Faculty Syllabus

The ACC Course Catalog offers this description of PSYC 2301:

Survey of introductory topics such as learning, memory, sensation and perception, personality, life-span development, physiological basis of behavior, stress and health, psychological disorders, social psychology, and research methods. Additional topics such as language development, states of consciousness, and psychotherapy may also be included as determined by the instructor. The Honors course provides a more in-depth introduction to the science and profession of psychology with emphasis on developing oral and written communication skills as they relate to the analysis and discussion of research and controversial issues in psychology

Course Rationale:

The rationale for a course in Introductory Psychology, also known as General Psychology, is to introduce students to the scientific study of behavior and the mind. Knowledge of this discipline will provide students with knowledge of why people and animals do the things they do and think the ways they think.

Prerequisites: None

Instructional Methodology:

This Spring class will be taught in face-to-face lectures. Material will be presented, examined and graded in Blackboard, i.e. online. All of the assignments, will be administered in Blackboard. The instructional format of the class will be that of a lecture course, with required  participation, and a major exam. Student participation in the form of questions, comments and discussion is greatly desired. Students will be expected to learn the lecture material! They will also be expected to read and study any information presented by Dr. Bishop for this class. Written learning objectives accompany this syllabus. These objectives inform the student as to what material is likely to be covered during lecture, for perspective papers, athe major assignment.

Technology Support Services:

Austin Community College now provides free, secure drive-up WiFi to students and employees in the parking lots of all campus locations. WiFi can be accessed seven days a week, 7 am to 11 pm. Additional details are available at Drive-up Wifi.

The Student Affairs Help Desk can assist with questions you have about ACCmail, ACCeID, Admissions and Records, Financial Aid, and general Advising questions:

Email: helpdesk@austincc.edu

For Information & live chat visit austincc.edu/help

Students who submit the Student Technology Access Form and indicate they need help accessing their online learning environment to successfully complete their courses are eligible to check out an ACC iPad for use during the semester. You must be registered for a credit course, Adult Education, or Continuing Education course.

Attendance/Class Participation

Regular and timely class attendance and participation are required.  Lectures, class themes, videos, articles, and group discussion are all used as instructional tools for this course.  

Please sign-in each day in the leather book provided by Dr. Bishop.

Any course material will be provided by Dr. Bishop.  He will provide artical, readings...etc.. 

Course Learning Outcomes:

According to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s Lower Division Academic Course Guide Manual:

Upon successful completion of this course, students will:

Identify various research methods and their characteristics used in the scientific study of psychology.

• Describe the historical influences and early schools of thought that shaped the field of psychology.
• Describe some of the prominent perspectives and approaches used in the study of psychology.
• Use terminology unique to the study of psychology.
• Describe accepted approaches and standards in psychological assessment and evaluation.
• Identify factors in physiological and psychological processes involved in human behavior.

Program Level Student Learning Outcomes:

• Understand psychological concepts and be able to recognize them in real-world contexts.
• Acquire a basic understanding of major perspectives in the field.
• Gain an awareness of the breadth of the academic discipline of psychology.
• Understand the various research methods psychologists use and critically evaluate evidence.

General Education Student Learning Outcomes for PSYC 2301:

Critical Thinking Skills
• Gather, analyze, synthesize, evaluate and apply information for the purposes of innovation, inquiry, and creative thinking.

Communication Skills
• Develop, interpret, and express ideas and information through written, oral and visual communication that is adapted to purpose, structure, audience, and medium.

Empirical and Quantitative Skills
• Apply mathematical, logical and scientific principles and methods through the manipulation and analysis of numerical data or observable facts resulting in informed conclusions.

Personal Responsibility
• Identify and apply ethical principles and practices to decision-making by connecting choices, actions and consequences.

Social Responsibility (Civic and Cultural Awareness)
• Analyze differences and commonalities among peoples, ideas, aesthetic traditions, and cultural practices to include intercultural competence, knowledge of civic responsibility, and the ability to engage effectively in regional, national, and global communities.

