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PSYC 0127 - Psychology of Women

http://catalog.sierracollege.edu/course-outlines/psyc-0127/

Catalog Description Formerly known as PSYC 27 Hours: 54 lecture Description: A critical study of psychological theory and data on the cultural and societal factors that influence the development of gender identity and expression, and the ways in which these social constructions shape women's experience. Emphasis is placed on intersectionality with particular emphasis on the effects of culture, class, and ethnicity. (CSU, UC) Course Student Learning Outcomes CSLO #1: Analyze and critique studies pertaining to women and their conclusions using the scientific method, research methods and ethical standards used in the field of psychology. CSLO #2: Identify historical, mythological, institutional, cultural, familial, and ethnic influences that shape the experience of genders such as femaleness, femininity, and non-binaryness. CSLO #3: Differentiate between the concepts of sex and gender as they vary across contexts. Effective Term Fall 2024 Course Type Credit - Degree-applicable Contact Hours 54 Outside of Class Hours 108 Total Student Learning Hours 162 Course Objectives 1. Introduction - discuss the social context of stereotypes; - explain the difference between sex and gender and the problem of binary; - describe and compare the evaluation of gender stereotypes; - discuss the intersection of gender with race, class, age, appearance, sexual orientation, and disability stereotypes; - identify how the research process may be affected by stereotypes; 2. Theories on sex and gender - discuss psychoanalytic and identification theories; - discuss social and cultural theories; - describe social learning theory and cognitive development theory; - explain social interaction process theories; - compare perspectives on difference; 3. Researching sex and gender - relate science, androcentrism, and misogyny; - contrast nature, nurture, and interactionist perspectives; - identity biases and pitfalls in studies; - discuss how research questions are informed by "folk knowledge"; - compare longitudinal and meta-analysis strategies; 4. Behavioral and biological male-female similarities and differences - identify gender differences in social behavior; - describe biological sex differentiation; - explain physical sex difference implication for behavior; - discuss variations in normal development; - identify gender differences in intellectual performance; - identify biases in assessing perceptual and cognitive abilities; 5. Sex lives and orientations - describe the double standard; - explain the physiology of sexual response; - discuss sexual motives, values, and attitudes; - explain the gender differences in sexuality; - discuss the interaction of sexuality and power; - relate "belief in a just world theory" to sexual victimization; 6. Hormonal and reproductive connections - describe the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, and menopause; - explain hormones and the male experience; - discuss social implications of childbirth and reproduction; 7. Mental and physical health - compare expectations of vulnerability and strength; - contrast male-female mental illness diagnosis prevalence; - discuss gender differences in physical health expectations; - explain the function of social categorization on mental health; - describe the historical use of diagnosis as a social control mechanism; - discuss gender-role androgyny and mental health; 8. Childhood to adulthood - describe early gender learning; - discuss identity construction; - compare the development of the relational and individual self; - contrast achievement expectation differences between genders; - explain the role of friendship in gender development and adulthood; - discuss the economics of marriage and partnership; 9. Power, status, and achievement in economic and political life - define achievement and power; - describe gender/race stratification and differential access to resources; - explain how hierarchies perpetuate themselves; - discuss how "isms" affect political power and social authority; - identify the division of labor by sex and race; - summarize how work, sexuality, and power are related; - define sex discrimination; - discuss the interaction of family and employment issues; 10. Justice and equity - discuss gender and conceptions of justice; - explain biases in moral reasoning research; - describe gender differences in award allocation and entitlement; - compare and contrast male and female prevalence as victims; and - compare and contrast male and female prevalence as criminals. General Education Information Approved College Associate Degree GE Applicability AA/AS - Behavioral Sciences AA/AS - Multicultural Studies CSU GE Applicability (Recommended-requires CSU approval) CSUGE - E1 Lifelong Learning and Self-Development CSUGE - D9 Psychology Cal-GETC Applicability (Recommended - Requires External Approval) IGETC Applicability (Recommended-requires CSU/UC approval) IGETC - 4I Psychology Articulation Information CSU Transferable UC Transferable Methods of Evaluation Classroom Discussions Example: 1. The instructor presents a series of advertising images, half culled directly from popular women's magazines and half directly from men's magazines, and challenges the students to examine the images and assess whether there is a significant gender difference between target markets. The instructor leads a discussion on the major thematic differences. 