Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Social Psychology
SUMMER 2005
Dr. Huxtable-Jester PSY 3331.521
Office: GR 4.522 Mondays 6-10pm
Office hours: M 5-6pm, TR 3-4pm GR 4.428
Phone: 972-883-6434
Email: drkarenhj@utdallas.edu
I. Course description
This course presents an introduction to the field of social psychology, and will examine theory and
research as well as practical applications to social problems. In addition to learning how social
psychologists do research, we will learn about how we think about the social world, how we come
to understand other people and ourselves, self-justification and the need to maintain self-esteem,
influencing thoughts and feelings, influencing behavior, influence in social groups, interpersonal
attraction, why people help, why people hurt other people , and causes and cures of prejudice.
Special attention will be paid to what social psychology can offer to the solving of social problems
in these areas and in the areas of health-related behavior and beliefs and the law.
This course is appropriate for students interested in psychology, the health professions, law,
political science, business, advertising, human services, education, communications, gender
studies/women's studies, history, public administration, and sociology—essentially, this course will
be interesting to all who are or live among human beings. Course requirements will include class
attendance and participation, exams, and multiple writing assignments (no final exam). Satisfies the
Core Curriculum Social and Behavioral Science requirement (3 credits, call number 11470).
B. Exams
1. Three non-cumulative exams focusing on the assigned readings and lecture material
will be given to assess your mastery of the material in each section of the course. Exam
format will be multiple-choice, based on materials from the readings, lectures, class
discussions and demonstrations, and videos.
2. You must be present for exams . If you might miss an exam, notify me at 972-883-
6434 IMMEDIATELY. I must hear from you before the scheduled time of the exam. If
you wait to talk to me at the next class meeting, you will not be able to make up the exam.
Make-up exams will be given only if: (a) you were seriously ill and have documentation
from a physician, or (b) you were detained the day and time of the exam (and have
appropriate documentation), or (c) you made arrangements prior to the exam to attend an
urgent family affair (e.g., funeral). In any of these cases, you must notify me in advance
of the scheduled time of the exam (call and leave a voice-mail message if you can do
nothing else). Otherwise, you will receive an F (0 points). It is your responsibility to
make sure that an exam is made up within one week of the scheduled time. Beware,
make-up exams are designed to be more difficult to compensate for having more study
time.
3. Exams will be returned during class time once only. If you miss class on the day exams
are returned you must come to my office. Privacy regulations prohibit me from
emailing your grades to you!
4. See me early if you need help preparing for an exam. It is helpful (but not required) to
study first, and then come with a list of specific questions or areas of concern. Also, if
you feel that you worked hard studying for an exam, but received a much lower grade
that you anticipated, come see me so that we can determine where your study strategies
went wrong. Coming to ask me what you can do to improve your grade makes sense
if you come early in the semester, but is pointless if you come late in the semester—
PSYCH 3331 ? Social Psychology ? Summer 2005 3
gives you more than enough opportunities even if you are sick, stuck in traffic,
hospitalized, or in labor. Turn them in IN CLASS, IN PERSON, ON TIME. Note:
Dropping off your paper at the beginning or end of class, but not staying for a full class
period, also will receive zero credit. If you are late on the day that papers are accepted,
your paper cannot be accepted for that day. To receive full credit for this assignment,
you need to arrive for class prepared and on time, with no excuses.
Sample observations and descriptions of how they relate to course concepts may be seen at:
http://jonathan.mueller.faculty.noctrl.edu//240/jrnindex.htm.
E. Additional notes:
1. Policy on ACADEMIC DISHONESTY: Students who violate University rules on
scholastic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary penalties, including the possibility of
failure in the course and/or dismissal from the University. Since such dishonesty harms
the individual, all students, and the integrity of the University, policies on scholastic
dishonesty will be strictly enforced. Written policies may be found on the UTD website
under “Student Life.”
2. All assignments must be handed in by class time on the day they are due. The
evaluative summary will not be accepted after June 27, 2005. Late assignments will not
be accepted.
3. In addition to submitting a hard copy of each written assignment in class, you will submit
your evaluative summary in class AND online at www.turnitin.com. Details about how
to set up your account will be discussed in class. Journal entries will not be submitted
to turnitin.com.
