Social psychology is the study of how the individual interacts with and is influenced by the world around him/her. Unlike abnormal psychology, social psychology is the everyday psychology of “normal” people. It provides us with insights into basic human nature – the good, the bad, and the ugly – and is relevant to our daily lives. In this class, we will learn about what underlies the best and the worst of human behavior. We’ll deal with tough topics like prejudice and violence as well as learn about love and altruism. We will draw on examples from the world around us to help us apply the material.

The objectives of this class are as follows:To develop your understanding of the scientific method behind social psychology To familiarize you with theories to increase your understanding of social behaviorTo encourage you to apply the concepts you learn to your life and think critically about your social world

Course Overview

Required TextsBaumeister, R. F. & Bushman, B.J. (2013, 3rd edition). Social Psychology & Human Nature, Brief Edition. Belmont, CA: Thompson/Wadsworth**

** I am using the next to latest edition so that you can find used versions of the text but this does make it even more important for you to attend class as there have definitely been developments in the past 5 years.

Course Requirements and StructureWEEKLY READINGS: A schedule of the weekly readings appears on the last page of this syllabus. Generally, one-two chapters from the required text are assigned per week. Because the material presented in lecture will build on what you have read in the text, students are advised to keep up with the reading week by week rather than putting it off until right before the exams. Remember that it is easier to understand the lecture and discussion section material if you have read up on it beforehand. You should use key term lists at the conclusion of each chapter as a study guide. Your mastery of assigned readings will contribute 30-50% toward your exam grade (varies by exam). Be sure you

Psychology 3623: Social PsychologySpring 2019, Monday and Wednesday 12:30-1:45 in Old Main 1200

Professor Teaching AssistantDr. H. Colleen Sinclair Ms. Jessica Utley178 Social Science Research Center 100-B Social Science Research Center

In the Mississippi Technology Center in the Research Park (NOT MAGRUDER HALL)

ContactCOURSE WEBSITE: http://introtosocialpsychologyatmsu.weebly.com/

Office hours: 2:00 to 4:00 on Tuesday (I can also stick around after class on Monday if you want to walk with me to Starbucks for a 30 minute coffee break – other hours by appointment.). TA office hours will be on Mondays from 9:00 until 11:00, and Fridays from 1:00 until 3:00.

E-Mail Address: Use e-mail or contact form on course websites, also available on Yahoo Instant Messenger (Yahoo ID: selfmoderator, Twitter: MSUSocialPsy, Instagram: h.colleen.sinclair, Skype: hicosin)TA may be contacted at jessica.utley@ssrc.msstate.edu, or on Twitter: @xxjessis.

know your key terms (at the end of each chapter they are highlighted) and be able to apply them.

LECTURES: Lectures will typically be held twice a week during the regularly scheduled class meeting times. My “lectures” are a little different from typical lectures. You are probably used to the professor teaching from the textbook, being something of a walking dictionary for terms in the text. Yes, there will be some overlap between material in the text and what is discussed in class, but there will be a lot different as well. For example, our first talk is on “social brains” which is three paragraphs in your book, but a whole talk in class because this is cutting edge in our current sub-field of social neuroscience. I view our class time as a chance to expound on interesting elements, tying them in with current events and cutting edge research – not to rehash what you should have just read. I will focus on topics and questions, and have a theme for each day (as indicated by the titles). There will also be occasional film presentations (some are embedded in the slides, many are not) and in-class demonstrations or activities.

This semester: I will be trying out a handful of FLIPPED classes, where I will post the lecture online in advance of class which you should watch, and then we will come to class to have a large-scale project/in-class assignment. If you hate it, I won’t keep doing it.

IN-CLASS ASSIGNMENTS: In order to facilitate understanding of the material, I will utilize in-class individual and group exercises. Individual in-class exercises (e.g. three minute thought papers, pop quizzes) will be worth 2 points each (2 points for those you actually put thought into – not guaranteed). Group exercises will vary – for instance, you and a group of peers may be asked to apply persuasion techniques to develop an advertising campaign for a new product or using research on attraction design a dating service. These group exercises will take more time than individual in-class exercises and thus will be worth double points (and sometimes double the double depending on how well you complete the task as sometimes in class, amount of points is determined by successful performance). Your input into the group product will be evaluated by your

peers. No make-up assignments for in-class exercises will be granted. Assignment are “in-class” for a reason, if you are not in class, you miss the opportunity to complete that assignment. You will get to drop a total of 12 points of in-class exercises (as again, there are no make-ups).

