PSY
255 – Evolutionary Psychology
Dr. Barry X.
Friedman
Monday, Wednesday, & Friday,
Garber 204
Office: Garber 248
Office Hours: Monday =
Email: friedman@lvc.edu
Office Telephone: 867-6199
Brief
Autobiography
I was born and raised on
The Psychology Department at LVC seeks to foster the development of a thoughtful, flexible, and scientific approach toward human behavior that is guided by critical analyses of empirical research. Upon graduating, psychology majors will be prepared to pursue applied entry-level positions in the work force and for graduate studies in a range of areas such as psychology, neuroscience, social work, medicine, business, education, and law. The program allows students to arrive at a thorough understanding of the myriad processes underlying behavior, with a broader goal of applying this knowledge to one’s own life and society on the whole (adapted from p. 133 of the 2003-2004 Catalog).
Evolutionary
Psychology Course Description and Objectives
This is an introductory course aimed at undergraduates with little or no experience with evolutionary psychology. Evolutionary psychology is the scientific study of human nature based on understanding the psychological adaptations that we evolved to cope with survival and reproductive challenges faced over the long expanse of our evolutionary history. We begin with a brief historical review of key themes in psychology and evolutionary biology. We then proceed to substantive topics including problems of survival, long-term mating, sexuality, parenting, kinship, cooperation, aggression and warfare, conflict between the sexes, status, prestige, and social dominance. The course concludes by arguing for a unified field that integrates the different branches of psychology.
LVC is one of only about 30 universities/colleges in
Successful completion of this course will enable you 1) to understand
Charles Darwin’ s proposed method of evolution, natural selection, 2) to understand
the major methods, theories, and findings in evolutionary psychology, and 3) to
apply that knowledge to your everyday life. Knowledge
of how and why your mind works the way it does will best allow you to use your
mind to tackle the myriad obstacles that life throws at you!
Location in the
Psychology Major and General Education Program Requirements
The prerequisites for this course are Psy 111, 112, Psy 120,
or 130 (i.e., Gen Psy I, Gen Psy II, Intro to Exp Psyc, or Stats and Data
Analysis). This course will (eventually)
count towards the 3-credit course needed
from the “social processes” area of the psychology major program. This course does not meet any general
education requirements.
Required Books
Buss, D. M. (2004). Evolutionary
psychology: The new science of the mind.
Allyn & Bacon.
Dawkins, R. (1996). The
blind watchmaker.
Teaching
Philosophy
I take great pride in a teacher’s responsibility to foster student learning. I strive to engage my students' interests by requiring high standards and using entertaining teaching methods. My role as a teacher is to foster critical, creative thinking, and intellectual risk-taking. Your role as a student is to work hard and HAVE FUN with this class. I encourage you to ask questions, interject humorous anecdotes, and seek clarification as needed. I most enjoy teaching psychology and want you to most enjoy learning it. ACTIVELY PARTICIPATE, PLEASE!!!
Attendance
Attendance is required for this class. Missed exams cannot
be made up, and missed notes cannot be borrowed from me, so you must COME TO
EACH AND EVERY CLASS! Much of the material covered in lecture is not in the
textbook, and will be included on exams. If you miss a class you are
responsible for knowing any class announcements given in your absence. If you know that you must miss a class for a
documented school related activity (e.g., school trip, sporting/band/choir
event) you must let me know at least one week prior to the anticipated absence.
Electronic
Communication
I’ll be using Blackboard, an online course management
program to post grades, PowerPoint lectures, necessary Word documents, and to
email you. You must arrange to access
Blackboard and to receive emails from me.
The username to access Blackboard and to access your LVC email account
is the same, however, the passwords for each are different. Contact Information
Technology Services (ITS) at x6060 or in the basement of Lynch if you need your
username and passwords. To log on to Blackboard point your web browser to: blackboard.lvc.edu/
. If you don’t have Microsoft Word or PowerPoint, you’ll likely need to
download document viewers from: www.lvc.edu/academics/blackboard-links.html If you regularly use a non-LVC email account
(e.g., a yahoo or hotmail account), you must arrange to have your LVC email
account forwarded to your regularly used account. You can arrange for this through
your LVC email account.
Special
Accommodations
In accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Acts, The College provides, upon request, appropriate academic
accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. For more information,
contact Ms. Yvonne Foster, Coordinator of Disability Services, at 867-6158
(Humanities, 206-D). If a student has a documented need for special testing
arrangements, it is the responsibility of the student to arrange with me for
special testing prior to each exam.
