Abnormal Psychology
Summer, 2007
Professor:
Dr. Travis Langley =
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sp; =
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sp; Office:
McBrien Hall Room 301-F, 230-5222, langlet@hsu.edu
Required textbook: Abnormal
Psychology, by Sarason & Sarason.
Optional text useful for preparing for diagnostic
final:
=
Quick Reference to the Diagnostic Criteria from DSM-=
IV-TR,
by APA.
The online course use=
s the
same textbook as the regular class. For additional readings, videos, etc.,
refer to the WebCT page.
Website with free study guide: h=
ttp://cw.prenhall.com/sarason/
(9th edition) or ht=
tp://www.prenhall.com/sarason/
(10th or 11th edition)
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nbsp; &nbs=
p;
OVER=
VIEW:
This course is designed to provide an overview o=
f how
the science of behavior looks at abnormal behavior. The course will emphasize the etio=
logy
and diagnosis of mental disorders, according to DSM‑IV classification and empirical study.
SCHE=
DULE
Chapter numbers refer to the 10th
edition’s table of contents. If you use a different edition, you are
responsible for making sure you’re reading the correct chapters. Curr=
ent
table of contents can be found at the textbook website.
UNIT 1 Chapters 1, 2 (biological section only) 3, 5 (sleep disord=
ers
only).
UNIT 2 Chapters 2 (behavioral & psychodynamic sections), 4
(dissociative disorders), 6, 7.
UNIT 3 Chapters
8-10.
UNIT 4 Chapters
11, 12-14.
YOU MUST FIRST SCORE 100% ON THE SYLLABUS QUIZ B=
EFORE
YOU TAKE ANY UNIT TESTS. AFTER THAT, YOU DECIDE WHEN YOU TAKE EACH TEST.
FINAL EXAM:&nbs=
p;
3:00 June 29 or 1:00 August 3
INTERNET
I will post links to =
readings
and assignments on the webpage for this course. We will not use chatrooms a=
nd
you will not have to be online at any specific time of day to do assignment=
s.
WebCT has been replaced by ANGEL for online testing. Access information for
ANGEL can be found at http://www.hsu.edu=
/ols.
Contact Kris Duncan at duncankr@hsu.edu=
if
you have ANGEL difficulties.
CONTACTING YOUR PROFESSOR
The easiest way to co=
ntact me
with questions or comments is by e-mail. Write me at langlet@hsu.edu any ti=
me
and I will respond as soon as I see the message. If you need to meet with m=
e in
person at any time, whether it's about the assignments or to help you
understand the material, I will gladly meet with you. Just contact me by e-=
mail
to set up a time. If for some reason you cannot e-mail me, call me and eith=
er
speak with me or leave a message on my voicemail at (870)230-5222. It’=
;s
rare that there’s any need imminent enough that people need to call m=
e at
home, but it does happen. If so, I’m listed in the phonebook.
If there's anything e=
lse I
can help you with, always feel free to ask. Almost none of you have taken
online classes before, so do not be embarrassed when you occasionally goof =
here
or there. That's part of the learning process, and I'll do everything I can=
to
help you get things running smoothly.
EXAM=
S
Except for the final,=
tests
will also be held online, which means they have to be open book. People who
neglect their studies because a test will be open book, however, tend to run
out of time when they take the test because they don’t know the mater=
ial
well enough for the book to help them much. The final exam will not be onli=
ne,
and it will not be open book. For that, you will meet in a regular classroo=
m.
Each unit will conclude with a multiple choice e=
xam
covering lecture notes, Internet assigments, and all assigned readings (both
textbook and webpage readings). The last question on every test will not be
open book. For that, you will read a description of someone with a mental
illness, and you will diagnose that person. I’ll give you more inform=
ation
on how that works soon.
The final will NOT be multiple choice.
Instead, you will read descriptions of 10 people with mental problems, diag=
nose
each of them, and explain why you chose that diagnosis as opposed to other
disorders that might have been suggested by some of their symptoms. You will bring your own notebook p=
aper
for the final.
The final will weigh the same as two tests in fi=
guring
your grade, which means it’s one third of your overall grade.
You can take the final at 1:00 on June 29. Or yo=
u can
take an incomplete for the course to allow yourself more time, then take the final at 1:00 on August 3. I get the
impression that the majority of you plan to take it on August 3. That’=
;s
up to you.
GRAD=
ING
TESTS
Test questions range in difficulty to get an acc=
urate
idea of exactly how much you know and understand about the course
material. They provide a very
accurate indication of how much each person does and does not know compared=
to
everybody else in the class. =
I do
not feel it is right to establish a curve based on the highest grade in the
class, in which case only
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p; =
A
35.1 ‑‑>
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p; =
B
30.1 ‑ 35.0
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p; =
C
25.1 ‑ 30.0 =
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p; =
D
20.1 ‑ 25.0 =
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p; =
F
<‑‑ 20.0
The professor also reserves the right to assign a
course grade of F to someone caught cheating. Anyone caught cheating will also b=
e referred
for University disciplinary measures.
OPTI=
ONAL ASSIGNMENTS
Optional assignments appear in an Assignments fo=
lder
under Classroom in ANGEL. These tasks are intended to help you learn the
material. If you do these optional assignments, they can collectively add u=
p to
count the same as one test and help your overall course grade.
E-MA=
IL
COMMUNICATION
For an online course,=
it will
generally work best for you to communicate with me via e-mail. This being
summer, you’re simply not likely to reach me by phone. I won’t =
be
in the office often, although you could make an appointment to visit with m=
e in
my office if you need more detailed assistance. I will send messages to the
entire class via e-mail at times. The e-mail system is set up to send messa=
ges
to your student e-mail address. If you prefer to use some other address, you
must go into Reddie Connect and set up your mail options so that it will
forward e-mail to you. You are responsible for making sure of this.
COMPUTER TIPS
To make sure your com=
puter
can interact with our system, you should:
(1) make sure your computer has the most current version of
Internet Explorer, and
(2) check for available Windows updates.
If your computer has trouble with a=
ny of
the videos, etc., you may need to come to campus to use a computer in a
Jennifer Holbrook wit=
h Media
Services provides the following information:
“There is a ‘check browser’ option in the top
right corner of both the Login Screen and the MyWebCT screen. They can
click there for help with the updates. Send all computer questions to either Kris (5609 - duncankr@hsu.edu) or me (5275 - holbroj@hsu.edu).”
Network account infor=
mation: http://www.hsu.edu/conten=
t.aspx?id=3D206
You can also call the=
HSU
Computer Help Desk at (870)230-5678 if you have account difficulties.