To benefit maximally from lectures and activities in class, students are strongly advised to complete the assigned readings before the class day for which they are assigned

TAKE-HOME ASSIGNMENTS: Occasionally take-home assignments (4-6 times a semester worth 10 points each) will be used to facilitate in-class discussion, prepare for future material, or apply concepts. Take-home assignments will include blog/journal entries where I will pose a thought question that takes more than three minutes to think/write about. Homework assignments may also include media, research or creative projects where you are asked to create a mini-collage, collect advertisements/newspaper articles that illustrate a psychological concept, write a Dear Abby letter/response or survey friends. Assignments will be graded on the following basis: 1.) Integration of class material, 2.) Evidence of critical thinking, 3.) Successfully addressed ALL components of the assignment, 4) Accuracy and 5.) Quality of presentation, and 6) Clarity of thought/grammar (yes, I do grade for grammar – it doesn’t just matter in English class) A Note about “INCOMPLETES”:. On some assignments, some aspects will be more relevant than others. The biggest mistake students make is to miss content points due to simply not completing all parts of the assignment. This is the easiest to address. Just make a checklist of the components of the assignment and check it against what you have produced to make sure everything is present.

On occasion we reserve the right to give bonus points to students who went above and beyond the call of the assignment (so try to do an excellent job because these points are bonuses – not extra credit). Any take home assignments that are assigned are due by the end of the class period (time set on the Canvas site as well). Some of these assignments will be turned in online unless otherwise specified – such as if we are reviewing the assignment in class or if it is a creative project. No assignments submitted after that time will be accepted. Rest assured that you will get to drop your lowest assignment (which is one of the reasons NO LATE ASSIGNMENTS ARE ACCEPTED – if you are not in-class, get a friend to bring it in or turn it in online). My advice is to do all the assignments so that then you can simply have an assignment you did not do so well on dropped. ALL HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS MUST BE TYPED. WE WILL NOT GRADE ANY HANDWRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS UNLESS EXPLICITLY NOTED. IF YOUR PRINTER ISN’T WORKING, UPLOAD IT.

The first two assignments are imperative to class exercises, so if you elect not to complete them you will not be able to complete the in-class activity either. Future assignments are TBD and based on what I come up with. Assignments must be turned in during the class period (or before) but are not accepted after.

NEW this semester: I will be trying out SELF-GRADING (and peer grading), where you submit your assignment online and then are provided with a grading rubric and a peer assignment. You are to assess your own work and the work of a randomly assigned peer (you will not know their name and they will not know yours). This has multiple purposes. 1) It is critical in life that you learn to honestly evaluate your work. If you perpetually suffer from inflated perceptions of your contributions, you will never learn where you need to improve. Conversely, if you constantly underestimate yourself you may be less likely to try new things because you think you can’t do them anyway. 2) You also need to be able to fairly evaluate others. It is likely in life that as you move on in careers you will be in a position to evaluate the contribution of your co-workers or

employees (and often won’t have the luxury of anonymity). 3) It will encourage attention to detail and test your ability to follow instructions. 4) It will give you perspective on how long it can take an instructor to do this for an entire class (and the difference between earning grades vs. being “given” a grade).

Now, before you think “Well, I am just going to give myself an A” – keep in mind 1) You are going to have to turn the completed rubric back in for yourself and your peer, 2) Likewise, your peer is turning in an evaluation of you, 3) we will be comparing these evaluations and looking for discrepancies, 4) if there is concurrence within an 8% margin of error on the grading you will be awarded the averaged grade, 5) if there is a large discrepancy, we will provide the tie-breaking vote, 6) if grade inflation is discovered, points will be deducted. Amount deducted will be determined by the size of the discrepancy. For example if you inflate your grade by 10% you will receive a 5% deduction in your assignment grade. If you inflated your peer’s grade by 20% you will receive a 10% deduction on your peer grading points (you get 5 points for each grading rubric submitted so self-graded assignments are, in essence, worth double the points).

