theoretical perspectives in social psychology, sociology, and psychology. • She/
He will be ... These books can be purchased at the Western Book Store and are.
THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN ONTARIO DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY 2234E UW/001 COURSE OUTLINE 2013-14 Class Time: Wednesdays 6:00-9:00pm Room: SSC 3006 Instructor: Darren Rainhard Office: To Be Announced Email:
[email protected] Office Hours: Wednesdays 3:00-6:00pm
The Aim of this Course and Its Objectives This course introduces the student to basic information required to appreciate what constitutes a social psychological perspective on “individuals and social processes.” However, I do not teach this course simply as a "survey" of the most popular research areas of interest in social psychology. Instead, the course focuses on the problems encountered when one attempts to generate a logically defensible notion of “the individual.” It is this theme that is investigated through the "lenses" provided by various sub-disciplines of social psychology. Prerequisite(s): Sociology 1020 or Sociology 1021E Antirequisite(s): Sociology 2233
Student Learning Outcomes 1. The successful student will be able to analyze and critically evaluate a number of major theoretical perspectives in social psychology, sociology, and psychology. • She/He will be able to identify and critically evaluate how proponents of each of the introduced theoretical perspectives conceptualize the individual and social structure. • She/He will be able to deconstruct complex theoretical arguments into their element parts and critically evaluate them. • She/He will be able to highlight divergences between and among different theoretical perspectives as well as make recommendations regarding their possible integration. 2. The successful student will be able to construct logical arguments and defend them. • She/He will be able to make recommendations regarding the practical application of the introduced theoretical ideas and constructs. • She/He will be able to develop evidence-based arguments.
3. The successful student will be able to demonstrate well-developed communications skills. • She/He will be able to demonstrate proficient verbal communication skills evidenced in in-class discussions. • She/He will be able to demonstrate effective written communication skills evidenced in the written components of the course.
Required Textbook, Essay Texts, and Weekly Reading Schedule Required Textbook: Social Psychology: A Sociological Perspective (Christine M. Von Der Haar) Other Required Readings: Other required readings are available at owl.uwo.ca. (You can find them in“Resources”) Essay Texts: Below you will find a list of four books. Each student in the course must read one of these four books. Your Book Review (due January 15) and your Major Essay (due March 5) will be based on the book you have selected. These books can be purchased at the Western Book Store and are available for loan via Western Libraries. Again, you only need to read one of these four books! Erik Erikson..................Childhood and Society (Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 11) George H. Mead............On Social Psychology (Chapters: 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8) Jean Piaget....................The Moral Judgment of the Child (Forward, Chapters: 1, 2, 3) Thomas Szasz...............The Myth of Mental Illness (Entire Book) Reading Schedule: Note: My lectures throughout the year address several topics that are not included in your reading. Thus, the lectures I give on the subjects you do read about will not necessarily correspond with the schedule of reading that appears below. First Term Week of: September 11 September 18 September 25 October 2, 9 October 16, 23 October 30, November 6 November 13, 20 November 27 December 4 Mid-Year Exam Period
Bring Course Outline to Class Von Der Haar: Chapter 1 Hewitt: Chapter 1 (on owl.uwo.ca) Von Der Haar: Chapter 2 / Read Essay Text Von Der Haar: Chapter 3 / Read Essay Text Muuss: Chapter 3 (on owl.uwo.ca) / Read Essay Text Von Der Haar: Chapter 9 / Read Essay Text Read Essay Text/Work on Book Review Read Essay Text/Work on Book Review Term Test 2
Second Term Week of: January 8 January 15 January 22 January 29 February 5 February 12 Reading Week February 26 March 5 March 12 March 19 March 26 April 2 April Exam Period
Von Der Haar: Chapter 2 (pages 40-47 (Piaget Only!)) Book Review Due (8 pages in length) Muuss: Chapter 9 (on owl.uwo.ca) Von Der Haar: Chapter 6 Von Der Haar: Chapter 11 Von Der Haar: Chapter 12 Von Der Haar: Chapter 7 Essay Due (10-12 pages in length) Von Der Haar: Chapter 8 Von Der Haar: Chapter 4 Manis and Meltzer: Chapter 1 (on owl.uwo.ca) Review Final Exam
Book Review and Major Essay Your Book Review and Major Essay will be based on the one essay text you have selected (see above). As you will notice in the course reading schedule, I have made the reading of your essay text a regular part of your weekly readings during much of the first term. These readings are quite difficult and I very much expect that you will need to revisit parts of your book several times as you prepare both your book review and major essay. Detailed instructions for the writing of both your Book Review and Major Essay will be provided in lecture. A Note about Your Book Review: Your Book Review must be 8 pages in length, typed, and double-spaced. It must be handed in on January 15. Important: Late papers will be penalized at the rate of 3% per day for the first five days, including weekends. (Of course, medical and other emergencies will be respected provided that proper documentation is provided.) After the fifth day, late papers will not be read. A Note about Your Major Essay: Your Major Essay must be 10 to 12 pages in length, typed, and double-spaced. It must be handed in no later than March 5. Important: Late papers will be penalized at the rate of 3% per day for the first five days, including weekends. (Of course, medical and other emergencies will be respected provided that proper documentation is provided.) After the fifth day, late papers will not be read.
