CQUniversity Unit Profile
PSYC11009 Social Foundations of Psychology
Social Foundations of Psychology
All details in this unit profile for PSYC11009 have been officially approved by CQUniversity and represent a learning partnership between the University and you (our student).
The information will not be changed unless absolutely necessary and any change will be clearly indicated by an approved correction included in the profile.
General Information

Overview

In this unit, you will be introduced to the social and cultural bases of human behaviour. You will examine: • human lifespan development, including cognitive and social development • social psychology, including interpersonal behaviour and social cognition • personality, including theories of personality, mental health, and abnormal behaviour.

Details

Career Level: Undergraduate
Unit Level: Level 1
Credit Points: 6
Student Contribution Band: 10
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load: 0.125

Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

There are no requisites for this unit.

Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).

Offerings For Term 3 - 2019

Online

Attendance Requirements

All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).

Class and Assessment Overview

Recommended Student Time Commitment

Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.

Class Timetable

Bundaberg, Cairns, Emerald, Gladstone, Mackay, Rockhampton, Townsville
Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney

Assessment Overview

1. Written Assessment
Weighting: 10%
2. Written Assessment
Weighting: 30%
3. Online Quiz(zes)
Weighting: 60%

Assessment Grading

This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.

Previous Student Feedback

Feedback, Recommendations and Responses

Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.

Feedback from 'Have Your Say’ student evaluation

Feedback

Students stated that doing the practice quizzes helped them learn the unit content.

Recommendation

Continue providing practice quizzes on Moodle.

Feedback from 'Have Your Say’ student evaluation

Feedback

Students stated that the cartoon videos explaining academic skills such as how to paraphrase were useful.

Recommendation

Continue developing innovative ways to explain assessments to students.

Feedback from 'Have Your Say’ student evaluation

Feedback

Students stated that the Crash Course videos were helpful for learning the unit content.

Recommendation

Continue providing Crash Course videos on Moodle.

Unit Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
  1. Identify a good, general, knowledge of the major principles and theories of the Social Foundations of Psychology
  2. Apply knowledge of the major principles and theories to human behaviour
  3. Demonstrate writing and research skills relevant to psychology.


Alignment of Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Graduate Attributes
N/A Level
Introductory Level
Intermediate Level
Graduate Level
Professional Level
Advanced Level

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes

Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3
1 - Written Assessment - 10%
2 - Written Assessment - 30%
3 - Online Quiz(zes) - 60%

Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes

Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3
1 - Communication
2 - Problem Solving
3 - Critical Thinking
4 - Information Literacy
5 - Team Work
6 - Information Technology Competence
7 - Cross Cultural Competence
8 - Ethical practice
9 - Social Innovation
10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes

Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
1 - Written Assessment - 10%
2 - Written Assessment - 30%
3 - Online Quiz(zes) - 60%
Textbooks and Resources

Textbooks

Prescribed

Psychology

Edition: 5th Australian and New Zealand (2019)
Authors: Burton, Westen, & Kowalski
Wiley
Milton Milton , Queensland , Australia
ISBN: 9780730363262
Binding: Paperback
Supplementary

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA)

Edition: 6th (2009)
Authors: American Psychological Association
American Psychological Association
ISBN: 9781433805615
Binding: Paperback

IT Resources

You will need access to the following IT resources:
  • CQUniversity Student Email
  • Internet
  • Unit Website (Moodle)
Referencing Style

All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: American Psychological Association 6th Edition (APA 6th edition)

For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.

