PSYCHOLOGY OF SEXUAL BEHAVIOR
Kansas State University
www.ksu.edu/psych
Psychology 580, Fall 2004 Reference #22780
Instructor: Scott Hemenover, Ph.D.
Office: 414 Bluemont Hall
Phone: 532-0609
email:
Office hours: Wed 10-12 or by apt
Teaching Assistant: Mark Chu
Office:
Phone: 532-6850
email:
Office Hours:
Class times: TU 1:05 – 2:20 PM
Location: 004 Kedzie Hall
Reading: The Psychology of Sexual Behavior & Insights: Human Sexuality
This is a custom edition text. I chose the best topical chapters from several basic sexuality texts and from an advanced sexuality book and bound them together. The Insights reader is a collection of journal articles I chose to go with the text readings. They present empirical and theoretical studies in the various topic areas we will cover this semester. I will provide study questions for each text reading and the Insight articles include Qs.
Class Listserve: All students registered in this course have been automatically subscribed to a class listserve. To post messages the whole class will see send email to . I will send reminders and other information to the class through the listserve. Students who do not regularly use their KSU email accounts can have email forwarded to their preferred account by going to www.ksu.edu/forward/
Class Web page: All class materials are available online (http://courses.ksu.edu/fall2004/PSYCH/PSYCH580/). Here you can download the power point presentations from class (Power Point), the study questions (MS Word), and the internet activities (MS Word).
Please note however that the slide shows only present an outline of the information covered in more depth in class. To do well in this course you will need to attend class regularly, simply looking over the slide shows will be insufficient for most students. I strongly recommend downloading the slide shows, printing them out, and bringing them to class to take notes with.
Name of fellow students Phone number/email
1.
2.
3.
What the Course IS
This is a survey course in the Psychology of Sexual Behavior. The purpose is to cover what is known about various aspects of sexuality from the science of psychology and sexology. We will cover topics ranging from sexual and gender orientation, sex drive, and love to rape and pornography. Recognizing the inherent sensitive nature of these topics I expect all of us to demonstrate maturity and show respect for one another at all times. Discriminatory, cruel or otherwise inappropriate behavior will not be tolerated in this course.
What the course is NOT
This class is not a sexual education or health course. We will not discuss sexual health, sexually transmitted diseases, safe sex, contraception, pregnancy or sexual function and anatomy. This is not a class about sexual techniques or improving sexual performance. Nor is it a forum for us to (simply) look at porn and share our personal, sexual experiences.
Course goals
1. Gain an understanding of research methodology as applied to sexuality
2. Gain a better understanding of the nature, causes and consequences of various aspects of sexuality
3. Gain an appreciation for the diversity of human sexuality (e.g., attitudes, behaviors)
Class time
We will cover approximately 1-2 chapters and 1-2 articles per week, and I recognize that different students learn best in different ways. Some students prefer reading on their own and lectures, others active demonstrations or activities and still other students learn best through the give and take of class discussions. I also recognize that it is hard to effectively pay attention to a lecture for more than about 30-40 minutes. To take these factors into account and maximize the learning of most students I have structured class time to involve several different types of activities.
Lectures
Lectures serve an important purpose because this format makes it easy for students to ask questions (and test their understanding gleaned from the text), and allows the instructor to clarify complex material as well as to supplement the text with additional, more current material.
So most days I will probably lecture for approximately 30-40 minutes. This will vary depending on the material but I will try not to ever lecture non-stop for more than 30-40 minutes. My lectures will focus on important material from the readings as well as include related material not found elsewhere. As a result some material will not be covered in class and it will be left to you to glean this information from the readings. To help with this I will provide you with study questions that identify the important information. These should be used to guide your studying.
Group Activities and Class Discussion
Educational research has revealed the benefits of cooperative and active learning, and for many students interacting with the material produces superior learning than does passively listening to a lecture or reading a text. To take advantage of these forms of learning we will occasionally engage in class discussions, commonly following a group activity. During group activities you will interact with the material to produce some product to be turned in (e.g., answering some questions) for credit. Although many students like and benefit from these experiences, some may not. The intent however is benevolent: They are meant to help students learn and make class time more enjoyable for all.
Reaction Papers
Reflecting on newly learned material helps retention. Numerous studies have shown that describing/writing your understanding of material (e.g., rewriting your notes) dramatically enhances learning (i.e., exam performance). Moreover, during class time concepts can come so quickly it is challenging to absorb them. Taking a few minutes to think and write about the material allows everyone time to incorporate what they just learned into what they already know (key for retention). So occasionally during the semester I will ask you (in class) to write for 5 minutes on some topic/issue/Q I provide and these will be turned in for credit.
Videotapes
Occasionally we will watch video clips from a variety of sources. These are designed to illustrate/elaborate on course material and will often be used to augment class discussion. Videos have the added benefit of breaking up the class, which helps to maintain student attention.
In sum I have structured class time to involve different activities to aid you in understanding the material. Some require more involvement from students than others. However, taking an active approach to this course (asking questioning, relating new material to old, etc.) will for most students result in a better understanding of the material and hence a better grade. So I encourage you as students to be active learners throughout the semester.
Activities
During the semester you will be asked to do 6 group activities, 6 reaction papers and 6 internet activities (see below). Together these 18 activities will be worth 10% of your final course grade and each is worth the same amount. Please note that I am currently planning on only 8 group activities, 8 reaction papers and 8 internet activities during the semester (24 total activities), with 2 (of each) scheduled during each of the four sections of the course. You can do any 6 of each you choose. This means that missing a few of these will not substantially impact your grade. However missing more than a few will substantially lower your final grade. I list when these activities will likely occur below – however this may change due to the rate we move through the material.
