PSY 101 Syllabus.docx - INSTRUCTOR INFO Dr Whitney Hansen...

INSTRUCTOR INFO: Dr. Whitney Hansen
Email: [email protected]
Office: SCOB 146
Office hours: Monday 1:30 – 2:30, Thursday 10 – 12
Teaching Assistant: Ahra Ko
[email protected]
SCOB 242H
Tuesday 10 – 12
COURSE DESCRIPTION & OBJECTIVES:
This course will be a broad overview of Psychology, the scientific study of human
behavior and mental processes. We will cover a variety of topics such as neuroscience,
learning, memory, emotions, psychological disorders, social psychology, and others.
Along the way, we will discuss how these topics relate to your life, but the course will
focus on data derived from scientific study, not from anecdotes or “feelings” about
human behavior. By the end of the course you will have an understanding of how
complex and interactive our thoughts, beliefs, personality traits, and brains really
are. You will be able to describe and apply the scientific process, understand the effect
that biology has on psychology, learn and remember information more effectively,
describe how our feelings, emotions, and the presence of other people influence our
thoughts and behaviors, and finally understand how this can all go awry by identifying
psychological disorders and their treatments. Additionally, I hope you will sharpen your
critical thinking skills, work effectively with others, and become more confident in your
ability to speak to groups small and large.
COURSE DESIGN BASICS:
This course will use something called Learning Objects , an online system that contains
a complete textbook ( Discovering Psychology, 2
nd
Edition , by J.T. Cacioppo & L.A.
Freberg, Cengage Learning, 2016), as well as teaching videos, exercises and quizzes.
We will also have in-person class sessions, as explained below. All of the materials you
need are included with the course, and delivered online. Thus, you do not need to
buy a separate textbook .
The link connecting to Learning Objects is found on the Canvas page for our class. In
addition, Canvas will contain other important information like announcements, links,
readings, videos or other interesting materials, and it will contain the final gradebook. I
will also use Canvas to send emails/messages. Make sure that you have updated
your notifications so that you will receive these important updates . You can find
more about Canvas notifications under COURSE INFORMATION.

This course will likely be different from previous classes you’ve taken, in two key
regards: First, the class has a “flipped” / hybrid design: In standard classes, students
hear lectures in class and read at home (often the night before an exam). In this class,