College Psychology=Skepticism

[JoeEllison]

So, I'm headed back to college, and I opened up my Psychology 101 text(Psychology-Carole Wade and Carol Tavris) to see this on the inside of the front cover:

OVERVIEW OF CRITICAL THINKING

The first page of the book, facing the cover, is headed PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESSES THAT AFFECT CRITICAL THINKING.

Before you hit the "meat" of the book, you see mention of the "Barnum Effect" and cognitive dissonance. I'm majoring in computer engineering... but this has the potential to be the best class of the year.

So, does anyone else see any positives or negatives to this sort of class?

[UnrepentantSinner]

If the instructor chose a text with critical thinking so prominantly featured at the front of the book, that's got to be a good sign.

I look forward to updates as the semester moves foreward.

[JoeEllison]

If the instructor chose a text with critical thinking so prominantly featured at the front of the book, that's got to be a good sign.

I look forward to updates as the semester moves foreward.Well, we'll have to wait until Monday before I even have an idea of what the class is about, but the book is rather interesting. The first chapter addresses pseudoscience, popular opinion, and empirical evidence. As I flipped through the text, there were several critical thinking "sidebars" to the text.


So far, this is looking very promising! :D

[UnrepentantSinner]

Are you using the 9th Edition (http://www.amazon.com/Psychology-9th-MyPsychLab-Carole-Wade/dp/0132387387/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200212042&sr=1-1)?

[JoeEllison]

Are you using the 9th Edition (http://www.amazon.com/Psychology-9th-MyPsychLab-Carole-Wade/dp/0132387387/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200212042&sr=1-1)?

Yep. :cool:

[Tokenconservative]

So, I'm headed back to college, and I opened up my Psychology 101 text(Psychology-Carole Wade and Carol Tavris) to see this on the inside of the front cover:

OVERVIEW OF CRITICAL THINKING

The first page of the book, facing the cover, is headed PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESSES THAT AFFECT CRITICAL THINKING.

Before you hit the "meat" of the book, you see mention of the "Barnum Effect" and cognitive dissonance. I'm majoring in computer engineering... but this has the potential to be the best class of the year.

So, does anyone else see any positives or negatives to this sort of class?


Been a long time since I took a college class. My minor was in the Honors program and the Critical Thinking class I took was just that: learning to think critically.

Today, that seems to have morphed into: how to criticize the present administration (USA) and how to criticize tradional American values, free market economics, etc.

I'm not sure what this class offers you in that regard. If the Barnum Effect is used to show you what rubes and suckers "conservatives" are, then I'd say no...it's just more of the same old leftist ideology masquerading as academics our unis and colleges have been suffering under for at least 20 years now.

Tokie

[bpesta22]

Psych is arguably the most interesting college major (unless you're a behaviorist), which is good n bad.

Bad because lot of people then major in it and find they can't do much with just the BA.

I used to teach psych-- never intro though-- then switched to a business college. We have a class there called organizational behavior. It's about 80% stolen intro to psych.

Not sure what my point is here....hey, could you briefly summarize what your text says about IQ tests? Just curious what kinda lies the intro texts might be spouting about them:)

[OnlyTellsTruths]

Good times Joe, have fun.

Now if only they taught proper first year psych to freshmen in high school...

[JoeEllison]

Good times Joe, have fun.

Now if only they taught proper first year psych to freshmen in high school...

Well, I'm back from the first class... the professor encourages open discussion. So, some Jesus girl piped up, and they got into a little back and forth. It was pretty cool, overall. I can see some serious "wasting" of class time in my future... :D

[Mister Agenda]

Psych is arguably the most interesting college major (unless you're a behaviorist), which is good n bad.

Bad because lot of people then major in it and find they can't do much with just the BA.

I used to teach psych-- never intro though-- then switched to a business college. We have a class there called organizational behavior. It's about 80% stolen intro to psych.

Not sure what my point is here....hey, could you briefly summarize what your text says about IQ tests? Just curious what kinda lies the intro texts might be spouting about them:)

I am one of those who got the BA, although it was with plans to follow through. I do credit a few of the psych classes with improving my critical thinking skills and understanding of how we can misperceive events.

[Tokenconservative]

Psych is arguably the most interesting college major (unless you're a behaviorist), which is good n bad.

Bad because lot of people then major in it and find they can't do much with just the BA.

I used to teach psych-- never intro though-- then switched to a business college. We have a class there called organizational behavior. It's about 80% stolen intro to psych.

Not sure what my point is here....hey, could you briefly summarize what your text says about IQ tests? Just curious what kinda lies the intro texts might be spouting about them:)

Hmm...that's strange...I said exactly the same thing in the "Will the Humanities Save Us Thread" about Psych (4-yr) and some other such "soft sciences" and was roundly criticized for being a no-nothing Philestine with no "right" to say such a thing.

You CAN do a lot with a BA in Psych, tho: Some of my favorite waitpersons have degrees in it. Or Philo.

Tokie

[JoeEllison]

I am one of those who got the BA, although it was with plans to follow through. I do credit a few of the psych classes with improving my critical thinking skills and understanding of how we can misperceive events.

