PSYC260 SFU Syllabus PDF

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Psych 260—Introduction to Social Psychology [Spring 2020] [Friday, 9:30AM-12:20PM, AQ3181] Course Objectives This course is an introduction to the theories, methods, findings, and problems encountered in the study of people as social beings. Classic studies will be supplemented with recent research and the course will involve discussions around successful and failed replications of classic findings. Topics include: attitudes and values, social perception and cognition, group behavior, social influence, prejudice & discrimination, aggression, altruism, and interpersonal attraction and interpersonal relationships. By the end of this course you should: 1) Understand the current state of the field of social psychology and what that means for interpretation of findings, scientific integrity, and the recent changes in “doing” social psychology 2) Understand ways in which social psychological processes occur in daily life, such as how people perceive themselves and others and how they interact with the surrounding environment 3) Be able to examine social psychology from an empirically based, scholarly perspective, rather than from an intuitive or speculative perspective based solely on personal experience 4) Be able to evaluate social psychological situations and make predictions about behavior based upon social psychological theory and experimental findings 5) Be able to think critically about how theories in social psychology can inform policy 6) Be able to critically evaluate the conclusions from research and be able to communicate scientific findings and their interpretation to others. Instructor: email: Office: Office Hours:

Dr. Joshua D. Wright [email protected] RCB 6242 TBD

Teaching Assistants: Caroline Mackay, ([email protected]) Jason Proulx, RCB 8208 ([email protected]) TA Office Hours:

By appointment only.

Readings There is no required textbook for this course. All material necessary to succeed will come from lecture, assigned readings, and class discussion. Assigned readings will be noted in the syllabus. These will typically be research articles, which are the foundation of our field. You must get used to reading and discussing these. Where noted, the reading(s) listed must be read prior to class on the day it is listed. In some cases, we

will discuss the readings in class and all material from the readings are fair game for the exams, as is all material discussed in lecture. The lecture schedule is subject to change. Content may be shifted depending upon student interest in specific topics, due to availability of potential guest lecturers, or due to new developments in social psychology. EVALUATION You will complete two brief writing assignments throughout this course. The due dates are as follows: January 31 (Assignment 1) & March 27 (Assignment 2). Assignment 1 (15%) For any topic in social psychology, identify an original quantitative peer-reviewed article and a failed replication of that finding. Briefly describe the hypothesis, design, & results of the original. Then describe the results of the replication. Finally, determine which you find more believable and tell me why. Be specific about the strengths of one over the other. For some potential ideas, see www.curatescience.org. Your analysis should be a maximum of 750 words and submitted directly into the textbox on Canvas. All references should be cited in text and in a separate references section using APA style. The references section does not count toward the 750 -word maximum. The marking rubric can be found on CANVAS. Assignment 2 (15%) This assignment requires you to think about how a theory or finding(s) in social psychology can help us understand a societal problem. Select a societal problem that interests you and describe what the problem is and why this is a problem that society needs to solve. Then describe how your theory or social psychological finding of choice helps us understand the causes of that problem. Next, describe an evidence-based solution to the problem and how that solution could be practically implemented. Think about who needs to implement the solution and what the steps to implementing the solution are. Finally, I want you to consider limitations. Are there limitations to understanding the problem from the theoretical perspective you have chosen? What are they and how might they be overcome? Are there limitations to implementing the solution? What are they and how might they be overcome? Your analysis should be a maximum of 1000 words and submitted directly into the textbox on Canvas. All references should be cited in text and in a separate references section using APA style. The references section does not count toward the 1000 word maximum. The marking rubric can be found on CANVAS. Midterm Exam (35%) and Final Exam (35%) The midterm exam is worth 35% of your final grade and will take place in class on February

