Psychology 465: Cross-Cultural Issues in Psychology
Instructor: David Englund
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Class discussion web sites: To participate on the class discussion
web site, send your messages to this address: |
Psychology 465: Cross-Cultural Issues in Psychology
Instructor: David Englund
|
|
Class discussion web sites: To participate on the class discussion
web site, send your messages to this address: |
1. Course Description
Psychological, biological and ecological influences on human
development in different settings. Course will focus on a comparison
between U.S. and Japanese culture.
2. Prerequisites
PSY 201/202 and junior standing.
3. Text
Triandis, H.C. (1994).Culture and Social Behavior. New
York: McGraw-Hill.
4. Course Objectives
Each student in this course will have the opportunity to:
4.1 progress toward personal ethnic identity achievement or toward
further identity consolidation for those already in an ethnic IA
status.
4.2 Obtain an in-depth familiarity with important aspects of
Japanese cultural psychology.
4.3 incorporate into your available vocabulary, without being
"tested on", some terminology, concepts and ideas which are essential
to anyone who desires to understand the complexities of
Cross-Cultural Psychology.
4.4 teach, learn from, stimulate and support your classmates
during intra-cultural and inter-cultural small group
interactions.
4.5 be responsible for sharing equally with other members of your
group the scholarly investigative work of locating, evaluating,
reporting and referencing pertinent materials from personal, printed,
visual and electronic sources concerning a distant culture.
4.6 recognize one's own ethnocentric biases, learn to refrain from
cultural stereotyping and to become more interculturally
sensitive.
5. Overview
This is an upper division class which will be managed primarily in
the seminar mode. There will be no tests, per se, given
throughout the quarter. Even the final examination will consist, not
of a test, but of group presentations. The major in-class activity
will be inquiry and discussion. The course is designed for upper
division students who are willing and able to take responsibility for
their own learning.
Each student will submit a 1-2 page weekly paper which will
include: (1) two brief reviews of articles pertaining to either your
personal identity or to a "distant culture" topic, (2) your list of
the most valuable (to you) main ideas/terms/concepts from the
assigned chapter in the text, and (3) one provocative, open-ended,
divergent discussion question which relates an issue from the
assigned chapter to your own cultural identity or to a distant
culture. Each weekly paper will be worth from 1-4 points, depending
on its completeness.
Simply put-no weekly paper on the date assigned, no
points-no excuses accepted, even though they may be perfectly
valid. Period. Exclamation mark! No computer malfunction excuses. No
car breakdown excuses. No medical excuses short of hospitalization
(documented). No family problems excuses. No exceptions other than
jail, kidnap, earthquake, giving birth, personal death and one or two
others. No exceptions. Don't even ask. I know this policy will not
seem just to a few individuals but it is fair in the
sense that it treats all individuals the same. Resign yourself to
it.
At the second class meeting, no review articles will be expected;
however, the most valuable main ideas/terms/concepts and the
one provocative question for both Chapters One and Two
will be due at the second class meeting.
In addition to the weekly 1-2 page paper, each student will be
responsible for writing two term papers during the quarter (minimum
of five pages each). Following is a description of the three main
assignments for this course:
5.1 The Weekly Paper (1-2 page maximum)
A. Article Reviews: These will be focused on a
psychological topic related to your personal identity or the "distant
culture" you are studying. Each review should be approximately a
half-page in length (single spaced, maximum 250 words. Yes-reviews
can be less than 250 words and succinctness will be appreciated. The
review should include (1) a complete citation (APA style), (2) the
main findings of the article, (3) a sentence or so about how the
article connects with the Triandis text, (4) a sentence specifying
the research method or genre and (5) a sentence or two
critique/evaluation of the article.
B. List: How many items should you have? Shall we say an
average of ten per chapter? 100 things you'd like to remember from
the book? One thing every three pages? What is a thing? You
decide!
C. Discussion Question: A question which might cause class
members to have differing opinions about an issue raised in the text.
A question which might cause some class members to think about
something they hadn't thought about before. A question you feel
passionately about. A question which might require problem-solving to
answer. A question which might be based on your disagreement with
Triandis, with the instructor or with another class member. A
question which might require more time to deal with than is
available...and so forth. There are questions by the author at the
end of each chapter. Be creative! Think up your own question. Here is
mine for Chapter One: "If you had to choose between being a
realist and a nominalist, which would you choose? Why?"
(See Triandis, pp. 20-21.)
5.2 The Personal Ethnic Identity Paper (five page minimum)
In this paper, you should analyze your own ethnic identity
achievement developmentally taking into account intrapersonal
characteristics (inherited traits, physical appearance,
temperament, personality, etc.), socio-cultural influences
(historical, genealogical, family, peer, neighbor, school, etc.), and
ecological influences (physical environment, health care,
geography, other situational or setting factors). Are you now
committed to a personal ethnic identity? Since when? What have you
gone through (or not gone through) to arrive at your present status?