Teamwork
• Consider different points of view to work collaboratively and effectively in pursuit of a shared purpose or goal.

  Learning Objectives

Psychology as a Science

1.      Explain why using our intuition about everyday behavior is insufficient for a complete understanding of the causes of behavior.

2.      Describe the difference between values and facts and explain how the scientific method is used to differentiate between the two.

3.      Explain how psychology changed from a philosophical to a scientific discipline.

4.      List some of the most important questions that concern psychologists.

5.      Outline the basic schools of psychology and how each school has contributed to psychology.

Psychological Science

1.      Describe the principles of the scientific method and explain its importance in conducting and interpreting research.

2.      Differentiate laws from theories and explain how research hypotheses are developed and tested.

3.      Discuss the procedures that researchers use to ensure that their research with humans and with animals is ethical.

4.      Differentiate the goals of descriptive, correlational, and experimental research designs and explain the advantages and disadvantages of each.

5.      Explain the goals of descriptive research and the statistical techniques used to interpret it.

6.      Summarize the uses of correlational research and describe why correlational research cannot be used to infer causality.

7.      Review the procedures of experimental research and explain how it can be used to draw causal inferences.

8.      Outline the four potential threats to the validity of research and discuss how they may make it difficult to accurately interpret research findings.

9.      Describe how confounding may reduce the internal validity of an experiment.

10.  Explain how generalization, replication, and meta-analyses are used to assess the external validity of research findings.

Brains, Bodies and Behavior

1.      Describe the structure and functions of the neuron.

2.      Draw a diagram of the pathways of communication within and between neurons.

3.      List three of the major neurotransmitters and describe their functions.

4.      Describe the structures and function of the “old brain” and its influence on behavior.

5.      Explain the structure of the cerebral cortex (its hemispheres and lobes) and the function of each area of the cortex.

6.      Define the concepts of brain plasticity, neurogenesis, and brain lateralization.

7.      Compare and contrast the techniques that scientists use to view and understand brain structures and functions.

8.      Summarize the primary functions of the CNS and of the subsystems of the PNS.

9.      Explain how the electrical components of the nervous system and the chemical components of the endocrine system work together to influence behavior.

Sensing and Perceiving

1.      Review and summarize the capacities and limitations of human sensation.

2.      Explain the difference between sensation and perception and describe how psychologists measure sensory and difference thresholds.

3.      Identify the key structures of the eye and the role they play in vision.

4.      Summarize how the eye and the visual cortex work together to sense and perceive the visual stimuli in the environment, including processing colors, shape, depth, and motion.

5.      Draw a picture of the ear and label its key structures and functions, and describe the role they play in hearing.

6.      Describe the process of transduction in hearing.

7.      Summarize how the senses of taste and olfaction transduce stimuli into perceptions.

8.      Describe the process of transduction in the senses of touch and proprioception.

9.      Outline the gate control theory of pain. Explain why pain matters and how it may be controlled.

10.  Describe how sensation and perception work together through sensory interaction, selective attention, sensory adaptation, and perceptual constancy.

11.  Give examples of how our expectations may influence our perception, resulting in illusions and potentially inaccurate judgments.

States of Consciousness

1.      Draw a graphic showing the usual phases of sleep during a normal night and notate the characteristics of each phase.

2.      Review the disorders that affect sleep and the costs of sleep deprivation.

3.      Outline and explain the similarities and differences among the different theories of dreaming.

4.      Summarize the major psychoactive drugs and their influences on consciousness and behavior.

5.      Review the evidence regarding the dangers of recreational drugs.

6.      Review the ways that people may alter consciousness without using drugs.

 Growing and Developing

1.      Review the stages of prenatal development.

2.      Explain how the developing embryo and fetus may be harmed by the presence of teratogens and describe what a mother can do to reduce her risk.

