Philosophy of Psychology, PHI 3451

Fall 2009

Professor: Dr. Jennifer Mundale
Ph: Office -823-5076; Dept - 823-2273
E-mail: jmundale@pegasus.cc.ucf.edu
Website: http://pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/~jmundale (will be activated by August 31)

Office hours: T 3:00-5:00, Th 11:00-1:00, and by appt.

Office: 230 new Psychology Building (inside the Philosophy Department).

Course description.

Philosophy of Psychology is an advanced, upper-level course in philosophy, and will be structured and paced accordingly. In this course we will examine the philosophical foundations and assumptions of major schools of psychology, including Cartesian dualism, naturalized approaches to the mind, Freudianism, behaviorism, evolutionary psychology, developmental psychology, and cognitivism. In the course of examining these major schools, as well as in the discussion emerging there from, the following philosophical topics within the philosophy of clinical psychology will also be addressed, with particular emphasis on the scientific status of various clinical approaches.

Prerequisites.

Junior standing or above, or permission of instructor. A background in philosophy and/or psychology is strongly recommended.

Required Texts.
1) Flanagan, Owen. The Science of the Mind, 2nd ed.
Additional readings will be distributed (free of charge) later in the semester, depending on class progress and interest.

“M” Mode.

This is an “M” or mixed-mode course, meaning that it is partly a face-to-face course and partly an online course. The online portion comes to you through WebCT. In order to take this course, you must have regular online access, facility with WebCT, the ability to send and receive e-mail on a regular basis, and basic internet navigating abilities.

Grading.

The grade for the course is based on the following components:
Three In-Class Exams: 50% (25% each, drop lowest exam).

7-8 Online/WebCT Quizzes (short): 20% (4% each, keep only best 5).

Final Exam, In-Class (cumulative): 30% (Final Exam: )

Note: I will use the +/– grading system (A, A-, B+, B, B-, etc.)

Requirements

Exams. There will be three, mixed-format, in-class exams during the semester, seven short, online quizzes (described below), and a cumulative final exam. I will drop your lowest exam score (except for the final exam, which you may not drop). There will also be opportunities for extra credit that will arise during the semester. You do not need a bluebook or a scantron sheet for any quiz or exam. Absence from an in-class exam will result in a score of zero for that exam.

Quizzes. Through WebCT you will have seven short, online quizzes, each of which will address upcoming readings, shortly before they are addressed in class. These quizzes will not only provide incentive for completing the reading before class, they will also help you to key on the central ideas of each reading. You may use your textbooks (open book/open note) for these quizzes. Since the quizzes are to be taken before the reading is discussed, they will, understandably, be shorter and more basic than the in-class exams. With few exceptions, you will have a quiz every week that opens on Friday and closes the following Tuesday. (You are not required to take any quizzes on the weekends – you can wait until Monday or Tuesday – but it is open for those who wish to take them then.) There are no makeups for these quizzes; however, you may drop your lowest two of the seven.

Email Requirements:

In order to complete this course, you must have a functional e-mail account that you check regularly; more specifically, you must regularly check the one that is listed in eCommunity. Some class announcements and some reading materials will be distributed exclusively through the e-mail listed in eCommunity. It is up to you to insure that you receive them, and you are responsible for the contents of class e-mailings. Please note the following new university policy:

“To comply with new University policy, as of September 28, 2009 eCommunity will only allow a Knights E-Mail address for students. If you already have a Knights E-Mail address, eCommunity messages will be sent to your Knights E-Mail account. If you do not yet have a Knight's E-Mail address, you must get a Knights E-Mail account to avoid missing important class communications. Please visit http://www.knightsemail.ucf.edu/ for more information.”

Attendance. This is an upper-level course, so your attendance, preparation, and thoughtful participation are an important component of the class. The assigned readings are intended to stimulate thoughtful discussion, questions, and observations. Your physical presence for the face-to-face component is essential to your understanding of the material. I do not post class notes of the face-to-face lectures and discussions; you are responsible for taking your own notes, and are responsible for anything that is said in class. If you have to miss class, you will need to get the notes from a reliable student. Finally, you are required to maintain positive and reasonable class decorum (see below). In other words, be respectful of the intellectual endeavors of others as well as your own.

Class Decorum.

Everyone is expected to maintain positive classroom decorum. Disruptive or discourteous behavior, including repeated lateness and/or early departures, will not be tolerated, and will result in a lower grade, failure, or outright dismissal from the course. It is rude and disruptive to leave a class in progress in order to get a drink, hit the vending machine, or take care of non-urgent matters that should have been attended to prior to class. Please avoid this behavior except in case of true emergencies; repeated instances of such behavior will lower your grade and/or result in disciplinary action through the Office of Student Conduct. If you know you will have to leave class early, please mention it to me at the start of the class. Consider what your general behavior and attitude convey about you, particularly to those who may know little else about you outside of the classroom. This is my personal policy, and it is consistent with university policy. The following excerpt from the undergraduate catalogue (Academic Regulations and Procedures) is reproduced here for your information:

Classroom Responsibility

Students are responsible for maintaining classroom decorum appropriate to the educational environment. When the conduct of a student or group of students varies from acceptable standards and becomes disruptive to normal classroom procedures, the instructor has the authority to remove the offending party from the room and refer the student to the Office of Student Conduct (SRC 155) for disciplinary action.