Grading
Exams = 70%
There will be 4 exams (non-comprehensive) and an optional comprehensive final exam. Comprehension of the lectures and assigned Buss and Dawkins chapters will be assessed with the exams. If you’re satisfied with your 4 exam grades you may skip the final. If you are not satisfied with an exam grade, you may take the final exam and replace your lowest exam grade with your score on the final. Thus, 4 exams (20% each) will count toward your course grade. Exams will consist of a combination of multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank, and short-answer questions. I will provide you with sample exam questions before the first exam. You will have 45 minutes to complete each exam.
Quizzes = 10%
On Fridays
between September 5th and October 31 (except October 10th,
an exam day), a 5 minute quiz on an assigned chapter in Dawkins’ book will be
given. These quizzes are designed to
prompt you to keep up with the assigned reading and to assess your
understanding of the reading. Each quiz
will consist of 1-5 multiple choice, short answer, or fill-in-the-blank
questions. Quizzes can only be ta
Hypothesized
Psychological Mechanism = 10%
You will schedule a 15 minute appointment to meet with me between December 1rst and December 13th to discuss an original hypothesized evolved psychological mechanism that you’ve come up with. While you will discuss the proposed mechanism orally in a relatively causal fashion (no need to dress up or stand up), you must also provide a 1-2 page outline (not an essay) of your proposed mechanism. You will discuss in detail:
1) the adaptive problem that your proposed mechanism was designed to “solve”,
2) who had to solve the adaptive problem (e.g., men, women, both, kids only, only those in warm
climates),
3) why this was an important recurrent adaptive problem (e.g., outline the survival/reproductive costs
of not solving the problem and the benef
4) how your proposed psychological mechanism helps solve the problem (discuss (a) the input
information the mechanism will be sensitive to, (b) the evolved decision rules that will process the
information, and (c) the output of the mechanism that will help solve the adaptive problem),
5) how you can test your hypothesis (i.e., how one could ethically and systematically collect data
that would bare upon the hypothesis).
This will likely be the most difficult assignment of the class. This assignment forces you to apply the knowledge you’ve acquired about our evolved psychology and about investigating our evolved psychology to a relatively unexplored and wholly original realm. Your scientific originality, creativity and deep comprehension of this course will be on full display. Additional information about this assignment will be provided as the course progresses.
Paper = 10%
A two-to-four paper is due at the
beginning of class on November 26th. The paper should be typed, stapled (not paper-clipped), paginated,
and double-spaced, with 12-point font and 1-inch margins. I’d like you to choose one (or two) chapters
from the book, and in light of the information contained in the chapter(s), 1)
reflect on your past life and 2) discuss how, if at all, you will lead your
life differently. I’m basically looking
for you to filter your past and future actions, decisions, and mindsets through
the knowledge you have garnered from this course. For example, if you choose the “Conflict
between the sexes” chapter, you could discuss (in addition to other things) your
past conflicts with the opposite sex and how you plan to avoid or deal with
such conflicts in the future in light of what you learned about men’s and
women’s evolved psychologies. Papers will be graded on their clarity of
thought, quality of expression, and command of the course material. Spelling and grammar count. Papers not turned in by the beginning of
class on November 26th will be
docked 5 points for each calendar day they are late. Be sure to demonstrate thorough
knowledge of the course material!
Final course grades will be assigned as follows:
92.5 – 100% = A
89.5 – 92.4% = A-
86.5 – 89.4% = B+
82.5 – 86.4% = B
79.5 – 82.4% = B-
76.5 – 79.4% = C+
72.5 – 76.4% = C
69.5 – 72.4% = C-
66.5 – 69.4% = D+
62.5 – 66.4% = D
59.5 – 62.4% = D-
< 59.4% = F
Academic Dishonesty
The providing and
receiving of any unauthorized assistance related to course requirements is
absolutely prohibited. You are allowed, of course, to study with students
outside of class, but any unauthorized assistance received or provided for any
graded material will not be tolerated. In addition, plagiarizing another’s work
(e.g., using someone else’s work without proper reference in a writing
assignment) is prohibited. Any violation of this policy will result in a
failing grade for that assignment, and possibly for the course as well. Please
refer to the LVC Student Handbook and College Catalog (p. 15) for additional
information and for consequences of academic dishonesty.
Other Course Policies
1) I hold high expectations for my students. My
exams are challenging.
2) No extra credit is available for this course.
