The psychology of human motivation. Everyday concepts such as laziness in relation to diverse theories and explanations of motivation such as drive-reduction, sociobiology, personal goals, self-actualization and spiritual awareness.

Prerequisite: Normally restricted to students entering the First year of B.A. program.

Seminars three hours per week.

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Instructor:Timothy A. Pychyl
Office:A825 Loeb
Phone:520-2600 ext 1403
E-mail:tpychyl@ccs.carleton.ca
Web site: http://www.carleton.ca/~tpychyl/01138
Office hours: Tuesdays 2:00-3:30 p.m., Wednesdays 4:30-5:30 p.m. or by appointment
 
Teaching Assistant:

Section A: Limor Zomer (office hours TBA)

Section B: Kelly Richardson (office hours TBA)

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Location: A620 Loeb (Computer Lab see weekly update page)

Schedule: September 8, 2000 - March 28, 2001.

Why did you decide to pursue a university education? Why do some people persist while others give up? Do humans have instincts? How much of our behaviour is learned? Are there basic human needs? These are just a few of the questions for which we will develop answers throughout the year.

This first-year seminar provides an introduction to psychological inquiry through the topic of human motivation. This seminar is different than other courses you will take in first year. First, it will probably be the smallest class you will attend. Second, you will spend less time listening to lectures and more time doing and discussing research (that’s why it’s called a seminar). Third, you will have more expected of you week-to-week than is traditional in other course s where there is often just a mid-term and final exam or major paper. Fourth, because this is a smaller, seminar class, you will get more personal support from me, your instructor, in meeting your learning goals in the seminar. Finally, you will do a lot of your work with other students, including a final group project for the seminar. I hope that this will be one of the most engaging and memorable courses you will take at Carleton. At the very least, whether you pursue further studies in psychology or some other discipline, it will better prepare you for the years ahead in terms of research, writing and critical thinking.

Given the differences I note above, you shouldn’t be suprised to see that even the course outline is different from your other courses. In most courses (including others that I teach), the instructor sets a specific content (or curriculum) that will b e covered, most often with a specified text book, and this is set out in a weekly, topic-by-topic schedule. I have not done this here, because we will construct much of our curriculum content together as we work through the fall and winter terms.

That doesn’t mean that I don’t have a plan or clear expectations for you in terms of course objectives. I do!

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• summarize at least five major theories related to human motivation,
• identify assumptions related to these theories,
• explain how various motivational theories developed within specific historical contexts,
• critically evaluate various theories in relation to empirical research results,
• develop testable hypotheses based on a motivational theory for a research project,
• demonstrate through library research how any one theory can be used to explain human behaviour,
• synthesize and summarize a body of research literature
• communicate, orally and through written work, the results of your thinking and research
• work collaboratively with others to investigate specific applied problems related to human motivation
• create a Web-based research resource for non-psychologists explaining some aspect of motivational theory and research

So, you can see that you have many specific learning objectives for the year. How we achieve these will be discussed throughout the seminar and will depend to a great extent on particular individual interests. I want your learning to reflect active c hoice on your part so that you will find your reading and research as personally meaningful as possible.

You can expect that you won’t come to our classroom just to copy notes in preparation for an exam. Instead, you will come prepared to discuss what you have read, or present some aspect of your work to the whole class, or to work with others to negotia te the meaning of a reading, or to solve a problem, or to view a video, or to work on your course Web site, or . . . well, you can see that you will come to class to be an active learner doing something, not just listening.

There are some aspects of the course which do not involve your choice, however. These have to do with how your learning will be assessed and evaluated. What follows is a breakdown of the various components to the seminar evaluation and an explanation of each component.

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The overall seminar grade will be based on the following:

You can see that I have weighted the terms unevenly. I have done this to allow you to gain some experience with university-level work during the fall term without being unduly penalized in terms of your grades. Each of the assignments is explained be low. As you will see, the research and assignments build on each other throughout the year culminating in two major projects: a) an individual research paper, and b) a group research project.

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Your participation mark will be based on both in-class participation in discussions, as well as your ongoing contributions to our virtual class discussion using CHAT. To earn full marks for this part of the seminar evaluation you must:

1. attend each class,

2. be prepared for class (as evidenced by annotated readings, assignment completion, active participation, etc.), and

3. make contributions to the CHAT course newsgroup as assigned in class (these will be responses to presentations, small portions of writing drafts, questions for your classmates or simply participating in a threaded discussion group).

Note: CHAT course newsgroup contributions must be made 24 hours prior to class.

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The ability to write a clear, concise summary is an important skill both in university and the workplace. Your first writing assignment consists of a summary of a research paper which will be assigned to the whole class. Details about how to writ e the summary and the reading will be provided in September.

Due date: First draft Wednesday, October 4, 2000 (to be discussed in class)

Final draft Wednesday, October 11, 2000.

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Throughout the term, you will be expected to read one book chapter or research article per week. For each of these, you will be creating a specialized summary known as an annotation (see Annotated Bibliography below). During the fall term, you wi ll present your summary of one of your most interesting readings to the class for discussion. Details about oral presentation preparation and the schedule for the presentations will be discussed in class.

Due date: See course Web site for schedule.

