THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT DALLAS

Social Psychology
SPRING 2006
Dr. Huxtable-Jester PSY 3331.501
Office: GR 4.522 Tuesdays 7-9:45pm
Office hours: MW 12:30-1:30 & 3:30-4:30pm (and by appt.) HH 2.402
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
11641).

II. Texts & supplies

A. Aronson, E., Wilson, T.D., & Akert, R.M. (2005). Social psychology (5th ed.). Upper Saddle
River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
B. The STUDY GUIDE designed to accompany this text also is required. The text website is
optional, and it appears at http://www.prenhall.com/aronson.
C. Additional chapters and journal articles will be assigned to complement, elaborate on, or
contradict the text. More details about this will be discussed in class.
D. You must use the APA style guide at
http://www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/DocAPA.html. Read the article about how to read
journal articles at http://arts.uwaterloo.ca/~sspencer/psych253/readart.html.
E. Pick up 4 Exam System II #229630 answer sheets for exams, available free at the off-campus
bookstore. You MUST bring an answer sheet (and your #2 pencils, of course) to each
scheduled exam.
F. Please buy yourself a stapler so that you can staple all papers that you give me.

III. Course requirements

A. Readings and class participation. You are encouraged to contribute for class discussion
examples from the media (i.e., articles from newspapers, magazines or television) of societal
attitudes, policies and practices relevant to social psychology.
1. To get the most benefit from your time in this class, please keep up with the readings as
indicated in the course calendar. You will find classes to be much more interesting and
involving if you come prepared to discuss each day's topic. Advance preparation also
enables you to understand the material, to be prepared to ask questions to clarify the
day's material, and to put the material into context with material covered earlier.
PSY 3331 • Social Psychology • Spring 2006 2

2. Class attendance and participation are an important indication of your commitment and
professionalism, and are critical to your success in this course. Classes will consist of
lectures, discussions, and demonstrations, and frequently will cover content not found
in the texts. Attendance (or the lack of it) will be seriously considered when assessing
final grades. Participation includes asking and responding to questions and contributing
to class discussions, and also is considered in the grading.
3. Please come to class on time and stay for the duration of the
class session. You should be seated and ready to begin on time. Coming in late or
leaving early is disruptive and distracting. Repeated absences and/or disruptions will
result in a significant reduction of your final course grade. There is no such thing as an
excused absence!
4. It is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to acquire missed lecture notes, assignments, handouts,
and announcements from a classmate—NOT from me. You are responsible for all
information given in class. This includes any changes to the syllabus, content and
format of quizzes, and details given regarding assignments.

B. Exams
1. Four 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. If you do not
take your makeup exam at the scheduled time, you will receive 0 points. 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 or a TA 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 (e.g., after the 4 th exam)—at that point there is nothing you can do.
5. Preparing for an exam is an important part of the learning process—it takes weeks of
preparation, not days or hours. Learning and understanding the material are the best
preparation for the exams. Keeping up with the readings pays off. Plan to spend at least
9 hours per week outside of class on reading and writing assignments for this course.
PSY 3331 • Social Psychology • Spring 2006 3

C. Evaluative summary of research

1. In place of a traditional term paper, you will evaluate an original report of research in
social psychology by writing a one-page critical review of research literature. Additional
details appear later in this syllabus and will be discussed further in class.
2. The References page and citation format for this summary will follow the format
approved by the American Psychological Association as described in the APA
Publication Manual. Use of the website
http://www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/DocAPA.html is REQUIRED. I suggest
that you acquaint yourself with the information to be found here early in the semester—
waiting until you have finished writing your paper is likely to be too late.

