UniversityofWaterloo
DepartmentofPsychology
Psychology361
EvolutionaryPsychology
Winter2017
MW2:30-3:50pm,STC0040
InstructorandT.A.Information
Instructor:JenniferStolz,PhD
Office:PAS4056
OfficePhone:519-888-4567x35937
OfficeHours:T2:30-4:00,orbyappointment
Email:[email protected]
RochelleEvans
DanielTodorovic
T.A.
[email protected] [email protected]
Email
PAS4237
PAS4048
Office
W10-11
F11-12
OfficeHours
CourseDescription
Thiscourseexaminestheimpactofevolutiononhumanbehaviour.Thereisgrowingevidencethat
manyfacetsofourmindandbehaviour,aswellasouranatomyandphysiology,wereshapedbyour
evolutionaryhistory.Evolutionisnotaboutsurvival.Evolutionisabouttheperpetuationofgenes.
Evolutionisnotaboutcompetitionforscarceresources,itisaboutreproductivecompetition.Sexisthe
finalcommonpathforallevolutionarychange.Thiscoursefocusesonemergingscientificevidencefora
varietyofreproductivestrategiesthathumansunwittinglyusetocompeteamongsteachotherto
maximizetheirgeneticrepresentationinfuturegenerations.
CourseGoalsandLearningOutcomes
Uponcompletionofthiscourse,studentsshouldbeableto:
A. Explainthebasicprocessesthatledtopresent-daylifeontheplanet,including
• Variation,Selection,andRetention
B. Explainhowevolutionarypressuresshapeourcurrentdaybehaviour,including
• Competitionforreproductivesuccess
C. Explainimportantconceptsinevolution,including
• Kinselectionandinclusivefitness
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RequiredText
•
Ray,W.J.(2013).EvolutionaryPsychology:NeurosciencePerspectivesConcerningHuman
BehaviorandExperience.Sage.
InformationAvailableonLEARN
ThecoursewebpagecanbefoundonLEARNathttps://learn.uwaterloo.ca/.Here,youwillfindlinksto
thesyllabus,tomylectureslides,andtoimportantannouncements.Supplementalreadingsmaybe
postedhere,aswell.
CourseRequirementsandAssessment
Therewillbefournon-cumulativetests,eachworth25%ofthefinalgrade(seedatesbelow).Thetests
willbecomprisedpredominatelyofmultiple-choicequestionswiththeadditionofafewshortanswer
questions.Alltestswillbebasedonmaterialpresentedinthetextandinthelectures.
Assessment
DateofEvaluation(ifknown)
Weighting
Test#1
January23rd,2017
25%
Test#2
February13th,2017
25%
Test#3
March13th,2017
25%
Test#4
April3rd,2017
25%
Total
100%
Studentswillalsohavetheopportunitytoearn4bonusmarksbyparticipatinginresearchstudies.
CourseOutline
Notesonreadings.
Week Date
1
1/4
2
1/9
1/11
3
4
5
6
7
8
1/16
1/18
1/23
1/25
1/30
2/1
2/6
2/8
2/13
2/15
2/27
3/1
Topic
EvolutionaryTheory
ReadingsDue
Chapter1,2
EvolutionaryTheory;Fitness,Selection,
Mutation
BehaviorGenetics,CorrelationalApproach
StrainComparisons,SelectiveBreeding,
EvolutionasanExistentialGame
KinSelection,InclusiveFitness
Proportionatevs.NetGenetic
Representation
InbreedingDepression,C/BRatios
SexSpecificMaxmizationStrategies
ParentalAssurance,ParentalInvestment,
ReproductivePotential,
FemaleInfidelity&ParentalAssurance,Sex
DifferencesintheDesignofSexual
Expression
BreedingPatterns,MatingArrangements,
Proximatevs.UltimateCauses
Chapter2,3
Chapter4
Chapter5
Chapter6,7
Chapter8
Chapter9
Chapter10,11
2
Week Date
9
3/6
3/8
10
3/13
3/15
3/20
3/22
3/27
3/29
11
12
13
4/3
Topic
SexualMotivationvs.SexualPleasure,
ConcealedOvulation,PermanentBreast
Enlargement
MateSelection,SpermRetention
ReadingsDue
Homosexuality,Homophobia
Rape:CrimeofViolenceorPassion?
