COURSE MANUAL

Name of the Elective Course LE-A-1035

Leveraging psychology for better understanding the Society and the Self

Course Instructor:

Tamara Hovorun

Semester A 2020

Elective

This document is prepared by the course instructor and is the basic information relevant to the execution

of the course. It is the official record for all intends and purposes as far the elective course, Hovorun

Tamara_____, is concerned.

It is the official record for all intends and purposes as far the lecture and seminar course on applied

psychology

This course manual is can be used as a general guide to the subject. However, the instructor can modify,

extend or supplement the course (without tampering its basic framework and objectives) for the effective

and efficient effectuation of the course. However, the instructor will provide the students with reasons for

such changes.

Part I

Course Title: Leveraging Psychology for Better Understanding of the Society and the Self

Course Code:

Course Duration: One Semester (15 Weeks)

No. of Credit Units: 4 credits

Level:

Medium of Instruction: English

Pre-requisites: No

Pre-cursors:

Equivalent Courses: Introduction to Psychology; Social Applied Psychology

Exclusive Courses:

Part II

1. Course Description

This course focuses on how human behavior is influenced by culture and society. Concepts

covered in class include collective/individualistic and feminine/masculine cultures, concept of

self, self-discrepancy and self-presentation, group and gender identity, parental attachment style,

typology of love, personality traits (Big Five), and social influence/persuasion. Additionally, we

will be studying in detail the causes of at-risk and deviant behavior, factors such as poverty,

illiteracy, and family dysfunction. The psychological concepts covered in class are important for

students in the legal field because they help uncover motives underlying human behavior,

including socially deviant actions. After taking this course, students are expected to know how

to construct a psychobiography of a person to better understand his or her actions. The course

will also provide students with better understanding of their own motivations and help them

become more effective in achieving their personal and professional goals.

2. Course Objectives

Objectives of the course are to help students develop the following abilities:

Ability to examine interaction between nature (personality factors) and nurture (social

environment) to understand the causes of individual and group behavior.

Ability to understand and articulate cultural elements shaping behavior and to do an in-

depth analysis of one’s own culture and its influences.

Ability to reflect on one’s own behavior and identify sources of tension as well as drivers

of personal and professional growth.

Ability to leverage psychological principles to construct persuasive and motivating

messages.

Acquire basic knowledge of research methods to understand outcomes of psychological

studies.

3. Teaching methodology:

Lectures

Articles

Class discussion

Case studies Multi-media

Small research project that includes individual presentation

4. Intended Learning Outcomes

Course Intended Learning Outcomes Teaching and Learning

Activities

Assessment

Tasks/Activities

Students can accurately identify

and explain psychological

concepts covered in class

Students can apply the concepts

covered in class to identify the

Selected chapters of

textbook and relevant

research articles:

Students will

acquire

End of

semester exam

40%

root causes of pro-social and

deviant behavior

Students can apply the concepts

covered in class to understand

the dynamics of the Indian

society and their local

community

Students can apply the concepts

covered in class to better

understand their motivations and

become more effective in

achieving personal and

professional growth

psychological

knowledge through

reading academic

literature assigned

in class

Students will learn

about application of

psychological

concepts through

finding relevant

examples in mass

media

Lectures:

Students will

receive detailed

explanation of

psychological

concepts as well as

examples and case

studies

Students will

actively engage in

classroom

discussion

Students will

complete validated

psychological

surveys to better

understand their

profiles

Research Project:

Students will

complete a short

research project in

which they will

apply the concepts

covered in class to

understand an issue

in the contemporary

Indian society.

Students will be

required to give an

individual

presentation as part

of the assignment.

Individual

project 40%

Knowledge

tests 20%

5. Grading of Student Achievement

Of the total score required to pass this course, a minimum of 50% shall be obtained by the student in the

course work (i.e., combined score of internal assessments and the end semester examination).

