Psychology 367: Psychology of Minorities

Psychology 367: Psychology of Minorities
Spring 2008
MW: 3:00-4:20pm
RS 271

Professor:
Office phone:
Office hours:

Lisa M. Gunderson, Ph.D.
(916) 650-2768 or 558-2165
M: 10:30-11:30am

Office: RS 284 or LR 106
e-mail: gunderl@scc.losrios.edu
W: 2:00–3:00 p.m

Welcome to Psychology 367. Throughout the semester, please use this syllabus as your source of information regarding the class. Any major changes to the syllabus will be discussed. In addition to the office hours mentioned above, I will have 6 additional hours as discussed in class.

REQUIRED TEXT

Gunderson, L. (Ed.). (2008). Psychology of Minorities. San Diego: Montuzuma Press.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

This course studies the individual and collective impact of minority group status on an individual and group's behavior and mental processes. Specifically, through lectures, class discussions, readings, and videos you will become familiar with the psychological issues, concerns, and needs of minority persons.   Minority persons include African-Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, gays & lesbians, and persons with disabilities. All assignments have been designed to:
(1)   increase your understanding of how diversity issues (e.g., ethnicity, gender, age, and sexual orientation) relate to physical and mental health;
(2)   increase your ability to describe and analyze specific psychological and social issues among minority populations;
(3)   increase your ability to define and distinguish between culture, ethnicity, race, privilege and other key terms;
(4)   demonstrate an understanding of and critical analysis of the impact of culture and minority status on basic psychological processes;
(5)   increase your ability to recognize, understand and analyze issues related to individual and institutionalized stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination, while recognizing your own ethnocentrism, stereotypes, prejudice, and privilege;
(6)   increase your knowledge of culturally appropriate interventions;
(7)   increase your understanding of how issues of minority populations are interwoven with social and political institutions;
(8)   increase your skills in critical thinking and analysis, which you can utilize daily and in future courses.

COURSE FORMAT

Each class begins with an overview of the lecture, including the objectives of the day. Lecture may include group work, video, and class demonstrations to highlight various theories and concepts.

REQUIREMENTS

I. Attendance and Group Participation
You are expected to attend all classes. There is information provided in class that is NOT covered in your readings. Your group assignment is determined by the second week of class. There are approximately 15 graded in-class & take-home assignments designed to emphasize certain topics discussed in class. YOU MUST READ. This is a highly interactive class and your participation is key to its success. You may make up in-class/group assignments for full credit if you miss class due to a conflict with a religious observance, traveling for an officially approved activity, or a verifiable medical excuse. If you miss class for any other reason, you receive a maximum of 50% credit for the assignment. You have only one week to make up the assignment for credit. Please note that some in-class/group assignments cannot be made up because they require your actual presence in class (e.g., group discussion). Finally, your overall group participation score is determined by the number of group and in-class activities you completed throughout the semester.

II. Weekly Reaction Papers (240 points)
You will have to write 12 weekly reaction paper to topics discussed in class. These 1 page papers reflect your views and thoughts on the specific topic discussed (e.g., white privilege). If you turn in your assignment late, you will lose 5 points. No papers will be accepted after 2 weeks.

III. Chapter Quizzes (120 points)
You will complete 3 sets of questions based on the main points of the readings. These are open book assignments. Your quiz is due at the beginning of class. If your quiz is late, but turned in on the day it is due, you will lose 5 points. If you turn in the quiz during the next class period, you will lose 25% of your overall score (i.e., 36/40 would become 27/40). No reading quizzes are accepted after one week.

IV. Minority Psychology Journal or Film (200 points)
This on-going journal assignment is designed to synthesize the course material while applying the information to either a current minority issue or engaging in an applied activity. Regarding a current issue, you must pick an issue that impacts minorities today (e.g., the suicide rate among gay teens), analyze the history of the problem, current status of the situation, and potential solutions. Regarding an applied activity, you will engage in an activity for 4 weeks and write a report summarizing your findings. These activities will be discussed in class and include film, television, or music analysis, children’s toys, religious institutions, or having a minority partner. Further, you will have a unique opportunity this semester to engage in creating a film utilizing Final Cut Pro, in lieu of a paper. Your complete psychology project is at least 5 pages, excluding the bibliography and attachments and is due on Monday, May 5th. The specific assignments & grading sheet will be discussed in detail in one month.