PsychobiologyofHumanSemen,
SemenFamiliarity&Pregnancy
Complications
Test4
Chapter14
Chapter12
Chapter13
Chapter15
ResearchExperienceMarks
InformationandGuidelines:Experientiallearningisconsideredanintegralpartofthe
undergraduateprograminPsychology.Researchparticipationisoneexampleofthis,
articlereviewisanother.Anumberofundergraduatecourseshavebeenexpandedto
includeopportunitesforPsychologystudentstoearnpointswhilegainingresearch
experience.
BecauseexperientiallearningishighlyvaluedintheDepartmentofPsychology,studentsmayearna
“bonus”gradeofupto4%inthiscoursethroughresearchparticipation.Courseworkwillconstitute
100%ofthefinalmarkanda“bonus”ofupto4%maybeearnedandwillbeaddedtothefinalgrade
if/asneededtobringthefinalgradeupto100%.Thetwooptionsforearningresearchexperience
credits(participationinresearchandarticlereview)aredescribedbelow.Studentsmaycompleteany
combinationoftheseoptionstoearnresearchexperiencegrades.
Option1:ParticipationinPsychologicalResearch.Researchparticipationiscoordinatedbythe
ResearchExperiencesGroup(REG).Psychologystudentsmayvolunteerasresearchparticipantsinlab
and/oronline(web-based)studiesconductedbystudentsandfacultyintheDepartmentofPsychology.
Participationenablesstudentstolearnfirst-handaboutpsychologyresearchandrelatedconcepts.
Manystudentsreportthatparticipationinresearchisbothaneducationalandinterestingexperience.
PleasebeassuredthatallPsychologystudieshaveundergoneethicsreviewandhavebeencleared
throughtheOfficeofResearchEthics.
Educationalfocusofparticipationinresearch:Tomaximizetheeducationalbenefitsofparticipatingin
research,studentswillreceivefeedbackinformationfollowingtheirparticipationineachstudy.This
feedbackwilldetailthefollowingelements:
-
Purposeorobjectivesofthestudy
Independentanddependentvariables
Expectedresults
Referencesforatleasttworelatedresearcharticles
Provisionstoensureconfidentialityofdata
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-
Contactinformationoftheresearchershouldthestudenthavefurtherquestionsaboutthe
study
ContactinformationfortheDirectoroftheOfficeofResearchEthicsshouldthestudent
wishtolearnmoreaboutthegeneralethicalissuessurroundingresearchwithhuman
participants,orspecificquestionsaboutthestudyinwhichs/heparticipated.
Participationisworth0.5participationcredits(gradepercentagepoints)foreachhalf-hourof
participation.Researcherswillrecordstudents’participationandREGwilladvisethecourseinstructor
ofthetotalcreditsearnedbyeachstudentattheendoftheterm.
Studyscheduling,participationandgradeassignmentismanagedusingtheSONAonlinesystem.All
studentsenrolledinthiscoursehaveaSONAaccount.ItisVERYIMPORTANTthatstudentsgetanearly
startontheirstudies.FordetailedinstructionsonwhenandhowtoaccessyourSONAaccountandfora
listofimportantdatesanddeadlines,please,assoonaspossible,clickon:
http://www.arts.uwaterloo.ca/~regadmin/regparticipant/sonainfo/#SonaSignUp
***PleasedonotaskthecourseinstructororREGCoordinatorforinformationunlessyouhavefirst
thoroughlyreadtheinformationprovidedonthiswebsite.***
Option2:ArticleReviewasanalternativetoparticipationinresearch.Studentsarenotrequiredto
participateinresearch,andnotallstudentswishtodoso.Asanalternative,studentsmayopttogain
researchexperiencebywritingshortreviews(1.5-2pages)ofresearcharticles.PleasecontactyourTA
inordertobegivenanapprovedarticle.Eachreviewcountsasonepercentagepoint.Toreceivecredit,
youmustfollowspecificguidelines.Thearticlereviewmust:
-
-
Besubmittedbeforethelastlecture.LatesubmissionwillNOTbeacceptedunderANY
circumstances.
Betyped
Fullyidentifythetitle,author(s),sourceanddateofthearticle.
