PSYC 317

Cognitive Psychology

Spring 2008

last updated 1/7/08

 

Section   002: 10:30- 11:45pm Tuesday & Thursday

 

Location: Innovation 208

 

Instructor:        Dr. Matt Peterson

 

Office:      2058 David King Hall

                     Ph: 993-4255

                     email:           (please put PYSC 317 in the subject header)

 

Office Hours:    11-11:50 Wednesdays (tentative) or by appointment.

I fully encourage you to contact me by email if you have any questions about the class.

 

Text: Cognitive Psychology (2nd edition), Goldstein

 

Web Page: archlab.gmu.edu/~mpeters2/Courses/PSY317/psy317.html

                              warning: url is case sensitive!

 

Prerequisites: 6 hours of psychology or consent of instructor.

 

What is Cognitive Psychology? Cognitive Psychology is the study of how people think. It is the study of how your visual system recognizes patterns as text, how your brain interprets those patterns as words, and how your mind combines those words into sentences and extracts their meaning from memory, all the while you ignore the mp3 playing in the background. It is the study of decision making, whether the task is to decide whether a blip on a radar screen is friend-or-foe, or how best to defeat an opponent at chess.  In short, Cognitive Psychology attempts to understand the underlying computations that produce thinking.

 

Cognitive Psychology is a subset of Cognitive Science. The Cognitive Sciences include such disciplines as Psychology, Artificial Intelligence, Linguistics, Philosophy, Neuroscience and Anthropology. For this course, we will be focusing on human cognition. Since cognition is ultimately a function of the underlying neurological architecture, we will also discuss relevant findings in neuroscience.

 

The course as a “LEARNING COMMUNITY”

This course is an opportunity for us to establish a genuine learning community where both faculty and students learn from each other’s knowledge and experience. Such communities imply a “social contract” between faculty and students. My view of this contract is as follows:

 

WHAT I OWE THE CLASS

• I promise to treat you with respect, carefully listening to your questions and comments

• I promise to come to class prepared, provide structure to the course and convey a willingness to work with you in helping you master the material

• I promise to develop tests that are fair (not necessarily “easy”!) and that reflect the material covered in class.

• I promise to try to relate the material to your own experience

 

WHAT THE CLASS OWES EACH OTHER AND THEMSELVES

• To treat the instructor and each other with respect

• To come to class prepared to discuss/reflect on the material

• Stay current in the readings

• To extend reasonable effort to learn the material

• Turn in assignments on time

• Regularly access the courses web page (but don’t let downloading the slides substitute for attending class!)

 

 

Objectives: This course is designed to give you a thorough understanding of contemporary theories of human cognition. The format of this course is primarily lecture, with discussion as time permits.  Questions are encouraged throughout the lecture.

 

 

Attendance Policy: Although I do not grade on attendance, I expect (barring unforeseen circumstances) to see you in class each week. Keep in mind that many of the topics discussed in class are not discussed (or at least not in as much detail) in your textbook.  Although I do put the lecture notes on the web, they will not be complete and will not match the presentation given in class. If you miss a class, it is up to you to learn the missed information. At times of low attendance, I may give extra credit to those that attended that day. NO CELL PHONES OR PAGERS.

 

GMU Honor Code: George Mason University has a code of Honor that each of you accepts by enrolling as a student. My expectation is that all of the work you do for me in this class will be the work of one individual. Plagiarism or any other violation of the honor code will be taken very seriously and reported to the Honor Committee. Having said that, I fully encourage you to discuss the readings and topics raised in this class with your fellow students.

 

Disabilities: If you are a student with a disability and you need academic accommodations, please see me and contact the Disability Resource Center (DRC) at 703-993-2474.  All academic accommodations must be arranged through that office."

