Office & Hours:  203 Scott Hall.  Tu 9:00 – 11:00 and by appointment. X 7-3056
Course Web Page:  http://bernard.pitzer.edu/~hfairchi/courses/

Synopsis and Objectives:  This course covers a broad survey of the science and practice of psychology.  Its objectives are to:  (1) introduce students to the history and systems of psychology; (2) provide students with a working knowledge of the key accomplishments and individuals in the field, (3) provide opportunities to develop students communication skills; and (4) to examine the relationships between psychology and social responsibility.

Course Meeting Times and Place:  Tuesdays and Thursdays, 1:15 – 2:30 P.M., Broad Hall 214.

Required Texts:  (1) Essentials of Understanding Psychology by Robert S. Feldman.  NY:  McGraw-Hill.  (2) Perspectives:  Introductory Psychology, Edited by Laura Freburg.  Boulder, CO:  Coursewise.

1/21/03  Introduction and Course Overview.  What is Psychology?

[The definition, according to Fairchild:  "Psychology is the scientific study of the mental and behavioral processes of human and infrahuman organisms, and the application of knowledge toward the solution of personal and social problems."  What is typically left out of definitions of psychology are its applications.  The above definition, now, seems a bit wordy:  we can delete "mental and behavioral processes" and, in doing so, broaden and make more accurate the defintion of psychology.  Psychology also explores chemical, hormonal, spiritual and sensory processes.  Thus:  "Psychology is the scientific study of human and infrahuman organisms, and the application of knowledge toward the solution of personal and social problems."  This is an important illustration of Fairchild's 113th Law:  The quality of writing is inversely proportional to its length:  Less is more.]

1/28/03      Research Methods and Statistics.  QUIZ:  Chapter 1
1/30/03      1.  Testing the ESP Claims of SORRAT
                  2.  The Mystery of the Vanished Citations
                  3.  Why Freud Isn’t Dead

2/4/03      Statistics and Psychobiology.  QUIZ:  Chapter 2
2/6/03       4.  The Biology of Beauty
                 5.  Sex and the Brain
                 6.  Tarzan’s Little Brain
2/6/03:      EVENING:  Talk by Asa Hilliard, Legacies of Ancient History (write-up due 2/11)
                Slide Show:  Were the ancient Egyptians "Black"?

2/11/03     Sensation and Perception. QUIZ:  Chapter 3
2/13/03     7.  The Smell of Love
                  8.  Wallpaper for the Mind
                  9.  How Virtual Reality Can Affect You

2/18/03      States of Consciousness.  QUIZ:  Chapter 4
2/20/03      10.  Fertile Minds
                  Newsweek:  Are We All A Little Crazy?
                  Newsweek:  Teen Depression

2/25/03      Learning. QUIZ:  Chapter 5
2/27/03      13:  The Diva of Disclosure
                  15:  Dyslexia
             25:  Paying Attention
               Discussion:  Why (or why not) war?

3/4/03         Memory.QUIZ:  Chapter 6
3/6/03          14:  Memories are made of…Nicotine?
                    Newsweek:  Kids Who Can’t Learn
                Newsweek:  Why Women and Men Think Differently
               Notes for Thursday, March 6, 2003

3/11/03         Thinking, Language, and Intelligence.  QUIZ:  Chapter 7
3/13/03          16.  Music of the Hemispheres
                      17.  Man vs. Machine
                      Fairchild:  The Cloak of Scientific Objectivity

3/18/03          SPRING BREAK
3/20/03          SPRING BREAK

3/25/03         Motivation and Emotion.  QUIZ:  Chapter 8
3/28/03          18:  Can’t Do Without Love
                      19:  Emotions in the Workplace
                      20:  Don’t Face Stress Alone

4/1/03          Development.  QUIZ:  Chapter 9
4/3/03           11:  The Day-Care Dilemma
                      12:  Making Our Minds Last a Lifetime
                      Life Magazine:  Exercising Your Brain

4/8/03           Personality.  QUIZ:  Chapter 10  (No quiz today)
4/10/03          21:  The Creative Personality
                      22:  Personality Measurement and Employment Decisions
                      Psychology Today:  Twins and the New Sibling Research

4/15/03         Health Psychology.  ASSIGNMENT:
4/17/03          33:  Impression Management:  Trying to Look Bad at Work
                      34:  Who’s Mentoring Whom?
                      35:  Unlocking the Jury Box
4/17/03         EVENING.  Talk by Marimba Ani (Write-up due 4/22).
                   "Yurugu for Who-gu?  A Critique" by Halford H. Fairchild

4/22/03          Psychological Disorders.  QUIZ:  No quiz this week.
4/24/03          23:  That Fine Madness
                      24:  No conscience, no remorse
                      26:  Parents’ Dilemma:  talk to children about drugs

4/29/03          Psychotherapies.  QUIZ:  Chapter 13
5/1/03            27:  For the Obsessed, the Mind Can Fix the Brain
                      28:  Hire a Coach to Shape Up Your Life?
                      29:  Point and Click:  Software for Shrinks

5/6/03            Social Psychology.  QUIZ:  Chapter 14
                      30:  Human Resources
                      31:  Testosterone Rules
                      32:  Pride and Prejudice
5/8/03            The Future of Psychology

Grading:  Every Tuesday, a brief quiz will be conducted between 1:15 and 1:20, each is worth up to 10 points.  Every Thursday, individual students will present a 5-10 minute synopsis and lead a brief discussion on one of the assigned readings.  These presentations are worth up to 100 points.  Up to 200 points are awarded for overall class participation (Thursday absences, excused or not, subtract 20 points per absence).  Papers are worth up to 50 points.  Point totals are used to inform the professor’s subjective grading system.  2/6 and 4/17 evening talks should be attended, and a brief “synopsis” and “reaction” to the talk is due the following Tuesday.  Students unable to attend these talks should see the Professor for a substitute assignment.