Note on Assignments: Combined in-class and take-home assignments can make the difference of a grade. If you do them well, it can mean the difference between a B and an A. If you don’t do them, it can mean the difference between a B and a C. Assignments are provided to HELP you. It is no easy task for us to grade assignments in this large of a class. However, we want to give students the opportunity to demonstrate understanding

of the material beyond the exams.

EXTRA CREDIT: A maximum of 12 extra credit points can be earned by 1.) participating in the Psychology Research Participation Program, 2.) by finding comic strips, commercials, shows, songs, etc. that you feel illustrate a social psychological concept (must be accompanied by a paragraph explaining how the comic or clip is relevant to social psychology) 3.) by continuing the discussion of course concepts online, either via twitter (tweet

No make-ups on in-class activities permitted. No late submissions of take-home assignments allowed. The assignment with the lowest score will be dropped, so if you miss an assignment that will be your dropped assignment. (For this reason, it is better to save your drop in case an emergency arises and you CAN’T do the

assignment as opposed to just deciding you don’t want to do the assignment. If an emergency

arises or you bomb an assignment, you will be without further recourse.)

@MSUSocialPsy) for 1 point (post what you learned today or a useful link you found), Instagram (@h.colleen.sinclair – post a picture with a question written on it for a suggested thought question for the class or a comic/pic with how it is social psych relevant), or post a 200 word blog of your thoughts on the discussion board on-line (topics must be clearly related to social psychology, should make an argument as to why the topic is relevant, and needs to get responses). Blogs are worth 3 points. E-blitzing, where you post multiple things all at once, will not be awarded credit. 4.) creating a social psychology relevant YouTube video! (See the examples embedded in the first Introduction to Social Psych slides.) Must not have been done before. Must clearly demonstrate/test a social psychological concept. Must include – either in video or submitted in writing – an introduction defining the concept tested, outlining how you demonstrated it, and concluding about what you found. You can get all 12 points at once for doing this well.

BONUS POINTS: Additional BONUS points (not the same as extra credit) can be gained by participating in studies I bring to class or in Quiz Days. Quiz Days are Review Days, where I run a Quiz Show. Students can participate as contestants to earn up to three bonus points for use towards their exam grade (these points count only for exams and do not count toward your total extra credit). Sign-up for participation is done the lecture before a Quiz Day.

Quiz Questions: If you don’t want to get up in front of the class you can still contribute to the material covered the review day before the exam by writing sample test questions. These questions should be multiple choice, with 4-answers (no more, no less), similar to what you would find on a multiple choice exam, and should draw from the material reviewed in LECTURE or using the KEY POINTS of the Chapters. Good questions are NOT exclusively factual recall questions (“What is the third-person effect?"), but questions that provide an example and ask students to apply the appropriate label to the example you have described. These are called application questions. You can also write critical thinking questions which gets students beyond simply applying the appropriate label, but makes them think about the material. Please make sure all questions are grammatically correct, and have the CORRECT answer clearly marked (and don’t have two possibly correct answers). It is not for me to guess whether you know the answer to your own question – make sure you have the answer correct (run the question by friends to make sure it is clear). You will get one point per question turned in that it used either on the exam or in the review. Points will only be given for questions used – thus only for good questions. Questions should be e-mailed to the instructor (CC: the TA) by 2pm on the day due – TWO LECTURES BEFORE THE EXAM DAY, THE LECTURE BEFORE QUIZ DAY to give me time to review them, type them up, write the exam and copy it (be sure that the subject line clearly reads QUESTIONS for EXAM). Sample quiz day questions are available on-line under Study Resources.

Note about Quiz Day: I have had the occasional student tell me that they “do really well” on quiz day questions and then not on the exam. They then assume that quiz day questions are easier than exam questions. However, many quiz day questions are from past exams. This interpretation of why they do better on quiz days than on exams is actually an example of social psychology. They 1) are forgetting the role of the situation – completing quiz day practices (especially if doing so in your home, with your materials, on your own time) is a lot less stressful than an exam, and 2) they are exhibiting the

hindsight bias, in that on quiz day slides they learn the correct answer right away and thus think “oh yeah, I knew that all along.” So keep in mind, quiz days are just meant to be a sample review and to help you earn some extra points.