If you turn in your paper by Thursday at 5:00 pm you will lose 10 points. If you turn in your paper by Friday at 2:00pm, you will lose 20 points. Papers turned in after 2:00pm on Friday will lose 60 points. No papers will be accepted after May 12th @ 5:00 pm. Turn in your paper even if it is late, because some points are better than none! DO NOT slip your assignment under my door. If your assignment is late, have the secretary DATE STAMP your assignment, ask them to write the TIME on the paper, and leave in the BSS division office - RN 2nd floor (last door on the left across from the bathrooms).

Extra Credit – up to 20 points
Unless otherwise noted, all extra credit is worth 5 points each. You can complete a maximum of 20 points (i.e., 4 assignments). Throughout the semester, psychology appropriate events occur that allow you to receive up to 20 more points. These points can be received by attending special events, chats, a psych club meeting, or writing your opinion on topics in class and movie reviews. I will inform you of these opportunities as they become available. You can turn in extra credit at any time. However, ALL EXTRA CREDIT IS DUE BY MONDAY, MAY 5th .

FINAL COURSE GRADE
Your final course grade will be determined by your performance on all assignments.

In Class Group Work
Chapter Quizzes
Weekly Reaction Papers
Minorities Psychology Project

200 points
120 points
240 points
200 points

26%
16%
32%
26%

There are 760 points possible. There is no curve. At any point in the semester you can determine your grade to date simply by figuring out the percentage. Final grades will be based on the point distribution below.

Points
680 or higher
604-679
529-603
452-528
451 or below

Grade
A (90%)
B (80%)
C (70%)
D (60%)
F (50%)

Be Responsible
Keep track of all your assignments. When you write your paper SAVE a paper copy AND a computer disk copy. You will not receive credit for something you said you did if you do not have proof. KEEP ALL YOUR WORK UNTIL YOU RECEIVE YOUR FINAL GRADE.

Cheating and Plagiarism
Everyone is an adult and cheating and plagiarism is not tolerated – period. Every effort is being made to minimize an environment for cheating. If you are caught cheating during an exam or plagiarizing your paper, at the minimum you will receive a 0 for that test/paper and will be penalized according to SCC regulations. Please read and familiarize yourself with the student’s code of conduct definitions, rules, and regulations for cheating and plagiarism. You can find this information in SCC’s student guide-student code of conduct (http://wserver.scc.losrios.edu/~matric/guide/stuconduct.html).

Waste Reduction
All students are expected to participate in SCC’s waste reduction program. Please reduce and reuse when possible and always recycle appropriate materials in the blue receptacle. In an effort to do my part, I will only supply one hard copy of your syllabus, you can retrieve my syllabus off of my website (http://wserver.scc.losrios.edu/~gunderl/). Also, please feel free to double-side your paper. We have a beautiful campus. Please help us keep it that way.

Withdrawal from the class
It is YOUR responsibility to withdraw from class. The deadline to withdraw from class in Spring 2008 is April 20th.

The Student Is…

“…the most important person on the campus.
Without students there would be no need for the institution.
…not a cold enrollment statistic but a flesh and blood human being
with feelings and emotions like our own.
….not someone to be tolerated so that we can do our thing. They are our thing.
…not dependent on us. Rather, we are dependent on them.
…not an interruption of our work, but the purpose of it.
We are not doing them a favor by serving them.
They are doing us a favor by giving us the opportunity to do so.”

Author unknown

I hope you will find this course a valuable, challenging, and enjoyable learning experience.

COURSE OUTLINE
DATE	TOPIC	READING
Week 1: January 21	Psychology of Minorities Introduction & Course Review
Week 2: January 28	What is a Minority Key Definitions History	Articles 1-6 Articles 7-12 Article 15
Week 3: February 4	Minority Groups Theories Prejudice Stereotypes Discrimination	Articles 13-14
Weeks 4-7: February 11-March 10th	Gender Demographics History Issues	Articles 16-20 Article 32
Weeks 8-9: March 25th – April 7th	Sexual Orientation Demographics History Issues	Articles 21-23
Weeks 11-14: April 7th-May 5th	Race and Ethnicity Demographics History Issues	Articles 26-31 Articles 33-41
Weeks 15-16: May 5-May 12	Disability Demographics History Issues FINAL PROJECT DUE MAY 5TH	Articles 24-25
	Monday, May 19th FINAL PERIOD @ 3:00-5:00pm
HAVE A GREAT SUMMER	CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL GRADUATES	HAVE A GREAT SUMMER