|
|
SYP 5105-01
FALL 2012
|
|
Susan Carol Losh
Department of Educational Psychology
and Learning Systems
Florida State University
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Dr. Susan Carol Losh
3204 Stone Building (EPLS Suite) 850-644-8778 850-644-4592 (EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY & LEARNING SYSTEMS) 850-644-8776 FAX  slosh@fsu.edu |
Fall 2012 Wednesday 3:35-6:00 P.M. 1203 Stone Building The Stone Building is right across the street from on the Medical School on West Call and Murphree Streets |
PLEASE LET ME KNOW IMMEDIATELY
IF YOU REQUIRE ANY ASSISTANCE WITH DISABILITIES.
| OVERVIEW |
Social Psychology studies social interaction, social processes, and the interplay among the person, culture and society in attitudes, beliefs and socialization. This course introduces you to the many perspectives social psychologists use in our work. Social Psychology is a separate discipline which allows us the flexibility to explore substantive areas as different as pressures toward conformity, ethnic prejudice, or child and adult development. It can be applied to virtually any organization: schools; the family. the military; businesses; churches, synagogues or mosques; sports teams; and many others. The field's diversity of mid-range theories can create conceptual ambiguity, yet simultaneously Social Psychology offers us considerable insight into the individual and society, and into the human condition.
Please be patient as you encounter six separate terms for the same concept such as social learning, or you puzzle out "chicken and egg problems" in attitude and action.
Social psychology provides the "conceptual glue" between organizations and individuals, the nuts and bolts to explain the reciprocity between social structure and the individual. More than anything else, social psychology addresses processes and sequencing: the routines of daily life such as conversations, forming impressions of people, collectivities or events, and creating and maintaining life in groups.
This semester, we'll examine basic theoretical perspectives in Social Psychology. Unfortunately we cannot swallow the entire discipline in one gulp. For example, I have somewhat less coverage of topics such as the social psychology of emotions (Dr. Turner picks up some of the slack here.) I will focus more on constructs such as "the self" or "self-efficacy" where research allows us to draw more consistent conclusions than on popular, yet conceptually murky, concepts such as "personality." I will also discuss basic methodological issues pertinent to Social Psychology, such as experimental demand and reactivity, format construction issues in questionnaires, or drawing causal inferences using more "qualitative" methods such as ethnographies.
My roles as Instructor are to facilitate and to coordinate the "big picture." For each major course section, I will discuss basic perspectives, postulated major processes, and particularly noteworthy empirical findings. I'll be calling on you, too, to discuss your experience, your readings and observations.
If you would like to see more about how I apply Social Psychology, click on the VITA.
| COURSE GOALS |
To become familiar with major conceptual perspectives
in the discipline of Social Psychology, including:
To learn the discipline's vocabulary
To become familiar with major methods
used
in Social Psychology
To become familiar with applications of
Social Psychological approaches to diverse organizations, such as schools,
sport, the military, the family or businesses
To be able to apply course material to a literature
review, planned study, conducted study, or analysis of study results
WE'RE
ONLINE! |
Our course is WEB assisted through CourseInfo/Blackboard and the mailer systems at FSU. You must be registered for SYP5105-01 to access our site through Blackboard. To access our course, here is what to do. Go online to:
Enter your FSU ID username (USERNAME ONLY!) and password to log in. For example, I would enter "slosh" ONLY and omit the the rest. Then click on “Theories of Soc Psy” to enter our site.
If you DON'T have an FSU ID account, you will need one immediately. Go to the FSU Guide to Computing Resources website (address below). Follow the links to register online for your garnet account at FSU.
I will use WEB-assist for several course features:
FALL 2012: Here's
how I can be reached:
| 3204 Stone Building
850-644-8778 Voice mail available 850-644-4592 Educational Psychology & Learning Systems 850-644-8776 FAX EMAIL IS PROBABLY THE FASTEST WAY TO REACH ME! |
 NEW FSU
Stone Building
Office Hours: Wednesday
1:45-3:30 or by appointment
|
| ASSIGNMENTS |
You have two assignments:
|
|
|
|
| COURSE PROJECT | Preliminary
prospectus: September 26
Updated prospectus: October 17 First draft: November 14 Final draft: December 12 |
65
percent
|
| PRESENTATION | ONE completed during the November 14-December 5 period |
35
percent
|
See the links for more information.
The links will be updated during the semester to provide more detail and
format specifications. Please complete readings according to the timetable
in this syllabus and be prepared with assignments by their due date.
I ONLY ACCEPT HARD COPY FOR ASSIGNMENTS IN CLASS ON THE DUE DATE. EMAIL ATTACHMENTS (e.g., WORD documents)
ARE NOT ACCEPTED.
There have been too many problems with malware. This is especially true for email from University computers, which tend to be hotbeds of infection. If you absolutely cannot hand your progressive paper milestone deadlines in to me in person, here are some alternatives:
|
During the semester, I may ask for a copy
of your work on disk. For example, I receive copies of all presentations
on disk.
| COURSE PROJECT |
Course Project (about 15 pages). Wide latitude exists for your project. You may review existing literature in an area of interest to you. You may use existing research to design a future study. Or, you can conduct a small original study or analyze data that were previously collected. A short preliminary prospectus of your project is due September 26, an updated prospectus is due October 17. The draft of your project is due November 14 to allow revisions. The final edition of your project is due WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 12 by NOON.
