PSY 481L-01  Cognition and Consciousness Lab

Fall 2006

INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Lili Sahakyan (pronounced as SAH-HA-KEY-ON)
OFFICE: 286 Eberhart building
PHONE: 256-0001
EMAIL: l_sahaky@uncg.edu
OFFICE HOURS: T, R 2:00--3:00 or by appointment


TEACHING ASSISTANT: To Be Announced
TA's EMAIL: To Be Announced

                                    CLASS MEETING TIME & PLACE                                                      

REQUIRED TEXTBOOK:

Goodwin, C. J. (2004). Research in psychology: Methods and design (4th Ed.). New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

REQUIRED RESEARCH ARTICLES:

Context-dependent forgetting

1.        Chu, S., Handley, V., & Cooper, S. (2003).  Eliminating context-dependent forgetting: changing contexts can be
           as effective as reinstating them. The Psychological Record, 53, 549-559.    

2.         Smith, S. (1979). Remembering in and out of context. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Learning and
            Memory,  5, 460-471.

Directed forgetting

3.         Introduction to Directed Forgetting Research

4.         Sahakyan, L. & Kelley, C. M. (2002). A contextual change account of the directed forgetting effect.  Journal of
            Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 28, 1064-1072.

5.         Sahakyan, L. & Delaney, P. F. (2003). Can encoding difference explain the benefits of directed forgetting in the list
            method paradigm? Journal of Memory and Language, 48, 195-206.             

6.         Geiselman, E., Bjork, R., & Fishman (1983). Disrupted retrieval in directed forgetting: A link with posthypnotic
            amnesia.  Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 112, 58-72.

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

The purpose of this course is to introduce you to "what it takes" to become a researcher in the field of cognitive psychology. You will learn the methods and statistical techniques used to carry out experimental research, and you will be given hands-on experience with all facets of research design, data collection, data analysis, and dissemination of your results. To achieve these goals, you will be immersed in an active learning environment which will include many laboratory activities designed to aid your learning of the concepts discussed in class. During the lab hours, you will learn to use a statistical package (called SPSS) for analyzing data. Finally, you will design and collect real data for a project on the topic of human memory. You will create an experiment, conduct it, collect the data, analyze it, and present it as a poster on the Reading Day.

PERFORMANCE EVALUATION:

EXAMS:

There will be 3 exams in this class. All exams will be a combination of multiple choice, short answer, and essay questions. They will cover material from textbook/lectures and occasionally from the assigned research articles. Exams will constitute 50% of your final grade. Make-up exams will be given in very rare cases: (1) with a prior notification of your absence and arrangement with me BEFORE the test date, and (2) with an excused absence accompanied by documentation of your absence (e.g., doctor’s note). All make-ups should be taken prior to the next exam date. Prior to each exam, you will be given the list of objectives to help you study and prepare for the exam.

GROUP PROJECT:

Each student will participate in the research, design, and implementation of a research study in the area of memory. Group project is mandatory and failure to participate and complete the project will not allow you to pass this course. You will work in small groups to discuss, develop, and carry out your  research projects.  Because data collection always takes longer than anticipated, it is highly recommended that you begin your project as early as possible. Each group will be responsible for creating a poster presentation of their research, and will present their poster in "Poster Session" on the Reading Day (Dec 5). The group project will be worth 20% of your final grade and is mandatory.

HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS:

There will be several homework exercises assigned throughout the course. These assignments will provide you with hands-on experience at data analysis, and will prepare you for your group project. Most of these assignments will require analyzing a given data set using the SPSS program and writing up the report of the results in an APA-style. Homework assignments will constitute 30% of your final grade. All homework assignments are due at the beginning of the lecture class on the scheduled date. Without a valid excuse, late homework assignments will not be accepted.  In case of an excuse (doctor’s note, death in a family, car accident) the assignment should be turned in no later than a week after its deadline!

ATTENDANCE:

 Please note that attendance is mandatory.

TENTATIVE COURSE SCHEDULE
 

GRADES:

Your final grade will be determined by a combination of homework assignments, exams, and the final group project using the following weights:

EXAMS    .......................................50%

HOMEWORK    .............................30%

GROUP PROJECT    .....................20%
 

A   90-100;   B   80-89;   C  70-79;  D   60-69   ;  F  59 or lower

SPECIAL NEEDS:

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires all universities and employers to provide reasonable accommodations to students with special needs upon request. We will be as discreet as possible and all information about your special needs will be kept absolutely confidential. Please contact the instructor privately if at any time during the course you need accommodations made for any reason. You do not need to tell me why you need an accommodation, but I am required to check with the office of disabled students to ensure that it is reasonable. One special accommodation that I make is for students for whom English is not their first language. You may, if you speak to me before the second exam, get extra time on exams if English is not one of your native languages.