Personality Theory
Fall 2006
Instructor: Dr. Kelly Charlton
Office: 323 Education Center
Phone: 521-6459
e-mail: kelly.Charlton@uncp.edu (this is the best way to reach me)
Home Page: www.uncp.edu/home/charlton
Office Hours: MWF
Textbook: Funder, D. C., (2004). The Personality Puzzle, 3nd edition. NewYork: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Course Objectives
Recognize and accurately define terms from
personality psychology that are in common use in Western culture
Explain the concepts, principles, and theories
psychologists employ to explain individual differences in thought, feeling, and
behavior
Apply these concepts, principles and theories
to explain human behavior.
POLICIES AND REQUIREMENTS
Exams:
There will be four exams during the semester, the dates are on the course schedule. The first three exams will be non-cumulative exams and the focus of each will be on the material presented during the current chapters and lectures. The fourth exam will be the final and it will be cumulative, it will cover the material from all of the first three exams. Your lowest grade from these four exams will be dropped. This means that only three of the four exams will count toward your final score. Therefore, if you are completely satisfied with your scores on the first three exams and you have not missed an exam you may opt not to take the final. If, however, you are not satisfied with one of your first three exam scores, or if you have missed an exam you may want to take the final exam. Each exam will include both multiple choice and short answer questions.
Project/Paper:
There will be two papers (one paper will involve a group project – get control over that gag reflex, it won’t be that bad, well ok, it may be that bad, but you should make it through it relatively unscathed) assigned during the semester, the due dates are listed on the course schedule. We will have class time allotted to work on the group project, however some outside class time will be required. Papers should be 3-4 pages long. Word to the wise: always keep a copy of anything you turn in, if it turns up missing you will be saved a lot of work. Each paper will be worth 75 points and should be done independently; do not work on your papers in a group (or in a couple). Points will be allocated for content, grammar, and adherence to the typing guidelines (1” margins on all 4 sides, 12 pt times font [like this syllabus], double spaced, no less than 3 pages and no more than 4 pages long).
In Class Activities:
Occasionally we will
have inclass activities, you
will receive points for participating in and completing these activities
accurately. Depending on the demands of
the activity these will be worth from 5 to 15 points and will contribute
to the total points that can be accumulated in the class (this means that if you are here and attending class regularly you will
most likely benefit from inclass activity points, if
you are not attending class regularly you will not receive these points and
your grade will suffer).
Attendance:
Attendance is not mandatory, however, it is strongly encouraged. It has been my experience that attendance is necessary for your success in class. Exam material may come from both the book and/or from lecture and activities in class and if you are not in class you may miss vital information and there will be NO make-ups on in-class activities)
Grading:
Your letter grade will be assigned according to the percent of total points you earn in the class:
A = 93 - 100% B- = 80 - 82% D+ = 67 - 69%
A- = 90 - 92% C+ = 77 - 79% D = 63 - 66%
B+ = 87 - 89% C = 73 - 76% D- = 60 - 62%
B = 83 - 86% C- = 70 - 72% F = 0 - 59%
Timeliness and Make-up Exams:
There will be no
make up exams, because you may drop one of the four exam scores if you miss an
exam then that score will be the one that is dropped. In the event that you must miss more than one
exam, you must speak to me ahead of missing the exam and be prepared to provide
documentation (for both missed exams)
regarding the circumstances that are extreme enough that a make-up exam is
merited. There are no make-ups on missed
in class activities. Though there are no
make-ups on in class activities, I will add to everyone’s inclass
total
E-mailing Assignments:
More and more people ask if they may email me their
assignments, so much so that we need some policy on it. If you would like to email me an assignment
please send it to Kelly.charlton@uncp.edu. Put “Assignment Psy
375” and then the name of the assignment in the subject of the email. You MUST put those exact words that you see
in quotes in the subject because I will be using them to filter your assignment
to an appropriate folder. Attach your
properly formatted assignment (when I open it and print it and it should look
like you would like it to look if you handed it to me in hard copy) in one
Word, or WordPerfect document. You must
sign your email with a name I can find on my class roster (I have no way to
know who babyblue2345@yahoo.com, bigdaddy2349@hotmail.com, or
lipsofgold1954@aol.com are, for example). I will reply (so, you should send it from an
account that I can reply to (i.e., I can’t reply to “labpc”)
to each email I receive that is sent in the proper format. If you don’t get a reply from me within a few
days, it is up to you to follow up on whether or not the assignment was received.might consider checking to see that you put
“Assignment Psy 375” in the subject line. If you feel that you need to resend me your
assignment, please forward the orginially sent email
with that appropriate information in the subject line (that way I can see when
the document was first sent).
Ultimately, it is your responsibility to make sure that I receive an
assignment sent via email.
Grading Disputes:
When an exam grade or paper is handed back you will have one week to dispute the points you received. The dispute should be typed and be no longer than 1 double spaced page (with the same typing requirements as the papers) per item disputed. Disputes are due at the beginning of class one week from the day a paper or exam grade was handed back to the class. A dispute should be a clearly articulated argument, not an opinion. Each dispute should also include relevant references (i.e., pages numbers and passages in the text and/or information and date from your class notes).
Ethics:
Academic honesty is fundamental to the activities and principles of a university. All members of the academic community must be confident that each person's work has been responsibly and honorably acquired, developed, and presented. Any effort to gain an advantage not given to all students is dishonest whether or not the effort is successful. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to looking at someone's exam during a test, looking at notes during the test, turning in someone else's work as your own, or plagiarizing from a printed article (this means that copying information from the internet is plagiarism). If you are in doubt about whether a behavior you intend to do will be viewed as suspicious, talk to me before you do it. You should read further about the Academic Honor Code and the consequences of academic dishonesty in UNCP's Student Handbook.
Extra Credit:
I'll assign some extra credit throughout the semester. You may do the extra credit to obtain up to 1.5 total percentage points to be added to your final percentage. For example, if your final points add up to 89.45% of the total points you would receive a "B." If you completed 2 extra credit projects, worth 1/2% each your 89.45% would become 90.45%, an "A." The exact value of each assignment will be determined when it is assigned. Extra credit will be assigned during class at various times during the semester, if you miss a class it is your responsibility to find out from a fellow class mate if any extra credit was assigned.
Web Page:
I will post some class materials on the web page. If there are technical difficulties with the page, please notify me as soon as possible. If you are relying on the web page for class materials you must notify me of a problem 5 days prior to an exam. In other words, DON’T rely on the web page to get materials the night before an exam, you may find a problem and there will be no way for you to resolve it before the exam.
Americans with Disabilities Act:
Any student with a documented disability needing academic adjustments is requested to speak directly to Disability Support Services and the instructor, as early in the semester (preferably within the first class week) as possible. All discussion will remain confidential. Sometimes note takers are needed to assist students with disabilities. Students who are interested in serving as paid note takers in any course should contact the Office for ADA Services as soon as possible. The syllabus is available in alternative formats upon request. Please contact Mary Helen Walker, Disability Support Services, DF Lowry Building, 521-6695
Cell Phone Policy:
Unfortunately it seems I must make a policy specifically to cover the use of cell phones in the classroom. While I shouldn’t have to do that for upper division courses here goes: Folks, turn off and put your cell phones away while in class, don’t play on them, txt message on them, talk on them, or even glance their way. The world will continue to exist if you don’t return a txt message in 10 seconds flat. If the world does get sucked into a black hole because you’ve put away your cell, you can blame me for it. (disclaimer: if you have a legitimate reason to have a cell phone on in class just let me know).
Course Calendar
9/19
Exam I 
10/12 –