Note about extra credit & bonus points: The College of Arts & Sciences does not permit a student to submit extra work in an attempt to raise his or her grade unless the professor has specified at the outset of the class such opportunities afforded to all students. So do not come to me and ask for extra extra credit. There are ample opportunities for extra credit in this class - far more than in most classes - it is up to you to use these opportunities. I have no patience for point-pandering. You get the grade you earn in the class.

EXAMS: There will be four exams. The dates of which are listed in the schedule on the last page of the syllabus. The first THREE exams are 60-70 point multiple-choice exams, 10-30 items from the text-material (know your key terms, most textbook items will be material exclusively addressed in the textbook and not touched on in-class) and 30-50 items from lecture material. Each exam is semi-comprehensive as material will carry-over from section to section (e.g. attribution theory, confirmation bias, types of social influence). In order for you to familiarize yourself with the type of questions I ask the first exam (ONLY) is open notes. A word of caution: although for the first exam you will be permitted to use your notes, if you do not know the material you can waste a lot of time searching for it. If you do not study, you will not pass. You may think you don’t need to study so much with your notes available, but trust me I have been doing this long enough to know you do. It never fails to amaze me that students do not heed this warning and then lo and behold their first exam grade is the worst of the whole semester despite aids. But this is another example of social psychology, something we call the “overconfidence barrier” combined with the “planning fallacy” – overestimating the accuracy of your judgment and underestimating the time it will take to complete a task effectively.

The FINAL exam will be 80-90 points in order to allow students who may have not done so well on previous exams to improve their grade on the final (and generally, students improve in their performance on my exams as you become more familiar with the science and application, so it usually benefits everyone to weight later exams more). The final exam will largely draw from new material, but extra questions may be partially cumulative. If so, the terms that may be used for the cumulative questions will be listed on a study guide. The final, as it is worth more points and is partially cumulative, is NOT optional.

Note about make-up exams: Make-ups for any exam will be considered only for extreme documented circumstances. Such extenuating circumstances may include major emotional traumas (i.e., death or major illness in the family), personal injury or serious illness, or professional research presentations. If any date is known in advance it is expected that the exam will be taken early, not late. Such extenuating circumstances DO NOT include missing examinations or deadlines because of vacations, out-of-town parties or weddings, forgetfulness, over-sleeping, employment, or heavy course loads. Any make up exam must be taken within 24 hours of the original (either before for pre-arranged reasons, or after, for emergencies). All students are expected to anticipate examination conflicts and conflicting deadlines, and should plan for them accordingly (e.g., please do not make air travel reservations that interfere with your ability to complete three midterm exams and the final examination when they are regularly

scheduled). Once grades are posted, no make-ups are possible.

Note about study guides: As a courtesy, not a contractual obligation, I typically provide a study guide in that I provide a list of terms that you can expect to see questions about on the exam. I actually started the practice of handing out key terms at the start of class so you know what to take notes on during lecture. As such, the study guide is a compilation of these in-class handouts. These terms should not be a surprise as they will draw directly from the class lecture. Additional terms you are responsible for are listed at the end of every chapter you are assigned. Be sure to study those as well as terms listed on the study guide. Across all of my class evaluations, I receive an average of a 4.51 (out of 5) on whether the tests reflected the material covered. I use the guide and key terms in your text directly when coming up with test items. However, keep in mind that knowing the definitions of the terms is not going to be enough. You need to know the applications! Think of examples. Think of studies. And be sure you can discern the difference between similar terms (e.g., foot-in-the-door vs. door-in-the-face). Being a psychology dictionary is not going to be sufficient. You MUST understand the application of the concepts.

GRADING: Final grades will be assigned at the end of the semester on the basis of the total number of points earned on four examinations (260-300 points), on in-class assignments (2-4 points each), and on take-home assignments (worth 10-20 points each). The current estimated total number of points available for required components in the class is 350. Grades will be assigned based on the percentage of points obtained (want to know what you have, add up the number of points you have earned for, say, take home assignments and then divide them by the total number of possible points, then multiple by 100. For example, say you got a 9.5 on assignment 1, a 8.7 on assignment 2, and a 5.9 on assignment 3 – all were worth 10 points each – so you have earned 24.1 points out of a possible 30. 24.1 divided by 30 = .8033. Multiply by 100 and you have an 80.3% on take home assignments so far. Please make sure you do the math and check your grades regularly, and have some idea before you contact me and ask me “what’s my grade?” As the grading spectrum is already generous do not bother writing to me to ask me to “round up” for you. I already have.

