PSYC 381: Abnormal Psychology
PSYC 381: Abnormal Psychology
Embedded Files
Course Description
Course Description
The course examines leading categories of mental disorders that appear in childhood and adult life. A variety of mental disorders will be explored from several different theoretical and treatment perspectives. Major components of instruction consist of diagnosis, epidemiology, course of disorder, and empirically supported treatment modality. Each undergraduate begins to use this awareness and knowledge in a culturally sensitive manner, to recognize key criteria that come into play in forming clinical presentations and critically evaluate models of assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of abnormal behavior, in efforts to reduce the suffering and stigma experienced by those with lived experience.
This course satisfies the Breadth Selection component of the Bachelor of Arts in Psychology
Course Modality
Course Modality
This is a fully online class that meets synchronously and requires students to complete work outside of regular class zoom meeting time. The course is organized in sixteen weekly modules in Blackboard, where students can easily access all material (lectures, readings, quizzes and exams, case studies, and group discussion questions). Weekly group discussions provide opportunities for students to demonstrate valuable critical thinking and collaborative abilities in a variety of ways. Each module contains reading assignments, weekly quizzes, and case studies that provide automated feedback, enabling students to quickly chart their comprehension of course materials promoting student achievement.
Course Design
Course Design
The course is designed around key components of quality online instruction: clear and consistent format and easy navigation, continuous engagement, timely feedback, and effective use of technological tools.
Format and Navigation: Every link is embedded in modules with a table of contents, to ensure ease of access. Each weekly module is structured in the exact same way, including a list of learning objectives and a simple to follow to-do-list.
Engagement: A variety of interactive documents, folders, boards, and videos offer multiple opportunities for student engagement. Weekly emails and text messages provide consistent communication and highlight important reminders to support student progress.
Feedback: Students are provided with immediate feedback on weekly assignments and weekly feedback on group discussions. There are numerous opportunities for students to share their opinions via weekly check-ins, boards, polls, group forms, and surveys.
Technological Tools: A variety of tools, like slide deck and video introductions, feedback boards and polls, and automated feedback case studies, interactively engage students, build community, and facilitate learning.
Student Engagement & Feedback
Student Engagement & Feedback
A key goal for the class is to increase student engagement by creating opportunities for both discussion and group work during each weekly module. Students are provided with a variety of activities that offer opportunities for peer-to-peer and student-to-instructor interaction and collaboration. Student interactions are facilitated through group discussions that take place in weekly Zoom breakout rooms. Interactive group documents allow students to engage with one another inside and outside the virtual classroom. Student groups provide opportunities to critically evaluate models of assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of abnormal behavior, and apply weekly topics to real life scenarios. The completion of weekly group feedback forms facilitate student-to-instructor interactions, enabling timely responses to student concerns or questions regarding course content and adjusting lecture accordingly. In addition, case study assignments engage students in discussions around a review of case histories, classification of symptoms, evaluation of diagnostic categories, and case conceptualizations pulling from multiple theoretical perspectives, while practicing cultural competence. Lastly, a midterm survey is provided to collect student feedback and adjust the class according to students' responses.
Assessment of Student Learning
Assessment of Student Learning
Course Student Learning Outcomes
Course Student Learning Outcomes
Definition of Abnormal Behavior
Students will understand and become familiar with the classification, diagnosis, and assessment of mental disorders.
Students will recognize clinical presentations of psychological disorders, as defined by the DSM-5.
Students will learn how the scientific method contributes to increased understanding in the field of abnormal psychology.
Development of Abnormal Behavior/Mental Illness
Students will consider various theoretical models of the development of these behaviors.
Students will recognize the strengths and limitations of the models of assessment and diagnosis, especially as they relate to different cultural, economic, and ethnic groups.
Treatment of Abnormal Behavior/Mental Illness
Students will learn about current research and methods used by mental health professionals to treat psychopathology.
Students will develop critical thinking skills to utilize datat to support or contrast opinions regarding various topics in the field of abnormal psychology.
Weekly readings, quizzes, and interactive case studies, allow the instructor to assess the students' ability to understand and evaluate readings and lecture. There are also weekly in-class activities, like group discussions and case study assignments, and case study videos integrated with polling, designed to foster students engagement and experiential learning. Mid-term and final exams provide summative assessments of course content. Lastly, case study assignments are used to evaluate diagnostic skills and case conceptualization.