28th. The midterm will cover all material through February 21. The final exam is also worth 35% of your final grade and will take place on April 23, 8:3010:30, location TBD. The final exam is not cumulative and will cover material only from the second half of the course. The midterm exam w ill last 1.5 hours and will be composed of primarily multiple-choice questions with some short-answer questions. The final exam will last 2 hours and will be composed of multiple-choice and short-answer questions. Material from any assigned readings and the lectures are fair game. Lecture material includes videos, demonstrations, guest lectures and anything else presented or discussed during class. Both exams will require not only that you learn and understand a good amount of information, but also that you be able to synthesize this information and apply it to novel contexts. No electronic devices, including cell phones, will be allowed during exams with the exception of accommodations determined by the CSD (Centre for Students with Disabilities) or academic counseling. Grade Breakdown I adhere strictly to the following grade breakdown. I do not adjust grades based upon how close you are to the next letter grade, based upon what program(s) you are applying to in the future, based upon your scholarship status, based upon your academic status (e.g., probation), or based upon how well you have performed in other courses. Your mark is an accumulation of the points you have earned based upon the quality of work that you have submitted in this course. 100 - 95

= A+

74.99 - 70 = B-

94.99 - 90

= A

69.99 - 65 = C+

89.99 - 85

= A-

64.99 - 60 = C

84.99 - 80

= B+

59.99 - 55 = C-

79.99 - 75

= B

54.99 - 50 = D < 50 F

LECTURE SCHEDULE [January 10] Week 1: Syllabus, details for written assignments, brief introduction to social psychology, and a notetaking and writing workshop from the Student Learning Commons (https://www.lib.sfu.ca/about/branches-depts/slc) No required reading.

Optional Reading: 1. Baumeister, R.F. (2010). Social psychologists and thinking about people. In R.F. Baumeister & E.J. Finkel (Eds.), Advanced social psychology: The state of the science. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. This reading can be found here: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.472.9611&rep=rep1&type=pdf [January 17] Week 2: Doing Research in Social Psychology: Philosophy, Methods, and Interpretation No required reading. Optional Reading: 1. Wilson, T.D., Aronson, E., & Carlsmith, K. (2010). The art of laboratory experiment. In S.T. Fiske, D.T. Gilbert, & G. Lindzey (Eds.), Handbook of Social Psychology. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. 2. If you are struggling with understanding Karl Popper on Falsification or NHST, see Chapter 1 and Chapter 3 from Zoltan Dienes, Understanding Psychology as a Science These readings can be found in the optional reading folder on CANVAS as pdfs. [January 24] Week 3: The Current State of Social Psychology (Or How We Ended Up With QRP’s, Publication Bias, Political Bias, and Other Detriments to Social Psychology) Required Reading: 1. Knauer, T. (2019, October 1). Psychology’s replication crisis. Retrieved from: https://areomagazine.com/2019/10/01/psychologys-replication-crisis/ 2. Furguson, C.J. (2015). “Everybody knows psychology is not a real science”: Public perceptions of psychology and how we can improve our relationship with policymakers, the scientific community, and the general public. American Psychologist, 70(6), 527-542. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0039405 3. Duarte, J.L., Crawford, J.T., Stern, C., Haidt, J. (2014). Political diversity will improve social psychological science. Behavioral and Brain Science, e130, 1-13. doi: 10.1017/S0140525X14000430 Optional Reading: Reis, H.T. (2010). How we got from here to there: A brief history of social psychology. In R.F. Baumeister & E.J. Finkel (Eds.), Advanced social psychology: The state of the science. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. This reading can be found here: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.472.9611&rep=rep1&type=pdf [January 31] Week 4: Social Cognition & Social Perception