Prior topics can be seen from the presentations posted to our Blackboard site as well as several prior course papers, also in Blackboard. Some students have written library research papers with topics such as academic motivation, cartoon violence, emotional intelligence, coach-player interaction, bullying, and cross-cultural differences in social cognition. Others have executed a short survey, small experiment or observational design. Examples include observing parent-child interaction at supermarket checkouts or during games, observing conformity in the "upward gaze" experiment replication, nonverbal communication in counseling sessions and perceived counselor competence, seeing how social factors influence the return of a "lost wallet," conformity in aerobics classes, or how watching cartoons or children's comedies affects preschoolers. One counseling student's Social Psychology paper won a graduate student poster prize at the 2011 American Psychological Association meetings. Maybe this year it will be YOUR turn to win an award at your professional association!
ON TEAMWORK
Students often produce especially good
work when they work in teams. This is particularly true for the Course
Project . It is far easier for teams to plan and execute a small experiment,
survey, or observation in a semester's time than it is for an individual
to do so. Team presentations can also be more complex. You may choose to
work in teams for the Course Project, and we may coordinate teams on the
Presentations. I will need to know the names of all team members
on the Course Project by October 17. Using
the project prospectus, I also will alert you to possible teammates (but
the choice is yours).
| DISCUSSION/PRESENTATION |
Discussion/presentation (about 20 minutes):
You will lead class discussion on your project topic. We will have facilities
for Power Point but you will also need to distribute a handout summary
(some students print the Power Point slides). Examples will also be posted
to our WEB site in Blackboard. Discussion/presentations begin on November
14 (through December 5). We all enjoy this part of the semester because
we learn a lot from each other.
| GRADING CONSIDERATIONS |
I use plus and minus grading, throughout and for final grades.
Participation in class discussion and class attendance are a definite consideration, especially when a student is "between grades."
Adherence to principles of essay organization, and the conventions of spelling and grammar is expected and understood. I freely admit to being adamant about good writing and we will spend at least one class period on it.
The course paper MUST relate to Social Psychology. It can neither be totally intrapersonal nor totally organizational. One reason for the project "milestone" deadlines is to ensure that your topic is "on track" for this course.
I adhere to the FSU Honor Code. Plagarism is essentially STEALING someone else's work. If you harbor any doubts, several online sites check for plagarism. You can also check with me about quoting or citing someone else's research and/or writing. Plagarized assignments receive a score of 0.
PRELIMINARY INFORMATION ABOUT THE PRESENTATION
| TOPICS, REQUIRED COURSE TEXTS AND A SIDE BAR ON SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY JOURNALS |
| COURSE TOPICS |
| APPROXIMATE DATE | TOPIC | OBJECTIVES |
| August 29-
September 19 |
Orientation
Introduction Methods |
WEB site navigation and
course outline
What is the field of Social Psychology? What are some major theoretical Orientations? Which Methods are most
commonly used in Social Psychology?
|
September 3
 |
Labor Day Holiday | University closed |
| September 19-
October 3 |
Social
Perception
(Includes Attitudes and Attitude Measurement) |
What is Social Perception?
Self-Esteem versus Self-Efficacy Defining Attitudes
|
| October 10-24 | The
Self
Social Learning and Socialization |
What are some differences
between "the self" and "personality?"
How does Social Perception relate to Self-Presentation and Self-Concept? What are some basics of symbolic interactionism? Issues in nature versus nurture Comparing basic ideas of developmentalists versus reinforcement theorists Types of learning theories and applications to roles and socialization |
| October 31-
November 28 |
Groups
Group Influences and Interaction Processes |
What is social facilitation?
What are cohorts and aggregates? How are these entities useful? Basic group
definition and properties.
What are the effects of group size? What are major sources of group influence? What are "good" and "bad" effects of group cohesion? |
| MONDAY November 12 | VETERAN'S DAY HOLIDAY | NO FSU CLASSES |
| November 21-23 | THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY |  NO
FSU CLASSES |
| December 5 | Applications of Social Psychology | Last day of our class |
| December 7 | Last class day of the Fall semester |
| REQUIRED TEXTS |
Used copies of all texts MAY be available (e.g., on Amazon). Please be sure to purchase or share the stated edition of each.
| JOURNAL WISH LIST |
|
| Journal of Personality and Social Psychology | PLEASE GIVE THE JOURNAL TITLE AND BRIEFLY |
| Social Psychology Quarterly | DESCRIBE THE JOURNAL. IF A WEB SITE IS |
| Public Opinion Quarterly | AVAILABLE FOR THE JOURNAL, PLEASE INCLUDE THAT |
| Small Group Research | TOO. JUST DROP A NOTE IN THE EMAIL HERE: |
| Group Dynamics |  slosh@fsu.edu |
|
 |
|
Under
construction as the semester progresses.
