Description: This course serves as an in-depth treatment of the biological approach to behavior. All psychologists study behavior—Biological Psychologists are interested in the subset of questions regarding physiological mechanisms and evolutionary adaptations. We will consider both types of explanations during the course of the semester.
Learning objectives:
After taking this course, students will have the ability to:
-formulate hypotheses about biological mechanisms of behavior, and understand how researchers test those hypotheses
-appreciate the insight gained by applying evolutionary explanations to complex human behaviors
-explain in detail the basic organization and structure of the nervous system and its component parts, both on a macro and micro level
-apply their knowledge of synaptic transmission and fundamental principles of learning to understand drug abuse and addiction
-demonstrate their understanding of the manner in which nerve cells communicate, both intracellularly and intercellularly
-understand the mechanisms by which the nervous system can change in response to experience
-articulate the hormonal, neural and genetic mechanisms of rodent social and reproductive behavior
-explain the neural mechanisms of sleep
-demonstrate their understanding of how social neuroscientists study social emotions in humans, especially with respect to "empathy for pain"
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Grading: Your grade will be based on your performance on graded exams: a midterm, two quizzes, and a cumulative final exam (take home to be completed during finals week); a term project; and your participation and contribution to the class. You can also earn 5 points toward your final grade by providing me with feedback about the course in the form of the on-line course evaluation, to be completed at the end of the semester.
Exam 1: 100 points
Quiz 1: 50 points
Quiz 2: 50 points
Final Exam: 150 points
Term Project : 50 points
Course Evaluation: 5 points
TOTAL: 405 points
Grading policy: Grades assigned at the end of the semester will be based on the distribution of point totals, with adjustments made to the final grade based on my subjective evaluation of your contribution to class discussion. Generally, students with final point totals of at least 95% of the total possible points receive grades of 4.0, and those scoring fewer than 60% of the total possible points will fail the course. Students whose final point totals fall within these extremes will be assigned grades between 1.0 and 3.7, depending on the overall distribution. A copy of the distribution of exam scores will be provided following each exam, giving you an idea of where your score falls in the distribution.
Atttendance policy: Attendance is required! You will also find that attendance in class will substantially improve your understanding of class material and performance on exams. Please contact me in advance if you will be missing class.
POLICY ON EXTENSIONS: Extensions will be granted only in the case of bona fide emergencies, such as illness or extenuating personal circumstances. Note that a great deal of work in other classes is "par for the course" in college--it is not an extenuating circumstance.
HONOR CODE STATEMENT: The Haverford Honor Code--its letter and its spirit--should govern your behavior while completing work in this course. Exams are take-home and self-timed. I trust you, so be trustworthy! Suspected violations of the Honor Code will be referred to Honor Council for adjudication.
NOTE ON INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY: The course syllabus and materials generated during this course are the intellectual property of the instructor and are not to be shared or distributed without the instructor's explicit permission. Audio recording of class lectures without the instructor's permission is a violation of this policy.