Writing Assignment 1 Due Required Reading: 1. Tversky, A., & Kahneman, D. (1974). Judgment under uncertainty: Heuristics and biases. Science, 185(4157), 1124-1131. doi: 10.1126/science.185.4157.1124 2. Jussim, L. (2017). Précis of social perception and social reality: Why accuracy dominates bias and self-fulfilling prophecy. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 40 (e1), 1-21. doi: 10.1017/S0140525X1500062X 3. Rule, N. O., & Sutherland, S. L. (2017). Social categorization from faces: Evidence from obvious and ambiguous groups. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 26(3), 231-236. doi: 10.1177/0963721417697970 [February 7]-NO CLASS [February 14] Week 6: Attitudes and Attitude Change No required reading. [February 21-READING WEEK] [February 28] Week 8: MIDTERM EXAM (First 1.5 hours of class) Lecture: Conformity & Obedience to Authority Required reading. 1. Russell, N. J. C. (2011). Milgram's obedience to authority experiments: Origins and early evolution. British Journal of Social Psychology, 50(1), 140-162. 2. Reicher, S., & Haslam, S. A. (2011). After shock? Towards a social identity explanation of the Milgram ‘obedience’ studies. British Journal of Social Psychology, 50(1), 163169. [March 6] Week 9: Group Processes and Social Identity Theory Required Reading: 1. Reicher, S., & Haslam, S. A. (2006). Rethinking the psychology of tyranny: The BBC prison study. British Journal of Social Psychology, 45(1), 1-40. https://doi.org/10.1348/014466605X48998 2. Zimbardo, P. G. (2006). On rethinking the psychology of tyranny: The BBC prison study. British Journal of Social Psychology, 45(1), 47-53. https://doi.org/10.1348/014466605X81720 [March 13] Week 10: Attraction and Close Relationships

No required reading [March 20] Week 11 : Prosocial Behavior No required reading [March 27] Lecture 12: Aggression Writing Assignment 2 Due Required Reading: Adachi, P. J., & Willoughby, T. (2011). The effect of video game competition and violence on aggressive behavior: Which characteristic has the greatest influence?. Psychology of Violence, 1(4), 259-274. doi: 10.1037/a0024908 Ferguson, C.J. (2010). Blazing angels or resident evil? Can violent video games be a force for good? Review of General Psychology, 14(2), 68-81. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0018941 [April 3] Week 13: Stereotyping, Prejudice, and Discrimination Required Reading: Correll, J., Hudson, S.M., Guillermo, S., & Ma, D.S. (2014). The police officer’s dilemma: A decade of research on racial bias in the decision to shoot. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 8(5), 201-213. doi: 10.1111/spc3.12099 Jussim, L., Crawford, J.T., & Rubinstein, R.S. (2015). Stereotype (In)accuracy in perceptions of groups and individuals. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 24(6), 490-497. doi: 10.1177/0963721415605257 Week 14: The final exam will take place on April 23, 8:30AM-10:30AM, Room TBD Other Course Policies Lecture Recordings Audio recordings of lectures are available here: https://www.sfu.ca/itservices/technical/av_services/burnaby/lecture_recording.html This should be used to assist in your review for exams. It is not a replacement for coming to class. I often use the white board/chalk board, present and discuss results through visuals, and promote class discussion, which you will miss if you choose to rely exclusively on audio recordings. Openness and Civility Class is a time for listening, thinking, discussing, and asking questions. You should feel free to express your thoughts regarding the class material or other relevant topics to social psychology more generally. In doing so, I expect you all to be civil to your classmates during periods of disagreement. Together we will unpack the literature in social psychology and the many heated debates regarding particular findings, particular measures, particular methods, and the biases that influence research in this field.