Percentage of Points

A/F S/N

89.45 – 100% A S79.45 – 89.44% B S69.45 – 79.44% C S60.00 – 69.4% D NBelow 60% F N

A Note about “INCOMPLETES”: A grade of “incomplete” (“I”) will be entered for any student who—due to extenuating circumstances or personal emergencies explained to and acceptable to me—does not complete all of the requirements for this course by the time of the regularly scheduled final. See aforementioned extenuating circumstances. Documentation of personal emergencies is required. Additionally, assignment of a grade of “I” may not be used to forestall a failing grade; students who do not complete all the course requirements will receive a grade of “I” ONLY if they have earned passing grades on the work they have completed. If students have not done passing work, they will

receive a grade of “F” in the course. All outstanding work must be completed by the end of the semester immediately following the semester in which the “I” was assigned. An incomplete that is not finished up by that time will convert to a grade of “F.”

CANVAS: I am in the process to developing the Canvas site for this course where I will record grades, and post announcements (be sure to set up your notifications in Canvas to receive announcements) but I have also built an external website where all information is already posted (http://introtosocialpsychologyatmsu.weebly.com/). It is recommended to check it regularly. On the website, I will post pdf slides from the lectures, and will try to do so before the class meets. However, keep in mind that I am often changing slides up until the class meets, so if your slides do not exactly match my slides it is to be expected. Just pay attention and keep on your toes, and you will realize when to add things. The lecture slides are maintained on Prezi and thus are always up-to-date there.

A Note about “NOTIFICATIONS”: Be sure you have set your account in Canvas to receive notifications about assignments and announcements from this class. Otherwise you will miss things.

VERY IMPORTANT Note, that these slides WILL NOT make up for missed lectures (no more than one could expect just reading the list of key terms at the end of a chapter - instead of reading the chapter - to equate to your understanding of everything in the chapter). Material presented in class will go beyond the textbook, and often beyond the slides. I write on the board. I talk (a lot and quickly), give examples and definitions, and review studies. Students ask insightful questions and provide examples. We discuss. The slides are merely an outline designed for me to indicate topics I should be addressing. Accordingly, slide content was not designed to be your notes, as it is not my responsibility to take your notes for you. If I am talking, you should be taking notes. To encourage note-taking (as this is the #1 problem students come to see me about), I have inserted note pages into the many of the pdf files of the slides. I provide suggested key terms at the beginning of class to hunt for during lecture (record definitions and examples, and anything you can’t catch in class complete after class as soon as you can via – asking a peer for notes, searching your textbook, coming to the professor or TA). I have also provided links on Canvas to find resources about taking good notes (and testing your note-taking skills). Take advantage of these. You can sink or swim in this class – and others – based on the quality of your notes. I have provided every resource I can short of typing up my lectures, but that isn’t my job and I don’t run on a script. Note-taking is your job.

On Canvas and the course website you can also find your syllabus, occasionally submit assignments, on-line discussions, quiz day slides post-quiz day, and useful hand-outs. It is also through Canvas that you will be able to communicate with me. I will

read the e-mail in my on-line inbox typically in the mornings on M-Th, and respond. The responses will show up when you log into Canvas unless, I believe, you set your preferences for e-mails to go to your account. I am also working on the class website and will have announcements about its progress during the semester. There is a contact page there where you can reach me. Just be sure that before you contact me you

Taking good notes is critically important to doing well in this course. Copies of the course slides are not equivalent to notes.

check whether the answer you need could simply be found by reading the syllabus.

ATTENDANCE: As there are some freshmen and student athletes in the class, attendance will be monitored. However, I will not use record of your presence/absence to directly affect your grades. Attendance is strongly encouraged and there are points to be earned for in-class exercises and essential material presented or distributed in-class only. Further, any announcements made in class about assignments or exams are made in-class, and if you miss a day you might miss mention of an assignment or another deadline. It is your responsibility to find out about announcements you missed. Do not write to me and ask "Did I miss anything?" I can tell you now that the answer will always be "Yes."