4. Special educational needs: The University of Texas at Dallas proudly supports a very
diverse student body. Among our students are those with learning disabilities or other
special needs. If you have a learning, sensory, or physical reason for special
accommodations in this class, please contact Kerrie Tate at 972-883-2098. Personnel
in Disability Services (SU 1.610) will provide the documentation to pass on to me so
that I can accommodate your needs.
5. University rules stipulate that a grade of "Incomplete" may be given only under extreme
circumstances outside of the student's control, and only after at least 70% of the course
work has already been completed (that’s everything but one exam). All requests for an
incomplete grade must have written approval from the College Master before I will
consider them.
6. If you find that for ANY REASON you are unable to attend two (or more) classes, you
should withdraw from the course. Come talk to me.
7. Absolutely no individualized extra credit will be available. Students concerned about
their grades are encouraged to contact me as soon as possible.
8. I am always available to answer questions about grades and assignments. Please come
to see me early to clear up points of confusion rather than waiting, which may simply
add to your frustration and decrease your learning efficiency.
PSYCH 3331 ? Social Psychology ? Summer 2005 5
IV. Grading. The basis for assigning grades in this course will be as follows:
Points % of final grade
Exams (3 @ 65 pts each) 195 75%
Evaluative summary of research 25 10%
Journal entries (10 @ 4pts each) 40 15%
TOTAL 260 100%
V. Office hours
Please feel free to stop by, email, or call any time. I always return your messages, so if you don’t
hear back from me within a reasonable amount of time (24 hours), you should assume that I did
not get the message and try contacting me again (IMPORTANT: put SOCPSY in the subject line
of your e-mail messages). Please feel free to get in touch with me any time you have a question
or concern about anything relating to assignments, exams, or anything else you can think of.
Although I can send documents to you, it is not possible for me to receive files as
attachments via e-mail. You are welcome to e-mail me any time, but please do not send
assignments via e-mail, even in the body of the e-mail message. I am happy to look over a hard
copy of any writing assignment on which you would like some extra help, but please remember
that to have time for everyone (and to get it back to you in time to rewrite it a few more times) I
need to receive your draft at least 2 class days or 10 calendar days before it is due (no emailed
submissions, please). Also, I can help you more if you bring me your best effort, not a first (or
even second) draft!
Take a moment to answer the questions below, each of which is based on social psychological research.
Though the correct answers may seem obvious in retrospect, many are hard to guess in advance.
1. Suppose an authority figure asks college students to administer near-lethal electric shock to
another student who has not harmed them in any way. What percentage of these students will
agree to do it?
2. If you give children a reward for doing something they already enjoy doing, they will subsequently
like that activity (a) more, (b) the same, or (c) less.
3. Seeing someone you admire do something rather clumsy or stupid, such as spilling a cup of coffee,
will make you like him or her (a) more, (b) the same, or (c) less.
4. Repeated exposure to a stimulus, such as a person, a song or a painting, will make you like it (a)
more, (b) the same, or (d) less.
5. You ask an acquaintance to do you a favor--for example, to lend you $10—and he or she agrees.
As a result of doing you this favor, the person will probably like you (a) more, (b) the same, or (c)
less.
6. True or false: It is most adaptive and beneficial to people's mental health to have a realistic view of
the future, an accurate appraisal of their own abilities and traits, and an accurate view of how much
control they have over their lives.
7. Suppose that a representative of a community organization knocks on people's doors and asks
them to put a small sign in their window promoting auto safety and that most people agree to this
request. A couple of weeks later, a different person from a different organization knocks on their
doors and asks a much larger favor: to erect an unsightly billboard in their front yard, promoting a
clean environment. Do you think that agreeing to the first, smaller request will (a) make people
more likely to agree to the second request, (b) make people less likely to agree to the second
request, or (c) have no effect on people's agreeing to the second request?
