Evolutionary
Psychology (85-352)
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When: Tuesday-Thursday 1:30 p.m-2:50 pm Where: Baker Hall 336B
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Instructor: |
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Office hrs: Tuesday.
11-12, Thursday, 11-12 or by appointment |
Email:
rakison@andrew.cmu.edu |
Class web page: http://www.psy.cmu.edu/~rakison/epseminar.htm
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Overview
This
class is intended to acquaint students with the emerging field of evolutionary
psychology. Concepts and principles of human evolution will be developed in the
context of classic and contemporary issues in cognitive, developmental,
personality, and social psychology. The instructor will introduce the key
concepts, issues, and lines of research, but in each case students are expected
to take an active role in discussing and developing the topic under
consideration. We will examine the relevance of evolutionary thinking to a
range of psychological phenomena including problems of survival, long-term
mating strategies, short-term sexual strategies, parenting, kinship,
cooperative alliances, aggression and warfare, conflict between the sexes, and
prestige, status, and social dominance. We will also examine more briefly
evolutionary approaches to development, cognition, and language.
Required textbooks: David M. Buss (2011).
Evolutionary Psychology: The new science of the mind. Fourth
edition. New York: Allyn and Bacon.
Each
chapter in the Buss book presents an overview of a particular area of
evolutionary psychology as it relates to humans that we will discuss each week
in class. You will be required to read one chapter (occasionally, where
relevant, two chapters) from the book each week. Each week there will also be a
required additional reading that will provide an alternative view or
supplementary detail to that presented in the book chapters. The additional
readings will be available as PDFs through the class website.
Course
Objectives
The
purpose of this course is for you to learn about the fundamentals and specifics
of evolutionary psychology. Specifically, the goals of the course are for you
to learn about the following areas and to develop skills in the following
areas:
(1) An understanding of the basic
principles, theories, and experimental findings of scientific research in
evolutionary psychology and how they are applied to the study of the mind and
behavior in humans and animals
(2) Communicate an area of research to
others in the class
(3) The ability to lead a class
discussion
(4) A consideration of ethical issues
associated with research in evolutionary psychology
(5) The ability to use the library and
other resources to find out what is known about a research topic
(6) The skills to conduct an empirical
project on evolutionary psychology
(7) An in-depth knowledge of a
specific area of evolutionary psychology based on your research of the
literature.
(8) The ability to think critically
about the existing theories and empirical studies in the field
Requirements
Students will prepare one review paper on a topic
related to the course and a research proposal designed to investigate an
unresolved issue in some aspect of evolutionary psychology. These papers must
be on different topic areas. Each student is required to present their research
paper to the class during the last 3 classes of the semester. Students will
also take a mid-term and a final exam covering the material presented in
readings and class discussion. Details regarding these requirements will be
presented in class.
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Review Paper |
20% |
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Research Proposal |
20% |
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Presentation of Proposal |
5% |
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Mid-term exam |
15% |
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Final Exam |
15% |
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Class leader |
10% |
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Class participation |
10% |
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Attendance |
5% |
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TOTAL |
100% |
Participation
and attendance:
There is a “four strikes and you’re out” policy:
If you miss more than three classes during the semester, you will be
assigned a zero for the attendance component of the course. If
students miss a class for a valid reason (e.g., illness) that is documented,
that missed class will not count against them.
The
“class participation” component will be judged across your discussion
throughout the semester as well as posting of weekly questions. All I ask is
that you engage in discussion as much as possible - an enjoyable and
constructive seminar tends to result from the whole class (and not just one or
two students) participating in the dialogue. Constructive contributions derive
from coming to class well prepared, with questions and suggestions based on the
readings. There is a message board (site: http://www.psy.cmu.edu/forums/) where
you are required to post a question/idea/hypothesis/comment for each
topic. These postings are important because they provide the foundation for the
discussion that we will have in class. For posting, a “three strikes and you’re
out” policy is in effect; that is, if you fail to post three times you
automatically receive a 0 for the class participation component of the class.