If you are resistant to learning, however, and are only showing up for attendance points (which don’t exist in my class) or to lackadaisically “complete” an in-class assignment (we do grade these, and incomplete work = incomplete grades) – save us all the trouble. You will not absorb knowledge simply by being in the room. I would like to think my psychic powers were so strong that I could merely implant the knowledge in your brain and call it a day. That brainwashing I hear

Things you may miss if not in-class (aside from, obviously, the lecture material):

In-class points Homework assignments Bonus point opportunities Possible exam questions Handouts My charming personality…

professors are supposed to be doing would be so much easier! But you actually have to be an active participant in your own education. No one is going to do it for you.

RECORDING LECTURES: You are, of course, strongly encouraged to take notes on the lectures/discussions and are permitted to audio-record class sessions for your personal use. However, you are not permitted to take notes or tape-record for purposes of sale and/or distribution in any form, or for sharing with others aside from you. In particular, transmission of recordings is a violation of the rights of all those recorded who did not provide consent for their conversations to be carried beyond the classroom. Aside from that, the lectures are the property of the professor, and distribution is a violation of copyright. Anyone recording lectures should get the explicit permission of the instructor, regardless of the class.

RESPECT FOR FELLOW STUDENTS: All students are expected to show respect for the others in the course. For example, students should avoid disrupting the class by arriving late, leaving early, or talking in-class. When early departures are unavoidable, students should sit close to the door to minimize disruption and I appreciate being notified. Students should refrain from reading newspapers, and shuffling papers or books until after the class is over. All cell phones should be turned off and preferably put away (in fact, research shows that having them out impairs your learning considerably so, in part, I see who cares vs. who exhibits the third-person effect by who leaves them out). Students should provide constructive criticism when evaluating the work or opinions of other students in the class. Students should not use profanity, derogatory, or otherwise offensive responses on on-line discussion boards or in-class discussions. Discussion boards will be monitored, and those saying disrespectful or hurtful things will be warned once, and, if impolite again, potentially denied access to the boards and chat rooms. Students should tell someone if they are having difficulties with a peer. Students whose disruptive actions repeatedly interfere with others’ ability to learn will be asked to leave the classroom and will not return until a meeting is held with the professor and their academic advisors.

RESPECT FOR INSTRUCTOR & TEACHING ASSISTANTS: My primary pet peeve in life is when people waste my time. I don’t have a lot of it, so don’t like it to be squandered. As such, I would appreciate it if you show respect for my time. You can do this by: Coming to class. (I do not like having to repeat myself to students who simply did not

come to class.) Coming to class to prepared and ready to learn (not to read newspapers, sleep, talk to

friends, text messaging etc. - if students are caught doing any of these things, they will be asked to meet with me personally. No assignments of these students will be graded until this meeting is held. If cell phones are used in class, they may be confiscated. If you do not want to be treated like a kid, don't act like one. If you are coming to class simply for the in-class points, don’t bother. If you aren’t paying attention then all the in-class points in the world won’t help you pass the exams.)

Keeping any appointments you make (with me, the TA, or with experimenters for extra credit).

Spending time writing on your assignments and putting thought into them. Be thoughtful and insightful, use your spell-check and revise earlier than 5am before class. ALL HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS MUST BE TYPED. Unless otherwise noted, no hand-written assignments will be accepted.

A note on e-mail and office hours: Remember, I am human. I do need sleep, food, etc., and do not have e-mail jacked directly to my cerebral cortex. I typically come in at 8am and leave at 5pm on weekdays. I have a strict schedule for myself to allow time for research, writing, editing, presenting, departmental/committee meetings, and the multiple other responsibilities (including my kids). Accordingly, please try to see me or communicate with me during designated office hours. E-mail is the best way to reach me. I will check e-mail primarily in the morning (between 8 and 10 and again at lunch) but otherwise do not have it open or turned on. I get approximately 100 e-mails a day, and have chosen to use the Canvas e-mail feature to communicate with you so that your e-mail doesn’t get lost in the shuffle. You can expect timely (within 24 hours) responses to e-mails sent M-Th before 5pm. If you do not get a response within 48 hours, feel free to send again. Canvas is not perfect, and so something may have been lost.

