SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY AND BEHAVIOR SOCI 4340.900/950 (10-Week Session) https://learn.unt.edu/ Instructor: Joseph Comeau, M.Ed., Ph.D. Office: Out of office Email: joseph.comeau@unt.edu Hours: Available via email 9-4 M-F (or blackboard message system) REQUIRED TEXTS: Rohall, David E., Milkie, Melissa A., and Lucas, Jeffrey W. (2010). Social Psychology: Sociological Perspectives (2nd Ed.). Allyn and Bacon (Pearson): Upper Saddle River, NJ COURSE DESCRIPTION: 3 hours. Social and cultural bases of diverse human behavior; social matrix of personality, organization and disorganization. Prerequisite(s): SOCI 1510 or equivalent. Advised for students planning sociology graduate work. COURSE OBJECTIVES: Upon completion of this course, the student should be able to: articulate foundational concepts of sociological social psychology discuss the similarities and differences between psychological social psychology and sociological social psychology discuss the major theoretical perspectives in sociological social psychology discuss the role of social psychology in personal and professional settings discuss ways to apply social psychology concepts to personal and professional situations COURSE REQUIREMENTS: This online course involves multiple learning exercises and activities. These exercises activities include: Readings from the required course text Documentaries Quizzes Discussion Boards Exams SOCI 4340 Social Psychology and Behavior Page 1
Quizzes: There are eight (8), time-limited quizzes. Each quiz is worth 25 points, and consists of multiple choice and true/false questions from the course text. Directions: Within selected chapters, there will be a link to a quiz. The quizzes will open at 8:00 AM on the Monday of each week, and are due by 11:59 PM Wednesday (except for the week 1 quiz, which is due Friday). Students will only be allowed to take the quiz once and will have 15 minutes to complete each quiz. Once the quiz has been completed, students will be able to view their final score. Please note that, because the quizzes are open for three days, no make-up quizzes will be allowed for any reason other extreme extenuating circumstances, with documentation and at the instructor s discretion. Please see the syllabus section titled Policy Regarding Technology for more details about quizzes. Discussions: There are a total of eight (8) discussions in which students are expected to participate. Each discussion is worth 25 points. The purpose of each discussion is to generate critical conversation within our online course community. The first discussion is designed to get the conversation started, and the other discussion board assignments are responses to course content, including assigned reading and videos. Directions: Within specified sections (see course outline) there will be links to discussion board assignments. Students are required to post a response of at least 500 words (unless otherwise specified) to the assigned discussion questions. Discussions open on Monday at 8:00 AM each week. In order to earn full points, students must do the following: Post their own thread by Thursday at 11:59 PM Respond to the threads posted by at least two (2) of their classmates by Friday at 11:59 PM Write at a college level Provide effective support for their posts (this should include citing specific examples from the documentaries or text) Exams: There will be two (2) exams during the semester, each covering specific course sections. Each exam is worth 100 points, and will consist of 50 multiple choice questions. Directions: At the dates noted on the course outline, the exam links will be available in the Exams folder on blackboard. You will be able to take each exam only one time, and will have one hour and 15 minutes to complete each exam. The exams will only be open on the days stated in the syllabus (see course outline section of syllabus), must be completed in one setting, and will present one question at a time. Once you complete the exam, you will be able to view your score. SOCI 4340 Social Psychology and Behavior Page 2
COURSE GRADING: Discussion Board (8 @ 25 points) 200 Quizzes (8 @ 25 points) 200 Exam 1 100 Exam 2 100 Total Points 600 540+ points A 480 539 points B 420 479 points C 360 419 points D < 360 points F ACADEMIC HONESTY: All work in this course must be completed in a manner consistent with the University Honor Code. Please carefully review the provisions of the Honor Code: http://conduct.unt.edu/student_conduct. Let me make it clear: if you cheat or plagiarize you will fail the course and your name will be forwarded to Academic Affairs. It is the student s responsibility to know whether his/her actions are in violation of the Code of Student Conduct and Discipline. NOTE: If you copy and paste content from the internet or any other source without properly citing it, it is considered plagiarism. STUDENTS REQUIRING SPECIAL ACCOMMODATION: If you have a condition that requires accommodation in this course, please communicate with me via email. Any necessary or appropriate accommodations will be made provided that timely notice is received, and that the arrangement is consistent with recommendations from Disability Services, when applicable. Students who require this type of assistance should contact the Office of Disability Accommodation at (940) 565-4323, or at TTY (940) 369-8652 to make appropriate arrangements. More information on disability accommodations at UNT is available at http://www.unt.edu/oda/index.html. Please note that disability accommodations are not retroactive. Accommodations will be made only after a disability is officially verified. RELIGIOUS OBLIGATIONS AND HOLIDAYS: Religious beliefs shall be reasonably accommodated with respect to all examinations and other academic requirements. Please notify me in advance if there is a conflict. EXAM MAKE-UP POLICY: If a student is unable to take an exam during the assigned dates, s/he must contact the instructor ahead of time to discuss alternate arrangements. If a student misses an exam without making arrangements with the instructor ahead of time, the make-up exam will be penalized 20 percent. In extreme cases, the instructor reserves the right to wave the penalty. SOCI 4340 Social Psychology and Behavior Page 3
