This syllabus may be modified.
Please check http://dynamic.uoregon.edu/~jjf/courses/psytrauma/
for most current version.
Note about the authorship of this syllabus (added April 2008): Professors commonly "borrow" and re-use each other's syllabi, copying small or large sections. While most of this syllabus was originally authored by Jennifer Freyd, there are sections that are taken from other sources. Furthermore Jennifer Freyd has made her syllabi available through the internet and she has noticed that many sections of this syllabus appear on other instructors' syllabi. This document therefore should be considered shared intellectual property. If you want to use all or part of this syllabus for non-commercial and educational work, you are welcome to do so. If you do this, you should not claim authorship inaccurately or deceptively, but rather you should understand this and communicate it as a collaborative production that by now has been authored by many people. One reason for stating this fact here, a fact that may be obvious to college instructors, is that it may not be obvious to students. Teaching clarity about what does and does not constitute plagiarism is part of our duty. Clearly even in academia we have genres like the syllabus and the inherited form letter (a category that anyone in an administrative post will recognize) for which it is assumed that we attach our name to words we did not initially author. These genre of the syllabus and the form letter need to be distinguished from the authored article for which we hold ourselves and our students to such high standards of academic integrity.
Note about Registering for Psychology of Trauma for Fall 2007: The course usually fills early. However I will maintain a waitlist in case I am able to authorize any additional students to register. If you would like to be considered for this waitlist please complete and submit (in hard copy only as instructed on the form) the waitlist application that is on-line at: http://dynamic.uoregon.edu/~jjf/courses/psytrauma/application.html
Fall 2007 Psychology 472/572
Title: Psychology of Trauma
Instructor: Jennifer Freyd
University of Oregon
Blackboard Course Home Page at http://blackboard.uoregon.edu/
Grading option: Optional
Credits: 4
Time: Mondays and Wednesdays 10:00-11:20 in 176 ED
CRN for Psy 472: 14564
CRN for Psy 572: 14575
This course satisfies psychology major requirement of one of the two required
core courses in the social science category.
Please note: If you have already taken Psychology of Trauma (Including when it was Psy 410/510, 2000 - 2003) for credit you may NOT also take this Psy 472/572, Psychology of Trauma, course for credit.
Instructor: Professor Jennifer Freyd
Office: 301 Straub Hall
e-mail: jjf@dynamic.uoregon.edu
Phone: 346-4950 (messages)
Office Hrs: See Staff Info on Blackboard
GTF Teaching Assistant: Laura Kaehler
Office: 383 Straub Hall
e-mail: lkaehler@uoregon.edu
Phone: 346-3936
Office Hrs: See Staff Info on Blackboard
Peer Course Assistants (for office hours see staff information on blackboard):
Jessica Sigel (jsigel@uoregon.edu)
Manisha Marberry (mmarberr@uoregon.edu)
Sarah Jennings (sjennin2@uoregon.edu)
Scott Stevenson (ssteven1@uoregon.edu)
Shira Rachael Pope (spope2@uoregon.edu)
Contacting Professor Freyd: I am best reached by email at jjf@dynamic.uoregon.edu. I check my email at least once a day (unless I am traveling). I will do my best to respond promptly. I will have office hours (301 Straub) on [TBA] and would be pleased to have you visit during my office hours.
Overview: This course is designed to introduce students to the field of traumatic stress studies. We will review the history of the field, as well as current approaches to understanding trauma from cognitive, neuropsychological, developmental and clinical viewpoints. The course will combine research and applications from the growing field of traumatic stress, looking at responses to a variety of traumas including childhood trauma, adult sexual assault, combat, domestic violence, and natural disasters. An important focus of the course will involve considerations of how socio-political contexts affect trauma research and treatment.
We will use current research to explore questions from a variety of perspectives, such as:
For 472 Students: The course requirements include doing the reading, attending class, writing 5 essays, reading an on-line electronic discussion, taking 4 quizzes, and completing a final project. There will not be a final exam.
For 572 Students: The course requirements include doing the reading, attending class, writing 5 essays, reading an on-line electronic discussion, taking 4 quizzes, and completing a final project. The final project will be either a paper of length similar to that completed by 472 students plus an oral presentation or instead a substantially longer (25-page) paper without the oral presentation. The final paper may be completed solo or with another 572 student. There will not be a final exam.
Please see the Psychology Department's Guidelines for Teaching and Learning at http://psychweb.uoregon.edu/guidelines/ for more on grading and expectations.