Grade Sheet

Percentage

of Marks

Grade Grade

Value

Grade Description

80 and above O 8 Outstanding – Exceptional knowledge of the subject matter,

thorough understanding of issues; ability to synthesize ideas,

rules and principles and extraordinary critical and analytical

ability

75 – 79 A+ 7.5 Excellent - Sound knowledge of the subject matter, thorough

understanding of issues; ability to synthesize ideas, rules and

principles and critical and analytical ability

70 – 74 A 7 Very Good - Sound knowledge of the subject matter, excellent

organizational capacity, ability to synthesize ideas, rules and

principles, critically analyse existing materials and originality

in thinking and presentation

65 – 69 A- 6 Good - Good understanding of the subject matter, ability to

identify issues and provide balanced solutions to problems and

good critical and analytical skills

60 – 64 B+ 5 Fair – Average understanding of the subject matter, limited

ability to identify issues and provide solutions to problems and

reasonable critical and analytical skills

55 – 59 B 4 Acceptable- Adequate knowledge of the subject matter to go to

the next level of study and reasonable critical and analytical

skills.

50 – 54 B- 3 Marginal- Limited knowledge of the subject matter and

irrelevant use of materials and, poor critical and analytical

skills

Below 50 F 0 Fail - Poor comprehension of the subject matter; poor critical

and analytical skills and marginal use of the relevant materials.

Will require repeating the course

6. Criteria for Student Assessments

Internal assessment of the participants will be based on the following criteria. In case any of the

participant miss the IA tests, alternative internal assessments will be conducted (Please specify the

alternative assessment)

Assessment Weightage Remarks

Attendance & Class

Participation

30 Marks Knowledge tests

Individual Projects 20 Marks Preparing analysis of relevant issue, collecting evidence, preparing

a PPT report, giving presentation in class, and answering questions

End Semester

Examination

50 Marks Multiple-choice and open-ended comprehensive exam based on the

material covered in class

Part IV

Course/Class Policies

Academic Integrity and Honesty

Learning and knowledge production of any kind is always a collaborative process. As such, collaboration

demands an ethical responsibility to acknowledge who we have learnt what from, and how reading and

learning from others have helped us shape our own ideas. Even originality requires an acknowledgement

of the sources and the processes that helped you achieve it. Thus, any idea, sentence or paragraph you

refer to or are inspired by must be cited in the piece of writing or any presentation being made. Any

source from the internet, articles, books, journals, magazines, case law, statute, photographs, films,

paintings, etc. must be credited with the original source. If the source or inspiration for your idea is a

friend, a casual chat, something that you overheard, or heard being discussed at a conference or in class,

even these must be credited. If you paraphrase or directly quote from a web source in the exam,

presentation or essays, the source must be explicitly mentioned. The university has strict rules with

consequences for students involved in plagiarism. This is an issue of academic integrity on which no

compromise will be made, especially as students have already been trained in the perils of lifting

sentences or paragraphs from others and claiming authorship of them

Disability Support and Accommodation Requirements

JGU endeavors to make all its courses accessible to students. All students with a known disability

needing academic accommodations are required to register with the Disability Support Committee

dsc@jgu.edu.in. The Committee has so far identified the following conditions that could possibly hinder

student’s overall well-being. These include: physical and mobility related difficulties; visual impairment;

hearing impairment; medical conditions; specific learning difficulties e.g. dyslexia; mental health.

The Disability Support Committee maintains strict confidentiality in its discussions. The students should

preferably register with the Committee in the month of June/January as disability accommodation

requires early planning. DSC will approve and coordinate all the disability related services such as

appointment of academic mentors, specialized interventions and course related requirements such as

accessible classrooms for lectures, tutorials and examinations.

All faculty members are required to refer students with any of the above-mentioned conditions to the

Disability Support Committee for addressing disability-related accommodation requirements.

Safe Space Pledge

This course may discuss a range of issues and events that might result in distress for some students.

Discussions in the course might also provoke strong emotional responses. To make sure that all students

collectively benefit from the course, and do not feel troubled due to either the contents of the course, or

the conduct of the discussions, it is incumbent upon all within the classroom to pledge to maintain respect

towards our peers. This does not mean that you need to feel restrained about what you feel and what you

want to say. Conversely, this is about creating a safe space where everyone can speak and learn without

inhibition and fear. This responsibility lies not only on students, but also the instructor.