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Exams, Assignments, Grades, and Student Obligations Exams: There will be two exams in this course: 1. Term Test (During the Mid-Year Exam Period) 2. Final Exam (During the April Exam Period) Both exams will contain: 1. Multiple Choice Questions 2. Short Answer Questions 3. Short Essay Questions Assignments: Each student is required to submit a: 1. Book Review on January 15 2. Major Essay on or before March 5. Grades will be Calculated as Follows: Term Test (Mid-Year Exam Period)......20% of final grade (based on first term reading and lectures) Book Review (January 15).....................20% of final grade Major Essay (March 5)...........................30% of final grade Final Exam (April Exam Period)...........30% of final grade (based on second term reading, as well as year's lecture material) Department of Sociology guidelines require a particular course grade distribution, which may require curving or otherwise adjusting your course grade in order to meet this requirement. As much as possible, your earned course grade will be the grade you receive. For 2200-level courses, the course mean is to be between a 66-70%, and there are to be more Bs than As. Note: "Unless you have either the requisites for this course or written special permission from your Dean to enroll in it, you will be removed from this course and it will be deleted from your record. This decision may not be appealed. You will receive no adjustment to your fees in the event that you are dropped form a course for failing to have the necessary prerequisites." Plagiarism (Also see page below): "Students must write their essays and assignments in their own words. Whenever students take an idea, or a passage from another author, they must acknowledge their debt both by using quotation marks where appropriate and by proper referencing such as footnotes or citations. Plagiarism is a major academic offense (see Scholastic Offense Policy in the Western Academic Calendar)."
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Missed Assignments and Late Assignments: You should understand that academic accommodation will not be granted automatically on request. If, due to medical illness, you cannot write a test or exam, or submit an assignment by the due date, it is your responsibility to follow the University’s new “Policy on Accommodation for Medical Illness”. This policy can be accessed at: http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/handbook/ appeals/medical.pdf Compassionate Grounds: Serious Illness of a Family Member: Inform your instructor as soon as possible and submit a medical certificate from the family member's physician to your home faculty’s Academic Counseling office. In Case of a Death: Inform your instructor as soon as possible and submit a copy of the newspaper notice, death certificate or documentation provided by the funeral director to your home faculty’s Academic Counseling office. Support Services: Students who are in emotional/mental distress should refer to MentalHealth@Western (http://www.uwo.ca/uwocom/mentalhealth/) for a complete list of options about how to obtain help.
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PLAGIARISM* In writing scholarly papers, you must keep firmly in mind the need to avoid plagiarism. Plagiarism is the unacknowledged borrowing of another writer’s words or ideas. Different forms of writing require different forms of acknowledgement. The following rules pertain to the acknowledgements necessary in academic papers. A. You are plagiarizing if you use a sequence of words, a sentence or a paragraph taken from other writers without acknowledging them to be theirs. In using another writer’s words, you MUST both place the words in quotation marks and acknowledge that the words are those of another writer. In acknowledging a source from which a quote has been taken, you are to use the Style Guide recommended by your professor. Note that you cannot avoid indicating quotation simply by changing a word or phrase in a sentence or paragraph which is not your own. B. In adopting other writer’s ideas, you must acknowledge that they are theirs. You are plagiarizing if you adopt, summarize, or paraphrase other writer’s trains of argument, ideas or sequences of ideas without acknowledging their authorship according to the method of acknowledgement given in “A” above. Since the words are your own they need not be enclosed in quotation marks. Be certain, however, that the words you use are entirely your own: where you must use words or phrases from your source, these should be enclosed in quotation marks, as in “A” above. Clearly, it is possible for you to formulate arguments or ideas independently of another writer who has expounded the same ideas, and whom you have not read. Where you got your ideas is the important consideration here. Do not be afraid to present an argument or idea without acknowledgement to another writer, if you have arrived at it entirely independently. Acknowledge it if you have derived it from a source outside your own thinking on the subject. In short, use of acknowledgement and, when necessary, quotation marks if necessary to distinguish clearly between what is yours and what is not. Since the rules have been explained to you, if you fail to make this distinction, your instructor very likely will do so for you, and they will be forced to regard your omission as intentional literary theft. Plagiarism is a serious offence which may result in a student’s receiving an “F” in a course or, in extreme cases, in their suspension from the University. *This document was originally prepared by the Department of History, and subsequently adopted by the Faculty of Social Science; the section relating to the acknowledgement of sources has been modified.
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Please contact the course instructor if you require material in an alternate format or if you require any other arrangements to make this course more accessible to you. You may also wish to contact Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) at 661-2111 x 82147 for any specific question regarding an accommodation.
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