3.      Describe the abilities that newborn infants possess and how they actively interact with their environments.

4.      List the stages in Piaget’s model of cognitive development and explain the concepts that are mastered in each stage

5.      Critique Piaget’s theory of cognitive development and describe other theories that complement and expand on it.

6.      Summarize the important processes of social development that occur in infancy and childhood.

7.      Summarize the physical and cognitive changes that occur for boys and girls during adolescence.

8.      Explain how adolescents develop a sense of morality and of self-identity.

9.      Review the physical and cognitive changes that accompany early and middle adulthood.

10.  Review the physical, cognitive, and social changes that accompany late adulthood.

11.  Describe the psychological and physical outcomes of bereavement.

Learning

1.      Describe how Pavlov’s early work in classical conditioning influenced the understanding of learning.

2.      Review the concepts of classical conditioning, including unconditioned stimulus (US), conditioned stimulus (CS), unconditioned response (UR), and conditioned response (CR).

3.      Explain the roles that extinction, generalization, and discrimination play in conditioned learning.

4.      Outline the principles of Operant conditioning.

5.      Explain how learning can be shaped through the use of reinforcement schedules and secondary reinforcers.

6.      Understand the principles of learning by insight and observation.

7.      Review the ways that learning theories can be applied to understanding and modifying everyday behavior.

8.      Describe the situations under which reinforcement may make people less likely to enjoy engaging in a behavior.

9.      Explain how principles of reinforcement are used to understand social dilemmas such as the prisoner’s dilemma and why people are likely to make competitive choices in them.

Chapter Eight:  Remembering and Judging

1.      Compare and contrast explicit and implicit memory, identifying the features that define each.

2.      Explain the function and duration of eidetic and echoic memories.

3.      Summarize the capacities of short-term memory and explain how working memory is used to process information in it.

4.      Label and review the principles of encoding, storage, and retrieval.

5.      Summarize the types of amnesia and their effects on memory.

6.      Describe how the context in which we learn information can influence our memory of that information.

7.      Outline the variables that can influence the accuracy of our memory for events.

8.      Explain how schemas can distort our memories.

9.      Describe the representativeness heuristic and the availability heuristic and explain how they may lead to errors in judgment.

Chapter Nine:  Intelligence and Language

1.      Define intelligence and list the different types of intelligences psychologists study.

2.      Summarize the characteristics of a scientifically valid intelligence test.

3.      Outline the biological and environmental determinants of intelligence.

4.      Explain how very high and very low intelligence is defined and what it means to have them.

5.      Consider and comment on the meaning of biological and environmental explanations for gender and racial differences in IQ.

6.      Define stereotype threat and explain how it might influence scores on intelligence tests.

7.      Review the components and structure of language.

8.      Explain the biological underpinnings of language.

9.      Outline the theories of language development.

 Emotions and Motivations

1.      Explain the biological experience of emotion.

2.      Summarize the psychological theories of emotion.

3.      Give examples of the ways that emotion is communicated.

4.      Define stress and review the body’s physiological responses to it.

5.      Summarize the negative health consequences of prolonged stress.

6.      Explain the differences in how people respond to stress.

7.      Review the methods that are successful in coping with stress.

8.      Understand the important role of positive emotions and happiness in responding to stress.

9.      Understand the factors that increase, and do not increase, happiness.

10.  Understand the biological and social responses that underlie eating behavior.

11.  Understand the psychological and physiological responses that underlie sexual behavior.

Chapter Eleven:  Personality

1.      Outline and critique the early approaches to assessing personality.

2.      Define and review the strengths and limitations of the trait approach to personality.

3.      Summarize the measures that have been used to assess psychological disorders.

4.      Describe the strengths and limitations of the psychodynamic approach to explaining personality.

5.      Summarize the accomplishments of the neo-Freudians.

6.      Identify the major contributions of the humanistic approach to understanding personality.

7.      Explain how genes transmit personality from one generation to the next.

8.      Outline the methods of behavioral genetics studies and the conclusions that we can draw from them about the determinants of personality.

