PSYC 7331A

Georgia Southern University

Department of Psychology

PSYC 7331A

Advanced Developmental Psychology

Fall, 2005

Janice H. Kennedy, Ph.D.

Carroll Building Room 2261

2:00 - 3:15 MW

OFFICE: Carroll Building, Room 1060A

OFFICE HOURS: 11:00 - 12:00 TT

3:30 – 4:30 MW

PHONE NO.: 681-5504 (office); 681-0869 (lab)

E-MAIL: jkennedy@GeorgiaSouthern.edu

WEBSITE: www.GeorgiaSouthern.edu/~jkennedy

COURSE DESCRIPTION AND OBJECTIVES: This course provides a comprehensive examination of important contemporary issues in developmental psychology. We will examine the major theories of human development, both past (as they impact on current theory) and present. Moreover, we will examine the research that supports or rejects these theories, particularly from an epigenetic point of view. Goals are to enable you to understand the interrelationship between developmental psychology and other sciences, and to understand the position of developmental psychology within the larger field of psychology. Students who are completing both the experimental and clinical tracks enroll in this course. Although this is not an applied course in the clinical-track curriculum, some application of developmental theory and research will be addressed.

LEARNING OUTCOMES:

To be able to describe the developing person at different periods in the lifespan.
To understand the possible causes or sources of developmental change and reasons for disturbances in the developmental process.
To be able to describe how different theoretical perspectives influence research and applications that arise from them.
To be able to apply developmental principles to one’s own life and the lives of others.
To appreciate people of all ages, cultures, and backgrounds, and to gain insight into their similarities and differences.

TEXTS:

APA Publication Manual (5th ed.)

Crain, W. (2005). Theories of development: Concepts and applications. (5^th ed.) New York: Prentice-Hall.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND TESTS:

1. A Midterm and a Final Exam

Each test is of essay format and accounts for 25% of your final grade. The final exam is comprehensive.

2. Paper and Presentation

A paper and a presentation are required. You may select a topic from the ones provided, according to your own interests. The paper/presentation (see attached schedule for the selections) should expand on the information covered in the readings for that particular topic.

Using psychological journal articles as evidence, you will prepare a presentation to the class that supports your view of the selected issue. I will suggest particular researchers’ work and journal articles when you have selected your topic to get you started. A short outline or overhead when you make your presentation may be helpful to the class.

The paper should include at least 10-12 carefully selected research or theoretical articles. The paper is a written summary of the articles that you present to the class, along with your critical evaluation of what you have read and integrated with the course reading assignments. It should be about 8-10 pages in length (not counting title page abstract, or references), written in APA style. The written paper is due when you make your oral presentation.

Your presentation will be evaluated on organization, clarity, adequacy of coverage of the relevant literature (both breadth and depth are important) and critical evaluation of what you have read by both your peers and myself. Your presentation will account for 20% of your final grade. For the paper, critical evaluation of the research and theory on your topic will be weighted more heavily. The paper accounts for 20% of your final grade.

3. Class Participation

The success of this class depends heavily upon your preparation and participation. I, of course, expect you to be present for each class and to have thoughtfully read each assignment before class. For each reading assignment, I would like for you to prepare 2-3 questions or comments on the assigned readings for that day. These should be turned in to me no later than 9:00 a.m. on each class day by e-mail. These will provide part of the basis for class discussion.

Your thoughtful participation in class discussions (including your questions/comments described above) accounts for 10% of your grade in the course.

GRADES:

Grades are assigned as follows:

A 90-100

B 80-89

C 70-79

D 60-69

F Below 60

ACADEMIC HONESTY HONOR CODE: Students are expected to uphold the Academic Honesty Honor Code as published in section 3 of the Georgia Southern University Student Conduct Code. Cases of academic dishonesty are dealt with according to policies outlined in the Student Handbook. You should note that the minimum penalty requires a grade of zero for the assigned task and academic probation for one semester for a first offense. Academic dishonesty involves representing any work turned in (whether tests, papers, etc.) completed in any part by others as your own.