Lateness on test days.

Students who arrive late for an in-class exam will not be allowed to take the exam unless no student has yet left the classroom. If no student has left the room, you will be allowed to take the exam without any penalty to your grade, but you will not be given extra time to complete it.

Makeup Policy:

Do not come to class if you have the flu. It is important not to infect other students. See your doctor if you believe you have the flu; they may give you antiviral medication that will diminish its severity. Because you are allowed to drop one of the three exams and two of the seven quizzes, a makeup should not be required. Occasionally, more dire circumstances arise for students, and those I will consider on a case-by-case basis, assuming one consults me in a timely and responsible manner.

Academic Dishonesty.

I do not tolerate cheating, plagiarism, or other forms of academic dishonesty and will punish cheaters to the fullest extent allowed through the Office of Student Conduct. If you don’t have enough integrity to do your own work, drop the class now and re-examine your purpose in life and at UCF. The following guidelines are reproduced for your information from the UCF Golden Rule (http://www.goldenrule.sdes.ucf.edu/conduct.html):

Academic Dishonesty/Cheating

A. Cheating is a violation of student academic behavior standards. The common forms of cheating include:

Unauthorized assistance: communication to another through written, visual, or oral means. The presentation of material which has not been studied or learned, but rather was obtained through someone else’s efforts and used as part of an examination, course assignment or project. The unauthorized possession or use of examination or course related material may also constitute cheating.

Plagiarism: whereby another’s work is deliberately used or appropriated without any indication of the source, thereby attempting to convey the impression that such work is the student’s own. Any student failing to properly credit ideas or materials taken from another is plagiarizing.

Any student who knowingly helps another violate academic behavior standards is also in violation of the standards.

Preliminary Course Schedule (through first exam)

Week One (meet Wednesday, August 26)

Introduction to Class, Review Syllabus, Student Information Sheets, Students loaded into WebCT after first class meeting

WebCT Quiz 1 (Ch. 1, just over pp. 1-11), opens Friday, August 28, closes Tuesday, Sept. 1.

ONLINE CHAT: Friday, 7-8 p.m. (Go to WebCT, click on “Chat”)

Week Two (meet Wednesday, September 2)

Flanagan, Ch. 1, (Minds and Bodies: René Descartes)

WebCT Quiz 2 (Ch. 1, just over pp. 12-22), opens Friday, September 4, closes Tuesday, September 8

ONLINE CHAT: Thursday, 5-6 p.m.

Week Three (meet Wednesday, September 9):

Flanagan, Ch. 1, cont’d., pp. 12-22

WebCT Quiz 3 (over Ch. 2, pp. 23-53) opens Friday, closes Tuesday

ONLINE CHAT: Thursday, 9:30-10:30 p.m.

Week Four (meet Wednesday, September 16):

Flanagan, Ch. 2 (James, Naturalism)

WebCT Quiz 4 (over Ch. 3), opens Friday, closes Tuesday

No online chat this week

Week Five (meet Wednesday, September 23)

Flanagan, Finish Ch. 2, begin Ch. 3 (Freud)

No WebCT Quiz this week

ONLINE CHAT: Wednesday, 12:30-1:30

Week Six (meet Wednesday, September 30)

Flanagan, Ch. 3, Review for Exam (Chapters 1-3)

ONLINE CHAT: Friday, 8:30-9:30 (longer if needed)

Week Seven (meets Wednesday, October 7)

Extra Online Chat: Tuesday, October 6, 8:30-9:30

EXAM 1, in-class, Wednesday, October 7

WebCT Quiz 5 (over Ch. 4), opens Friday, closes Tuesday

Week Eight (meets Wednesday, October 14)

Flanagan, Ch. 4 (Behaviorism)

WebCT Quiz 6 (over Ch. 5), opens Friday, closes Tuesday

Week Nine (meets Wednesday, October 21)

Flanagan, Ch. 5 (Cognitive-Developmental Psychology)

No WebCT Quiz this week

Week Ten (meets Wednesday, October 28)

Flanagan, Ch. 6 (Cognitive Science, skip pp. 224-254)

WebCT Quiz 7 (over Ch. 6, skip pp. 224-254) opens Friday October 30 closes Wednesday November 4

Week Eleven (meets Wednesday, November 4)

Flanagan, finish Ch. 6 (Cognitive Science, skip pp. 224-254), Review Chs. 4 and 5

No WebCT Quiz this week

* * * * Chapter Summaries Here * * * *

Week Twelve (meets Wednesday, November 11)

Veteran’s Day Holiday, No Class

Week Thirteen (meets Wednesday, November 18)

Exam 2, in-class, Wednesday, November 18 (over Chs. 4 and 5 only – Ch. 6 will be on Exam 3)

Online Chat: Tuesday, November 17, 8:30-9:30 p.m.

No WebCT Quiz this week.

Week Fourteen (meets Wednesday, November 25)

Film: The Lobotomist (will be on Exam 3)