Abnormal Psychology (Spring, 2024)

ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY PSY-2024

Professor:  Dr. Travis Langley

Required textbook: Abnormal Psychology by Oltmanns & Emery.
Optional textbook: Desk Reference to the Diagnostic Criteria from DSM-5-TR, American Psychiatric Association. Highly recommended for psychology majors and at the time of this writing, is less than $25 on Amazon. The reference for the previous edition, DSM-5, is currently $9.99 in Kindle format.
Check with HSU bookstore for the current textbook information.

OVERVIEW:
Coursework covers the origin, identification, treatment, and social implications of abnormal behavior, emphasizing etiology (origin), symptoms, and diagnosis of specific mental illnesses according to DSM-5 criteria. Topics include obsessions, compulsions, addictions, stress, phobias, anxiety, depression, schizophrenia, personality disorders, dementia, amnesia, dissociative disorders, sexual disorders, eating disorders, learning disabilities, childhood behavioral problems, and more.

TEST SCHEDULE

UNIT 1 – Monday, February 5 (online)
Chapters 1-4, sleep-wake disorders.

UNIT 2 – Monday, March 4
Chapters 5-7. Bonus: 8.

UNIT 3 – Wednesday, April 3
Chapters 9-12. Bonus: 17.

UNIT 4 – Wednesday, April 24
Chapters 13-16. Bonus: 18.

FINAL EXAM (30% of the course grade)

The cumulative, comprehensive final is a large portion of the grade because it’s when we find out how much you have actually learned from all the other work you’ll do in the class.

Except when explicitly stated otherwise, you will take all exams ON CAMPUS and they will not be open book/notebook. Bring Scantron sheet and #2 pencil. You can purchase a Scantron sheet at the campus bookstore.

You are NOW responsible for making sure you can and will take the final at the scheduled time. Do not ask to take it early or late.

NOTE ON THE FINAL: Half of the final will be multiple choice. Half will consist entirely of suggesting and explaining diagnoses for people described in short scenarios.

EXAMS BEFORE FINAL (30% of the course grade)

Each unit will conclude with a 40‑point exam covering any of the course material. Most of the test will be multiple choice, but a couple of questions at the end of the test will not be. For one question each time, you will suggest a diagnosis to fit a person described in a scenario and you will explain your choice.

There will be NO makeup tests. If emergency will prevent you from taking a test, contact your professor as soon as possible with written confirmation. One test will be dropped from the grades: either your lowest test score or one that is missing due to excused absence.

Writing Across the Curriculum: The last question on every test except the final will be some version of “Since the previous test, what have you learned from the current course material that was not otherwise covered by this exam?” Write your answers as coherent sentences. In general, each distinct fact you provide will be worth half a point, up to the normal maximum of 3, so to earn full credit provide 6-8 distinct facts. Writing more could earn a little extra credit, up to an absolute maximum of 4, which would almost always bring your score up a full letter grade. Bad answer, not worth any credit: “We talked about sleep-wake disorders, but you didn’t ask about them.” Good answer: “Sleep-wake disorders come in two main types: the dyssomnias, in which people have frequent difficulty getting the right amount or quality of sleep, and parasomnias, in which disruptive actions or emotions often disturb sleep.” Rather than just stating which topic was not covered by the test, tell what you learned about the topic.

GRADING

Test questions range in difficulty to get an accurate 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 one score would determine everyone’s grade. The scale on the 40‑point tests is simply this:

F <‑‑ 20.0          D 20.1 ‑ 25.0          C 25.1 ‑ 30.0          B 30.1 ‑ 35.0        A 35.1 ‑‑>

There can be essay questions to assess your understanding of material.

The “total” or “average” shown in Canvas for the class can be misleading when it includes things that do not count as part of your grades and leaves out some things that do. Ignore that number.

INTERNET ASSIGNMENTS (40% of the course grade)

To do your assignments, check the Discussions section for this class several times each week. You will either do each assignment on that discussion forum or learn from the forum where to go to do each task, such as when you have to take some practice quizzes in Canvas (normally the last week before finals). Each response you’re required to make counts as one point simply for following the instructions or minus one point (-1, negative credit) if you don’t do it. You will have several assignments every week. Because missing an assignment for an online class day counts as missing class, anyone who fails to do three or more of the assignments may be dropped from the course without further notice.

