Syllabus

UNE Summer Session

PSYO 1030: Abnormal Psychology – 6 Weeks

Credits - 3

Description

This abnormal psychology course will explore basic concepts and theories related to abnormal psychology and how psychopathology is classified.  Emphasis will be placed on understanding the history of abnormal psychology, the negative impact of stigma related to the diagnosis of mental health disorders, strategies for clinical assessment, the biopsychosocial model for explaining mental illness, as well as the classification, etiology, diagnosis, and treatment of the major disorders. Upon completion, students should be able to distinguish between normal and abnormal behavior patterns as well as demonstrate knowledge of etiology, epidemiology, diagnosis and treatment of mental health disorders.

Materials

Learning Objectives and Outcomes

Program Outcomes

In lecture courses, students should be able to:

• Communicate scientific concepts and information clearly.
• Illustrate fundamental laws, theories, and principles of scientific disciplines.
• Apply knowledge and critical thinking skills to scientific problems.

Course Objectives

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

1. Explain how psychologists define abnormal psychology and how it is classified.
2. Identify types of mental health professionals.
3. Explain perceptions, diagnoses, and treatments of mental illness with appropriate historical context.
4. Analyze the stigmas associated with mental illness.
5. Evaluate mental illness using the biopsychosocial model.
6. Employ appropriate methods for clinical assessment.
7. Describe the etiology, epidemiology, diagnosis, and treatment of various anxiety disorders.
8. Describe the etiology, epidemiology, diagnosis, and treatment of various obsessive-compulsive and related disorders.
9. Describe the etiology, epidemiology, diagnosis, and treatment of various mood disorders.
10. Describe the etiology, epidemiology, diagnosis, and treatment of various dissociative disorders.
11. Describe the etiology, epidemiology, diagnosis, and treatment of schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders.
12. Describe the etiology, epidemiology, diagnosis, and treatment of various personality disorders.

Assignments

Self-Assessments/Matching Activities – Students will be provided a matching bank and will be asked to match key terms with their definitions or related concepts. Self-Assessments are not counted toward the student’s final grade.

Discussion Boards – Students will respond to a discussion prompt and will interact with peers by providing feedback to their discussion responses.

Clinical Assessment Assignment – In this assignment, students will watch a popular film depicting an individual with a mental health disorder and they will imagine they had an opportunity to administer a clinical assessment to the character and will complete the assessment with information provided in the film.

Reflection Papers – These written assignments ask students to reflect on different phenomena that occur in abnormal psychology in a manner that is informed by their own reading and research.

Problem-Based Learning Scenarios – These written assignments provide the student with a real-world example of a clinical issue from the subsection of diagnoses being addressed in that learning module.  The student will be expected to apply their knowledge of abnormal psychology to suggest a strategy for diagnosing and treating the individual.

Creative Activity – Students will be asked to create a possible new mental health diagnosis.  This proposed diagnosis will be justified using clinical research.

Holistic Case Study – In this written assignment, students will evaluate a complex case study of an individual with a mental health disorder.  The student will be expected to apply their knowledge of abnormal psychology to suggest a strategy for clinical assessment, diagnosing, and treating the individual. The student will also be required to apply the biopsychosocial model to fully explain the etiology of the disorder. 

Midterm Exam (Proctored)– This is a 25-item, multiple-choice exam that is proctored. Students will have 90 minutes to complete the exam. Students may use a single page (front and back) of notes during the exam.  This Midterm Exam will cover material from weeks 1 – 4. An external webcam is required.

Final Cumulative Exam (Proctored) – This is a 25-item, multiple-choice exam that is proctored. Students will have 90 minutes to complete the exam. Students may use a single page (front and back) of notes during the exam.  This Cumulative Exam  with content weighted towards weeks 4 – 6. An external webcam is required.

Practice Proctored Exam – There is a highly recommended Practice Proctored Exam available to all students. The first attempt is free. This exam does not cover course material and is not included in your overall course grade. It prepares test takers for what the testing environment will be like, what forms of identification are needed, and provides a chance to test your external webcam with a live proctor. This is a great way to become familiar with and prepare for your exam!

Grading Policy

Your grade in this course will be determined by the following criteria:

Grade Breakdown

Assignment
Discussion Board: Share and Reflect (3 @ 3 points each)	9
Reflection Paper (3 @ 5 points each)	15
Problem-Based Learning Scenarios (9 @ 4 points each)	36
Clinical Assessment Assignment	10
Creative Activity Assignment	5
Case Study Presentation	10
Mid-Term Assessment	7.5
Final Cumulative Assessment	7.5
Total	100

Grade Scale

Grade	Points Grade	Point Average (GPA)
A	94 – 100%	4.00
A-	90 – 93%	3.75
B+	87 – 89%	3.50
B	84 – 86%	3.00
B-	80 – 83%	2.75
C+	77 – 79%	2.50
C	74 – 76%	2.00
C-	70 – 73%	1.75
D	64 – 69%	1.00
F	00 – 63%	0.00