Teaching Contacts
Cassy Dittman Unit Coordinator
c.dittman@cqu.edu.au
Schedule
Week 1 Begin Date: 11 Nov 2019

Module/Topic

Motivation and Emotion

Chapter

Chapter 10

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 2 Begin Date: 18 Nov 2019

Module/Topic

Attitudes and Social Cognition

Chapter

Chapter 17

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 3 Begin Date: 25 Nov 2019

Module/Topic

Physical and Cognitive Development





Chapter

Chapter 12

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 4 Begin Date: 02 Dec 2019

Module/Topic

Social Development

Chapter

Chapter 13

Events and Submissions/Topic

Journal Article Summary Due: Week 4 Monday (2 Dec 2019) 9:00 am AEST
Vacation Week Begin Date: 09 Dec 2019

Module/Topic

Chapter

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 5 Begin Date: 16 Dec 2019

Module/Topic

Personality

Chapter

Chapter 11

Events and Submissions/Topic


Week 6 Begin Date: 23 Dec 2019

Module/Topic

Review

Chapter

No reading this week

Events and Submissions/Topic

QUIZ 1 - Covering Weeks 1-5
Opens: Monday 23rd December 2019, 12:00pm AEST
Closes: Tuesday 24th December 2019, 11:45pm AEST


Online Quizzes Due: Week 6 Monday (23 Dec 2019) 11:45 pm AEST
Week 7 Begin Date: 06 Jan 2020

Module/Topic

Health, Stress, and Coping

Chapter

Chapter 14

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 8 Begin Date: 13 Jan 2020

Module/Topic

Interpersonal Processes

Chapter

Chapter 18

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 9 Begin Date: 20 Jan 2020

Module/Topic

Psychological Disorders

Chapter

Chapter 15

Events and Submissions/Topic

Short Essay Due: Week 9 Monday (20 Jan 2020) 9:00 am AEST
Week 10 Begin Date: 27 Jan 2020

Module/Topic

Treatment of Psychological Disorders

Chapter

Chapter 16

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 11 Begin Date: 03 Feb 2020

Module/Topic

Cross-Cultural and Indigenous Psychology

Chapter

Chapter 19

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 12 Begin Date: 10 Feb 2020

Module/Topic

Review

Chapter

No reading this week

Events and Submissions/Topic

QUIZ 2 - Covering Weeks 7-11
Opens: Thursday 13th February 2019, 12:00pm AEST
Closes: Friday 14th February 2019, 11:45pm AEST

Exam Week Begin Date: 17 Feb 2020

Module/Topic

Chapter

Events and Submissions/Topic

Assessment Tasks

1 Written Assessment

Assessment Title
Journal Article Summary

Task Description

Objective:

For this assessment you will be required to complete a journal article summary. This task provides you with the opportunity to apply your critical reading skills, and demonstrate your ability to communicate research findings in a clear and organised written format.

Instructions:

  1. Access and download the journal article. The specific journal article for this assessment will be provided to you in Week 1 on the Unit Moodle site.
  2. Write a critical summary of 270 - 330 words. Please note this word count does not include your references.
  3. Additional instructions pertaining to the structure of the critical review will be available on the Unit Moodle Site in Week 1.
  4. Use appropriate APA formatting in-text.
  5. Include a reference page with correct APA formatting.
  6. An abstract is not required for this assessment.
  7. Submit the assessment via the Unit Moodle site as a Word doc or docx file with your last name and initial (e.g., millerd.doc).
  8. It is good practice to submit the assessment a couple of days before the due date to allow Turnitin to review your work.


Assessment Due Date

Week 4 Monday (2 Dec 2019) 9:00 am AEST


Return Date to Students

Week 5 Monday (16 Dec 2019)


Weighting
10%

Assessment Criteria

Total Grade out of 10 Marks.
The breakdown of marks for each section is outlined below:

Introduction and Literature Review (2 Marks)

  • 0 - Introduction not present or was not relevant to the journal article.
  • 1 - Introduction present, literature summarised. Only loosely applied to the journal article.
  • 1.5 - Introduction present, literature summarised. Related clearly and effectively to the journal article.
  • 2 - Introduction and literature concisely summarised. Related clearly and effectively to the journal article, using original language and interpretation.

