., & Durand, V.M. (1999). Abnormal Psychology: An investigative approach. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

Basow, S.A. (1992). Gender: Stereotypes and roles. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole.

Beck, Aaron T., Arthur Freeman, Denise D. Davis & associates (2004) Cognitive therapy of personality disorders. New York : Guilford Press.

Beck, A.T. (1991). Cognitive therapy: A 30-year retrospective. American Psychologist, 46, 368-375.

Benjamin, Jr. Ludy T. (2007) A brief history of modern psychology. Oxford : Blackwell Pub.

Blanchard, E.B. (1994). Behavioral medicine and health psychology. In A.E. Bergin & S.L. Garfield (Eds.), Handbook of Psychotherapy and behavior change(4th ed.). New York: Wiley.

Brafman, O. and Brafman, R. (2008) Sway: The irresistible pull of irrational behaviour. Doubleday

Brislin, R. (1993). Understanding culture's influence on behavior Fort Worth: Harcourt Brace College Publishers.

Brizendine, Louann (2006) The Female Brain. Morgan Road, Broadway

Buller, David J. (2005), Adapting Minds : Evolutionary Psychology and the Persistent Quest for Human Nature MIT Press

Buss, D.M. (1999). Evolutionary psychology: The new science of the mind. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Carlson, N.R., Martin, G.N., and Buskist, W. (2005) Psychology, 2nd European Ed. Pearson

Clarke-Stewart, Alison, and Judy Dunn (eds, 2006) Families count : effects on child and adolescent development. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.

Cramer, Phebe (2006) Protecting the self : defense mechanisms in action. New York : Guilford Press.

Crowder, R.G. (1993). Short-term memory: Where do we stand? Memory & Cognition. 21, 142-45.

Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly and Isabella Selega Csikszentmihalyi (eds, 2006). A life worth living : contributions to positive psychology. Oxford University Press.

Dovidio, J.F., & Gaertner, S.L. (1999). Reducing prejudice: Combating inter-group biases. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 8, 101-105.

Eagley.A.H., & Wood, W. (1999). The origins of sex differences in human behavior: Evolved dispositions versus social roles. American Psychologist, 54, 408-423.

Feasey, Don (2005) Therapy : intimacy between strangers. New York, Palgrave Macmillan.

Feist, J. and Feist, G.J. (2005) Theories of Personality. McGrawHill

Fiske, Susan T. ; Daniel L. Schacter, and Carolyn Zahn-Waxler (2007) Annual Review of Psychology. American Psychological Association

Gaultney, Jane F. (2007) Doing research : a lab manual for psychology. Belmont, CA : Thomson Wadsworth.

Goldstein, E., & Farmer, K. (Eds.) (1993). True stories of false memories.Boca Raton, FL: Sir Publishing.

Green,Christopher D.and Philip R. Groff. (2003) Early psychological thought : ancient accounts of mind and soul. Westport, Conn. : Praeger.

Gross, Daniel M. (2006) The secret history of emotion : from Aristotle's rhetoric to modern brain science. Chicago : University of Chicago Press.

Guthrie, Robert V. (2004) Even the rat was white: A historical view of psychology. Boston, MA : Allyn and Bacon.

Harris, Judith Rich (2006) No two alike : human nature and human individuality. New York : W.W. Norton & Co.

Hauser, Marc D. (2006) Moral minds : how nature designed our universal sense of right and wrong. New York : Ecco.

Held,Carsten; Markus Knauff, and Gottfried Vosgerau (eds, 2006) .Mental models and the mind : Current developments in cognitive psychology, neuroscience, and philosophy of mind. Amsterdam ; Boston : Elsevier.

Hoare, Carol (ed. 2006) Handbook of adult development and learning. Oxford New York : Oxford University Press.

Jablonka, Eva, Marion J. Lamb, (2005) Evolution in Four Dimensions : Genetic, Epigenetic, Behavioral, and Symbolic Variation in the History of Life. (Life and Mind: Philosophical Issues in Biology and Psychology) MIT Press.

Kramer, Peter D. (2006) Freud : inventor of the modern mind. New York : Atlas Books : HarperCollins.

Larsen, R.J. and Buss, D.M. (2005) Personality Psychology: Domains of knowledge about Human Nature. 2nd ed. McGrawHill

Latane, B. (1981) The psychology of social impact. American Psychologist,36, 343-356.

Loftus, E.F., & Ketcham, K. (1994). The myth of repressed memory: False memories and allegations of sexual abuse. New York: St. Martin's Press.

Marcus, G. (2008) Kluge: The haphazard construction of the human mind Houghton Mifflin

Mark, V. (1996). Conflicting communicative behavior in a split brain patient: Support for dual consciousness. In S.R. Hameroff, A.W. Kaszniak, & A.C. Scott (Eds.), Toward a science of consciousness. The first Tucson discussions and debates. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

McNally, R.J. (1996). Panic disorder: A critical analysis.New York: Guilford Press.

Milgram, S. (1974). Obedience to authority.New York: Harper & Row.

Mithen, Steven (1996) The Prehistory of the Mind: The cognitive origins of art and science. Thames and Hudson

Mroczek, Daniel K. and Todd D. Little (eds, 2006) .Handbook of personality development. Mahwah, N.J. : Lawrence Erlbaum.

Myers, D.G. (2007) Psychology 8th ed. Worth Publishers

Penney, James (2006) The world of perversion : psychoanalysis and the impossible absolute of desire. Albany : State University of New York Press.

Pickren, Wade E. and Donald A. Dewsbury (eds, 2002).Evolving perspectives on the history of Psychology .Washington, DC : American Psychological Association.

Pinker, Steven (2002) The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature. Viking Press

Rachman, S.J. (1992) Behavior therapy. In L.R. Squire (Ed.), Encyclopedia of learning and memory.New York: Macmillan.

Reber, Arthur S. & Emily S. Reber (2001) The Penguin dictionary of Psychology.

London Penguin Books.

Rosenthal, R (1976). Experimenter effects in behavioral research. New York: Halsted.

Seligman, M.E.P. (1995). The effectiveness of psychotherapy. American Psychologist, 50, 965-974.

Singer, Jefferson A.(2005) Personality and psychotherapy : Treating the whole person New York : Guilford Press.

Singer, Peter (2000) A Darwinian Left: Politics, Evolution, and Cooperation, Yale Univ.

Wallace, B., & Fisher, L.E. (1999) Consciousness and behavior. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Wampold, B.E., (2001) The Great Psychotherapy Debate: Models, Methods, and Findings Lawrence Erlbaum

Weston, D., Burton, L., and Kowalski, R. (2006) Psychology: Australian and New Zealand edition Wiley

Vohs,Kathleen D. and Eli J. Finkel (eds. 2006) Self and relationships : connecting intrapersonal and interpersonal processes. New York : Guilford Press.