9.      Explain how molecular genetics research helps us understand the role of genetics in personality.

Defining Psychological Disorders

1.      Define “psychological disorder” and summarize the general causes of disorder.

2.      Explain why it is so difficult to define disorder, and how the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) is used to make diagnoses.

3.      Describe the stigma of psychological disorders and their impact on those who suffer from them.

4.      Outline and describe the different types of anxiety disorders.

5.      Outline and describe the different types of dissociative disorders.

6.      Explain the biological and environmental causes of anxiety and dissociative disorders.

7.      Summarize and differentiate the various forms of mood disorders, in particular dysthymia, major depressive disorder, and bipolar disorder.

8.      Explain the genetic and environmental factors that increase the likelihood that a person will develop a mood disorder.

9.      Categorize and describe the three major symptoms of schizophrenia.

10.  Differentiate the five types of schizophrenia and their characteristics.

11.  Identify the biological and social factors that increase the likelihood that a person will develop schizophrenia.

12.  Categorize the different types of personality disorders and differentiate antisocial personality disorder from borderline personality disorder.

13.  Outline the biological and environmental factors that may contribute to a person developing a personality disorder.

14.  Differentiate the symptoms of somatoform and factitious disorders.

15.  Summarize the sexual disorders and paraphilias.

 Treating Psychological Disorders

1.      Outline and differentiate the psychodynamic, humanistic, behavioral, and cognitive approaches to psychotherapy.

2.      Explain the behavioral and cognitive aspects of cognitive-behavioral therapy and how CBT is used to reduce psychological disorders.

3.      Classify the different types of drugs used in the treatment of mental disorders and explain how they each work to reduce disorder.

4.      Critically evaluate direct brain intervention methods that may be used by doctors to treat patients who do not respond to drug or other therapy.

5.      Explain the advantages of group therapy and self-help groups for treating disorder.

6.      Evaluate the procedures and goals of community mental health services.

7.      Summarize the ways that scientists evaluate the effectiveness of psychological, behavioral, and community service approaches to preventing and reducing disorders.

8.      Summarize which types of therapy are most effective for which disorders.

 Psychology in Our Social Lives

1.      Review the principles of social cognition, including the fundamentals of how we form judgments about other people.

2.      Define the concept of attitude and review the ways that attitudes are developed and changed, and how attitudes relate to behavior.

3.      Summarize the genetic and environmental factors that contribute to human altruism.

4.      Provide an overview of the causes of human aggression.

5.      Explain the situations under which people conform to others and their motivations for doing so.

6.      Summarize the advantages and disadvantages of working together in groups to perform tasks and make decisions.

7.      Review the factors that can increase group productivity.

Hot Topics/Participation: 10pts.

Lass attendance is a must to get the full points.  Please sign in each day, unless Dr. Bishop does not take attendance.  The fastest way to fail, is to not show up for class.  The topic for discussion will be posted in blackborad before class.  

Four Perspective Papers: 10 pts. each, for a total of 40 pts.

Perspective papers will explained by Dr. Bishop.  The papers are typically a 3-6 page paper based on Lectures, Documentaries, or Hot Topic discussions.  These papers will be submitted as a word document in black board.  

Culture Chess Assignment: 10pts.

Students will be creative and use power point slides, pictures, symbols, and words to explain the identities they feel comfortable sharing.  Dr. Bishop will give a more in-depth explanation for this assignment closer to the due date.  

Argument Map: 10 pts.

Students will choose a psychology topic of their choosing, and choose an article, and use the argument document to explain, the psychology topic, or issue using the argument map.  Dr. Bishop, will give more in-depth instructions for this assignment closer to the due date.

Major Assignment: 30 pts.

The final assignment will be posted no later than a week before the final face-to-face class.