The title of this paper could be Some important aspects of the
_____ culture which are consciously or otherwise recognizable in my
ethnic identity as a(n) _____-American. An alternative title
might by Some reasons why my ethnic identity is that of an
unhyphenated American. Be creative-think up your own title. This
paper may be written in a personal style; however, it should include
citations for any referenced content.
5.3 The Distant Culture Paper (five page minimum)
For this paper, select an aspect of your chosen distant culture
which is complementary to the aspects selected by other members of
your group. You will serve as the group expert on this aspect while
also contributing as much as possible to the successful coverage of
other aspects of your group's topic. The paper should be written and
referenced in a scholarly format using general APA guidelines for
referenced material.
5.4 Evaluation Criteria (for the papers)
Both papers will be evaluated using the following criteria:
Application: Pertinent use of terminology, concepts,
generalizations and insights from the text in interpreting cultural
phenomena. (5 pts.)
Breadth: Coverage of all major subdivisions of the topic
(as defined by your title). (5 pts.)
Complexity: Appreciation shown for the intricacy,
interrelationships, and the subtle and illusory nature of emic and
etic cultural phenomena is demonstrated. (5 pts.)
Writing Quality: Well-organized, succinctly-stated and
proofread/error free final draft submitted (you are encouraged to
proofread each other's draft copies). (5 pts.)
Overall Effort: By comparison with other papers, this paper
skillfully combines the analysis, synthesis and evaluation of the
issues presented. Generalizations made are bolstered by well-chosen
references from a variety of sources. (5 pts.)
References: Their quality, quality, recency and variety. (5
pts.)
6. Grading Points
6.1 Weekly Papers (8 x 4 pts.) 32
6.2 Personal Ethnic Identity Paper 30
6.3 Distant Culture Paper 30
6.4 Final Exam 8
Total = 100
(Plus/Minus grading will be in effect: X1/0 = Minus, X8/9 =
Plus)
7. Class Organization
Each class period will begin at ten minutes past the hour.
Attendance will be taken at 15 minutes past the hour. It will be the
responsibility of unpunctual students to notify the instructor so
that their presence may be recorded. Tardiness may result in a grade
penalty. Do not enroll in this class if you have commitments which
overlap the class period.
Unless otherwise preempted by a guest speaker, the first hour or
so of each class will involve review, critique and discussion of the
assigned text chapter. Individuals will be asked to define and
explain key ideas/terms/concepts and will have the opportunity to
pose questions to the class. We will attempt to relate issues from
the text to our personal cultural identities and to the distant
culture which we are studying. There will always be more to discuss
than we have time for; therefore, we will need to be selective and we
will probably leave some important issues unresolved. We must also be
sensitive to the very real possibility that a few eager, articulate
and extroverted individuals will dominate this seminar unless we find
ways to equalize participation. Your help with and understanding of
this issue will be appreciated.
Following a ten minute break, the second hour (or portion thereof)
will be available for video presentations, special activities, guest
speakers, etc. The third hour (or portion thereof) will be reserved
for small group interaction. The sole function of the small group
interaction will be to share Article Reviews and other sources,
materials and ideas for your identity paper and/or your distant
culture paper. Think of this as "Show and Tell Time," but remember-if
there is nothing to show there will probably not be much of
importance to tell. The purpose of the small group is not
spontaneous, meandering, personal chitchat. If that is all you have
to offer, please don't waste other people's time with it-save it for
after class. It is expected that each student will share in the group
interaction, particularly with regard to preparing ahead of time for
the group's final exam preparation. To encourage equal participation
in research sharing and group responsibility, a five-point
bonus/penalty system will be used. This bonus/penalty system will be
explained in class.
8. Attendance
Perfect attendance will be used to raise a student's final letter
grade if the student is on the borderline between two grades at
quarter's end. All students will have the prerogative of missing one
class without penalty (no excuse necessary). The lowest of your nine
weekly paper scores will be dropped for all students in calculating
your final grade. Second unexcused absences will result in a
four-point grade penalty (in addition to loss of points for the
weekly paper) unless a written excuse from a credible source
(e.g., the Health Center) is submitted by the next
class meeting. Remember-this is a seminar. We only meet together on
ten occasions and your role and responsibility in the class and to
your group are important to us all each week.
Office: FON 47-21B Telephone: 756-2611
CLASS SCHEDULE: SPRING QUARTER, 1998
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Introduction and Class Organization |
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Cultural Influences and Why Bother to Study Culture? |
1 & 2 |
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How Can Cultures be Studied and Compared? |
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What Are Some Ways to Analyze Cultures? |
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Differences in the Elements of Subjective Cultures |
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Cultural Differences in Patterns of Social Behavior |
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Cultural and Communication Differences |
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Cultural Influences on Certain Social Behaviors |
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*** Events (videos, guest speakers, panel discussions, etc.) will be added to the schedule and will be announced at least one week in advance.
