PSYCH 470

PHIL 470

Philosophical Psychology

Division of Distance Education

Dr. Jeff Johnson

IMPORTANT NOTICE!

What follows is so self-evident to me that I have never stated explicitly in words.  But there seems to be a persistent misunderstanding, so here goes.  There are video-lectures that go with this course.  Viewing them is essential to doing well in the course.  They are a formal requirement.  Just as though you could hardly expect to do well in a course you never attended, trying to take this course without watching the video-lectures is just as foolhardy.

COMPUTER-FACILITATED INDIVIDUALIZED STUDY MODE

Beginning Summer Quarter 2002, most DDE Philosophy courses will be delivered through the Computer-Facilitated Individualized Study Mode.  My hope is that this will be a convenience to both of us.  There are some specific expectations for this delivery mode, and you should familiarize your self with them at this link:

http://www.eou.edu/dde/webadv/cfismode.html

If you have access to a decent computer and e-mail, don't let the other technical stuff intimidate you.  It will prove very easy to exchange assignments, feedback, and grades electronically.  In order to keep track of the communication and "virtual paper" flow, we have created some dedicated e-mail accounts for each course, and each quarter.  Although material sent directly to my e-mail will reach me, it would be much safer to send it to the dedicated e-mail for this course because DDE keeps a record and a copy of your submission.

When attaching assignment, papers, and take-home examinations (all of this varies from specific course to course), please save your files in Word, or best of all, as a "rich text" file (file will end ...rtf).

Are human beings "merely" complicated biological machines?  Or, are we something completely unique in the natural world -- beings that are both "material" and "mental" at the same time?  These questions are as old as the very beginnings of western religion, philosophy, and science.  This quarter we will investigate some of the fascinating questions and theories that make up the traditional mind/body problem.  Our focus will be contemporary work in cognitive science, an interdisciplinary partnership of philosophers, psychologists, linguists, computer scientists, neuroscientists, and evolutionary biologists.

I am somewhat selfishly using our course to conduct a couple of experiments.  The first concerns required reading.  In addition to the three required books for this course, there is addition reading which is available on the web.  The second involves my own philosophical writing.  I have long intended to write a short book for my "Self, World, and God" course.  I will be using the lectures in this course as an outline, indeed if time and energy permit as a draft, of a manuscript tentatively titled Modest Psychological Naturalism.

UWR Outcomes for Upper Division Writing Intensive Courses:

• Students will produce at least 5,000 words (including drafts, in-class writing, informal papers, and polished papers); 2,000 words of this total should be in polished papers which students have revised after receiving feedback and criticism.
• Students will practice the forms of writing and reflect upon the nature of the writing used by graduates and professionals in the discipline the course represents.
• Students will write at least one paper integrating information from more than one source, employing the appropriate documentation style for the discipline represented by the course.
• Students will draft, revise, and edit their formal written work.
• Students will seek assistance from a Writing Tutor in the Writing Lab when needed and when referred by the instructor.

Additional Outcomes:

• Understand the controversies and theories in philosophical psychology and cognitive science.

• Read philosophical and theological texts critically and with understanding.and psychological texts critically and with understanding.

• Write effectively about philosophical controversies.

Means of Assessment and Grading:

• Take-home mid-term examination (outcomes 1,2, and 3) (25% of course grade)

• Take-home final examination (outcomes 1,2, and 3) ( 25% of course grade)

• Critical review of Steven Pinker's The Language Instinct (outcomes 1,2, and 3) ( 25% of course grade)

• Analytical paper on memory (outcomes 1,2, and 3) ( 25% of course grade)

• Please note: a grade of at least C- is required in order for this course to count toward the University Writing Requirement 

TAKE-HOME EXAMS

 ASSIGNMENTS

COURSE SCHEDULE

I have kept the general structure topics per week that was the format when the course was taught on-campus.  It is crucial that one-term, financial aid students come pretty close to the weekly time-table, though they are definitely free to accelerate the pace.  There is a very substantial amount of required reading for this course -- it is imperative that students keep up with the reading from the very beginning of the course!