Makes sense... I'm not majoring in it, but it seemed like a good idea to take a non-technical class, something with a little less math and equations and such.

[Dancing David]

Been a long time since I took a college class. My minor was in the Honors program and the Critical Thinking class I took was just that: learning to think critically.

Today, that seems to have morphed into: how to criticize the present administration (USA) and how to criticize tradional American values, free market economics, etc.

I'm not sure what this class offers you in that regard. If the Barnum Effect is used to show you what rubes and suckers "conservatives" are, then I'd say no...it's just more of the same old leftist ideology masquerading as academics our unis and colleges have been suffering under for at least 20 years now.

Tokie


On the soap box already?

I am sure that is what the test book is all about.

Can I have some crackers with that wine?

As a response to the OP:

Unfortunately there is not enough scepticism in psychology! So many people can be total off the wall fruit cakes who quote all sorts of little unsupported snipetts of information. It sounds like you have a good instructor.

(I am sure that most instructors are good, just some real flakes out there.)

[bpesta22]

Oh, I think a psych BA is a fine degree and a great education. I got one!

I just think it's not very helpful in the job market.

Doesn't mean it's not worth pursuing for other reasons, but the ROI $ is alas not there:(

[quixotecoyote]

I just started a 600 level communication theory class where the professor led off his syllabus with a quote warning against 'incorrigible empirical rationalism'. Should be an interesting class. :boggled:

[Jeff Corey]

[QUOTE=bpesta22;3333688]Psych is arguably the most interesting college major (unless you're a behaviorist), which is good n bad....QUOTE]
What? I am teaching applied behavior analysis this semester. Much more interesting than airhead cognitive stuff.

[bpesta22]

[QUOTE=bpesta22;3333688]Psych is arguably the most interesting college major (unless you're a behaviorist), which is good n bad....QUOTE]
What? I am teaching applied behavior analysis this semester. Much more interesting than airhead cognitive stuff.

I couldn't pass an opp. to take a cheap shot at you and Merc...:p

[exlex]

I had a college psychology class, and the professor was the biggest believer in woo ever. He was pretty good about saying there was not a lot of evidence to support it, but he also exhorted the students to keep an "open mind." He wanted us to think seriously about the full moon effect, qigong, psychics, and all kinds of nonsense. But I did get an A despite it.

[LostAngeles]

Psych is arguably the most interesting college major (unless you're a behaviorist), which is good n bad.

Bad because lot of people then major in it and find they can't do much with just the BA.

I used to teach psych-- never intro though-- then switched to a business college. We have a class there called organizational behavior. It's about 80% stolen intro to psych.

Not sure what my point is here....hey, could you briefly summarize what your text says about IQ tests? Just curious what kinda lies the intro texts might be spouting about them:)

Psychology is the most-impacted major at UCLA. You do not transfer as a psych without a GPA >= 3.8. It's pretty rough competitively. I don't trash Psych majors. They're damn hard workers.

My Introduction to Computational and Systems Biology seminar last quarter had the prof. facilitating it state that, "the best model is one where, when you put in new data, it explodes."

[JoeEllison]

I had a college psychology class, and the professor was the biggest believer in woo ever. He was pretty good about saying there was not a lot of evidence to support it, but he also exhorted the students to keep an "open mind." He wanted us to think seriously about the full moon effect, qigong, psychics, and all kinds of nonsense. But I did get an A despite it.

Hah!

The professor told us a story today about how the doctor at a hospital he worked at thought one of the patients was "possessed by Satan", and how he had half a mind to have the patient AND doctor held for evaluation. :D

I'm really enjoying this class!

[Mercutio]

As for the OP... I have taught using Wade & Tavris. I'd use it again if I were teaching intro (depending on a few other factors--there are a couple other excellent intro texts, and some fairly lame ones).

I reviewed one a few years ago, and ripped the Learning chapter a new orifice. There is tremendous danger in having a Cognitive Psychologist write about Behaviorism. Pest, of course, excepted--I know he knows better.

[Jeff Corey]

We use Weiten for our lecture Intro 1,2 class and Kalat for the section that has a lab (3,4).
They both do a good job on the hard science topics - biopsych, sensation and perception, conditioning, learning and memory. The softer stuff is in the second semester and I never teach that.

[Dancing David]

Woo is prevalent in people who are involved in psychology, usually it is of the less detrimental sort. I had an instructor who wanted to insist that in language humans have a preference for SVO sentences, somewhat of a bias on his part. More dangerously in 1977 I had an instructor who questioned if schizophrenia existed as a medical condition.

[Jeff Corey]

What about all the false memory syndrome cases? I know, they weren't all initiated by certified clinical psychologists. Some were.
One other problem is that many people are identified as a psychologist when they aren't.
Take Dr. Phil, please.
Yet another problem is that the hard-assed empirical approach is being overwhelmed by a soft-headed cognitive Kuhnian reverse paradigm shift back to mentalism.

[Normal Dude]

At my campus there is a class that specifically focuses on skepticism, pseudoscience, and magical thinking. Can't wait to take it.

[Jeff Corey]

That sounds like my Critical Thinking course that I teach each year. Buy Gilovich's "How we know what isn't so" for ten bucks on Amazon and read it beforehand for a head start.