We will meet each Monday and Wednesday 10:00 -11:20 AM and your attendance is expected. This is not a course to take if you anticipate missing more than one class meeting. Absences should be explained in a note to the professor. During class meetings we will combine a variety of activities: lecture, documentaries about trauma or traumatic stress, and small group and class discussion. Films and documentaries are an important part of this class, as many aspects of trauma and traumatic stress are best communicated in a rich medium like film. Some of the documentaries and films that I will show are also available for viewing in the University library, but the majority of the films I plan to show are not available to view outside of class meeting. Sometimes we will have a guest lecturer with expertise in a particular aspect of the psychology of trauma. You will be responsible for all of this material covered in class (it will be tested on the quizzes).
Readings are assigned on a weekly basis. Readings are to be completed BEFORE the Monday class meeting for which they are assigned.
Many of the assigned readings will be available on-line. That is, you will be given a web address (URL) that leads you to the required article or web site to explore. In some cases when copyright permits readings will be available to download or print on the Blackboard site under Course Documents, Electronic Articles. On-line readings will be assigned as we go along. To find the on-line article assignment for the upcoming week, check the "Assignments" section of Blackboard. There you will find a folder called "On-line reading assignments" with details about what you should read for the next week.
In addition, three books are required for the course. These books can be purchased at the UO Bookstore (they are each available in paperback, and there are likely to be used copies at UO Bookstore and Smith Family bookstore). The three books will also be on reserve for this course at Knight Library.
Your grade will be computed by combining your scores in the following overall categories for a total of 200 points:
|
points |
course work |
|
75 |
Quizzes (Best 3 quizzes worth 25 points each) |
|
75 |
Essays (5 essays worth 15 points each) |
|
50 |
Final Project (Includes plan, project, self-evaluation) |
|
200 |
Total |
|
(EC) |
Also up to10 points extra credit for participation |
Final letter grades will be determined from point totals as follows:
|
points |
letter grade |
What do grades mean at the UO? |
Percentage of students likely to get this grade based on prior department averages |
|
185-200 |
A |
Excellent |
about 27% |
|
160-184 |
B |
Good |
about 37% |
|
140-159 |
C |
Satisfactory |
about 25% |
|
120-129 |
D |
Inferior |
about 5% |
|
Below 120 |
F |
Unsatisfactory |
about 1% |
| Other (P,I,Y) | about 5% |
Note: While we give some -s and +s for grades near a border, we give A+s only very rarely. We expect to give at most one or two A+s in a term. Please see the Psychology Department's Guidelines for Teaching and Learning at http://psychweb.uoregon.edu/guidelines/ for more on grading and expectations.
You will have four in-class quizzes, each worth 25 points. Your top 3 quiz scores will be used for your final score out of 75. There are no make-up quizzes, so if you miss a quiz for any reason your score will be 0 for that quiz. Quizzes will cover material from readings and in-class material and will be cumulative. Quizzes will be essay answer format and will be used to evaluate your understanding and integration of class material. Quiz study questions will be posted on the Blackboard web site under "Assignments." Quizzes are closed book, except that you may bring with you and use during the quiz a single 3 by 5 inch index card with notes (you may use both sides of the index card).
Five essays will be due, each worth 15 points. They must be typed and turned in at the beginning of class on the due date. Each essay should show that you have put thought into the reading material. Think of the essay as an opportunity to think deeply about the readings and to reflect on the meaning of the material to you, your life, society, and scholarship. Essays will typically be about two typed pages. Each essay will be worth up to 15 points. A point will be subtracted for each day late. Topics for each essay will be posted on Blackboard under the "Assignments" folder.
The final project will be a research proposal and/or public policy proposal due on November 19 at 10 AM. In addition you must turn in a one-page typed project plan by October 17 and you must complete a self (& other) evaluation in class on November 21. The project plan is worth 5 points; the final project is with 40 points; and the evaluation is worth 5 points. You will have points deducted from the final project if any of these required components are late. (Assignments are due at 10 AM. We give a 5 min grace period and after that count the assignment as late.)
The project will present material you have learned and synthesized about the Psychology of Trauma as well as your creative ideas for future research and/or public policy. Your source of information can primarily be based on the assigned readings, although most likely A and B quality projects will incorporate some additional material you have found at the library or on-line. All sources must be properly cited using APA style.
You may choose the specific topic of your final project. It should be a topic that shows you have mastered important material within the field of the Psychology of Trauma and shows you can think creatively about this area of research and/or how to apply it. Your project should do at least one of the following:
Each student will have the choice of working alone on the final project, or, instead, with one other person. I encourage the teamwork approach, because working cooperatively is a challenge, and very educational in its own right. The projects will be graded on the same criteria whether produced by one or two people (thus it would really seem a good idea to work in teams!). If you decide you want to work with a partner, you may select your own partner, or you may ask the instructor to help you pair up with someone. Project partners must make a commitment to work together by October 17 (plan is worth 5 of the 50 points).