Social Media: You can also tweet class questions to me @MSUSocialPsy. I also encourage you to use Twitter to post interesting social psych-relevant stories you come across (or respond to ones I post) for extra credit. Same goes for Instagram (@h.colleen.sinclair – though this account largely features my furbabies). I even have Skype (hicosin) which is downloadable to smartphones – you can leave text and video messages. Ultimately, you could send a carrier pigeon if you wish – there are many ways to find me.

ACADEMIC DISHONESTY: I adopt a strict policy on cheating and plagiarism: If any evidence of either is found the student will receive a failing grade, at minimum, on the assignment/exam, the points that could have been earned honestly on the assignment will instead be subtracted from their grade and thus could results in the student possibly failing the course. The College of Arts & Sciences scholastic dishonesty as:

... any act that violates the rights of another student with respect to academic work or that involves misrepresentation of a student’s own work. Scholastic dishonesty includes (but is not limited to) cheating on assignments or examinations, plagiarizing (misrepresenting as one’s own anything done by another or submitting

a work that is comprised primarily of the work of another – e.g. “citing” large chunks of the text of another), submitting the same or substantially similar papers (or creative work) for more than one course without consent of all instructors concerned, depriving another of necessary course materials, and sabotaging another’s work.

All cases of scholastic dishonesty, even if unintentional, will be reported to the Honor Code Committee. It is each student’s responsibility to understand and abide by these regulations. Any student who is at all unsure whether something would be considered to be plagiarism should consult the instructor in advance.

HONOR CODE: Consistent with the University's new honor code you are expected to agree with the following statement: "As a Mississippi State University student I will conduct myself with honor and integrity at all times. I will not lie, cheat, or steal, nor will I accept the actions of those who do."

Upon accepting admission to Mississippi State University, a student immediately assumes a commitment to uphold the Honor Code, to accept responsibility for learning, and to follow the philosophy and rules of the Honor Code. Students will be required to state their commitment on examinations, research papers, and other academic work. Ignorance of the rules does not exclude any member of the MSU community from the requirements or the processes of the Honor Code. For additional information please visit: http://www.msstate.edu/dept/audit/1207.html

STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS: Students with special needs (e.g., students with disabilities or non-native English speaking students) are encouraged to discuss those needs with the instructor after the first section meeting. It is often possible to arrange accommodations privately.

A Few Tips for Doing Well in Psychology 3623Students are sometimes seduced into believing that because “it’s only common sense,” they don’t need to prepare as rigorously for exams in PSY 3623 as they must in other courses. Not true. In fact, many findings are counter-intuitive and sometimes “common sense” tells you two opposite things (“opposites attract” vs. “birds of a feather flock together”) – so what is true? Because your course grade in large part reflects your performance on the exams, I would like to relay a few reading and study tips.

1. Complete all reading assignments for the day on which they appear on the syllabus. That way you’ll have a way to organize and make sense of new information that is presented in lectures.

2. Read carefully and actively, both before class and while studying for exams. That is, to absorb and remember information for which you are held accountable on exams, reading your text as you read the newspaper or Time magazine seldom ensures success.

3. APPLY the concepts. Do not simply memorize the material. Just knowing the definition for a concept is not sufficient. Remember, psychology is considered “common-sense” and relevant because it is applicable to everyday life. Look for examples in your world of psychological concepts. This makes you a more active learner, as opposed to a passive recipient of information. Research has long-established that information made self-relevant is better retained.

4. Take GOOD notes. Many students think they know how to take notes, others think that the slides on myCourses = notes, and still others think they are like sponges and can simply sit in class and take “mental notes” of 75 minutes worth of material. Many are mistaken. The lecture slides are provided for a reason. Print them out and bring them to class, but do not think that is all you need. They are to serve as a guideline for what you should be writing down. They are provided as a courtesy so you may write slightly less, but do not be fooled into thinking 3 bullet points on a slide = notes that will help you study for an exam. Write down what I say. Copy what is written on the board. Attend to examples provided, even if provided in video form. THE NUMBER ONE issue I end up advising students on is how to take notes (so many show up to my office with empty notebooks or notebooks only featuring my slides printed out or merely handwritten in their notebook with no expansion and wonder why they don’t do well on exams).

5. As soon as you can after class, take about 15-20 minutes to go back through your notes to fill in gaps, while the lecture is still fresh in your mind. You’ll be amazed at how much you’ll remember, and at how complete your notes will be when you prepare for exams.