Please do not request it.
3) Exams must be ta
exam you may take the optional comprehensive
final exam to replace it.
4) Performance, not effort, is what determines
your final grade.
5) You are strongly encouraged to ask a
classmate for notes if you miss a lecture. Notes cannot
be borrowed from me.
6) Feel free to eat and drink (non-alcoholic
beverages only!) in class as long as you don’t disturb
others with your munchin’ and slurpin’.
7) Turn off all cell phones, pagers, and beepers
before class begins.
8) The last day to change registration or
withdraw from a course is
freshman, this day is
9) Do not
talk with other students during class. Please share your thoughts with me and
the entire
class, not just a select few! Talking with classmates distracts you,
your classmates, and me.
Course Schedule
Sept. 1 Fundamentals of Evolutionary
Psychology 1
Sept. 3 The Scientific Pursuit of our Evolved
Psychology 2
Sept. 5 The Scientific Pursuit of our Evolved
Psychology / QUIZ Dawkins
Sept. 8 The Scientific Pursuit of our
Evolved Psychology 2
Sept. 10 Human Survival Problems 3
Sept. 12 Human Survival Problems / QUIZ Dawkins
Sept. 15 Human Survival Problems / 3
Sept. 17 EXAM
1
Sept. 19 Women’s Long-term Mating Strategies / QUIZ Dawkins Ch. 3 4
Sept. 22 Women’s Long-term Mating Strategies 4
Sept. 24 Women’s Long-term Mating Strategies 4
Sept. 26 Men’s Long-term Mating Strategies / QUIZ Dawkins Ch. 4 5
Sept. 29 Men’s Long-term Mating Strategies 5
Oct. 1 Men’s Long-term Mating Strategies 5
Oct. 3 Men’s & Women’s Short-term
Mating Strategies / QUIZ Dawkins Ch. 5 6
Oct. 6 Men’s & Women’s Short-term Mating Strategies 6
Oct. 8 Men’s & Women’s Short-term Mating Strategies 6
Oct. 10 EXAM
2
Oct. 13 No Class (Enjoy Fall Break!)
Oct. 15 Parenting 7
Oct. 17 Parenting / QUIZ Dawkins
Oct. 20 Parenting 7
Oct. 22 Kinship 8
Oct. 24 Kinship / QUIZ Dawkins
Oct. 27 Kinship 8
Oct. 29 Cooperation Among Non-relatives 9
Oct. 31 Cooperation Among Non-relatives / QUIZ Dawkins
Nov. 1 Field Trip to AMNH’s Hall of Biology
& Evolution:
Nov. 3 Cooperation Among Non-relatives 9
Nov. 5 EXAM
3
Nov. 7 Aggression & Warfare / QUIZ Dawkins
Nov. 10 Aggression & Warfare 10
Nov. 12 Aggression & Warfare 10
Nov. 14 Conflict Between the Sexes / QUIZ Dawkins
Nov. 17 Conflict Between the Sexes 11
Nov. 19 Conflict Between the Sexes 11
Nov. 21 Status, Prestige, & Social Dominance
/ QUIZ Dawkins
Nov. 24 Status, Prestige, & Social Dominance 12
Nov. 26 Status, Prestige, & Social Dominance
/ PAPER DUE 12
Nov. 28 No Class (Enjoy Thanksgiving Break!)
Dec. 1 Towards a Unified Psychology 13
Dec. 3 Towards a Unified Psychology 13
Dec. 5 EXAM
4
OPTIONAL FINAL EXAM: Tuesday, December 9th,
*Field Trip
We are fortunate enough to be within driving distance of “the
only major exhibit in the country to present an in-depth investigation of the
mysteries of human evolution.” We will
avail ourselves of this good fortune by taking a “Saturday Cities” bus to
Attendance on
this field trip is mandatory. You must
sign-up for this trip by
If you cannot attend due to a documented school related activity (sporting/band/choir
event) you must let me know by
Resident students may pick up a bag lunch in the dining hall prior to
departure by notifying Mrs. Sanders.
That being said, I highly encourage you to forgo LVC’s, how you say,
“interesting” lunch options and instead partake in one of the many and varied
wonderful eateries that Manhattan has to offer.
This will, of course, have to come out of your own pocket, but your
tummy and taste buds will thank you.
For more information about all the
AMNH has to offer, point your web browser to: http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/
Disclaimer
All of the procedures and schedules described in this course syllabus are subject to change due to extenuating circumstances. In the event that such changes become necessary, you will be notified of the course adjustments as soon as possible.