Self (& Other) Evaluation Required: All students will be required to complete a one-page project work evaluation at the end of the term. You will have time in class on November 21 to complete this evaluation. If you work on the project alone you will evaluate your own work. If you work with a partner you will evaluate separately your and your partner's contribution and work. (This evaluation is worth 5 of the 50 points for the final project).
Your grade on the final project will be severely lowered if any part of it is at all late. You may earn extra credit is you create a web page or do an optional in-class oral presentation based on your project.
If you discover we have made an error recording your grade on blackboard please return the graded work and we will correct the error. (It is very wise to check your posted grades on blackboard on a regular basis to make sure we have entered your grades correctly.) If you feel we have graded you unfairly, you may request we regrade the assignment. In order to do this you must return your assignment with a written explanation from you regarding why you feel the grading was unfair. You must submit the material to us within 2 weeks of our having returned the materials to you. After that grades on assignments are final.
Key information, including updated assignments and grades, will be posted on Blackboard. Plan on checking it at least twice a week.
We will have an electronic discussion on Blackboard. You are expected to read the on-line discussions. Posting your own messages is optional. You may earn extra credit for thought-provoking messages. However, in order to avoid having the on-line discussion become unmanageable, each student will also have a maximum number of posted messages (enforced if necessary) of 2 per week. Also any given message should be no longer than 50 lines of text.
If you make valuable contributions to class or on-line discussion, you may earn extra points. Maximum extra credit is 10 points.
The web site for this course was constructed using "Blackboard" software. On the web site you will find general announcements for the class, all documents for the course (including this syllabus), lecture notes, on-line discussions, links to relevant web sites, and more. We hope that this web site will be a useful tool for you in learning the material for this class, and in further exploring topics you find interesting. You can get to the course web site by going to http://blackboard.uoregon.edu. If you need help logging in or using Blackboard, see http://libweb.uoregon.edu/cet/blackboard/help/. Also you can get help starting by going to the library Information Technology Center (ITC)..
All work submitted in this course must be your own and produced exclusively for this course. The use of sources (ideas, quotations, paraphrases) must be properly acknowledged and documented. For the consequences of academic dishonesty, refer to the Schedule of Classes published quarterly. Violations will be taken seriously and are noted on student disciplinary records. If you are in doubt regarding any aspect of these issues as they pertain to this course, please consult with the teaching assistant or the instructor before you complete any relevant requirements of the course. (Text adopted here as recommended from UO web site regarding academic honesty). Because some students are not entirely sure what counts as academic dishonesty, we encourage you to read the discussion of plagiarism and other forms of dishonesty at http://www.uoregon.edu/~stl/programs/student_judi_affairs/academic-dishonesty.htm.
You may be required to submit writing assignments to SafeAssign. SafeAssign
is a software tool designed to help students avoid plagiarism and improper citation.
The software encourages original writing and proper citation by cross-referencing
submitted materials with an archived database of websites, essays, journal articles,
and other published work. The instructor may in some cases also submit your
work to SafeAssign or some other plagiarism analysis and detection program.
By enrolling in this course you grant the instructor permission to do so.
We will do our best to return your graded work (quizzes, essays, projects, etc) in a timely and confidential manner. During the term we will return graded work at the beginning or end of class, typically one to two weeks after you turn the work in to us. We will announce pick-up dates and other options (such as giving us a SASE) for retrieving work graded at the end of the term. If you do not collect your quizzes, paper, etc., we will retain them for only one term and after that must destroy them. So please do collect your graded work from us. For more information about these rules see the University Records Retention Schedule.
This course includes group and on-line participation. If you have restricted access to your directory information and wish to have special arrangements made for this course, please notify the instructor immediately.
If you have a documented disability and anticipate needing accommodations in this course, please make arrangements to meet with the instructor soon. Also please request that the Counselor for Students with Disabilities send a letter verifying your disability. [Disability Services: disabsrv@uoregon.edu, 346-1155; http://ds.uoregon.edu/ ]
If you have questions about course requirements, graduation, graduate school or anything else related to a degree in psychology, check with the peer advisors in room 141 Straub first! They are there most days 10-4, so drop by to have your questions answered.