Method (2 Marks)

  • 0 - Discussion on methodology not present or was not relevant to the journal article.
  • 1 - Methodology discussed but only loosely applied to the journal article.
  • 1.5 - Methodology discussed. Related clearly and effectively to the journal article.
  • 2 - Methodology discussed. Related clearly and effectively to the journal article using original language and interpretation.

Results and Discussion (4 Marks)

  • 0 - Results and Discussion not present or were not relevant to the journal article.
  • 2 - Results and Discussion have been loosely summarised and relate to the journal article.
  • 3 - Results and Discussion are summarised. Related clearly and effectively to the journal article.
  • 4 - Results and Discussion are clearly and effectively summarised. Related clearly and effectively to the journal article using original language and interpretation.

APA Formatting (2 Marks)

  • 0 - APA formatting not present.
  • 1 - Attempt made with APA formatting, but contained many errors.
  • 1.5 - APA formatting contained few errors.
  • 2 - Exceptional formatting with no errors.

Word limit


    The word limit is 270 - 330 words not including title page or references page.

    Submissions outside of this limit will be subject to a 5% penalty.

Late submission


    Late submissions will be subject to a 5% penalty per day.



Referencing Style

Submission
Online

Learning Outcomes Assessed
  • Apply knowledge of the major principles and theories to human behaviour
  • Demonstrate writing and research skills relevant to psychology.


Graduate Attributes
  • Communication
  • Critical Thinking
  • Information Literacy
  • Information Technology Competence
  • Ethical practice

2 Written Assessment

Assessment Title
Short Essay

Task Description

Objective:

For this assessment you will be required to write a short essay on an essay question pertaining to the social foundations of psychology. This task provides you with an opportunity to demonstrate your research skills in locating current and relevant peer-reviewed journal articles to the topic, critical reading and thinking skills, and your ability to articulate a written argument in a clear and concise manner.

Instructions:

  1. You will be required to answer an essay question that will be provided to you in Week 1.
  2. The short essay should be 900 - 1100 words. Please note this word count does not include your references.
  3. A minimum of two peer-reviewed journal articles must be cited in your essay. To locate these journal articles, you can conduct a search in the CQUniversity library database or Google Scholar. Select and download the full-text version of the articles that support your argument.
  4. Use appropriate APA formatting in-text.
  5. Include a reference page with correct APA formatting.
  6. An abstract is not required for this assessment.
  7. Submit the assessment via the Unit Moodle site as a Word doc or docx file with your last name and initial (e.g., millerd.doc).
  8. It is good practice to submit the assessment a couple of days before the due date to allow Turnitin to review your work.


Assessment Due Date

Week 9 Monday (20 Jan 2020) 9:00 am AEST


Return Date to Students

Week 11 Monday (3 Feb 2020)


Weighting
30%

Assessment Criteria

Total Grade out of 30 Marks.
The breakdown of marks is outlined below:

Introduction and Literature Review (4 Marks)

  • 0 - Introduction not present or was not relevant to the journal articles. Student did not take a clear stance on the topic.
  • 2 - Introduction present, literature summarised only loosely. Student took a stance, but not well supported by the literature.
  • 3 - Introduction present, literature summarised well. Student took a stance, which was adequately supported by the literature.
  • 4 - Introduction and literature concisely and effectively summarised. Student took a clear stance, which was very well supported by the literature, using original language and interpretation.

Utilisation of Journal Article #1 (8 Marks)

  • 0 - The journal article did not relate to the topic, was not summarised effectively or correctly. Summary was not linked to the stance taken by the student.
  • 4 - The journal article loosely related to the topic and was summarised, but missed key points. The summary was only loosely linked to the stance taken by the student.
  • 6 - The journal article related to the topic, was summarised correctly. The summary covered most key points and was linked well to the stance taken by the student.
  • 8 - The journal article related clearly to the topic and was effectively summarised. The summary was effective, covering all key points. The summary was creatively linked to the stance taken by the student, using original language and interpretation.