Identifythepsychologicalconceptsinthearticle.Criticallyevaluatetheapplicationor
treatmentofthoseconceptsinthearticle.Ifinappropriateorincorrect,identifytheerror
anditsimplicationsforthevalidityofthearticle.Youmayfind,forexample,misleading
headings,faultyresearchprocedures,alternativeexplanationsthatareignored,failuresto
distinguishfactualfindingsfromopinions,faultstatementsofcause-effectrelations,errors
inreasoning,etc.Provideexampleswheneverpossible.
Clearlyevaluatetheapplicationortreatmentofthoseconceptsinthearticle.
Keepacopyofyourreviewintheunlikelyeventthatwemisplacetheoriginal.
ElectronicDevicePolicy
Laptopsfornotetakingarepermittedduringlectures.Websurfingandemailingduringlectureswillnot
bepermitted,however.
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Allcellphoneringersmustbeturnedoffduringlecturesandexams.
Allelectronicdevices(e.g.,phones,laptops,tablets)mustbestowedawayandinaccessibleduring
exams.
AttendancePolicy
Attendanceisnotmandatory,howeverstudentswhoattendclassregularlyperformbetterthanthose
whodonot.Ifaclassismissed,itisuptothestudenttogetlecturenotesfromafellowclassmate.
Attendanceateachofthe4in-classexamsismandatory.Ifastudentisillandunabletowriteanexam
theinstructormustbenotifiedPRIORtotheexam.Furthermore,thestudentmustprovideappropriate
documentationofillnessfromtheOfficeofHealthServices.Failuretodosowillresultinamarkof0%
fortheexam.
Institutional-requiredstatementsforundergraduatecourseoutlinesapprovedby
SenateUndergraduateCouncil,April14,2009
Cross-listedcourse
Pleasenotethatacross-listedcoursewillcountinallrespectiveaveragesnomatterunderwhichrubric
ithasbeentaken.Forexample,aPHIL/PSCIcross-listwillcountinaPhilosophymajoraverage,evenif
thecoursewastakenunderthePoliticalSciencerubric.
AcademicIntegrity
AcademicIntegrity:Inordertomaintainacultureofacademicintegrity,membersoftheUniversityof
Waterlooareexpectedtopromotehonesty,trust,fairness,respectandresponsibility.
Discipline:Astudentisexpectedtoknowwhatconstitutesacademicintegrity,toavoidcommitting
academicoffences,andtotakeresponsibilityforhis/heractions.Astudentwhoisunsurewhetheran
actionconstitutesanoffence,orwhoneedshelpinlearninghowtoavoidoffences(e.g.,plagiarism,
cheating)orabout“rules”forgroupwork/collaborationshouldseekguidancefromthecourse
professor,academicadvisor,ortheUndergraduateAssociateDean.Whenmisconducthasbeenfound
tohaveoccurred,disciplinarypenaltieswillbeimposedunderPolicy71–StudentDiscipline.For
informationoncategoriesofoffensesandtypesofpenalties,studentsshouldrefertoPolicy71-Student
Discipline.
Grievance:Astudentwhobelievesthatadecisionaffectingsomeaspectofhis/heruniversitylifehas
beenunfairorunreasonablemayhavegroundsforinitiatingagrievance.ReadPolicy70-Student
PetitionsandGrievances,Section4.
Appeals:Astudentmayappealthefindingand/orpenaltyinadecisionmadeunderPolicy70-Student
PetitionsandGrievances(otherthanregardingapetition)orPolicy71-StudentDisciplineifagroundfor
anappealcanbeestablished.ReadPolicy72-StudentAppeals.
Othersourcesofinformationforstudents
Academicintegrity(Arts)AcademicIntegrityOffice(uWaterloo)
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AccommodationforStudentswithDisabilities
Noteforstudentswithdisabilities:TheAccessAbilityServicesoffice,locatedinNeedlesHallRoom
1132,collaborateswithallacademicdepartmentstoarrangeappropriateaccommodationsforstudents
withdisabilitieswithoutcompromisingtheacademicintegrityofthecurriculum.Ifyourequireacademic
accommodationstolessentheimpactofyourdisability,pleaseregisterwiththeASofficeatthe
beginningofeachacademicterm.
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