Plagiarism

Students are encouraged to read, think, assimilate and thereafter attempt assignment. Wherever possible,

it will be useful to present ideas in your own simple words demonstrating your own understanding of the

issues involved and of the analysis thereof. Original thinking and writing as well as adeptness in the use

of various concepts of political science will be rewarded. A careful reading of various materials

prescribed for the course will give the student an idea of the style and academic rigor adopted by political

scientists. Student should always consult the instructor about the veracity and authenticity of the

particular website and its suitability of researching topics covered in this syllabus. If any student is relying

on the authority of another scholar or any website, please acknowledge source by way of footnotes and

place such material within quotes.

Plagiarism means “To take the words or an idea of someone else and pass it off as one’s own”.

Plagiarism is a serious matter and will be penalized.

Any idea, sentence or paragraph you cull from a web source must be credited with the original source. If

you paraphrase or directly quote from a web source in the exam, presentation or essays, the source must

be explicitly mentioned. You should not feel free to plagiarize content, be it from scholarly sources (i.e.

books and journal articles) or from the internet. The university has strict rules with consequences for

students involved in plagiarism. This is an issue of academic integrity on which no compromise will be

made, especially as students have already been trained in the perils of lifting sentences or paragraphs from

others and claiming authorship for them.

Cell Phones

Are not allowed during exam.

Laptops and Similar Gadgets

Laptops are allowed to be used in order to read materials for the course in the electronic form.

Part V

Reading Materials:

Mahendra Pal Singh, Swati Deva. Law and (In)equalities: Contemporary Perspectives.

Eastern Book Company, 2010, 368p.

Mark Leary. Self-presentation: Impression Management and Interpersonal Behavior.

Brown & Benchumark Publishers, 1996, 246 p.

Durganand Sinha, Girishwar Misra, Ajit K Dalal. Psychology for India. SAGE

Publications India, 2015, 221p.

Fiske, Susan T. Social Beings: Core Motives in Social Psychology. Wiley, 2004, 646 p.

Handbook of Psychology in India. Edited by Girishwar Misra, Oxford University Press,

New Delhi, 2011, 373 p.

Introduction to Psychology, Edited by Clifford Morgan, Richard King, John Weisz, John

Schopler. 7th Edition. New Delhi, New York, Tata McGraw Hill, 1993, 723p.

At Risk Youth: A Comprehensive Response for Counselors, Teachers, Psychologists, and

Human Service Professionals 4th edition by J. Jeffries McWhirter. Brooks / Cole

Publishing Co. 2007. 378 p.

Kahneman, D.Objective Happiness//D. Kahneman, E. Diener & N. Schwarz (Eds.), Well-being: Foundations of hedonic psychology, New York: Russell Sage Foundation Press, 1999, p. 3-25.

Kahneman, D.Objective Happiness//D. Kahneman, E. Diener & N. Schwarz (Eds.), Well-being: Foundations of hedonic psychology, New York: Russell Sage Foundation Press, 1999, p. 3-25.

Wayne Weiten, Margaret A..Lloyd, Psychology Applied to Modern life .Adjustment to

the 21-st Century Eight edition ,Thomson: Wadsworth, First Indian reprint,2007.-

650p.

Kahneman, D.Objective Happiness//D. Kahneman, E. Diener & N. Schwarz (Eds.), Well-being: Foundations of hedonic psychology, New York: Russell Sage Foundation Press, 1999, p. 3-25.

Keywords for the Syllabus: socialization process, the concept of the self, self-identity

development, self-esteem, self-presentation, personality/Big Five, androgynous

personality qualities, self-discrepancy, theories of love, gender stereotypes, Gender

equality index, collective/individualistic cultures, masculine /feminine cultures,

pathological features/MMPI, psychological disorders, gender and sexual behavior,

family dysfunction, parenting styles, children and youth group at risk, prosocial and

anti-social behavior, vocational abilities and career development, stress and coping

strategies

Course Design and Overview (Weekly Plan)

Week Topic and Description Reading Materials

1. The Concept of Self

Developmental aspects: nature or

nurture

Self in structure of Personality: Self-

concept, self-esteem, self-presentation

Self-esteem discrepancies

Fiske, Susan T. Social Beings: Core Motives in Social

Psychology. Wiley, 2004, 646 p.

Leary R. Mark Self-Presentation Impression management

and interpersonal behavior, Madison, Wisconsin:

Westview Press, Inc,1996.-246 p.

