Health
Psychology /
Fall 2014
Professor
Christyn Dolbier, Ph.D.Associate Professor
Office: Rawl Annex 141
Phone: 252-328-2119
Email: / Student Hours
Email: I will try to respond
within 48 hours (M-F, 9am-5pm)
Office or telephone:
M & T 12-2:30 or by appointment
Syllabus
This document is designed to provide you with a detailed description of what to expect in this course. It contains information about the workings of the course, including a schedule, policies, requirements, and expectations - for both me and you. It is very important that you take the time to familiarize yourself with this syllabus. Please be aware that during the semester, changes may be made to the schedule and policies. I will post these on the Announcements page of our Blackboard course.
Course Description
v Advanced topic: This advanced topics course provides a comprehensive introduction to the field of health psychology, including: a) promotion and maintenance of physical health, b) prevention and treatment of physical illness, c) causal and diagnostic correlates of health and illness, and d) analysis and improvement of the health care system and health policy formation.
v Prerequisites: Psychology major; PSYC 2210: Research Methods in Psychology; and two psychology courses from learning and cognition, biological bases, or general course groups.
v Writing intensive (WI): PSYC 4250 is a writing intensive course in the Writing Across the Curriculum Program at ECU. This course contributes to the twelve-hour WI requirement for students at ECU. Additional information is available at the following site: http://www.ecu.edu/writing/wac/.
v Capstone: This course meets the psychology major capstone requirement.
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Course Objectives
v Successful completion of this course will enable you to accomplish the following:
1. Develop an understanding and appreciation of the complex interplay between one's physical well-being and a variety of biological, psychological, and social factors.
2. Learn the nature of the stress response and its role in the etiology and course of many health problems, as well as how behavioral and cognitive methods can help individuals cope with stress.
3. Develop an understanding of the factors influencing health habits and lifestyle, as well as methods to enhance health behavior and prevent illness.
4. Learn about the management of chronic and life-threatening health problems, as well as how psychological methods and principles can be applied to help individuals cope with such conditions.
Course Format
v Online course: This course is taught entirely online using Blackboard. All instructional materials are on Blackboard. All learning will be gained through reading, thinking, and writing. There will be opportunities for interaction with me and among you and your classmates.
v Is an online course right for you? To determine whether online learning is a good fit for your learning habits, review the Succeeding as an Online Student and Tips for Online Success sections at this website: http://www.ecu.edu/cs-acad/options/de-101.cfm. If you cannot answer “yes” to most of the following questions, this may not be the best course format for you. Are you self-disciplined about completing coursework and studying? Are you conscientious about meeting deadlines? Are you good at following written directions? Are you comfortable using online technology?
v Independent coursework: You are expected to complete all required coursework independently. Any collaboration in the completion of coursework or completion of coursework by someone other than you is considered a violation of academic integrity and will be dealt with as such.
Textbook Requirement
v Textbook: Straub, R.O. (2012). Health Psychology: A Biopsychosocial Approach (3rd edition). New York, NY: Worth Publishers. ISBN: 9781429216326
§ Obtain from Dowdy Student Stores in Wright Building or at this website http://epos2-phx.sequoiars.com /ePOS?this_category=1&store=458&form=shared3%2ftextbooks%2fmain%2ehtml&design=458.
§ You may also obtain the textbook from another textbook dealer or the textbook publisher if you prefer.
Textbook Companion Website
v Website: http://bcs.worthpublishers.com/straub3e/#t_660498____
v Contents: This free textbook companion website provides several useful resources for each chapter: learning objectives, outlines, flashcards, check your health exercises, critical thinking exercises. Some of these resources (e.g., critical thinking exercises) will be integrated into your chapter assignments.
Technology Requirements
Inherent in your choice to take an online course is a claim of technological proficiency and access. Any claims to the contrary will not be considered acceptable reasons for missing coursework deadlines.
v Computer and internet: Dependable computer with reliable internet access.
v Blackboard course: Ability to log on to and use the various components of our Blackboard course.
v ECU email: Ability to access and use your ECU email account.
v Textbook companion website: Ability to access and use components of the free textbook companion website.