D. Elaboration Journal/Scrapbook of personal experiences & observations

1. You will have 16 opportunities to earn up to 40 points toward your final grade by
submitting, in person and on the day they are due, a personal experience journal or
scrapbook entry corresponding to each of the assigned readings. Each entry will
demonstrate how some event from your personal experience can be understood using a
specific theory or concept from the chapter (bold-faced terms). BE SURE TO
UNDERLINE THE CONCEPT IN YOUR PAPER THE FIRST TIME IT APPEARS. You
also may collect magazine articles and newspaper clippings that illustrate social
psychological concepts. For each scrapbook entry, write a paragraph explaining how the
article illustrates a specific theory or concept from the chapter. You need not limit
yourself to articles—editorials, advertisements, and even cartoons may be illustrative as
well. Even the “Try It!” exercises and critical thinking questions in the book can give
you good ideas to get started. Important Note: Select a concept relevant to a MAIN
IDEA of the chapter. If you’re not sure what I mean, ask me.
2. The goal of the journal is to provide you with an opportunity to elaborate on ideas
presented in the reading. Give a real-life example of something that you read about, for
example. In the process, you might also share your reactions to the reading material,
critically evaluate an issue, or relate a personal concern or experience to course content.
Journals will be graded on thoughtfulness and thoroughness, but not on the specific
views you express. About one-half to one full page, double-spaced, will be sufficient—
please do not write more than one page. You can receive 1-4 points per entry (1-
incomplete; 2-complete but lacking depth or organization; 3-adequate; 4-complete,
organized, and demonstrates insight). The quality of your writing DOES COUNT. Please
use correct grammar and punctuation, and a clear, coherent writing style. You will lose
points for failing to proof-read (and correct!) your work. A paper with errors cannot earn
more than 2 points.
3. Each entry must be typed, and articles/clippings/cartoons should be photocopied or
mounted onto an 8½x11” sheet of paper, with appropriate indication of the source.
Handwritten entries will receive zero credit (part of the assignment is that you must
plan ahead and type your entry in advance). Late (or early) entries, whether submitted in
person or via e-mail, will receive NO credit (don’t try to e-mail me attached files—I won’t
download them). This is true for all late (or early) entries, regardless of the excellence of
the reason why they were late (or early). After all, you only have to do 10 out of 16—
that 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.
PSY 3331 • Social Psychology • Spring 2006 4

Sample observations and descriptions of how they relate to course concepts may be
seen at: http://jonathan.mueller.faculty.noctrl.edu//240/jrnindex.htm. Journal entries
cannot be accepted if they are late, early, longer than one page, single-spaced,
handwritten, or otherwise illegible.

E. Research Exposure Credits

All students enrolled in Core psychology courses must earn research exposure credits.
Details about this requirement appear on the separate handout distributed on the first day
of class.

F. 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 7pm March 14, 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. Your
turnitin.com Class ID is 1430718 and the password is SITUATION. Details about how
to set up your account will be discussed in class. Journal entries will not be
submitted to turnitin.com.
4. About Sorting Numbers: When we have our 2nd or 3rd class meeting, I will assign you
a number that you should write in the top right corner of the cover page of every
assignment and exam you turn in. These numbers are used to put assignments in
gradebook order more efficiently. Please write your sorting number on every exam or
asignment for which you would like a grade.
5. 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.
6. 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.
7. Please note that journal entries can NOT be made up for any reason. If you must miss
more than three classes for ANY reason, please withdraw from the course. There is no
such thing as an excused absence.
8. Absolutely no individualized extra credit will be available. If you are concerned about
your grades, come see me. 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.

V. Grading. The basis for assigning grades in this course will be as follows:
PSY 3331 • Social Psychology • Spring 2006 5

Points % of final grade

Exams (4 @ 50 pts each) 200 75%
Evaluative summary of research 25 10%
Journal entries (10 @ 4 pts each) 40 15%
TOTAL 265 100%

Assignment of letter grades is as follows:

Points earned Percent Letter grade
246-265 93-100% A
238-245 90-92% A-
232-237 88-89% B+
219-231 83-87% B
211-218 80-82% B-
206-210 78-79% C+
193-205 73-77% C
185-192 70-72% C-
179-184 68-69% D+
171-178 65-67% D
0-170 0-64% F

VI. Office hours

Please feel free to stop by, email, or call any time you have a question or concern about anything
relating to assignments, exams, or anything else you can think of. I always return your
messages, so if you don’t hear back from me within 2 days, you should assume that I did not get
the message and try contacting me again. Important: Please put SOCPSY in the subject line of
your message, or I will not realize it is from you, and probably will not read it. I want to get to
know you, and I DO NOT REPLY TO ANONYMOUS MESSAGES, so please alsosign your
messages with your first and last name. University regulations restrict me from revealing your
personal information via email. I will not be able to send your grades to you—you will receive
your exam and assignment grades in class on designated days. If you need to see me privately,
please come to my office.

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 draftat
least 3 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!

I will give you the contact information for the TAs in class—please write it down on the next
page and keep it safe!
PSY 3331 • Social Psychology • Spring 2006 6

The Graduate TA for this class will administer and score all exams, including makeup exams. If
you, tragically, will need to take a makeup exam, you will first get approval from me and then
contact the graduate TA to arrange a makeup exam at her convenience. Exams must be made up
within one week, so be sure to make these arrangements right away.

Grad TA:
_____________________________________________________________________

Email:
________________________________________________________________________

Office phone:
__________________________________________________________________

The undergraduate TA for this class will grade journal entries, keep records of attendance, lead
group study or tutoring sessions, and in general facilitate your learning success in this class.

Undergrad TA:
_________________________________________________________________

Email:
________________________________________________________________________

It is your responsibility to keep track of your grades, so that you know where you stand at all
times. Feel free to verify your grades with me, at my office, any time.

