Syllabus
Abnormal Psychology

Abnormal Psychology

PSYC-2320

Credit Fall 2020
08/24/2020 - 12/13/2020

Course Information

Section 002
Distance Learning
MW 13:30 - 14:50
DLS DIL
Suzanne Mitchell

Office Hours

  • M W
    12:00pm - 12:30pm
    Online
    In the virtual classroom accessible through Blackboard.
  • M W
    4:30pm - 5:00pm
    Online
    In the virtual classroom accessible through Blackboard.
  • M T W Th
    NULL - NULL
    Online
    Online- by appointment
  • T Th
    1:00pm - 1:30pm
    Online
    In the virtual classroom accessible through Blackboard.
  • T Th
    4:30pm - 5:00pm
    Online
    In the virtual classroom accessible through Blackboard.

Course Requirements

COURSE GRADE / EVALUATION SYSTEM

Grades will be determined by four exams, each counting 25% of the final grade. These exams are multiple choice and will be administered through Blackboard. Exams are NOT open-book or open-note. Therefore, there are strict time limits and other measures to ensure academic integrity, such as questions being presented one at a time, with no backtracking, and questions and answer choices being presented in a random order. Once you begin a test, you must complete it in the same session. These tests are meant to measure your knowledge of psychology terminology, not your English language proficiency, so please feel free to consult with me about unfamiliar words or phrases, especially if you speak English as a second language. On test days, your professor will be available in the virtual classroom to answer questions. Therefore, it is advised that you take the exam during normal class time, in case you have any questions. 


Please do not attempt to “google” the answers to exam questions. While the ideas and concepts that we will be discussing this semester are general, the language and examples used are specific to this textbook. The internet can certainly provide alternative ways to define, and think about, particular concepts, and a broader range of examples, and is therefore a perfectly acceptable way to supplement what you learn in lecture and in the textbook. However, the exam questions themselves are of sufficient difficulty that, in order to deduce the correct answer, you must actually understand the concept being discussed. The best way to do that is to attend lectures, read your textbook, and take notes.

Readings

 

Required Text:

Fundamentals of Abnormal Psychology, 9th Edition

Author: Comer & Comer

ISBN: 9781319126698

 

Course Subjects

 

WEEK 1

Monday, August 24

Syllabus review, Introductions

 

Wednesday, August 26   

Chapter 1: Abnormal Psychology: Past and Present

WEEK 2

Monday, August 31  

Chapter 2: Models of Abnormality

 

Wednesday, September 2    

Chapter 3: Clinical Assessment, Diagnosis, and Treatment

WEEK 3

Monday, September 7

NO CLASS: Labor Day 

 

Wednesday, September 9

Chapter 4: Anxiety, Obsessive-Compulsive, and Related Disorders

WEEK 4

Monday, September 14

Complete Chapters

 

Wednesday, September 16 

Review for Exam 1

WEEK 5

Monday, September 21

EXAM ONE (Chapter 1, 2, 3, 4) 

 

Wednesday, September 23

Chapter 5: Disorders of Trauma and Stress

WEEK 6

Monday, September 28   

Chapter 6: Depressive and Bipolar Disorders

 

Wednesday, September 30

Chapter 7: Suicide

WEEK 7

Monday, October 5

Chapter 8: Disorders Featuring Somatic Symptoms

 

Wednesday, October 7   

Complete chapters

WEEK 8

Monday, October 12     

Review for Exam Two

 

Wednesday, October 14

EXAM TWO (Covers chapters 5, 6, 7, 8)

WEEK 9

Monday, October 19

Class Activity

 

Wednesday, October 21      

Chapter 9: Eating Disorders

WEEK 10

Monday, October 26    

Chapter 10: Substance Use and Addictive Disorders

 

Wednesday, October 28   

Chapter 11: Sexual Disorders and Gender Variations

WEEK 11

Monday, November 2    

Chapter 12: Schizophrenia and Related Disorders

 

Wednesday, November 4   

Complete Chapters

WEEK 12

Monday, November 9      

Review for Exam Three

 

Wednesday, November 11     

EXAM THREE (Chapters 9, 10, 11, 12)

WEEK 13

Monday, November 16 

Class Activity

 

Wednesday, November 18   

Chapter 13: Personality Disorders

WEEK 14

Monday, November 23    

Chapter 14: Disorders Common Among Children and Adolescents

 

Wednesday, November 25    

Chapter 15: Disorders of Aging and Cognition

WEEK 15

Monday, November 30   

Chapter 16: Law, Society, and the Mental Health Profession

 

Wednesday, December 2

Complete chapters

WEEK 16

Monday, December 7

Review for Exam Four

 

Wednesday, December 9

EXAM FOUR (Chapters 13, 14, 15, 16)

 

Student Learning Outcomes/Learning Objectives

COMMON COURSE OBJECTIVES/ STUDENT OUTCOMES:

  • Understand the issues involved in defining normal and abnormal behavior.

  • Describe the definitions, symptoms, classifications, etiology and treatment of abnormal behavior.

  • Formulate an understanding of psychopathology, which includes an integration of biology, psychology and social context.

  • Recognize how culture and social context affect our understanding of psychopathology.

  • Use critical thinking, skeptical inquiry and the scientific approach to evaluate how psychopathology relates to the field of psychology and the everyday world.