ACADEMIC ACCOMMODATIONS: This class complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Students with disabilities needing academic accommodation must:

(1) register with and provide documentation to the Student Disability Resource Center (SDRC); and (2) provide a letter to me from the SDRC indicating what your need may be for academic accommodation. This should be done within the first week of class. (SDRC, Knight Drive, Hampton Hall, building #5, 912-871-1566, TDD phone: 912-681-0666)

Date Topic/Assignment Readings

8-15 Introduction to Course

Syllabus

8-17 Ethics

Skinner, B. F. (1945, October). Baby in a box. Ladies’ Home Journal,

567-573.

Watson, J. B., & Rayner, R. (1920). Conditional emotional reactions. Journal of

Experimental Psychology, 3, 1-14.

Peterson, L., & Bell-Dolan, D. (1995). Treatment outcome research in child

psychology: Realistic coping with the “Ten Commands of Methodology.”

Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 24, 149-162.

8-22 (continued)

8-24 Early Theories: Preformationism, Locke, and Rousseau Ch. 1

8-29 Gesell’s Maturational Theory Ch. 2

8-31 Epigenetic Theories

Scarr, S. (1992). Developmental theories for the 1990s: Development

and individual differences. Child Development, 63, 1-19.

Ge, X., Conger, R. D., Cadoret, R. J., Neiderhiser, J. M.,

Yates, W., Troughton, E., & Stewart, M. A. (1996). The

developmental interface between nature and nurture:

A mutual influence model of child antisocial behavior and

parent behaviors. Developmental Psychology, 32, 574-589.

9-5 Labor Day

9-7 Ethological Theories: Darwin, Lorenz, and Tinbergen,

and Bowlby and Ainsworth Ch. 3

9-12 Belsky, J., Steinberg, L., & Draper, P. (1991). Childhood

experience, interpersonal development, and reproductive

strategy: An evolutionary theory of socialization. Child

Development, 62, 647-670.

9-14 Importance of the Early Relationship between Mother and

Child in Forming Adult Personality

Cross-Cultural Differences in Attachment Classification

9-19 Harris, J. R. (1995). Where is the child’s environment: A group

socialization theory of development. Psychological Review, 102,

458-489.

9-21 Piaget’s Cognitive-Developmental Theory Ch. 6

9-26 Cognitive Development Across the Lifespan

Cross-Cultural Differences in Educational Practices

9-28 Effects of Day Care on Cognitive Development

Effects of Day Care on Socioemotional Development

10-3 Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development Ch. 7

10-5 Midterm Exam

10-10 Last Day to Withdraw without Penalty

Learning Theory: Pavlov, Watson, and Skinner Ch. 8

10-12 Bandura’s Social Learning Theory Ch. 9

Role of Corporal Punishment in Socialization

10-17 Dishion, T. J., McCord, J., & Poulin, F. (1999). When interventions

harm: Peer groups and problem behavior. American Psychologist,

54, 755-764.

10-19 Vygotsky’s Social-Historical Theory of Cognitive Development Ch. 10

10-24 Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory Ch. 11

10-26 Erikson and the Eight Stages of Life Ch. 12

10-31 Current Research on Identity Formation

Current Research on Mid-Life Crises

11-2 Current Research on Life Review

11-7 Chomsky’s Theory of Language Development Ch. 17

11-9 The Child in School

Stipek, D. (1992). The child at school. In M. H. Bornstein &

M. E. Lamb (Eds.), Developmental psychology: An advanced

textbook. (pp. 579-628). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum. (on reserve)

11-14 Current Research on the Role of Self-Esteem in Achievement and Self-Concept

Current Research on the Role of Bullies in Peer Groups

11-16 Theories of Adult Development and Aging

Schultz, R., & Heckhausen, J. (1996). A life span model of

successful aging. American Psychologist, 51, 702-714.

Stewart, A. J., & Ostrove, J. M. (1998). Women’s personality in

middle age: Gender, history, and midcourse corrections. American Psychologist, 53, 1185-1194.

11-21 Rogler, L. H. (2002). Historical generations and psychology: The case

of the Great Depression and World War II. American Psychologist,

57, 1013-1023.

Skinner, B. F. (1983). Intellectual self-management in old age.

American Psychologist, 38, 239-244.