Grading Scale

• A = 90–100%

• B = 80–89%

• C = 70–79%

• D = 60–69%

• F = Below 60%

Week 1 (Jan 20–23): Introduction to Psychology; History of Psychology; Major Perspectives; Class Themes

Week 2 (Jan 26–30): Research Methods; Ethics in Psychology; Tu: The Human Experience; Th: Hot Topic Discussion

Week 3 (Feb 2–6): Biological Bases of Behavior; Perspective Paper #1 Due by Sunday Mid-night. 

Week 4 (Feb 9–13): Sensation and Perception/Hot Topic Discussion; Sercret Life of the Brain Ep 1.

Week 5 (Feb 16–20): States of Consciousness/ Hot Topic Discussion

Week 6 (Feb 23–27): Learning; Perspective Paper #2  Due by Sunday Mid-night. Secret Life of the Brain Ep 2.

Week 7 (Mar 2–6): Memory; Hot Topic Discussion

Week 8 (Mar 9–13): Cognition and Intelligence; "Stress The Portrait of a Killer"; Culture Chess Due By Friday 5pm.

Spring Break: March 16–20 (No Classes)

Week 9 (Mar 23–27): Motivation and Emotion; Hot Topic Discussion; Perspective Paper #3 Due By Sunday Midnight

Week 10 (Mar 30–Apr 3): Human Development; Secret Life of the Brain Ep.3 : "The Teenage Brain."

Week 11 (Apr 6–10): Personality; ;Perspective Paper #4 Due By Sunday Midnight 

Week 12 (Apr 13–17): Psychological Disorders; Hot Topic Discussion; Black Fish

Week 13 (Apr 20–24): Therapies and Treatment; Argument Map Assignment Due By Sunday Mid-night

Week 14 (Apr 27–May 1): Social Psychology; Hot Topic Discussion 

Week 15 (May 4–8): Stress and Health; Hot Topic Discussion 

Week 16 (May 11–17): Final Exam Due By Friday Mid-night

Artificial Intelligence (AI) Use Policy

Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools—such as language models, grammar checkers, tutoring systems, and research assistants—have become increasingly integrated into colleges and universities. When used responsibly, AI can support learning, enhance understanding, and strengthen academic skills. However, misuse of AI can undermine academic integrity and the learning process.

This course recognizes AI as an emerging educational tool, not a substitute for original thought, critical analysis, or scholarly responsibility.

Ethical Use of AI in This Course

Students may use AI tools ethically and transparently in the following ways:

• To clarify concepts, definitions, or theories covered in course material

• To assist with brainstorming ideas, outlines, or study questions

• To help improve grammar, clarity, and organization of student-written work

• To generate practice questions or summaries for exam preparation

• To explore alternative perspectives while critically evaluating accuracy

In all cases, AI should function as a learning aid, not as the primary author or decision-maker.

Unethical or Prohibited Use of AI

The following uses of AI are considered academic misconduct:

• Submitting AI-generated text, ideas, or analyses as one’s own original work

• Using AI to complete assignments, exams, quizzes, or discussion posts without proper disclosure

• Allowing AI to replace required critical thinking, interpretation, or reflection

• Using AI to fabricate sources, citations, data, or research findings

Any work that misrepresents AI-generated content as original student scholarship violates academic integrity standards.

Scholar Responsibility and Transparency

Students are expected to:

• Maintain ownership of their ideas, arguments, and conclusions

• Critically evaluate AI-generated information for accuracy, bias, and relevance

• Properly acknowledge AI assistance when it meaningfully contributes to an assignment, as instructed by the professor

• Understand that students are fully responsible for any content submitted, including content influenced by AI

Academic Integrity

Ethical scholarship requires honesty, accountability, and intellectual effort. While AI may support learning, it cannot replace the skills this course is designed to develop—critical thinking, ethical reasoning, and academic writing. Violations of this policy will be addressed in accordance with institutional academic integrity guidelines.