Challenges and Benefits
Challenges and Benefits
There are both challenges and benefits for creating a fully synchronous course for a large group of undergraduate students. These involve content, instruction methods, design, and engagement of all of the above.
Challenges
Challenges
Student Engagement: A major challenge for this jumbo course is the ability to create class activities, related to the class topics, that could encourage students engagement outside of a face-to-face environment. Face-to-face environments enable instructors, as well as students, to actively encourage interaction during class and small group discussions.
Nevertheless, Zoom meetings and breakout rooms provide wonderful opportunities for students to interact and collaborate with one another, including in small group format. Some examples of class activities are listed below:
Discuss interests and/or concerns that may have surfaced related to this week's reading materials and share this information via a interactive group feedback form with the instructor.
Review this week's case study and discuss the client's clinical presentation.
Watch a case study video and complete the poll to determine the appropriate diagnosis.
Post and reflect on Jamboard activities that include introductions to course content.
Participate in polls to gauge weekly progress and identify resources for support.
These activities allow students to apply the concepts learned (through the lecture, readings, videos, interactive documents, polls, etc.) to more practical activities and/or contemporary topics.
Creating Community: Another challenge is to develop a sense of community to ensure students feel they have a safe space to share their personal experiences. In person classes, even jumbo classes, have an advantage of immediate face-to-face interactions with all members of the class and timely transition into small group discussion.
Despite this challenge, the ability for students to interact with one another both inside and outside of class in a variety of different formats (visual, text, etc.) provides additional opportunities to create a space for community.
Complete Google slide decks and Flipgrid videos that provide a platform for introductions, sharing interesting information, finding commonalities, and engaging with peers through posts and responses via videos.
Reflect on weekly assessments during Zoom sessions, that not only relate to the course topic but build self-awareness and relations to peers, creating a sense of inclusion.
Benefits
Benefits
Flexibility: Technological tools provide opportunities for student learning to take place in multiple formats ( e.g., video, text). Students can be offered opportunities to demonstrate learning in a variety of ways compared to face-to-face course instruction. Participation might be achieved through answering a poll during a Zoom class, discussing a case study while in a breakout room, responding outside of class to a shared group Google document, practicing diagnostic skills through a case study assignment, or reflecting on one of the self-assessments through journal posts in BBL. In addition, this tools can lead to innovative teaching methods and enhanced student learning. During Zoom sessions, a video can be viewed to provide a clinical presentation, right after a Jamboard activity involving reflective posts on a assessment related to that week's diagnostic category, before moving into breakout rooms for further discussion of that week's case study.
Feedback: The utilization of weekly readings, quizzes, and interactive case studies delivered in digital format with automated feedback, enable students to monitor their progress from the start. The transformation of case studies to online templates in BBL, offer built-in item analyses that are reviewed for modification purposes. Polls and check-in forms, provide prompt feedback so that needed changes can be implemented to enhance mastery of course content and provide timely assistance to struggling students.
Accessibility: Although we have to acknowledge the Digital Divide, online education can be more accessible to students. Recorded Zoom sessions offer students an opportunity to have a variety of work/life schedules when attendance is given for watching videos. Also, students can learn at their own pace when watching recorded lectures, by speeding up or slowing down the video. Shared group documents enable students to engage in collaborative work both inside and outside of class.
QLT Course Design
QLT Course Design
Because of the QLT instrument, two important changes were made to the course.
First, virtual pages were made to ensure a well-organized and navigable course layout. A virtual classroom page was developed and included all the essential links for the first week of class (e.g., accessible syllabus, weekly schedule). A second page was created for self-care that included links to mindful walks and other self-care assessments and practices. A third page was developed to provide quick and easy access to the instructor's office and scheduled office hours.
Second, weekly check-in polls and forms were developed to encourage student engagement and clear student-to-instructor communication, to address any issues related to self-care or difficulty accessing student support resources.
Go Virtual Course Design
Go Virtual Course Design
One of the key elements of course design that was added following Go Virtual was a technological tool in BBL to enhance student learning.
Case studies transitioned to a digital format that included multiple-choice and matching items based on DSM-5 diagnostic criteria. Students were provided with unlimited attempts and automated feedback helping them master skills in recognizing clinical presentations.
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