Utilitsation of Journal Article #2 (8 Marks)

  • 0 - The journal article did not relate to the topic, was not summarised effectively or correctly. Summary was not linked to the stance taken by the student.
  • 4 - The journal article loosely related to the topic and was summarised, but missed key points. The summary was only loosely linked to the stance taken by the student.
  • 6 - The journal article related to the topic, was summarised correctly. The summary covered most key points and was linked well to the stance taken by the student.
  • 8 - The journal article related clearly to the topic and was effectively summarised. The summary was effective, covering all key points. The summary was creatively linked to the stance taken by the student, using original language and interpretation.

Conclusion (5 Marks)

  • 0 - Conclusion not present or not related to the stance taken by the student and/or not supported by the journal articles.
  • 2.5 - Conclusion related loosely to the stance taken by the student. Not supported by the journal articles.
  • 4 - Conclusion related well to the stance taken by the student and is supported well by the journal articles.
  • 5 - Conclusion related clearly and effectively to the stance taken by the student, and is very well supported by the journal articles. Includes use of original languages and interpretation.

Spelling and Grammar (3 Marks)

  • 1 - Difficult to follow at times, with many errors in spelling and punctuation.
  • 2 - Clear piece of writing, with few errors in spelling and punctuation.
  • 3 - Excellent piece of writing, correction of text not required.

APA Formatting (2 Marks)

  • 0 - APA formatting not present.
  • 1 - Attempt made with APA formatting, but contained many errors.
  • 1.5 - APA formatting contained few errors.
  • 2 - Exceptional formatting with no errors.
Word limit


    The word limit is 900 - 1100 words not including title page or references page.

    Submissions outside of this limit will be subject to a 5% penalty.

Late submission


     Late submissions will be subject to a 5% penalty per day.


Referencing Style

Submission
Online

Learning Outcomes Assessed
  • Identify a good, general, knowledge of the major principles and theories of the Social Foundations of Psychology
  • Demonstrate writing and research skills relevant to psychology.


Graduate Attributes
  • Communication
  • Critical Thinking
  • Information Literacy
  • Information Technology Competence
  • Ethical practice

3 Online Quiz(zes)

Assessment Title
Online Quizzes

Task Description

You will complete two online quizzes. Both quizzes are completed via the Moodle site.

Once you start the quiz, you have 60 minutes to complete all 60 questions.

  • There are 60 questions in each quiz.
  • It is usually best to skip questions you do not know and come back to them if you have time.
  • At the end of the 60 minutes the quiz will close and the system will submit all answered questions for grading.

Quiz 1:

  • Opens on Monday 23rd of December at 12:00pm and Closes on Tuesday 24th of December at 11:45pm
  • Will cover content from Weeks 1-5

Quiz 2:

  • Opens on Thursday 13th February at 12:00pm and Closes on Friday 14th February at 11:45pm
  • Will cover content from Weeks 7-11


Number of Quizzes

2


Frequency of Quizzes

Other


Assessment Due Date

Week 6 Monday (23 Dec 2019) 11:45 pm AEST


Return Date to Students

Weighting
60%

Assessment Criteria

There are two quizzes.

  • Each quiz is worth 30% of the final grade.
  • Each quiz has 60 questions.
  • Each question is worth 0.5 Marks per correct answer.


Referencing Style

Submission
Online

Learning Outcomes Assessed
  • Identify a good, general, knowledge of the major principles and theories of the Social Foundations of Psychology
  • Apply knowledge of the major principles and theories to human behaviour


Graduate Attributes
  • Critical Thinking
  • Information Literacy
  • Ethical practice

Academic Integrity Statement

As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.

Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.

When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.

Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.

As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.

What is a breach of academic integrity?

A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.

Why is academic integrity important?

A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.

Where can I get assistance?

For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.

What can you do to act with integrity?