UO Deadline Last day to:
September 23: Process a complete drop (100% refund, no W recorded)
September 30: Drop this course (100% refund, no W recorded)
September 30: Process a complete drop (90% refund, no W recorded)
October 1: Drop this course (75% refund, no W recorded; after this date, W's
are recorded)
October 1: Process a complete drop (75% refund, no W recorded; after this date,
W's are recorded)
October 3: Add this course
October 3: Last day to change to or from audit
October 7: Withdraw from this course (75% refund, W recorded)
October 14: Withdraw from this course (50% refund, W recorded)
October 21: Withdraw from this course (25% refund, W recorded)
November 11: Withdraw from this course (0% refund, W recorded)
November 11: Change grading option for this course
In this class we will be discussing issues which may have, at times, an intense personal significance for some members of the class. There are no taboos for discussion topics in this course. We will exercise and respect freedom of speech. At the same time, we must take responsibility to ensure that we are respectful of everyone's opinion and that we stay on topic. We will be focusing especially on critical thinking and the use of empirical data to evaluate theories about trauma. If you find you are troubled by material while taking this course, and need support or counseling, please be sure to pursue that external support by seeking out a supportive friend, counselor, and/or a social service.
A sample of counseling and social service resources follows. Disclaimer: We do not assume any responsibility for the quality of services offered by the following organizations.
|
Local Crisis Lines |
|
|
University of Oregon Crisis Line |
346-4488 |
|
Sexual Assault Support Services Crisis Line |
343-7277 |
|
Whitebird Clinic Crisis Line |
687-4000 |
|
Womenspace Crisis Line |
485-6513 |
|
Local Counseling |
|
|
University of Oregon Counseling Center |
346-3227 |
|
Center for Community Counseling |
344-0620 |
|
Options Counseling Services |
687-6983 |
| Sexual Assault Support Services (SASS) | 484-9791 |
| Center for Family Therapy | 346-3296 |
|
Some Additional Campus Resources |
|
|
UO Women's Center |
346-4095 |
|
Office of Affirmative Action |
346-3123 |
|
Student Advocacy |
346-3722 |
|
Multicultural Center |
346-4207 |
|
LGBT Educational and Support Services |
346-1134 |
About the Readings: Book chapters are assigned in the weekly schedule list below (e.g when it says "Herman 3-4" that means read Herman Chapters 3 and 4). On-line readings will be assigned as we go along.. To find the on-line article assignment for the upcoming week, check the "Assignments" section of Blackboard. There you will find a folder called "On-line reading assignments" with details about what you should read for the next week. Readings should be completed before the Monday class each week!
Week 1 (September 24 & 26): Introduction
No readings or homework assigned for Week 1
Week 2 (October 1 & 3): Response to Trauma
Read: Herman Intro & 1-2 (approx 50 pages); AND on-line reading to be assigned
Turn in: Personal Index Cards due October 1 at 10 AM
Turn in: Essay #1 due on October 3 at 10 AM.
Week 3 (October 8 & 10): Dissociation
Read: Herman 3-4; Shay Intro (approx 50 pages); AND on-line reading to be assigned
Complete in class: Quiz #1 on October 10
Week 4 (October 15 & 17): PTSD
Read: Herman 5-6; Shay 10 (approx 70 pages); AND on-line reading to be assigned
Turn in: Essay #2 due AND Final Project plan (1 page description) both due October 17 at 10 AM
Week 5 (October 22 & 24): Betrayal Trauma Theory
Read: Freyd 1, 2, 4; Shay 1 (approx 75 pages); AND on-line reading to be assigned
Complete in class: Quiz #2 on October 24.
Week 6 (October 29 & 31): Cognitive & Neuroscience Approaches
Read: Freyd 5 & 6 (approx 65 pages); AND on-line reading to be assigned
Turn in: Essay #3 due on October 31 at 10 AM
Week 7 (November 5 & 7): Intergenerational transmission
Read: Shay 6-9 (approx 60 pages); AND on-line reading to be assigned
Complete in class: Quiz #3 on November 7
Week 8 (November 12 & 14): Gender & Culture
Read: Freyd 3, Shay 3-5 (approx 90 pages); AND on-line reading to be assigned
Turn in: Essay #4 due on November 14 at 10 AM
Week 9 (November 19 & 21): Treatment
Read: Herman 7-9 (approx 70 pages); AND on-line reading to be assigned
Turn in: Final Project due on November 19 at 10 AM (Note this is due on a MONDAY.)
Complete in class: Quiz #4 on November 21 AND Self and partner evaluations
Week 10 (November 26 & 28): Commonality
Read: Freyd 7, Herman 10-11 & Afterward (approx 80 pages); AND on-line reading to be assigned
Turn in: Essay #5 due on November 26 at 10 AM. (Note this is due on a MONDAY.)
Complete in class: Course evaluations.
Optional: Project presentations in class on November 26 & 28.