You can record your grades here:

Exam 1 _____/50
Exam 2 _____/50
Exam 3 _____/50
Exam 4 _____/50
Evaluative Summary _____/25
Journal entries (4 pts each) _____/40
TOTAL _____/265

Journal grades:
Ch. 1 ____
Ch. 2 ____
Ch. 3 ____
Ch. 4 ____
Ch. 5 ____
Ch. 6 ____
SPA 1 ____
Ch. 7 ____
PSY 3331 • Social Psychology • Spring 2006 7

Ch. 8 ____
Suppl. ____
Ch. 9 ____
SPA 3 ____
Ch. 13 ____
Ch. 12 ____
Ch. 10 ____
Ch. 11 ____

Midterm grades=(Exam 1+Exam 2+First 8 Journals)/132=% score

PSYCH 3331 ? Social Psychology ? Spring 2006 8

Course Calendar
Week Date Topic Readings to be
discussed
1 1/10 Course overview
Introduction to social psychology Aronson Ch. 1

2 1/17 How social psychologists do research Aronson Ch. 2

How we think about the social world Aronson Ch. 3
Journal entry for Chapter 1 and Journal entry for Chapter 2 accepted today

3 1/24 Social cognition continued

How we come to understand other people Aronson Ch. 4
Journal entry for Chapter 3 and Journal entry for Chapter 4 accepted today

4 1/31 7-8:15pm EXAM 1: Chs. 1-4

How we come to understand ourselves Aronson Ch. 5
Journal entry for Chapter 5 accepted today

5 2/7 How we justify our actions to preserve our self-esteem Aronson Ch. 6
Journal entry for Chapter 6 accepted today

6 2/14 Social Psych in Action: Health & stress Aronson SPA 1

Attitudes & attitude change Aronson Ch. 7
Journal entry for SPA 1 and Journal entry for Chapter 7 accepted today
Optional: submit your Evaluative Summary by today for early feedback

7 2/21 7-8:15pm EXAM 2: Chs. 5-6, SPA 1, Ch. 7

Changing people’s behavior Aronson Ch. 8
Journal entry for Chapter 8 accepted today

8 2/28 EVALUATIVE SUMMARY PAPERS DUE in class AND at turnitin.com

(Window OPENS)
Conformity & compliance continued Suppl.
readings
Influence in social groups Aronson Ch. 9
Journal entry for Suppl. readings and Journal entry for Chapter 9 accepted today
PSYCH 3331 ? Social Psychology ? Spring 2006 9

9 3/7 NO CLASS—Enjoy your Spring Break

10 3/14 LAST CHANCE—PAPERS DUE in class AND at turnitin.com

by 7:00pm CST (Window CLOSES)
Group processes continued
Social Psych in Action: Law Aronson SPA 3
Journal entry for SPA 3 accepted today

11 3/21 What causes prejudice? What can be done? Aronson Ch. 13

Journal entry for Chapter 13 accepted today

12 3/28 7-8:15pm EXAM 3: Chs. 8-9, SPA 3, Ch. 13

Why we hurt other people Aronson Ch. 12
Journal entry for Chapter 12 accepted today

13 4/4 Forming, maintaining, and dissolving relationships Aronson Ch. 10

Journal entry for Chapter 10 accepted today
Papers returned

14 4/11 Why do people help (or not)? Aronson Ch. 11

Journal entry for Chapter 11 accepted today

15 4/18 7-8:15pm EXAM 4: Chs. 12, 10, 11

No Final Exam
Course grades will be ready May 3
PSYCH 3331 ? Social Psychology ? Spring 2006 10

Social Psychology Quiz

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 2006 11

Evaluative Summary Assignment

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 four articles listed on this page. The articles are listed here exactly as
they should appear in your paper’s References page.

References

Dixon, T. L., & Maddox, K. B. (2005). Skin tone, crime news, and social reality judgments:

Priming the stereotype of the dark and dangerous Black criminal. Journal of Applied

Social Psychology, 35(8), 1555-1570.

Gunter, B., Furnham, A., & Pappa, E. (2005). Effects of television violence on memory for

violent and nonviolent advertising. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 35(8), 1680-

1697.

Lawrence, C., & Richardson, J. (2005). Gender-based judgments of traffic violations: The

moderating influence of car type. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 35(8), 1755-

1774.

Shapiro, A. F., Gottman, J. M., & Carrère, S. (2000). The baby and the marriage: Identifying

factors that buffer against decline in marital satisfaction after the first baby arrives.

Journal of Family Psychology, 14(1), 59-70.