Do NOT email your work to your professor. Emailing it instead of posting it where it’s supposed to go counts as missing the assignment altogether, plus you’ll lose points from your overall grade.

DEADLINES

Check the course discussion forum on Canvas for each week’s assignments. The assignments are posted on the Canvas discussion forum by the end of each Wednesday, and they often appear earlier in the week. Some may appear earlier than others do. If you see no new assignments by Thursday, ask the professor in case of a Canvas error.

The deadline is the end of class time each Friday except when clearly stated otherwise. No late work will be accepted. Meet the deadlines. Normally class does not meet in person on Fridays because it is online then. Some Mondays or (less likely) Wednesdays will be online.

If you wait until that last day and something goes wrong that keeps you from doing the assignment, well, you should have done it earlier because you’ll have several days to complete each task. If your Internet is out all day, you are responsible for going somewhere with Internet access. If your wifi is out, you could use a phone to create a hotspot with access. The Internet is all around us, the ways to access it are many, and you have chosen to take a partly online class. Accessing the Internet and keeping track of your schedule are your responsibilities.

ACADEMIC ENVIRONMENT AND INTEGRITY

The professor reserves the right to subtract any number of points from the grade of someone who disrupts class, whether online or in person. (This rarely happens.)

Anyone caught cheating will receive a course grade of F and will be referred for University disciplinary measures. A single instance of plagiarism in any task counts as cheating.

ELECTRONICS POLICY

Your phone and other electronic devices must be OFF and OUT OF SIGHT. If your phone is out, you lose a point. If you’re peeking down at your phone, you lose a point. If your phone rings or vibrates loudly enough for your professor to hear it during class, every ring is a classroom disruption and can cost you points. If it rings once, make sure it does not ring a second time. Do not text during class because that is distracting to others. If you need to be on your phone that badly, then you need to be somewhere else. Each time your phone is in sight (yours or mine) during class, you lose a point from your best test grade.

If your phones, notes, or watches are visible during a test, that will be treated as cheating because too many students use their phones to cheat. I do not have to confirm what was on your phone. Also, do not wear sunglasses or hats with forward-facing bills or brims during tests.

Don’t use computers to take classroom notes. Sorry, but too many professors have run into problems with people distracting other students by sitting there surfing the Internet.

PERSONAL COMMITMENT

You and you alone are responsible for your success. It requires motivation and devotion. You must make sure you follow instructions and do your work before the deadlines. Developing the habit of following instructions and doing things when you’re supposed to do them is probably more important in your life than any specific bit of information that any class can teach you.

COMPUTER TIPS

To make sure your computer can interact with our system, you may need (1) the most current version of your Internet browser, (2) Windows updates, and (3) Java updates.

Call the HSU Computer Help Desk at 230-5678 or email helpdesk@hsu.edu if you have non-Canvas account difficulties.

CONTACTING YOUR PROFESSOR

For a partly online course, the easiest way to contact me with questions or comments is by email. Write me at langlet@hsu.edu any time and I will respond after I see the message if a reply is necessary. Emailing me directly is often more reliable than messaging me via Canvas. If you cannot email me, you will need to leave a message on my voicemail at  (870)230-5222. Email works best, though. Every time you send me a message without saying who you are or which course you’re talking about, you will lose a point from your grade for Internet assignments, just as you’ll lose a point every time you could have found your answer by checking the syllabus instead of cluttering the email. We all get too much email. Be responsible and don’t lose those points.

I will send messages to the entire class via email at times. The email system is set up to send messages to your HSU student email address. If you prefer to use some other address, you must go into your campus email system and set up your mail options so that it will forward email to you.

If I can help you with anything else, always feel free to ask. Every class is different, so do not be embarrassed when you occasionally goof here or there. That’s part of the learning process, and I’ll endeavor to help you get things running smoothly.

Syllabus Part II: Expected Learning Outcomes, Computer Tips, Disability Services

The schedule and other details in this syllabus may be subject to revision.