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The World Wide Web (WWW or Web) provides a new and flexible way to disseminate information. As I discuss near the end of this course outline, there are a number of advantages to using the Web in our scholarly work, and it is becoming a regular par t of life outside of the university. Consequently, you are required to create and maintain a course Web site (of course, instructions and computer lab time will be provided during the term). For the fall term, you must complete the framework for this si te (see course Web site for directions). During the winter term, you will develop this site further for your group project.

Due date: November 15, 2000.

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As noted in the table of assignments, the course culminates in a research paper, group oral presentation and group web site project. The paper and group Web site you will create (see below) require preparatory research which you will complete (or at least begin) during the fall term. You will document this research through an on-line annotated bibliography. At a minimum, you are required to read and annotate 10 journal papers or book chapters related to your research topic. In addition, you are to provide links to at least three Internet sites for which you provide an annotation and evaluation. Details about how you will create this part of your course Web site and the evaluation of Web sites will be presented in class. For the due date below, you are required to have half of your annotations complete.

Due date: Wednesday, November 29, 2000.

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As noted in the description of the Annotated Bibliography above, one of the major projects for the course is a research paper. This paper will be approximately 20 pages in length (typed, double-spaced in American Psychological Association [APA] format), providing a succinct review of the research literature related to your topic of interest. This paper will also serve as the basis for your contribution to the overall Group Research Project (see below). We will discuss how to prepare a research paper in the seminar.

Due date: February 14, 2001

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Prior to the completion of your group web site (see below), you will be required to present the main ideas from your group research project. This oral presentation will build on the presentation from the fall term in terms of format, however it will be made as a group, outlining the overall content and design of your group Web site. The key to this presentation will be to demonstrate links between your individual areas of research in terms of your group thesis. Details will be provided in class.

Due date: February, 2001 (see course Web site for schedule).

The final project for the year is a group project that will be presented as an integrated Web site. This purpose of this Web site is to provide a research resource in the area of motivation as it relates to your group's particular topic of interest. These Web sites will be presented during the final weeks of the Winter term. Each individual's grade for the project will be based on a mark for the individual's contribution (5%) and an overall group mark (5%).

Due date: Seminar presentations beginning March 14, 2001 (see course Web site for schedule)

Assignment and Paper Submission

Work that is is submitted after the published due data will be penalzied 5% per day. Extensions will be granted only in cases of documented extenuating circumstances such as severe illness or family death. Please speak to the instructor about this prior to the due date as necessary.

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For many of you, using the web extensively for a course will be a new experience. I expect that for some students there may be some reluctance to take the time to learn how to do this. Some may even q uestion the value of doing this. You may be asking, "Why not just write on paper?"

There are a number of reasons why I use CHAT course newsgroups and the Web to enhance learning. First, assignments should not be written for the instructor alone. A single, paper copy of an assignment or journal entry limits potential readers - usual ly to just the instructor. We learn a great deal from one another. CHAT course newsgroups and the Web provide each student with learning opportunities that a "paper-and-pen" approach does not. By posting your thoughts to the course newsgroup or your assignment on the web, other students can read, learn from and even comment on what you have been doing in the course. Second, psychologists and educators know that distributed practice or learning over time is more effective than mass practice. So, completing assignments such as the Learning Journal weekly is very important. I use the Web in order to facilitate my access to your weekly work. It just isn’t possible to collect and return journals weekly otherwise. Third, the Web provides a uni que medium for collaboration in group work as it is built on a structure of links (i.e., hypertext links) that allow individuals to work independently to some extent and at different times, but still be able to link the work together into an integrated wh ole. (For those interested, two of my students and I have written a paper on this sort of collaboration which will be published in Teaching of Psychology. I would be happy to provide you with a copy. You could also see the following Web sites fo r examples of student web sites that incorporate this approach - http://www.carleton.ca/~tpychyl/03100.html or http://www.carleton.ca/~tpychyl/mini.html). Finally, computer-mediated communication represents a new medium for the dissemination of ideas an d a new genre for writing. I believe that working in this medium is an important part of your overall education.

If you wish to discuss this with me further, please see me during office hours or e-mail me at tpychyl@ccs.carleton.ca or post your comments to the course newsgroup. Please understand, however, that the CHAT and Web-based work is a required part of th e seminar.

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Grades will be posted on the seminar Web site by student number only.

It is an instructional offense to use or pass off as one's own an idea or product which is the work of another without expressly giving credit to that other. If identical entries are found in assignmen ts, journals, web sites or exams submitted by two different students, or the entries replicate the work submitted by a student in a previous year, a grade of zero will be entered for the students involved. In addition, the Dean's Office will be notified that an instructional offense has occurred.

Students with disabilities requiring academic accommodations in this course are encouraged to contact a coordinator at the Paul Menton Centre for Students with Disabilities to complete the necessary letters of accommodation. After registering with the PMC, make an appointment to meet and discuss your needs with me at least two weeks prior to the first assignment. This is necessary in order to ensure sufficient time to make the necessary arrangements. Please note the following deadlines for submitting completed forms to the PMC for formally scheduled exam accommodations: November 3rd, 2000 for fall and fall/winter courses, and March 9th, 2001 for winter term courses.

A final point to ponder . . .

(Peters, R.S. (1973).Authority, Responsibility and Education. London: George Allen & Unwin Ltd. (p. 107).