6. After you’ve studied, review with one or two other students in class (i.e., quiz each other). The best way to make good use of your exam preparation time is “study alone, review together.” It is suggested that you make up exam questions that apply the material from class and swap them with your peers, giving each other mini-quizzes. You will benefit from both writing the questions and taking the quizzes of others.

7. Attend each and every class; no one can take notes for you better than you, yourself, can. The lecture slides provided on-line are just outlines, and do not provide the content of the lecture that you will need to know for the exam. The professor will not “fill in the blanks” for you if you miss a lecture. If you have to miss a class, obtain multiple copies of notes from your peers.

8. If you are having trouble, tell me. I can’t help if I don’t know and believe it or not, I am not psychic. Also, though this may also surprise you, I derive no secret pleasure from failing students in a class – quite the contrary. I am here to help you, but it is each student’s responsibility to seek assistance when necessary throughout the semester and not wait until the last two weeks of class. Office hours are available throughout the week and by appointment. Come see us with questions or concerns – we won’t bite!

9. Avoid the self-serving bias, whereby all your successes are to your credit and your failures are someone else’s fault (e.g., “test was unfair,” “professor didn’t remind about this assignment enough times”)

More tips specific to studying for the exams are on Canvas.

Course Schedule and ReadingsWeek Date Topics ReadingsWEEK ONE

M: Jan 7thW: Jan 9th

Welcome & Introduction“The Social Brain Hypothesis”

SyllabusCh. 1

WEEK TWO

M: Jan 14th “Methods or Madness” Ch. 3

W: Jan 16th “Self-reflection” Ch. 4WEEK M: Jan 21st NO CLASS: MLK DayTHREE W: Jan 23rd “The Self: Curse, Illusion, or…?” Ch. 5WEEK FOUR

M: Jan 28th

“Social Cognition: Shortcuts or Shortcomings?” (aka the Social Psychology of the Con)

W: Jan 30th “The Power of (Biased) Belief”*WEEK FIVE

M: Feb 4th Overflow & QUIZ DAY ONE

W: Feb 6th EXAM ONEWEEK SIX M: Feb 11th “Doomsday Cults and Chick-Fil-

A: Tales of Cognitive Dissonance”

Ch. 7

W: Feb 13th “And That’s Not All!” – A Limited Edition Talk on the Persuasion Trade**

Ch. 8

WEEK M: Feb 18th “But That’s Just How I Feel: Passion & Propaganda”

Ch. 6

SEVEN W: Feb 20th “Are We Born Prejudiced?” Ch. 13WEEK M: Feb 25th “Understanding Modern

Prejudice” EIGHT W: Feb 27th “Changing Prejudice”* WEEK NINE

M: Mar 4thW: Mar 6th

Overflow & QUIZ DAY TWO EXAM TWO

WEEK TEN M: Mar 11th

W: Mar 13th

NO CLASS SPRING BREAK

WEEK M: Mar 18th

“The Psychology of Good” Ch. 9

ELEVEN W: Mar 20th

“The Power of the Bystander”* Ch. 14

WEEK M: Mar 25th

“The Psychology of Evil Part 1”

TWELVE W: Mar 27th

“The Psychology of Evil Part 2”

WEEK M: Apr 1st “The Social Psychology of Aggression”

Ch. 10

THIRTEEN W: Apr 3rd QUIZ DAY THREEWEEK M: Apr 8th EXAM THREE

FOURTEE W: Apr 10th “Consequences of Rejection”

NWEEK M: Apr 15th “The Laws of Attraction”* Ch. 11

FIFTEEN W: Apr 17th “What is Love?”WEEK

SIXTEENM: Apr

22nd “Understanding Close Relationship Maintenance (& Failure)”

Ch. 12

W: Apr 24th

Overflow & QUIZ DAY FOUR

FINALS F: Apr 26th 12:00-3:00; FINAL EXAM (PARTIALLY CUMULATIVE and NOT OPTIONAL)WEEK

CAVEAT: Schedule subject to change if conflicts arise.EXAMS cover material from class and chapters listed up until that exam. Final exam is

also partially comprehensive. Marked with * = Possible or partial flipped class

Marked with ** = Scheduled flipped class