2. Interaction of societal and

psychological factors in the process of

socialization

Bronfenbrenner ecological model

Parental style and the Self

Rule setting

Fiske, Susan T. Social Beings: Core Motives in Social Psychology. Wiley, 2004, p. 169-213. Bronfenbrenner, U.C Ecological systems theory//. Analysis of Child Development,1989, # 6. p. 187-249.

Building self-awareness and the

concept of the self

3. Social influence, basic social needs,

difference in schema of the Self in the

process of different social cultures

The character of individualistic and

collectivistic culture

Feminine and masculine culture

influence on the concept pf the Self

Comparative studies

Geert Hofstede in: "Femininity and masculinity: Prohibited dimensions in national cultures." SAGE Publications 1998.- 388 p.

4. Gender as democratic law indicator- comprehensiveness for lawyers Bipolar gender psychology Androgyny as universal model of gender behavior Index of gender equality Gender gap index Equal rights and equal possibilities in all life spheres Gender Law analysis

Janet Shipley Hyde Half the Human Experience The

psychology of Women, 4-th edition, Lexington: DC Heath

and Company,1991,455p.

Law and (In)Equalities Contemporary Perspectives Essays

of honor of professor Mahindra P. Singh Ed. Swati Deva

,Toronto: Eastern Book Company,2010,468p.

5. The children and Youth Group of Risk

The main factors of the of antisocial disorders risk development in children and adolescents Parents dysfunctional family –abnormal psychology Viscous circle of poverty

Durganand Sinha Psychology for India with an

Introduction by G.Misra and A.Dalal, SAGE Publications

India ,2015.-221p.

At Risk Youth: A Comprehensive Response

for Counsellors, Teachers, Psychologists, and Human

Service Professionals 4th edition by J. Jeffries Mc

Whirter. Brooks / Cole Publishing Co. 2007. 378 p.

6. Careers and work activity in life span

Jab characteristics and personality

qualities

Intrinsic and extrinsic job

satisfaction

Holland’s Hexagonal Model of Interests and some associated occupations

Misra Girishwar Oxford Handbook of Psychology in

India ,Oxford, University Press ,2012,373p.

7. Mental Health

Pathological features according to

MMPI

Factor of Mental disorders and

Mental Health

Neurological and Psychotic disorders

in a professional lawyer work

Introduction to Psychology, Edited by Clifford

Morgan, Richard King, John Weisz, John

Schopler. 7th Edition. New Delhi, New York, Tata

McGraw Hill, 1993, p 612-665

Commented [T1]:

8. Stress and coping

Different types of stress perception

(A; B)

The nature of stress response

Theory of stress tolerance influence

Activating coping strategies

Introduction to Psychology, Edited by Clifford

Morgan, Richard King, John Weisz, John Schopler.

7th Edition. New Delhi, New York, Tata McGraw

Hill, 1993, p 307-337.

Wayne Weiten ,Margaret A..Lloyd, Psychology

Applied to Modern life .Adjustment to the 21-st

Century Eight edition ,Thomson: Wadsworth, First

Indian reprint,2007,p72-103. 9. Abnormality in everyday life: symptoms

and syndromes

Classifying psychological

disorders in DSM-V

Depressive disorder and suicides

Personality disorders and the

law:

Cluster A (Odd, bizarre, eccentric0

Cluster B (Dramatic, erratic):

Cluster C (Anxious, fearful):

Introduction to Psychology, Edited by Clifford

Morgan, Richard King, John Weisz, John Schopler.

7th Edition. New Delhi, New York, Tata McGraw

Hill, 1993, p 655-662;

Wayne Weiten ,Margaret A..Lloyd, Psychology

Applied to Modern life .Adjustment to the 21-st

Century Eight edition ,Thomson: Wadsworth, First

Indian reprint,2007p.508-509

10 INTERPERSONAL , attraction ,intimate RELATIONSHIPS and prosocial behavior

Liking, emotional attachment and proximity

Robert Sternberg triangular theory of love

Love in gender dimension

Empathy, aggressiveness and kinds of prosocial behavior

Happiness from helping behavior

Fiske, Susan T. Social Beings: Core Motives in Social

Psychology. Wiley, 2004, p.14-216.

