B365 Course Syllabus, Fall 2012, Dir - Psychology @ IUPUI

WARNING: This syllabus may be from a previous semester and may not reflect current or future instructors for the course.The purpose of this syllabus is to provide a sample of course content and objectives.SYLLABUSB365: Stress and HealthFall 2012Monday & Wednesday 12:00-1:15pm (LD30)1Instructor:Office Hours:TA:Required Text:Ally Dir, M.S. - LD120J allydir@gmail.comT/F 1:00 – 3:00 PM or by appointmentSamantha Meints meints.s@gmail.comHealth Psychology 7 th Edition (2010) by Brannon & Feist. ThomsonWadsworth.COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course will familiarize students with the study of health within thefield of psychology. In spite of the title of the course, we will study all areas of health psychology toinclude the relationship between stress and health but also clinical health psychology, healthpromotion, health behaviors, and the patient-physician relationship. This course will not teach youhow to control your stress, deal with stress, etc.COURSE OBJECTIVES:1. Develop an understanding for the field of health psychology, in addition to behavioralmedicine and behavioral health.2. Gain knowledge on specific areas within health psychology, and understand howpsychological factors are involved in health.3. Experiment with various psychological and behavioral based interventions targeted forspecific diseases and health issues.4. Become familiar with individual and cultural differences with respect to stress, health, andbehavior.COURSE FORMAT: This class will be in lecture format with an emphasis on class discussion. Youare expected to read the material before the class session and to ask questions as there will be classdiscussion mixed in with lecture. Lectures will draw from the book and other original sources(research reports). I will post lecture slides online on Oncourse prior to each class.During the class session students will participate in classroom activities designed to enhance thelearning of the material as well as keep students interested and engaged. Therefore, I encourageeveryone in the class to go beyond material presented in the book and explore individual interestsrelated to health psychology throughout the semester. This class is designed to foster thedevelopment of each student’s individual interests within health psychology or related fields.GRADES & COURSE REQUIREMENTS:Your course grade will be based on the following:20% Class assignments/homework40% Exams40% Paper (2 papers)Classroom Participation and Assignments (20% of Final Grade)Classroom participation, in-class activities, and homework assignments will be assignedthroughout the semester.

WARNING: This syllabus may be from a previous semester and may not reflect current or future instructors for the course.The purpose of this syllabus is to provide a sample of course content and objectives. Scheduled homework participation questions (as seen on the class schedule) for eachchapter of the book are assigned in order to ensure students are coming to class prepared.These assignments can be found under the Resources section in the Homework folder onOncourse and are labeled with a HW# and/or chapter # corresponding to the syllabus(i.e., HW1, HW2, Ch. 1 questions, etc). There are 5-6 participation questions per chapterand you will be required to choose 2 questions to answer. On the days these are due,typed assignments will be turned in at the end of class. You cannot turn in assignments atany other point in time except for in class on the due date. However, if you know you willbe absent, please do the assignment and turn it in to me in advance (i.e., beforeclass on the due date). Other homework or class assignments will be scheduled throughout the semester and willbe announced in class and posted on Oncourse 1 week prior to class. So, please checkOncourse consistently for any announcements or assignment postings. Your HW/class participation grade will be calculated based on you 8 highest grades(total) across HW and class assignments.Exams (40% of Final Grade) There will be 5 multiple choice/true false exams covering the readings, lecture, andclassroom activities (4 exams and a final cumulative exam). Each exam will be a take-homeexam that should be completed independently. I expect students to use the book and otherclass material as a guide in completing the exams. Anything and everything that is coveredduring the class sessions has the potential to show up as an exam question.* The idea of the take-home exams is to emphasize that while information from thebook is important, I encourage everyone to focus their efforts on exploring theirindividual areas of interest. Additionally, since these are take-home exams (and youdo not have to “cram” for tests or show up to class for the exam), all exams must beturned in hard-copy only (i.e., no e-mail), and by the beginning of class on thedue date (i.e., if you come in late to class, you cannot turn it in at the end of class).Topic of Interest Papers (40% of Final Grade)More specific information and guidelines for individual papers on your choice of topic will bediscussed in class later. These will require research on a topic of your choice in healthpsychology (i.e., reading of scholarly articles).Policy on Incompletes. If for any circumstance you find that you need to stop participating in theclass and you meet School of Science guidelines for an Incomplete, I will be happy to assign you anincomplete for the class. If you simply stop coming to class and do not complete all of yourcoursework, your final grade will be calculated based on "0" grades for the assignments/exams thatare missing.Policy on Academic Misconduct: Students are expected to be above reproach in scholastic activities.Students who violate university rules on scholastic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary penalties,including the possibility of failure in the course and dismissal from the university. Please beadvised that random checks for plagiarism will be conducted using the Turnitin.com program2

WARNING: This syllabus may be from a previous semester and may not reflect current or future instructors for the course.The purpose of this syllabus is to provide a sample of course content and objectives.3Week Date Topic Reading Assignment Due18.20 Syllabus & Intro8.22 What is Health Psych (HP)? Ch. 18.27 Research in HP Ch. 2 HW12 8.29 Theories of Health-related Ch. 3HW2Behaviors9.3 Labor Day – No class3 9.5 Seeking & Adhering to HealthCareCh. 3 & 4HW3 – stages of chanceassignment49.10 Stress Ch. 59.12 Stress & Disease Ch. 6 HW459.17 Pain Ch. 79.19 Pain Management HW569.24 Alternative Interventions Ch. 8 HW69.26 Mindfulness *** EXAM 1Health Psychology & Chronic Illness710.1 TBA TBA Paper 1 (Health & Stress)10.3 Cardiovascular Disease Ch. 9 HW7810.8 Cancer Ch. 10 HW810.10 Chronic Illness Ch. 11 HW910.15 Fall Break – No class9 10.17 Chronic Illness Intervention & ***CopingBehavioral Health10.22 Behavioral Health Intro & Ch. 15 EXAM 210Exercise10.24 Eating & Weight Ch. 14 HW101110.29 Obesity in US Paper 2 (Chronic Illness)1210.31 Substance Use: Smoking Tobacco Ch. 1211.5 Substance Use: Alcohol Ch. 13 HW1111.7 Alcohol & Drug use13 11.12 Alcohol & Sexual Behavior *** HW12Other Health Psych Topics13 11.14 Personality *** EXAM 31415161711.19 Personality HW1311.21 Thanksgiving Break – No class11.26 Environmental & Social Factors *** Paper 3 (Beh. Health)11.28 Health Disparities *** HW1412.3 TBA EXAM 412.5 TBA12.10 TBA12.14 Final Exam Due (Friday)This is a tentative schedule and is subject to change. Please see Oncourse for announcements!