Reading and understanding reports of original research

Make a photocopy or printout of the entire article. Just as if you were planning to write a traditional
term-paper using this article as one of your sources, you will need to take notes to help you remember
and organize what you read. Use the guidelines for organizing your evaluative summary (see page 11)
to take notes on this research report.
Write a brief critical summary of the research investigation you read about. Remember, you are
not writing about an article, you are writing about someone’s research, about their attempt to ask and
then answer an interesting or important question. Anyone reading your one-page paper should know
exactly what the study was about without having to read it. Your summary should be one double-spaced
page in length, using 12-point font (Times Roman) and 1-inch margins, with the page number appearing
in the top right corner ½ inch from the top of the page, and probably will have 3-4 paragraphs. You are
writing in APA style, so please do not use first person.
PSY 3331 • Social Psychology • Spring 2006 12

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). If your paper is longer than one
double-spaced page, 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. Do
not copy from the article, either—you summarize the research by paraphrasing it. 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 investigated whether children enrolled in didactic, highly academic preschools

and kindergartens demonstrate negative outcomes on several measures of motivation as compared

to children in child-centered programs (Stipek, Feiler, Daniels, & Milburn, 1995).

Stipek, Feiler, Daniels, and Milburn (1995) conducted a correlational study of the

relationship between type of instructional programming (didactic vs. child-centered) and the

achievement of basic skills and the motivation of 227 4- to 6-year-olds.

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 on young children’s achievement and motivation. Child Development, 66,

209-223.

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).
PSY 3331 • Social Psychology • Spring 2006 13

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.

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.

What to turn in:

1. Title page—this should include the name of the assignment (e.g., Evaluative Summary), your name,
course name, my name, semester and year
2. One-page evaluative summary with one-inch margins, double-spaced, 12-pt Times Roman font
3. References page (number all of your pages, including your references page, in the top right corner)

Guidelines for Organizing your Evaluative Summary

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 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 applicationto
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?
PSY 3331 • Social Psychology • Spring 2006 14

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?
3. ARTICLE TITLE: What is the complete title of the article?
4. JOURNAL TITLE: In which journal did you find this article?
5. VOLUME: In which volume of the journal did this article appear?
6. ISSUE: Is a particular issue within that volume indicated? Or is it possible to use page numbers
alone to locate that article?
7. PAGES: On which pages is the article to be found? (Not how many pages long is the article.)

NOTE: Two sample evaluative summaries are on reserve in the library, call number
12626. I strongly suggest that you take a look at them.

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 A Clear and Nuanced and complete Fulsome and relevant Insightful and Free of errors;
concise, well at all points creative gracefully written
developed
Grade B Clear and Understands the terms Clearly organized; fully Good logical flow, No major errors
complete and significance of the supported thesis persuasive of fact; clearly
question written
Grade C Comprehensible Superficial Weak evidence for a Weak logical flow No major
understanding of the part of thesis or interpretation blunders,
question comprehensible
Grade D Non-existent or Lacks basic Lacks evidence for Shallow or Blunders or
or F incomprehensible understanding of the major parts of the illogical 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 2006 15

Syllabus Addendum
Each student in this course is expected to exercise independent scholarly thought,
expression and aptitude. This addendum to the course syllabus is provided to
assist you in developing and maintaining academic integrity while seeking
scholastic success.
General Comments:
• All academic exercises (including assignments, essays, laboratory experiments and reports, examinations,
etc.) require individual, independent work. Any exception(s) will be clearly identified.
• Be sure your name or identifying number is on your paper.
• Complete and turn in academic exercises on time and in the required format (hardcopy, electronic, etc.).
• Retain confirmation of document delivery if submitted electronically.
• Retain all research notes and drafts until the project or assignment has been graded.
• Obtain written authorization from your instructor prior to submitting a portion of academic work
previously submitted for any academic exercise. (This includes an individual or group project submitted for
another course or at another school.)

Essays and Significant Papers:

Be prepared
• To present periodic drafts of work in process
• To correctly and completely reference all sources of information using the citation format prescribed
• To turn your completed assignment in timely and in the prescribed manner (electronic, hardcopy, etc.)

Examinations:
Be prepared
• To leave all personal belonging at the front of the room or other designated location (this includes cell phones,
turned off of course, and beverage containers)
• To present your UTD Comet Card
• To remove your cap or hat
• To remove the batteries from any electronic device (e.g. calculator)
• To exchange blue books or bring them early as required
• To change seating
• To sign out when exiting the testing room
• To be escorted for lavatory use

All episodes of suspected scholastic dishonesty will be reported according to

University policy. 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 University, policies on scholastic dishonesty will
be strictly enforced. Penalties that may be assessed for scholastic dishonesty
may be reviewed in Subchapter D. Penalties at
http://www.utdallas.edu/student/slife/chapter49.html.
Judicial Affairs
U. T. Dallas
4/05