PSY 446: Cognitive Psychology (Fall 2015) Instructor: Dr. Jesse Bengson Email: bengson@sonoma.edu Location: Ives 0045 Class Time: Tuesdays and Thursdays 3-4:50pm Office Hours: Wednesdays, 10am-12pm Office Location: Stevenson 3092c Final Exam: Tuesday, Dec. 15 th @ 2-3:50pm Course Description: This class is an exploration into the mental and neural processes that comprise our everyday experience. As you are reading this, the representation of the otherwise meaningless lines on this page are being encoded into meaningful representations that guide subsequent behavior (we call it reading ). How does this process work? How do you make decisions? What is attention? How do emotions affect cognition? This class will offer answers to these questions as well as provide an introduction to theory and research in human information processing. Topics include attention, memory, mental representation, imagery, problem solving, reasoning, language, higher mental processes and cross-cultural variations. Course Format and Instructional Methods: This course will be driven by my lectures. We will also engage in classroom and on-campus activities. We will be doing things like testing the rubber hand illusion, asking strangers for directions, creating false memories and revealing the unconscious. We will also be engaged in activities outlined in the Cognition Workbook. This workbook is included as a required supplement to the required Reisberg textbook. We will also be viewing movies in the library on topics relevant to this course. These activities and movies will have associated Moodle assignments that will be turned in online. I do not take attendance. However, if you miss an in-class activity, you will not be allowed to make it up (without contacting me prior to your absence). Classroom environment: I encourage classroom discussion. Classroom content will be driven by the nature and flow of these discussions (as well as my lectures). Thus we may significantly diverge from the course schedule. Although discussion is encouraged, talking with your neighbor during class is not acceptable. Bringing your laptop to class is not only allowed, but encouraged (but turn your phones off). I will provide lecture outlines to you prior to each class so you can follow along and take notes. Email: Every student at Sonoma State has an email address. I often email reminders or class changes in schedule to the class. It is your responsibility to check your email for this information and be aware of updates as the class progresses. Not checking your email is not an excuse for not being aware of class assignments/updates.
Required Texts/Readings Textbook: Cognition, Daniel Reisberg, Fifth Edition, W.W. Norton Company. Copies are available at the SSU bookstore and can be rented. Workbook: The Cognition Workbook, Daniel Reisberg, Fifth Edition, W.W. Norton Company. Course Assignments (what you will be graded on) Poster Session Presentation (50 points) Towards the end of the semester, we will have poster sessions in class. Each of you is expected to develop a research question based on material covered in class or the textbook. During the poster session, each of you will pitch your research idea Shark Tank style to the other members of the class and me. This poster can be in any format (poster-board, pieces of 8 x 10 printouts with construction paper backing, a large printed poster), but it should look good. Each poster should contain an introduction/background, a motivation for the experiment(s), an experimental design/methods section, description of data collection technique, how data will be analyzed, and the implications of the results. Topics are broad and can include anything discussed in class including artificial intelligence, clinical psychology, unconscious perception, Brain Computer interfaces, etc. The only constraint is that it must be relevant to Cognitive Psychology. This is your chance to teach your fellow students something that you are interested in. In-Class Activities (10 points each) Every day that we have an in-class or on-campus activity, you will be required to write a report based on the activities we did for that day (or an associated assignment from the workbook). This will be due to me on Moodle by midnight on the day of the activity. The report should be a Microsoft Word document that at least one-page long (double-spaced), New Times Roman with a font-size of 12 (but can be as long as you think necessary). The purpose of this report is to convey what you learned from the activity or workbook assignment. This report should begin with a description of the activities (or workbook) for that day, then it should detail what you learned. Then you should describe the implications of the day s activities and then finally end with a broader exploration (if appropriate) of your thoughts concerning the lab activity. If the assignment for that day was from the Reisberg workbook, you should follow the instructions outlined in the workbook. Quizzams and Final (50 points each) Quizzams will be multiple choice. 50 questions. Bring a green scantron on exam days. In Class Participation and Debate Performance (percentages) If your grade is borderline and could be rounded, I will use my memory of your in-class contributions and debate contributions to guide end-of-course percentage rounding that determine your final grade. The debate will center on the topic of artificial intelligence. The question is: Is it possible to build a robot that experiences the world and thinks like we do?