APPENDIX A
Suggestions About How to Study
Particularly following the first exam, students often ask
about how to study for PSY 255. There is no reason to wait until that time to
become concerned about study techniques. I have put together a few suggestions
below from the published literature on study skills. It goes without saying
that these tactics should be applied as soon as possible: They will not bail you out if you wait until you
have already done poorly on one or more exams.
1. Look over the assigned readings BEFORE you start reading. Each chapter is organized into subsections. Indeed, organization is the hallmark of textbooks. Read these subsections. Review after reading each subsection. Take breaks after each subsection.
2. At the end of each subsection, stop and ask yourself what you have learned. Ask yourself, without looking at the book, what the major points are and what the key terms were. If you can't define the terms and remember the points in a subsection right after reading them, you didn't read at a useful level and must re-read. At the end of each chapter do a review of all the subsection, being sure to understand how each subsection relates to each other.
As you find important things, consider marking them with a highlighter or something in the margin. Better yet, ORGANIZE the ideas by drawing pictures, making lists, or composing OUTLINES to better encode the information in your memory. Important things are not just definitions. They also include study findings, theories, and summaries of areas of research. Read for about 45 minutes or so--after that your efficiency drops. Stop and do laundry for 15 minutes or something before you go back to reading.
3. Work on psychology by doing the assignments
by the time they are due, a little bit at a time. No athlete would prepare for
a big game by sitting around doing nothing for weeks and then staying up late
the night before intensively working out. The same principle applies to
learning. LEARN THE MATERIAL AS YOU GO ALONG. You will have to take
responsibility for learning the material. You should not have to spend too many
hours studying for the exams. By the time the exam is near, you should already
know the material.
4. Study in a place that is quiet and in which
you will not be disturbed. Plan to work very hard when you read and study. Many
failing students think that studying is nothing more than reading the book over
and over with the stereo blasting or the TV on and people running in and out
while the phone rings. They spend hours at this, but they are not really doing
anything useful. To make an analogy--it would be like trying to increase
physical fitness by walking slowly and having an ice cream cone every two
blocks. This is fun, but it does not result in a hard body. Laying around in
front of a TV chatting with friends while scanning a book is also fun, but it
is a complete waste of time as far as learning is concerned. To get fit, one
must work the muscles, get out of breath and that sort of thing. In order to
learn, one must WORK hard and intensely, focusing on the task at hand. No pain,
no gain.
5. Study in the time of day during which you are
most alert. Do not put studying off until you can hardly keep your eyes open.
Successful students report that they make good use of the hour or two they have
between classes by studying. It is easy to waste that time by returning home and
doing things of little consequence. Much work can be accomplished during the
day by finding quiet places that are near to where your classes meet and
hitting the books.
6. It is probably not worthwhile to re-copy your
lecture notes after class. It is a very good idea, however, to take notes as
thoroughly as possible in class, leaving some space as you are taking them.
Then, as soon after class as you can, review the notes and clarify things you
have not recorded in sufficient detail.
7. Take responsibility for your own performance. Blaming roommates, textbooks, time of class meetings, or whatever will not improve your performance. If you are not spending two to three hours in good, dense, quiet study for each hour in class, you are not doing enough. This point is usually ignored by students who do poorly. Following these steps exactly will not be easy at first. If you do poorly on an exam, the first thing you will have to admit is that you have to do something DIFFERENT if you expect your grades to be different. A second thing you might have to admit is that you may have managed to get through high school and subsequent life without maximum efficiency in learning how to learn. Most students who do not do well are either (1) not working long enough or (2) not working efficiently.
Additional Studying Strategies
Although you are expected to study and ultimately learn a wide range of material, you are rarely taught any systematic strategies allowing you to study more effectively. However, psychologists have devised several excellent techniques for improving study skills, two of which are described below. By employing one of these procedures—known by the acronyms “SQ3R” and “MURDER”—you can increase your ability to learn and retain information and to think critically, not just in psychology classes but in all academic subjects.
SQ3R
The SQ3R method includes a series of five steps, designated by the initials S-Q-R-R-R.
The first step is to survey the material by reading the parts of the chapter that give you an overview of the topics covered. Some textbooks contain, for example, chapter outlines, chapter summaries, lists of learning objectives, prologues and epilogues, or some combination of these features and others.