Internet Activities
Throughout the semester I will assign 8 internet activities and you will need to complete 6 of these (your choice). These will involve going to a provided web page (by yourself, NOT in a group) and answering a series of questions about the material presented. These are designed to further your engagement with and understanding of the course material and will be turned in during class.
Extra credit
For every activity you satisfactorily complete over 18 you will earn .50% (1/2 percentage point) extra credit on your final course grade. This means that if you do all 24 activities during the semester (the required 18 + the other 6) your final course grade will be increased by 3% (6 * .50% = 3%).
Exams
There will be 4 multiple-choice exams, each with 60 questions. Each exam will cover ~3-5 text chapters and ~2-4 Insights articles and be worth 22.5% of your final course grade. The exams will cover main points from lecture, readings, activities (in-class and internet) and will follow the study questions I will provide (including those for the internet activities) and those that are included in each Insight article. The exams will be proctored and if you are caught cheating, you will receive an F in the course.
Absences & Lost Work
No policy about missed work I have ever tried has worked. With so many students no policy can cover all the potential reasons for missing class. So I decide this on a case-by-case basis. I reserve the right to make these decisions independently of one-another and use whatever criterion I feel is appropriate for that particular case. However, generally speaking I am most sympathetic for:
Death of family, friend
Serious illness
Medical emergency
When possible you must tell me (email, voicemail) beforehand of your absence (or you will not likely be allowed to make-up the missed work). It is also your responsibility to see me as soon as you are able to make-up the missed work. I am generally not inclined to let a student make up missed work when s/he waits a week or two to follow-up.
Grading
There are 5 pieces of your final course grade amounting to a maximum of 267 possible points:
Piece % of final grade Points
Exam 1 22.5% 60
Exam 2 22.5% 60
Exam 3 22.5% 60
Exam 4 22.5% 60
Activities 10% 27
6 group activities, 6 reaction papers, 6 internet activities (each = .56% or 1.50 points)
Grading Scale Percentage Points (rounded up)
A 90-100% 239-267
B 80-89% 213-238
C 70-79% 186-212
D 60-69% 159-185
F 59% < 159
Honor System
Kansas State University has an Undergraduate Honor System based on personal integrity, which is presumed to be sufficient assurance in academic matters one's work is performed honestly and without unauthorized assistance. Undergraduate students, by registration, acknowledge the jurisdiction of the Undergraduate Honor System. The policies and procedures of the Undergraduate Honor System apply to all full and part-time students enrolled in undergraduate courses on-campus, off-campus, and via distance learning.
A prominent part of the Honor System is the inclusion of the Honor Pledge which applies to all assignments, examinations, or other course work undertaken by undergraduate students. the Honor Pledge is implied, whether or not it is stated: "On my honor, as a student, I have neither given nor received unauthorized aid on this academic work."
A grade of XF can result from a breach of academic honesty. An XF would be failure of the course with the X on the transcript indicating failure as a result of a breach of academic honesty.
For more information, please visit the Honor System web page at: http://www.ksu.edu/honor
TENTATIVE COURSE CALENDAR (Fall 2004)
PART 1 – RESEARCH METHODS, SEXUAL VARIATION, NATURE V. CULTURE & SEXUAL FREQUENCY
Date Topic Text Insights Internet
Aug 19 Syllabus & introduction
Aug 24* Research Methods/History Chapter 2C
Aug 26*,† Sexual Variations Chapter 16C, Chapter 3BT (68-77) #1
Aug 31†, Sep 2 Nature & Culture of Sexuality Chapter 4BT (NOT 39-42) Widmer, Morris #2 (9/2)
Sep 7, 9 Sexual Frequency Chapter 2BT
Sep 14 EXAM 1 Text chapters 2C, 16C, 3BT, 4BT, 2BT and Insights: Widmer, Morris
PART 2 –SEX DRIVE AND GENDER ORIENTATION
Sep 16, 21* Female Sex Drive (Weak?) Chapter 5BT Ellis & Symons
Sep 23 Self-Esteem and Sex Drive Chapter 3BT (45-68)
Sep 28† Sexual Plasticity Chapter 6BT
Sep 30†,* Male Sex Drive (Tragic?) Chapter 8BT
Oct 5*,† 7, 14 Gender (What am I?) Chapter 3C #3 (10/5)
Oct 19 EXAM 2 Text chapters 5BT, 3BT, 6BT, 8BT, 3C and Insights: Ellis & Symons
PART 3 – GENDER ORIENTATION, SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND LOVE
Oct 21 Attraction & Love Chapter 7C #4
Oct 26† Limited Resources & Sex Chapter 7BT
Oct 28, Nov 2† Sexual Orientation (Causes) Chapter 11C & 4BT (39-42) Rosenbluth #5 (11/2)
Nov 4*, 9, 11 Sexual Orientation (Homophobia & Coming Out) Bull, Adams #6 (11/9)
Nov 16 EXAM 3 Text chapters 7C, 7BT, 11C, 4BT and Insights: Rosenbluth, Bull, Adams
PART 4 –FORCED AND COMMERCIAL SEX
Nov 18† Sex By Force Chapter 17C
Nov 23, 28* Sex By Force Chapter 9BT Johnson, Ryan #7 (11/23)
Dec 2* Pornography Chapter 18C Donnerstein, #8
Dec 7, 9 Prostitution Chapter 18C Bullough, Rio
Dec 17 2 PM – 3:50 PM EXAM 4 Text chaps 17C, 9BT, 18C and Insight: Johnson, Ryan, Donnerstein, Bullough, Rio
*Group activity tentatively planned (subject to change without notice). †Reaction paper tentatively planned (subject to change without notice). CCarroll chapter. BTBaumeister & Tice Chapter.