Wayne Weiten ,Margaret A..Lloyd, Psychology

Applied to Modern life .Adjustment to the 21-st

Century Eight edition ,Thomson: Wadsworth, First

Indian reprint,2007.- p. 236-267

11 Human sexuality and sexual culture

Sexual and gender behavior

Scientific research in sexuality

Sexual behavior and the process

if socialization (Harlow experiments)

Restrictive and liberal sexual

cultures, victimization of women

Sexual education and reproductive

health

Janet Shipley Hyde Half the Human Experience The

psychology of Women, 4-th edition, Lexington: DC Heath

and Company,1991,p.261-285; 335-363; 364-394/

Wayne Weiten ,Margaret A..Lloyd, Psychology

Applied to Modern life .Adjustment to the 21-st

Century Eight edition ,Thomson: Wadsworth, First

Indian reprint,2007p. 408-441.

12 Predators of aggressive behavior in

childhood and adulthood

Victimization studies on criminal activity The major culprits producing combinations of environmental, and personality factors Psychological and physiological bases of neuroticism stability and personality resocialization-

Halpern, D.F. Psychology at the intersection of work and family: Recommendations for employers, working families, and policymakers. American Psychologist, 2005, 60 (5), p.397-409.

Jackson, M.S., Bass, L., Sharpe, E. Working with

youth street gangs and their families: Utilizing a

nurturing model for social work practice. Journal of

Crag research, 2005,12. p. 1-18.

At Risk Youth: A Comprehensive Response for

Counsellors, Teachers, Psychologists, and Human

Service Professionals 4th edition by J. Jeffries Mc

Whirter. Brooks / Cole Publishing Co. 2007. 378 p.

13 Happiness as a study to be happy Subjective wellbeing and

“cultural construal of happiness” Individual predictors of happiness

Personal or Interpersonal

Construal of Happiness

Lyubomirsky M.Pursuing happiness :The architecture of sustainable change//Review of General Psychology,2005,9(2),p.111-131. Catallino et.al Prioritizing positivity: an effective approach to pursuing happiness //Emotion, 2014,14(6), p.1155-1161.

Kahneman, D.Objective Happiness//D. Kahneman, E. Diener & N. Schwarz (Eds.), Well-being: Foundations of hedonic psychology, New York: Russell Sage Foundation Press, 1999, p. 3-25.

14 Theory of Personality development

Psychodynamic approach

(psychological defense mechanism in court

practice)

Theory of education as

classical conditioning, operant and

Cognitive changing

Humanistic and sociocultural theories

.Assessing your personality qualities

Wayne Weiten ,Margaret A..Lloyd, Psychology

Applied to Modern life .Adjustment to the 21-st

Century Eight edition ,Thomson: Wadsworth, First

Indian reprint,2007.- p 34-71.

15 Review and Revision

This course was orientated on

evaluates the main phenomena in the self,

successful aging in predicting well-being.

What was the design and method of the

course? What should be done for better

understanding the self and the society?

What is the most interesting from the position of applied

psychology text-book, book or article on the problem of

the Self??

Part V Relevant Readings

1.Bagozzi, R. P., Wong, N., & Yi, Y. (1999). The role of culture and gender in the relationship

between positive and negative affect. Cognition and Emotion, 13, 641–672.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/026999399379023

2.Bolger, N., & Amarel, D. (2007). Effects of social support visibility on adjustment to stress:

Experimental evidence. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92, 458–475.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0022- 3514.92.3.458

3.Diener, E., & Diener, M. (1995). Cross-cultural correlates of life satisfaction and self-esteem.

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68, 653–663. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0022-

3514.68.4.653

4.Markus, H. R., & Kitayama, S. (2010). Cultures and selves: A cycle of mutual constitution.

Perspectives on Psychological Science, 5, 420–430. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1745691610375557

5.Myers, D. G., & Diener, E. (1995). Who is happy? Psychological Science, 6,

10–19. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.1995.tb00298.

6.Taylor, S. E., & Brown, J. D. (1988). Illusion and well-being: A social psychological perspective on

mental health. Psychological Bulletin, 103, 193–210. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.103.2.193

7. Uchida, Y., & Kitayama, S. (2009). Happiness and unhappiness in east and west: Themes and

variations Emotion, 9, 441–456. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0015634