Communication
v My availability: I will be available Monday through Friday 9am – 5pm (excluding holidays) by email and typically respond within 48 hours. I do not guarantee to respond to emails on weekends and holidays. I am also available in my office or by phone by appointment.
v Communicating with you: I will communicate with you via Announcements on Blackboard and ECU email. You must log on to our Blackboard course and check your ECU email several times throughout each week.
Blackboard
v Logging in: Go to the Blackboard gateway (https://blackboard.ecu.edu/). Click Login and enter your ECU userid and password. Then select PSYC 4250: Health Psychology - Fall 2014.
v Components: Use Announcements to check for updates/reminders; Faculty Info for my contact information; Course Info for course materials; Quizzes for chapter quizzes; Assignments for chapter assignments; Companion Website for direct link to textbook companion website; Discussion Board for specific chapter assignments; Helpful Links to access useful websites; Email to send email to me and/or classmates; and My Grades to check your grades.
v Assistance:
§ If you have any trouble logging in, contact the ECU IT Help Desk at 252-328-9866 or 800-340-7081. If they are unable to resolve the problem, contact me as soon as possible.
§ Blackboard familiarity will make the semester go smoothly for you. This website has tutorials and helpful information: http://blog.ecu.edu/sites/blackboard/student-support/.
§ Unless it is a system-wide problem, difficulty accessing or utilizing Blackboard will not be accepted as an excuse for missing coursework deadlines.
Student Evaluation and Grading
You may earn up to 1000 points. Your final grade is determined by your performance on three introductory assignments, 13 chapter quizzes, 13 sets of chapter assignments, and a writing portfolio requirement.
Component Percent Points Total points Grade
Introductory assignments 3% 30 940-1000 A = 94-100%
Chapter quizzes 39% 390 900-939 A- = 90-93%
Chapter assignments 52% 520 870-899 B+ = 87-89%
Writing portfolio requirement 6% 60 830-869 B = 83-86%
800-829 B- = 80-82%
770-799 C+ = 77-79%
730-769 C = 73-76%
700-729 C- = 70-72%
670-699 D+ = 67-69%
630-669 D = 63-66%
600-629 D- = 60-62%
0-599 F = 0-59%
v Grade availability: All grades are posted on Blackboard. Chapter quiz grades are available immediately upon submission. Typically, I grade written assignments within two weeks. If you do not understand a grade or think a grade is incorrect, notify me via email within one week of the grade being posted and explain your concern.
v Personal responsibility: I want you all to do well in this course. I have designed the course to help you learn and do well, but YOU ultimately determine what grade you earn in this course. Your grades in this class are earned by you, not given by me. Therefore, I want you to take personal responsibility for your learning.
v Grade cutoffs: The grade cutoffs above are absolute -- for example, a 699 is a D+, not a C-. When transforming total points to letter grades, "close" does not count. Do not ask or expect me to “give you points” toward your final grade or request additional assignments or extra credit to earn more points.
v Incompletes: Some of the assignments for this course are available only during the time allotted for that section of the course, and many of the assignments are not available after the end of the seminar. For this reason, a grade of “Incomplete” is not an option except in extreme circumstances that must be documented by an ECU-approved excused absence. Details about ECU-approved excuses are available on the Dean of Students webpage: http://www.ecu.edu/cs-studentaffairs/dos/excused_absences.cfm
Introductory Assignments
There are three introductory assignments you will complete during the first week of class. They are all available under Assignments on Blackboard. These assignments are each worth 10 points, for a combined total of 30 possible points (3% of your final grade). They are all due by Wednesday, September 3 at 11:55pm.
v Assignment 1 - Syllabus quiz: This assignment helps ensure you have read and understand our syllabus.
v Assignment 2 - How to read a research article module and quiz: This assignment helps you gain a better understanding of how to read and interpret a psychological journal article as well as how to navigate the database PsycInfo to find such literature.
v Assignment 3 – Academic integrity/plagiarism module and quiz: This assignment helps you learn about ECU's Academic Integrity policy, as well as information on plagiarism and citation.