                                                                                                                                            

   

A+ 97+          
A 93-96   Grading Paper
16
  
A- 90-92     Exams (4)
84
  
B+ 87-89    
100
 points total
B 83-86    
 
B- 80-82    
 
C+ 77-79      
 
C 73-76      
 
C- 70-72      
 
D 60-69      
 
F 0-59          

 

Paper (16%):  Your grade will be determined in part by a short paper to be due at the semester’s end.  Your task in writing the paper will be to summarize and critique a journal article from the recent [i.e. 2003+] cognitive psychology literature. Two suggestions are Psychological Science and Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, both of which feature shorter articles written for the broader scientific community. The papers should be no less than 5 pages in length (double spaced, and excluding title and references). Approximately half the assignment should consist of a summary in which you (a) identify the research question, (b) identify the independent and dependent variables, (c) summarize the results, and (d) summarize the researcher(s)’ conclusions.  The rest of the assignment should include your evaluation of the method, conclusions, etc., and a paragraph on why this study is important in the cognitive psychology literature.  You must clear each article with me before you submit it, and you must turn in a copy of the article with your critique (including figures).

 

You will need to give me a copy of the article (email or hardcopy), which I will review and approve. The paper is due on or before April 24th, 2008. Papers without an approved article will not be accepted.

 

 

Exams (84%): There will be 4 exams, consisting of multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blank, and/or short answers. Your exam with the lowest score will be dropped, and your overall test grade will be calculated based on the remaining 3.  That is, your top 3 exams will be worth 28% points each (3 x 28% = 84%) and your worst will be worth 0%. Note that the 4th exam is mandatory. If you decide not to take the 4th exam, your final exam grade will be based on all 4 exam scores (including the zero for the 4th exam) so that each one is worth 21% (4 x 21% = 84%). The 4th exam can still be dropped if you took the 4th exam and it is your lowest grade.

Exam Make-up Policy: You may take an exam after (or before) the scheduled date only if you receive my permission before the day of the test.  If you miss an exam, your grade will be based on the remaining 3 exams. Keep in mind that the 4th exam is mandatory. If you miss more than one exam (or the 4th exam), then the exam can only be made up if you receive my permission before the day of the exam or (b) have a valid excuse (note from a doctor, judge, sergeant, etc.). Papers will not be accepted beyond the due date.

 

   

Extra Credit: You may earn up to an extra 2 % on your final grade by participating in extra credit experiments. Each hour of participation is worth 0.5%. Opportunities for participation can be found at 'http://www.experimetrix.com/gmu'. NO EXTRA CREDIT FOR ONLINE SURVEYS.                  

 

Calendar:

Note: The schedule below is tentative, and though I will try to follow it as closely as possible changes may occasionally be necessary.  In the event that an exam date is changed, you will be notified at least one week in advance.

 

Note that February 5th is the last day to add this class and February 22rd is the last day to drop this class.

 

Date

Day

Chapter

Topic

22-Jan

Tues

1

intro+ neuro

24-Jan

Thurs

2

cogneuro

29-Jan

Tues

3

Perception

31-Jan

Thurs

3

Perception

5-Feb

Tues

-

review

7-Feb

Thurs

Exam 1

 

12-Feb

Tues

4

Attention

14-Feb

Thurs

4

Attention

19-Feb

Tues

5

Working Memory

21-Feb

Thurs

5

Working Memory

26-Feb

Tues

6

Long-Term Memory

28-Feb

Thurs

6

Long-Term Memory

4-Mar

Tues

-

review

6-Mar

Thurs

Exam 2

 

11-Mar

Tues

SPRING BREAK

 

13-Mar

Thurs

SPRING BREAK

 

18-Mar

Tues

7

Everyday memory

20-Mar

Thurs

7

Everyday memory

25-Mar

Tues

8

Knowledge

27-Mar

Thurs

8

Knowledge

1-Apr

Tues

9

Language

3-Apr

Thurs

9

Language

8-Apr

Tues

-

review - paper approval due

10-Apr

Thurs

Exam 3

 

15-Apr

Tues

 

Statistics and Design Discussion

17-Apr

Thurs

11

Problem Solving

22-Apr

Tues

11

Problem Solving

24-Apr

Thurs

12

Decision Making – PAPER DUE

29-Apr

Tues

12

Decision Making

1-May

Thurs

-

review

8-May

Thurs

Exam 4