Grading
Because grading is not based on a
curve it is theoretically possible for everyone to receive an A (or an F). The
grading system for the course is as follows (Note: I reserve the right to
adjust slightly this grading system at a later time):
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A |
= 90- 100 |
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B |
= 80 – 89 |
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C |
= 70 – 79 |
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D |
= 60 – 69 |
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F |
= below 60 |
Policies
Late Work:
Assigned work will lose 5% for each day
late. Extensions must be requested
before work is due, and will be granted only on the grounds of serious problems
on a case-by-case basis. No
extensions will be granted the week that a paper is due. Documentation –
for example, a written and fully justified explanation from a physician - will
be necessary for a student to avoid losing points for late work.
Students
who miss the examination without making prior arrangements will be given
a zero. If you are ill, you must inform me - by phone, email, or in person – before
the exam to be exempt from taking it. There are no exceptions to this rule. Any
students who miss the exam, having made prior
arrangements with me, will take it as soon as possible after the original test
date. No matter how good your excuse, a written and fully justified explanation
from a physician will be necessary for a student to miss the exam because of
illness.
Cheating and Plagiarism: Cheating and plagiarism are defined in the
CMU Student Handbook, and include (1) submitting work that is not your own for
papers, assignments, or exams; (2) copying ideas, words, or graphics from a
published or unpublished source without appropriate citation; (3) submitting or
using falsified data; and (4) submitting the same work for credit in two
courses without prior consent of both instructors. Any student who is found
cheating or plagiarizing on any work for this course will receive a failing
grade for that work. Further action may
be taken if necessary.
Other
points:
Office hours are provided for
assistance in understanding the readings, questions about exams or papers, and
for general problems with the course. You do not need to book an appointment, just
turn up and drop in. Try to formulate your questions before arriving so that
the largest number of students can use the office hour productively. If you
would like to make an appointment please contact me to arrange a time suitable
to both of us. If students fail to make use of office hours, the set time will
be cancelled and an appointment only system will be introduced. Almost without exception, the best way to
contact me is via email.
Please turn up to class on time. It is
distracting to me and to the other students if you arrive late (or try to leave
early). If you do arrive late then please try to enter as quietly as possible.
Students who arrive on time may be privy to information about the exam/papers
that will not be repeated at a later date. Material discussed in class will not
always be covered in the text, and material in the text will not always be
covered in the class. If you miss a class, please find out from a classmate
what went on in class, including the content of the discussion, handouts,
assignments, and announcements.
How to do well in this class:
Completing the assigned reading and
thinking about the content of the text is essential to doing well in this
class. You will get more out of the class if you put in approximately 4 to 6
hours of reading (and thinking) a week. I actively encourage you to engage in
discussion during the class; the more discussion we have, the more enjoyable
the course will be, and the more we will all learn.
The review paper will require you to
search for and read a reasonable amount of the literature in a particular area,
and to think about that area in depth. The research proposal will require you
to be creative and design a study to examine a novel and (hopefully) interesting
area of study in the field. Both of these components will require you to write
in a clear, concise, and interesting manner. A good writing style is important,
and I will be happy to see drafts of parts of your papers. The exam will
be a test of your understanding of the material - not simply how much
information you can remember. If you are not clear about something covered in
the text or in class, ask me in office hours or bring up the topic during class
hours.
Some of the material will be
difficult, and we shall endeavor, as a class, to work through such material
together. If you are finding the course hard to cope with, come to see me and
we can discuss how to make thinks easier for you (for example, changing your
study habits, note taking, working in groups).
If you are looking for extra material
to read:
SOURCES FOR JOURNALS ARTICLES:
Psychinfo
at the library
Evolution and Human Behavior Society
(http://www.hbes.com/)
Biological
Theory (also Evolution and Cognition) (http://www.kli.ac.at/publications-a.html
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Behavioral and Brain
Sciences ( http://www.bbsonline.org/)
Other good
stuff
Rob Kurzban’s
Evolutionary Psychology Blog (http://www.epjournal.net/blog/)
Rob’s more broad
Psychology Today Blog (http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/mind-design)