8. Suppose that two elementary school children, Mary and Bob, take an IQ test and Mary gets a
higher score than Bob. Which of the following might have contributed to Mary's higher score? (a)
On average, girls are smarter than boys; (b) IQ tests are biased so that girls do better than boys; (c)
the children's teacher thought Mary was smarter than Bob, even though this is not true; or (d) the
children's teacher thought Bob was smarter than Mary, so Mary tried hard to prove her wrong.
9. In public settings, (a) women touch men more, (b) men touch women more, or (c) there is no
difference—men and women touch each other equally.
10 True or false: The more you pay people to make a speech against their own beliefs, the more they
will change their minds and agree with the speech they made.
PSY 3331 • Social Psychology • Spring 2005 8
This writing assignment is intended to help you to refine your ability to summarize and critically evaluate
reports of original research in social psychology. You also will learn how to cite your sources and list your
references using APA style. Select from the list below the one article that looks most interesting to you.
You must choose one of the five articles listed on this page.
References
Donnellan, M.B., Larsen-Rife, D., & Conger, R.D. (2005). Personality, family history, and
Kaplar, M.E., & Gordon, A.K. (2005). The enigma of altruistic lying: Perspective differences in what
motivates and justifies lie telling within romantic relationships. Personal Relationships, 11(4),
489-507.
Plant, E.A., & Peruche, B.M. (2005). The consequences of race for police officers’ responses to
Riggs, J.M., & Gumbrecht, L.B. (2005). Correspondence bias and American sentiment in the wake of
Sheese, B.E., & Graziano, W.G. (2005). Deciding to defect: The effects of video-game violence on
Learning objective: Identify, summarize, and evaluate the main sections of a research report,
and cite your source appropriately
In one double-spaced page, summarize and evaluate the research that was done. Cite the source you are
discussing using APA style (check the APA format website again if you are unsure of how to do this—
using a correct citation and references page is worth 25% of the grade on this assignment—if you omit
them or have errors, you will not earn more than a C for this paper).
Citing your source means that you indicate where your information comes from. You do this as part of
your paper (in the body of the text) instead of using footnotes or endnotes. All APA style in-text citations
must include the authors’ last names and the work’s date of publication. If you were to use a direct
quotation you also would give the page number, but do not use any quotations in this paper. Also, because
this paper is only one double-spaced page in length, and you are only using one source, it will be sufficient
to cite your source one time only, near the beginning of your summary. Examples of the three possible
APA style citation formats (with the matching reference, which would go on a separate page) look like
this:
Researchers have found that children enrolled in didactic, highly academic preschools and
Stipek, Feiler, Daniels, and Milburn (1995) discovered that the type of instructional
programming (didactic vs. child-centered) significantly influenced the achievement of basic skills and the
In 1995, Stipek, Feiler, Daniels, and Milburn examined the impact of two types of instructional
approaches on the academic achievement and motivation of children in preschool and kindergarten.
References
Stipek, D., Feiler, R., Daniels, D., & Milburn, S. (1995). Effects of different instructional approaches
Use one of the three possible APA style citation formats—don’t name the article or the journal in which it
appears (or the authors’ first names, initials, or affiliation…) in your summary. Also, be sure to
paraphrase your source without using direct quotations. Your organization guidelines will be very handy,
here. Do not write a title on your summary page, and do not use subheadings (you won’t have room).
The purpose of this exercise is to help you learn how to include discussion of others’ research in
the papers you write (and, ultimately, in the decisions you make!). Very briefly and clearly, you should
be able to explain the purpose of the study, how it was conducted, what was found, and what it
means . When you are writing a critical review of research literature, you need to be able to discuss the
research in terms of examining the question that the investigators asked and how they went about
answering it, rather than simply accepting their results (or worse, their conclusions) as the only part of the
article worth reading.
PSY 3331 • Social Psychology • Spring 2005 10
Listing references
Create a References page for the article that you are evaluating. At the top of the page, write the word
“References,” but without the quotation marks (or bold type, or italics, or underlining, or fancy font). On
the next line , begin your list of references (in this case, only one reference will be listed). Use APA
style, as indicated on page 9 (this is described in detail on the website listed in the syllabus).