Attendance/Participation You are all adults and I will treat you with the independence that is concomitant with adulthood. I do not take official attendance and there are no points for either attendance or participation. You are in control of your learning; however, the students who perform well are generally those who attend lecture, actively take notes, engage with the material skeptically, ask clarifying questions, participate in discussion, and complete all course requirements. Laptops, Tablets, Phones Be respectful and use common sense—do not distract your neighbors (or yourself) with unrelated content. See the following review for optimal strategies regarding note taking: https://hilt.harvard.edu/files/hilt/files/notetaking_0.pdf Email Policy When emailing me or the TAs, please include “PSYC 260” in your email subject line. Expect response delays of at least 48 hours (not counting weekends or holidays). DO NOT send me or the TAs messages via Canvas. If you do, you will not receive a reply. You need to email us directly using the email addresses listed at the top of this syllabus. Email correspondence should be kept to short questions that can be answered ideally with a “yes” or “no”, or otherwise briefly in just a sentence. Except for very minor questions that can be quickly addressed via email, visit us during office hours. Do not be surprised if you receive a response to an email that says, “please come see one of us in office hours.” Finally, please review this document to see if your question is already answered here. Missing Classes If you have been absent, please do not email to ask what you missed—review the audio recording of the lecture, check the posted slides, check the reading list, and consult your classmates. If you still have questions about the material you missed, please visit us in office hours. Lecture Slides Lecture slides will be posted on Canvas before the lecture, usually at least an hour in advance. These slides do NOT contain all material we will cover in class —they are not a substitute for attending class, doing the readings, and taking your own notes. There will be content covered in class that is not in the required readings and there will be content covered in the required readings that may not be discussed in class. If you do not know how to take good notes I suggest you attend a workshop or consultation at the Student Learning Commons (https://www.lib.sfu.ca/about/branches-depts/slc/offer) Accommodations If you have a disability that might require accommodations, please notify me as soon as possible. The Centre for Students with Disabilities (http://students.sfu.ca/disabilityaccess/) exists to ensure that fair and reasonable accommodations are made for students who need them. Extra Credit There is one opportunity for extra credit in this course, which takes place during the lecture on prosocial

behavior. The number of points are collectively earned through class performance during an in-class activity. There are no additional opportunities for extra credit. Your final mark is based upon the marks received for the course requirements listed in this syllabus. DO NOT email me asking for additional points beyond that which you have earned. Late Policy Time management is an important skill to develop during your undergraduate years. Any late assignments will be penalized 10% per day up to three days. After this you will receive a zero for that assignment. However, there are legitimate personal reasons that can influence your ability to submit an assignment on time or attend an exam at the scheduled time. These will be handled on a case-by-case basis, although generally late assignments will only be accepted in the case of unforeseeable emergencies. If you miss an exam or miss an assignment deadline, you must contact me immediately to discuss. Marking of Assignments and Exams/Appealing Marks Your TA’s are responsible for marking your assignments and exams. They do so using the rubric posted on CANVAS. Should you find your mark unsatisfactory for substantive reasons, you may appeal your mark to me. I will then mark your assignment/exam and my mark will stand. Note that your mark may go up or it may go down, and my mark will supersede the TA’s mark regardless. Missed Exams If you must miss an exam or paper deadline for medical reasons, please: • contact me as soon as possible to let me know that you will be making a request for accommodation (this should be done prior to the test date or paper deadline whenever possible). • complete a Health Care Provider Statement Form (available at https://www.sfu.ca/content/dam/sfu/students/pdf/healthcare-statement-general.pdf) and submit to me. If you believe that you have a legitimate non-medical reason why you must miss an exam or a paper deadline, please: • Contact me as soon as possible to let me know that you will be making a request for accommodation (this should be done prior to the test date or paper deadline whenever possible). • Provide supporting documentation and detailed reasoning as to why you perceive this as a valid excuse. • Other than the mandated accommodation for final exam hardship (see: http://students.sfu.ca/exams.html), I will NOT provide accommodation because students have “too much other coursework” or “too many other deadlines”. Academic Dishonesty My expectation is that we are all here to learn and enjoy the process of acquiring and sharing knowledge. Academic dishonesty undermines this basic purpose. You should be aware that all acts of intellectual dishonesty (www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/student/s10-01.html) will be handled in accordance with SFU policy (www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/student/s10-02.html).

Other Resources: Health and Counseling Services: http://www.sfu.ca/students/health/services/counselling.html Student Learning Commons https://www.lib.sfu.ca/about/branches-depts/slc *THIS SYLLABUS IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE. PAY ATTENTION TO ANNOUNCEMENTS ON CANVAS....