Winter 2007

Objectives: An introduction to theory, methods, and research findings in the field of cognitive psychology. Topics will include attention, object recognition, memory, language, imagery, decision making, and reasoning. Students will be exposed to and participate in online laboratory experiments.

Textbook: Reisberg, D. (2006). Cognition: Exploring the science of the mind (3rd ed.). New York: W. W. Norton. This textbook is packaged with an access code for ZAPS: The Norton Psychology Labs for an extra $10.00. BOTH the textbook and the access code are required.

NOTE: If you have purchased a used copy of the textbook or the new textbook you purchased was not bundled with the access code for ZAPS: The Norton Psychology Labs then you can obtain an access code for $28.00 US currency from the publisher of the textbook at http://www.wwnorton.com/ZAPS/ This online price is less than the bookstore will charge you for the access code as a separate item (i.e., when it is not bundled with the textbook).

Format: Lecture, Discussion, Online Laboratory Participation

IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES Students in ALL Psychology courses are required to read and adhere to the statements listed under the new STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES link on the home page of the Department of Psychology Questions regarding those responsibilities should be directed to the course instructor.

Evaluation: There are 100 possible marks in the course and your final mark will be based on your performance on three examinations. The first examination will be given on Thursday, February 8 and is worth 33 marks, the second examination will be given on Thursday, March 15 and is worth 33 marks, and the third examination will be given on the date of the final examination (Tuesday, April 17, 7:00 – 9:00 P.M.) and is worth 34 marks. Each examination will consist of multiple choice and short essay questions. The examinations will draw on material from the assigned readings in the textbook, from the lectures, and from the online laboratory assignments. You will be responsible for all of the assigned textbook material even though some of it will not be covered in the lectures and you will be responsible for all of the material presented in lectures even though some of the material will not be covered in the assigned textbook readings. In addition, you are expected to participate in all of the assigned ZAPS online laboratory experiments by the assigned dates (see attached ZAPS experiments list). Background information about each experiment is provided on the ZAPS website and, in addition, the experiments will be discussed in lecture. Each examination will include questions on the ZAPS experiments; they will assess your experience as a participant in the experiment (including your ability to describe the experimental task), your knowledge of the written background material provided on the ZAPS website corresponding to each experiment, and your knowledge of the lecture material in the class dealing with the results of the ZAPS experiments.

The examinations are not cumulative; they will only cover text assignments, lectures, and ZAPS experiments since the previous examination.

If you are unable to attend an examination as scheduled due to medical or compassionate reasons then you must contact the instructor by email or in person regarding your situation. No other reasons for missing an examination will be accepted (e.g., other exams on the same day, final exam conflicts, travel plans) unless justified on medical or compassionate grounds based on prior consultation with the instructor. It may be necessary for you to support your claim for medical or compassionate consideration with a written note from a medical doctor and/or your program counselor.

Dates to Note: Class Period: January 8 – April 5 Winter Break: February 19 - 23 Add Period: January 3 - 12 Last Day to Drop One Semester Courses (40th Class Day): Friday, March 9 Examination Period: April 9 - 20

Final Exam: Exam 3 (Tuesday, April 17, 7:00 – 9:00 p.m., 34 marks)

ZAPS: The Norton Psychology Labs http://www.wwnorton.com/ZAPS/

The access code bundled with your textbook or downloaded from the ZAPS website http://www.wwnorton.com/ZAPS/ has information that allows you to access the laboratory experiments on the Norton website. Follow the instructions provided on the website to access each of the assigned experiments. In addition to your access code ID, most of the experiments (marked with a * below) will ask for your class ID. This ID, which is MQZ74KED, will allow the experimental data from all of the students in the class to be averaged. Experimental results based upon the class average will be reported and discussed in class. The experiments assigned for each of the three exams are listed below along with a date by which the experiments must be completed. NOTE: You will not benefit from class lecture and discussion of the ZAPS experiments unless you have completed the experiments assigned for each exam by the due date indicated below. You are welcome to try other experiments on the ZAPS list.

ZAPS Experiments for Exam 1(COMPLETION DATE: Thursday, January 25) Synaptic Transmission Split Brain Visual Search* Attentional Blink* Spatial Cueing* Stroop Effect* Word Superiority* Feature Net

ZAPS Experiments for Exam 2 (COMPLETION DATE: Thursday, March 1) Memory Span Operational Span Iconic Memory* Brown-Peterson Task* Serial Position Task* Sternberg Search* Encoding Specificity* False Memory Task*

ZAPS Experiments for Exam 3 (Final Exam) (COMPLETION DATE: Thursday, March 29) Lexical decision* Sentence verification* Fan Effect* Mental Rotation 2-D* Mental Rotation 3-D* Mental Scanning* 2-4-6 Task Wason Selection Task

Schedule	Topic	Reading(s)
Jan 9 - 11	Introduction, History and Methods in Cognitive Psychology	pp. 3 - 14 in Chapter 1 Chapter 2
Jan 16 - 18	Brain and Mind	Chapter 2
Jan 30 - Feb 1	Attention and Working Memory	Ch 4 & Ch 1, pp. 14-22
Feb 6	Working Memory (cont'd)	Ch 5, pp. 141-158
Feb 8	Exam 1
Feb 13 - 15	Encoding and Retrieval	Ch 5, pp. 158-177; Ch 6, pp. 178-190
Feb 27, Mar 1	Memory and Awareness	pp. 190-212 in Chapter 6
Mar 6, 8 - 13	Everyday Remembering	Ch 7
Mar 15	EXAM 2
Mar 20	Memory Networks	Chapter 8, pp. 251-266
Mar 22 - 27	Concepts and Categorization	Ch 9
Mar 29	Imagery	Ch 11
Apr 3 - 5	Judgment and Reasoning	Ch 12 & 13, pp. 436-455

Component	Percentage	Schedule
Component	Percentage	Schedule
Exam 1	33%	Feb 8
Exam 2	33%	Mar 15
Final Exam	34%	April 17, 7:00 - 9:00
Total	100%

NOTE: This is a preliminary web course description only. The department reserves the right to change without notice any information in this description.

The final binding course outline will be distributed during the first class of the semester.

Students currently enrolled in this course are required to access the designated printer icon above, for supplementary documents if listed below.

Statement Of Student Responsibilities
Students in all Psychology courses are required to read and adhere to the statements listed via the above link or via the
STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES link on the Department of Psychology home page.

Questions regarding those responsibilities should be directed to the course instructor.