Half of you will argue Yes, and the other half will argue No. This topic will be discussed throughout the entire semester. Grading Policy There is no extra-credit. Missed work will not be made up. There will not be a curve. I will not drop the lowest exam. Letter Grade Assignment: The percentage of total points earned will be divided by the total number possible and grades will be assigned according to the following: A+ 97-100 A 93-96 A- 90-92 B+ 87-89 B 83-86 B- 80-82 C+ 77-79 C 73-76 C- 70-72 D+ 67-69 D 63-66 D- 60-62 University Policies Campus Policy on Disability Access for Students If you are a student with a disability, and think you may need academic accommodations, please contact Disability Services for Students (DSS), located in Salazar Hall, Room 1049, Voice: (707) 664-2677, TTY/TDD: (707) 664-2958, as early as possible in order to avoid a delay in receiving accommodation services. Use of DSS services, including testing accommodations, requires prior authorization by DSS. See SSU s policy on Disability Access for Students http://www.sonoma.edu/uaffairs/policies/disabilitypolicy.htm. Academic Integrity Students should be familiar with the University s Cheating and Plagiarism policy http://www.sonoma.edu/uaffairs/policies/cheating_plagiarism.htm. Your own commitment to learning, as evidenced by your enrollment at Sonoma State University and the University s policy, require you to be honest in all your academic course work. Instances of academic dishonesty will not be tolerated. Cheating on exams or plagiarism (presenting the work of another as your own, or the use of another person s ideas without giving proper credit) will result in a failing grade and sanctions by the University. For this class, all assignments are to be completed by the individual student unless otherwise specified. *In Class Activities that require a report are italicized and are subject to change
Chapter Date Topics, Assignments & Activities 8/25/15 Introduction Riddle and Syllabus Overview Chapter 1 8/27/15 The Science of the Mind Lecture Chapter 1 09/01/15 Implicit Attitudes Test Chapter 2 09/03/15 Hemispheric Specialization Lecture (not in text) Chapter 2 09/08/15 Methods Lecture Chapter 2 09/10/15 The Visual System Lecture Chapter 2 09/15/15 Anatomy Lecture Chapter 2 09/17/15 Brain Computer Interface Movie Chapter 2 09/22/15 Chapter 2 Workbook 09/24/15 Quizzam 1 Chapter 3 09/29/15 Recognizing Objects Lecture Chapter 3 10/01/15 Recognizing Objects Lecture Chapter 3 10/06/15 Rubber Hand Illusion Experiment Chapter 3 10/08/15 Chapter 3 Workbook, Convergent Object Drawing Chapter 4 10/13/15 Paying Attention Lecture Chapter 4 10/15/15 Chapter 4 Workbook 10/20/15 Quizzam 2 Ch. 6 & 7 10/22/15 Memory Lecture Ch. 6 & 7 10/27/15 Chapter 7 Workbook Chapter 10 10/29/15 Visual Knowledge Chapter 10 11/03/15 Chapter 10 Workbook Chapter 11 11/05/15 Judgement and Reasoning Lecture Chapter 11 11/10/15 Chapter 11 Workbook Chapter 13 11/12/15 Conscious Thought, Unconscious Thought Lecture Chapter 13 11/17/15 Movie Ex Machina 11/19/15 Quizzam 3 11/24/15 Poster Day 11/26/15 THANKSGIVING 12/01/15 Poster Day 12/03/15 Poster Day 12/08/15 Artificial Intelligence Debate 12/10/15 Open/Review Day 12/15/15 Final Exam 2-3:50 pm