The next step—the “Q” in SQ3R—is to question. Formulate questions—either aloud or in writing—before actually reading a section of the material. Some textbooks contain critical thinking questions that are a good source of questions. However, do not rely on them entirely. Making up your own questions is crucial. You may want to write them in the margins of your book. This process helps you to focus on the key points of the chapter, while at the same time putting you in an inquisitive frame of mind.
It is now time for the next, and most important, step: to read the material. Read carefully and, even more importantly, read actively and critically. For instance, while you are reading, answer the questions you have asked yourself. You may find yourself coming up with new questions as you read along; that’s fine, since it shows you are reading inquisitively and paying attention to the material. Critically evaluate material by considering the implications of what you are reading, thinking about possible exceptions and contradictions, and examining the assumptions that lie behind the assertions made by the author.
The next step—the second “R” is the most unusual. This “R” stands for recite, meaning that you look up from the book and describe and explain to yourself, or a study partner, the material you have just read and answer the questions you posed earlier. Do it aloud; this is one time when talking to yourself is nothing to be embarrassed about. The recitation process helps you to clearly identify your degree of understanding of the material you have just read. Moreover, psychological research has shown that communicating material to others, or reciting it aloud to yourself, assists you in learning it in a different—and a deeper—way than material that you do not intend to communicate. Hence, your recitation of the material is a crucial link in the studying process.
The final “R” refers to review. As the chapter in your textbook on memory points out, reviewing is a prerequisite to fully learning and remembering material you have studied. Look over the information, reread the features in your textbook that provide you with an overview of the chapter, be sure again that you can answer any critical thinking questions, review questions, and questions you posed for yourself. Reviewing should be an active process, in which you consider how different pieces of information fit together and develop a sense of the overall picture.
MURDER
The MURDER system, although not altogether dissimilar to SQ3R, provides an alternative approach to studying (Dansereau, 1978).
In MURDER, the first step is to establish an appropriate mood for studying by setting goals for a study session and choosing a time and place so that you will not be distracted. As mentioned previously, it is best if you schedule regular blocks of study time and select one place that you reserve specifically for studying.
Next comes reading for understanding, paying careful attention to the meaning of the material being studied.
Recall is an immediate attempt to recall the material from memory, without referring to the text.
Digesting the material comes next; you should correct any recall errors, and attempt to organize and store newly learned material in memory.
You should work next on expanding (analyzing and evaluating) new material, trying to apply it to situations that go beyond the applications discussed in the text. By incorporating what you have learned into a larger information network in memory, you will be able to recall it more easily in the future.
Finally, the last step is to review. Just as with the SQ3R system, MURDER suggests that systematic review of material is a necessary condition for successful studying.
APPENDIX B
Taking Exams
There are some principles of exam performance known only to successful, test-wise students. Millman (1966) defined test-wiseness as the ability to use knowledge of the characteristics of tests and the testing process to improve one’s performance. Studies show that test-wise students do better on exams (Rogers & Bateson, 1994; Towns & Robinson, 1993). Here are the basic principles:
Know your stuff. The single most important point is to have a good, solid knowledge and understanding of the material being tested. Using the tips for doing well in college and managing your time, as well as the study strategies described above, can help you to achieve this kind of knowledge and understanding.
Schedule your time. Look the test over and calculate the time you can afford to spend on each item.
Read completely. Be sure to read the entire item. If the item is multiple choice, try to answer it before looking at the alternatives so that you will know which is correct.
Eliminate options. If you don’t immediately know the answer, eliminate unlikely options quickly, and then choose among the remainder. Your score may well be higher (Kim & Goetz, 1993).
Look to other items. It is common for information in one item to provide an answer or partial answer to another.
Don’t think too much. If you don’t know an answer, put down your best guess and come back later if time permits. Mark questions you are most uncertain of so that you can return to them later.
Don’t leave items blank. Despite rumors to the contrary, it is to your advantage to guess unless the professor will deduct substantial credit for guessing (Budescu & Bar-Hillel, 1993).
Ask questions. Ask the professor to clarify an item if necessary.
Review your answers. Time permitting, go back over the entire test before turning it in. If you are short on time, concentrate on the difficult items you marked.
Change your answers! I emphasize this one because the idea that you
should never change an answer is so widespread among students and faculty
alike. It is a myth (Schwarz et al., 1991). Studies show that students change
answers from right to wrong about 20 percent of the time, but change them from
wrong to right 58 percent of the time (Benjamin et al., 1984). Other work shows
that 3 points are gained for every 1 lost by changing answers (Geiger, 1991).