2. The instructor assigns students to choose one media article from an assortment of options and using critical feminist theory, participate in an online discussion. Essay Examinations Example: Select one of the two following short essay questions. Citation of sources is expected as in "Lips, 23." (A) What is meant by the idea that, in mental illness, there is a "politics of diagnosis"? Give examples. (B) Using examples from the cross-cultural research on menopause, discuss the ways in which culture may shape women's experience of this transition. Objective Examinations Example: 1. What are the stats we know regarding stalking in the USA? a. 2% b. 7% c. 21% d. 45% 2. The Psychology of Women is considered interdisciplinary because: a. Professors that teach the psychology of women come from different subfields of psychology b. It is informed by research conducted in such fields as biology, sociology, anthropology, history, media studies, economics, education, and linguistics c. It insists on a complex interconnected science of psychology d. It receives great attention from human rights committees and the feminist Projects Example: Watch Killing Us Softly 4. Pay special attention to the subtle ways in which gender divides are culturally reinforced across modalities. Use some of Kilbourne's theories to support your analysis below. Choose any sitcom from TV and do a gender analysis of the show. For example, According to Jim where some of the very basis of the show’s humor is Jim’s not-too-modern perspective on women. Pick a show, watch it, and report on what you found – the good, the bad or? How do we SEE the gender in the behaviors of an episode? Construct a Bem 2X2 Gender Chart to describe the gendered behaviors of at least two characters and place them within the two axes. Reports Example: Read chapter four of the "Tending Instinct" and consider Taylor's suggestion that women are the "natural care-givers." In a 5 - 7 page paper, using the evidence provided by Tavris in "Mismeasure of Women," contrast and compare Taylor and Tavris' positions on the etiology of women's role in relationships. Repeatable No Methods of Instruction Lecture/Discussion Distance Learning Lecture: The instructor presents a series of advertising images, half culled directly from popular women's magazines and half directly from men's magazines and challenges the students to examine the images and assess whether there is a significant gender difference between target markets. Instructor leads a discussion on the major thematic differences. Distance Learning The instructor selects several salient media articles, posts them in the learning management system, and writes relevant prompts. Students choose one article and prompt from the options provided. Using critical feminist theory, students participate in an online discussion of their chosen article. Typical Out of Class Assignments Reading Assignments 1. Read the chapter on "Motherhood and the Time Bind" in Chrisler's "Lectures on Psychology of Women." Students will discuss what factors within a home can be altered to reduce the "time bind." 2. Read article on culture-bound health syndromes. Describe and discuss what factors increase the likelihood of culture-bound syndromes across generations. Writing, Problem Solving or Performance 1. Read the article on culture-bound syndromes. Consider the difficulty you might have convincing a person who reports experiencing any of the maladies discussed in the article that they may be more influenced by culture, than biology. How might you approach this person as a medical practitioner keen on changing this person's perception of their malady? Place yourself in a hypothetical situation, where a patient asks for strong medication for PMS, and write a two-page paper discussing your approach to this request. 2. Please read the two papers posted on the learning management system for week 12 and respond in a short two page essay to the following discussion questions. Please post your responses on the class webpage and critically respond to one essay posted by a peer. A. How do women and men in North America differ in their motivation to hold managerial roles? B. What are the implications of such differences for women's future in management? Other (Term projects, research papers, portfolios, etc.) This assignment focuses on your categories of identity. Write short responses to each numbered question and record yourself, the camera on, narrating your responses (you may read your paper verbatim, or just respond to the questions in a more casual manner -- no more than 10 minutes in length, and shorter than that is just fine). Both written and video pieces are required. 1. Position yourself in the world with respect to gender, race, class, sexual orientation, ethnicity, nationality, religious background, geographic region, and any other shaping categories that feel relevant (i.e., where do you fall in these different categories?) 2. Focus on your gender, race, social class, sexuality, or nationality and recount an incident or time that made you aware of it (for example, tell about the time you first realized you were a woman, wealthy, American...). Be specific: what happened? How did it feel? 3. How many of your identity categories (listed in question 1) are apparent to the world? Which categories can people place you in simply by looking at you? By interacting on a shallow level? Which ones are they not aware of? Are there any categories people mistakenly place you in? 4. Pick one category and explain how being seen or not seen as a part of it affects you. Does being seen as your specific race/ sex/ gender/ ethnicity/ sexual orientation/ nationality/ religion/ other provide you with privileges? Disadvantages? How? How does it make you feel to be seen/ not seen within this particular category? 5. What do you think are the main benefits/drawbacks of your specific "positionings?" Give a few specific examples of how your positionings affect how you “see” some aspect of the world. 6. What, if any, are the "responsibilities" that come from occupying your various categories of identity-- your "place on the map"? Required Materials Transnational Psychology of Women Expanding International and Intersectional Approaches Author: Collins Publisher: American Psychological Association Publication Date: 2020 Text Edition: 1st Classic Textbook?: No OER Link: OER: A New Psychology of Women: Gender, Culture and Ethnicity Author: Lips Publisher: Waveland Press Publication Date: 2016 Text Edition: 4th Classic Textbook?: No OER Link: OER: The Psychology of Women and Gender: Half the Human Experience Author: Else-Quest & Shibley Hyde Publisher: SAGE Publications Publication Date: 2021 Text Edition: 10th Classic Textbook?: No OER Link: OER: Psychology of Women and Gender Author: Liss, Richmond & Urchull Publisher: Norton, W. W. & Company, Inc. Publication Date: 2019 Text Edition: 1 Classic Textbook?: No OER Link: OER: Other materials and-or supplies required of students that contribute to the cost of the course.