Chapter Quizzes
There are 14 online quizzes, one for each chapter, and all available under Quizzes on Blackboard. Each quiz is worth 30 points, and I combine your best 13 quizzes for a total of 390 possible points (39% of your final grade).
v Content and format: Each quiz corresponds to the chapter textbook reading and consists of 15 multiple-choice questions. Quizzes are open-book and have a 30-minute time limit.
v Preparation: Study for the quizzes as you would for a closed-book quiz. The textbook companion website has several study resources to help you prepare for the quizzes: 1) web quizzes you can take as practice quizzes, 2) learning objectives to help you focus on what you should be learning from the chapter, 3) flashcards to help you practice your understanding of major terms, and 4) outlines to provide a framework for the material in the chapter. PowerPoint presentations are also provided under Course Info on Blackboard.
v Deadlines: Quizzes must be submitted by the due dates listed in the schedule at the end of this syllabus (note chapter quizzes are due every six days excluding holidays). There are no make-up quizzes or extensions. If you do not complete a quiz by its deadline, you will have earned a grade of “0” for that quiz.
v Dropping lowest quiz: I will drop your lowest quiz grade. If you miss a quiz for any reason, this will count as the quiz I drop for you. You do not have to inform me about missing one quiz or provide a reason for doing so.
v Problems: Computers may lock up and internet interruptions can occur while completing a quiz online, which may result in incomplete submissions. It is always a good idea to check to make sure your grade is recorded in the grade book after submitting quizzes.
v Challenging missed questions: If you feel you have provided a correct answer to a quiz question but it was scored as incorrect, you may challenge the score. To do so, provide specific evidence from the textbook that supports why your answer is the best answer. Submit your challenge on the Quiz Question Challenge Form within two weekdays of the particular quiz deadline. This form is available on Blackboard under Course Info.
Chapter Assignments
Each of the 14 chapters has a set of assignments to complete. Each set of chapter assignments is worth 40 points. I combine your best 13 sets of chapter assignments for a total of 520 possible points (52% of your final grade). Descriptions of chapter assignments are available under Assignments on Blackboard.
v Content and format: A variety of assignments are assigned to aid in your learning and critical thinking about the material. These include discussion board postings, videos you watch and respond to, check your health exercises, critical thinking exercises, tutorials you access on the textbook companion website and respond to, library and internet research assignments, and other written assignments.
v Deadlines: Assignments must be completed by the due dates listed in the schedule at the end of this syllabus (note chapter assignments are due every six days excluding holidays). There are no make-up assignments or extensions. If you do not complete an assignment by its deadline, you will have earned a grade of “0” for that assignment.
v Dropping lowest set of assignments: I will drop your lowest set of assignments. If you miss a set of assignments for any reason, this will count as the set of assignments I drop for you. You do not have to inform me about missing a set of assignments or provide a reason for doing so.
v Uploading assignments:
§ Microsoft Word: All assignments uploaded on Blackboard must be submitted as Microsoft Word documents. If you submit assignments using a different program, I may be unable to open and grade them; thus, the requirement will be considered incomplete.
§ Safe Assign: Each written assignment you upload will be checked for plagiarism using Safe Assign. If you have any difficulty submitting assignments with Safe Assign, contact the IT Help Desk for assistance.
University Writing Portfolio Upload Requirement
Toward the end of the semester, you will be required to create a University Writing Portfolio, upload a sample of your writing from this class along with a description of the assignment, and answer several questions about your writing. This requirement is worth 60 points (6% of your final grade).
v This course is designated "writing intensive" (WI) because, in addition to providing you with important content to learn, it has been designed to help you improve as a writer. Several years ago, ECU's University Writing Program instituted the WI graduation requirement (6 hours of WI coursework beyond English 1100 and 1200/2201, at least 3 hours of which must be in the major) with the goal of preparing students to be effective writers. As a university, we want to see how well we are doing in meeting that goal.
v To assist with this effort, you will submit one major writing project, along with a description of the assignment for that project and brief responses to four questions about your writing, near the end of this course. For this class, the major writing project will be a compilation of specific types of chapter assignments (e.g., check your health assignments, research assignments). These materials will be uploaded to your "University Writing Portfolio," which you will access and create (if you have not already done so in a previous WI course) through the "student portfolio" link in Onestop.