For the source information for the article you read for this assignment, list the original primary
source as indicated on the first page of the article (don’t worry about the format for electronic sources, for
example, even if you retrieve the article online). Notice that only authors’ last names and initials are
needed. The author element ends with a period. The year of publication is placed in parentheses, and this
element also ends with a period. Capitalize only the first word of the title of the article and end the
article title element with a period. Use capital letters for the title of the journal, followed by a comma, the
volume number and issue (if the issue number is needed), and the pages on which the article appears, and
end this element with a period. The title of the journal and the volume number both should be
either underlined or italicized, but the issue number (the number in parentheses) is not italicized.
Remember, the references should appear in your list in alphabetical order (when you have more than one
reference—for this assignment you only have one), but don’t change the original order in which
authors appear on each article .
To organize your summary of the research, make note of the following (by paraphrasing):
1. ARTICLE TYPE: For example, is this a correlational study, a descriptive study, a review of the
literature, a survey, an experiment? You don’t need to be sure to mention this in your summary,
but you should be aware of it as you interpret and evaluate the research.
2. PROBLEM: What was the purpose of this investigation? What issue was addressed? You’ll
find this in the introduction.
3. HOW INVESTIGATED: How did they go about answering their question? You’ll find this in the
method section. (Not how did you locate this article.)
4. RESULTS: What did they find out? Look in the results section.
5. INTERPRETATION: What does it mean? What are the implications for practical application to
real-world problems? You’ll find this in the discussion section.
6. CRITICISM: What are the limitations of this study? What do the authors say should have been
done differently, for example? What do you think about this study? Are the authors’ conclusions
warranted?
7. DIRECTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH: What should be done either to try again to answer
the initial question posed here, or what questions were raised by these findings that should be
answered next?
For your References page, be sure to make a note of the following information:
1. AUTHOR(S): Who wrote this article that you are reviewing? Be sure to list the authors in the
original order in which they appear.
2. YEAR: In what year was this article published?
PSY 3331 • Social Psychology • Spring 2005 11
NOTE: Two sample evaluative summaries are on reserve in the library. I strongly suggest
that you take a look at them. Ask for them at the Reserve desk under my name rather than
the course name.
Please notice in particular that the quality of your writing DOES COUNT. Please use correct grammar
and punctuation, and a clear, coherent writing style. More details about grading criteria will be discussed
in class. The following rubric serves as a useful guideline:
Thesis Handling the question Evidence Meaning & Errors of fact or
analysis grammar
Grade Clear and concise, Nuanced and complete Fulsome and relevant at Insightful and Free of errors;
A well developed all points creative gracefully written
Grade Clear and Understands the terms Clearly organized; fully Good logical flow, No major errors of
B complete and significance of the supported thesis persuasive fact; clearly
question written
Grade Comprehensible Superficial understanding Weak evidence for a Weak logical flow No major blunders,
C of the question part of thesis or interpretation comprehensible
Grade Non-existent or Lacks basic Lacks evidence for Shallow or illogical Blunders or
D or F incomprehensible understanding of the major parts of the incoherence
question thesis
How to find articles in the library when you already know what you want:
1. Go to www.utdallas.edu
2. Click on LIBRARY near the top of the page (the 3rd choice under the green bar)
3. Click on Do we own it? under Catalog.
4. Type in the name of the journal you are looking for and click on Search
Example: journal of personality and social psychology
5. Select journal you need, if necessary, then scroll down and click the link under ejournal available full
text (it likely will indicate a range of volume numbers)
Example:
Location: eJournal: From off campus use http://libproxy.utdallas.edu
Available Full Text: vol. 55- (July 1988-)
6. Type in key words for the specific article you are looking for
Example: self-handicapping
7. Scroll through the results and select the article you need, or enter more search terms to limit your
results
8. Click on PDF Full Text
9. Print your article
PSY 3331 • Social Psychology • Spring 2005 12
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PSY 3331 • Social Psychology • Spring 2005 13
Please tell me about yourself. Tear off this sheet and return it to me at the end of class today.
Name:
____________________________________________________________________________
Email address:
______________________________________________________________________
Academic major/minor:
_______________________________________________________________
How long have you been at UTD? _______________________ When will you graduate?
___________