POLICY REGARDING TECHNOLOGY: As a student who has chosen to participate in online education, you are responsible to assure that your technology is up to the task. This includes making sure that you have a reliable computer and internet connection, and are using a browser that supports all functions of blackboard. I realize that, despite your best efforts, even high quality technology can fail unexpectedly at times. These issues are of particular concern when it comes to quizzes and exams, since you are only able to attempt them once. Below are my policies for handing technology issues with discussion boards, quizzes, and exams. Discussion Boards: Because the discussion boards are open from Monday through Friday, and (unlike quizzes and exams) there is no limit to the number of times that you can access the discussion boards, there will be no allowances made for technology issues on discussion board assignments. If you want to make sure technology does not cause you to miss a deadline on the discussion assignments, post early (i.e., do not wait until the night of the deadline to post). Quizzes: If a student experiences a technology issues while taking a quiz, the following steps must be followed: 1. The student must send the instructor a message via blackboard (do not send via any other email), by 11:59 PM on Wednesday night (for quiz 1, the message must be sent by Friday night). 2. The instructor will check the quiz, reset the attempt if the evidence supports the claim that it was a technology issue, and send a response to the blackboard message, advising the student whether the quiz has been reset. 3. The student must retake the quiz by 11:59 PM on Friday (for quiz 1, the retake must be completed by Sunday night). Exams: If students experience a technology issue while attempting an exam, they should send the instructor a message via blackboard immediately. The instructor will reset the attempt, and the student will be able to restart the exam. Unfortunately, there is no way to grant the student access without clearing the entire attempt, so the student will need to retake the entire exam. ETIQUETTE: By its nature, sociology engages polarizing topics. Critical discussion is encouraged, but it is important to respect differences of opinion, and always address your classmates with respect. Also, remember that the written word does not have the benefit of non-verbal communication (e.g., a gentle tone that shows your challenging question is meant respectfully), so please choose your words carefully. It is my experience that written words tend to seem stronger to the reader than they are to the author. With this in mind, it is a good idea to employ more tact than you might think is necessary when using written communication. SOCI 4340 Social Psychology and Behavior Page 4
COURSE OUTLINE: The following outline is subject to change at the discretion of the instructor. Week Date Day Assignments PART I Perspectives and Methods 1 Topic: Introduction to Sociological Social Psychology 6/3 Monday Read syllabus and become familiar with course structure 6/4 Tuesday Watch video Introduction to Social Psychology 6/5 Wednesday Read Rohall et al Chapter 1 6/6 Thursday Post your thread in Discussion 1 6/7 Friday Quiz: Chapter 1 Respond to the threads of at least two of your peers in Discussion 1 2 Topic: Perspectives in Sociological Social Psychology 6/10 Monday Read Rohall et al Chapter 2 6/11 Tuesday Watch video Social Groups: Dyad and Triad & In-Groups and Out-Groups 6/12 Wednesday Quiz: Chapter 2 3/13 Thursday Post your thread in Discussion 2 6/14 Friday Respond to the threads of at least two of your peers in Discussion 2 PART II The Individual in Society 3 Topic: The Social Psychology of Stratification 6/17 Monday Read Rohall et al Chapter 4 6/18 Tuesday Watch A Class Divided 6/19 Wednesday Quiz: Chapter 4 6/20 Thursday Post your thread in Discussion 3 6/21 Friday Respond to the threads of at least two of your peers in Discussion 3 4 Topic: Self and Identity 6/24 Monday Read Rohall et al Chapter 5 6/25 Tuesday Watch video Erving Goffman's Theories: Impression Management, Dramaturgy & Symbolic Interaction 6/26 Wednesday Quiz: Chapter 5 6/27 Thursday Post your thread in Discussion 4 6/28 Friday Respond to the threads of at least two of your peers in Discussion 4 5 Topic: Socialization Over the Life Course 7/1 Monday Read Rohall et al Chapter 6 7/2 Tuesday Watch video Charles Horton Cooley: Looking Glass Self and the Effect of Primary Groups Watch video Jean Piaget's Stages of Cognitive Development 7/3 Wednesday Midterm Exam opens (8:00 AM): Covers all assigned content from weeks 1-5 7/4 Thursday 7/5 Friday Midterm Exam closes (11:59 PM) SOCI 4340 Social Psychology and Behavior Page 5
Week Date Day Assignments PART III Areas of Social Life 6 Topic: The Social Psychology of Deviance 7/8 Monday Read Rohall et al Chapter 7 7/9 Tuesday Watch video Asch Conformity Experiment Watch video Stanley Milgram: Obedience to Authority Watch video The Stanford Prison Experiment 7/10 Wednesday Quiz: Chapter 7 7/11 Thursday Post your thread in Discussion 5 7/12 Friday Respond to the threads of at least two of your peers in Discussion 5 7 Topic: Mental Health and Illness 7/15 Monday Read Rohall et al Chapter 8 7/16 Tuesday Watch video Are We Over-Diagnosed? 7/17 Wednesday Quiz: Chapter 8 7/18 Thursday Post your thread in Discussion 6 7/19 Friday Respond to the threads of at least two of your peers in Discussion 6 8 Topic: Attitudes, Values, and Behaviors 7/22 Monday Read Rohall et al Chapter 9 7/23 Tuesday Watch video Attitudes 7/24 Wednesday Quiz: Chapter 9 7/25 Thursday Post your thread in Discussion 7 7/26 Friday Respond to the threads of at least two of your peers in Discussion 7 9 Topic: The Sociology of Sentiment and Emotion 7/29 Monday Read Rohall et al Chapter 10 7/30 Tuesday Watch video Attraction Watch video Aggression 7/31 Wednesday Quiz: Chapter 10 8/1 Thursday Post your thread in Discussion 8 8/2 Friday Respond to the threads of at least two of your peers in Discussion 8 10 Topic: Collective Behavior 8/5 Monday Read Rohall et al Chapter 11 8/6 Tuesday Watch video Group Behavior 8/7 Wednesday Final Exam opens (8:00 AM): Covers all assigned content from weeks 6-10 8/8 Thursday 8/9 Friday Final Exam closes (11:59 PM) SOCI 4340 Social Psychology and Behavior Page 6