What's in a Label?

In Psychology, we talk about the process of making a diagnosis, which is labeling the psychological disorder from which the person is suffering. The Diagnositic Statistical Manual (DSMIV) is the most widely used manual from which we diagnose. It is in the process of being updated, with the DSMV scheduled to be published in 2013. Recently, there have been numerous news articles regarding some of the proposed changes that are going to occur. On Monday, January 30th, there was an article in Newsday about how the Pervasive Developmental Disorders (i.e. Autism, Asperger's) may be changing and some potential implications of such changes. It is an excellent article to read and get a better understanding of some of the reasons we use labels in Psychology and the possible impact of them.

EXTRA CREDIT OPPORTUNITY-PSY 215 (ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY) CLASSES

On January 20th, Newsday published an editorial "Overdiagnosis Can Make You Crazy". Read the editorial and write a brief (1 page maximum) response to it. Due date is February 1st and you can earn up to 5 points extra credit on your first exam.

Welcome

Welcome to the Spring 2012 Semester. This is the area I will be using to for class announcements. If an announcement is specific to your class, I will identify it as being so. Please check back on a regular basis to keep updated on everything. If you join the blog, you will be emailed everytime the blog is updated.

Have a great semester!

CLASSES ARE CANCELLED WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 30TH

ALL CLASSES CANCELLED ON THURSDAY NOVEMBER 17TH

Addiction Vaccine

The following is a link to an article on research to find a vaccine for addiction for those interested in more information:

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/751594

Upcoming Papers Due!

Psy 201/215 Papers are due in  about two weeks. It is important to keep in mind the following:

• Review the requirements of the paper on the syllabus (if you do not have the one that was handed out the first day of class, you can obtain another copy off the website)
• The assignment requires the use of a peer reviewed article. Peer reviewed articles are published in scientific journals and can be obtained from library databases. They are the best source of information whenever one is completing a research paper. For these assignments, it would be helpful to obtain a review article. A review article summarizes the current research on a particular topic and is an excellent source for papers with the scope of our class.For these appers, i will accept articles from The Scientific American or The Scientific American Mind in lieu of peer-reviewed artciles.
• Make sure you use appropriate citations. Remember, if you do not cite where information comes from, the reader will assume it came from you. If information came from somewhere else and you do not cite it, that constitutes plagiarism. For these papers, we are using APA format.
• You are allowed to use class materials (text, notes, etc). You do need to cite these. For class notes, use the citation format of a personal communication.
• The library and writing center are excellent sources of help if you need.
• Make sure you have someone read over the paper for grammar/organization/spelling before you submit it.

A grade will often reflect the amount of effort put into a paper. If you are successful in fulfilling these basic requirements, you dramatically increase your chances of a good grade. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me!