Anthropology 107
Psychological Anthropology

University of California, Santa Barbara

Spring, 2007

Wednesdays from 5-7:50 PM in North Hall 1109

Course website: http://www.anth.ucsb.edu/classes/anth107/

"Most of what we strive for in our modern life uses the apparatus of goal seeking that was originally set up to seek goals in the state of nature."
- Richard Dawkins, Darwin's Dangerous Disciple, An interview by Frank Miele

Instructor: Eric Schniter
Phone: 805-893-2202
Email: eschniter@umail.ucsb.edu

Office: 2060 HSSB – Behavioral Ecology Lab
Office hours: Wednesdays 2-4 PM & by appointment

Have you ever wondered why people believe in and do the crazy things they do? Why are there beliefs in ghosts, spirits, and an afterlife? Are humans rational, and if so, why do people lose so much money gambling and show poor reasoning with their finances? Do all people and cultures share the same basic emotions, thoughts, and pathologies? How does development and society affect one’s personality? Do animals have thoughts and language?

This upper-division course exposes students to design-explanations of human behavior, the role of culture in human behavior, identification and cross-cultural comparison of patterns of behavior, society, and culture. Psychology is really “the study of behavior and the mind” which intersects with Anthropology, “the study of all things human”.  This course reviews the history of thought in psychological anthropology (which studies the role of ‘mind’ and ‘culture’ in human behavior), focusing on issues of universal patterns of human behavior from an evolutionary perspective.

Required Texts (2):

Specific Learning Objectives:

By the end of this course, students will have a better appreciation for both universal and culturally diverse aspects of human nature that often fuel the nature-nurture debate. An evolutionary perspective allows a theoretical perspective for testing design explanations of universal psychological mechanisms. A cross-cultural perspective allows a methodology for testing the existence of psychological mechanisms in varying social ecologies, environments, cultures and belief systems. It is a goal of this course to keep in mind that what science describes as a recent or ancestral state of nature has NO logical connection to ethical or moral proscriptions of what ought to be. Never-the-less the divide from IS to OUGHT is often crossed, intentionally or mistakenly. An important form of learning that this course is designed to engage is the personal evaluation and expression of ethical and moral beliefs that are often aroused by human behavior topics. Far too often the advancements of human science arouse strong reactions and even fear that perhaps these discoveries about innate patterns of human behavior, “may be used to justify inequality, to subvert social change, to dissolve personal responsibility, and to strip life of meaning and purpose.” (1.) Important topics for ethical and moral reflection are assigned on a weekly basis including: Gender, personality, rationality, emotion, free-will, the soul, and responsibility. Reflection essays offer students an opportunity to voice and develop their ethical and moral reactions to discussions of human nature.

Format and Procedures: 

The course consists of ten 2 hour 50 minute meetings: during which time there will be weekly lectures and/or films presented, along with ten minute breaks --approximately midway. Lists of reading questions will be available (online) weekly to guide you through the main points of the week’s readings, help structure the topic headings of your reading summaries, and will serve as study guides for your exams. Reflection topics will be included with weekly reading questions. Each week, several minutes will be allotted to allow students the opportunity to discuss their views and feelings about the topics within a discussion format.


Course Policies:

• Students are expected to attend all lectures and films in their entirety.

• Students are expected to arrive to lecture on time. Late arrivals are a disturbance to other students and to the instructor.

• Cell phones or noise making electronics need be silenced or powered off during class. Noisy or odorous foods are best kept outside the classroom. These are often the most common disturbances to other students and instructors, let’s not have them in our class.

• There will be no make-up exams unless you face an unforeseen medical emergency. Please check for scheduling conflicts before deciding to take this course and contact the instructor with any questions. Despite the inconvenience it may cause, you will need to prove excuse due to medical emergency with a letter from your physician.

• Emails should be written formally and include the following: “Anthropology 107” in the subject line, a complete greeting, and your complete name in the signature. Detailed questions should be addressed in office hours with the Instructor, not in email.

• Questions about grades will not be answered in email by the instructor.

Course Requirements: 

1.Lecture: You are expected to regularly attend lecture, where films and information not found in the readings will be presented. While lectures will follow topics also assigned in that week’s readings, they are complimentary to the readings (not supplementary). Each exam will include a few questions on the lecture content not found in the readings.

2.Films: A few documentary films relevant to the course will be shown in this course. Not all scheduled films will necessarily be shown, or shown in their entirety. Each exam will include a few questions on the films that have been shown.

3.Course readings: In this course you will be required to keep up with the weekly reading assignments, and provide weekly reading summaries in the form of typed notes you took on your readings. These notes will later serve you as study guides for the exams. You are responsible for all material in the assigned readings. Each exam will include a few questions on the readings.

4. Weekly Assignments: Each week you will be required to turn in a typed assignment with a total of 500-1500 of your own words consisting of Reading Summaries and Reflection Essays. Reading summaries consist of the notes that you are required to take on ALL the content of your assigned readings – especially in the form of answers to supplied study questions. Reading summaries do NOT always require complete sentences (they simply need to be useful for you to index the content), but must be structured around topic headings.  Excluding the supplied study questions, reading summaries should be 250-1000 words in length. Reflection Essays DO require proper grammar and spelling, should be written around a central theme, as mini-essays, and should also be within the range of 250-500 words. Essays need to stay on-topic, reference the relevant material discussed in readings and/or lecture, and not simply state your opinion, but attempt to explain your perspective, including your thoughts, questions, concerns, beliefs, assumptions, suggestions, feelings and emotions.

Grading Procedures: Grades will based (out of 100%) on the following percentages

30% Weekly Assignments
10% Assignments turned in on time (and attendance)
20% Midterm Exam
40% Final Exam

Exams There will be one mid-term and one final in the course. The final exam will be cumulative, cover materials from the first lecture thru the last lecture and from the first reading assignment thru the last reading assignment, and be about twice the length of the midterm. The midterm will constitute 20% of the final grade and the final exam will carry 40% of the final grade. The tests will contain - multiple choice, matching, and true/false questions.

Weekly Assignments: Weekly Assignments will be graded on a point system.

1 point will be assigned for typed reading summaries that are complete; cover a full range of information found in the assigned readings and are of adequate length.
1 point will be assigned for assignments that are organized by topic headings.
1 point will be assigned for reflection essays that coherently explain and not just state a perspective…
1 point will be assigned for weekly assignments that are turned in on-time: before class (and within a 5 minute grace period after the hour).

Extra Credit: There is no system of getting extra credit in the course.

Schedule of Exams: The midterm will be given at 5 PM on MAY 9th; the final exam has been scheduled by the Registar’s Office for Tuesday June 12; 7:30-10:30 p.m. North Hall 1109

Academic Integrity

Each student in this course is expected to abide by the University of California’s Standards of Academic Conduct. It is expected that students attending the University of California understand and subscribe to the ideal of academic integrity, and are willing to bear individual responsibility for their work. Any work (written or otherwise) submitted to fulfill an academic requirement must represent a student's original work. Any act of academic dishonesty such as cheating or plagiarism, will subject a person to University disciplinary action. Using or attempting to use materials, information, study aids, or commercial ``research'' services not authorized by the instructor of the course constitutes cheating. Representing the words, ideas, or concepts of another person without appropriate attribution is plagiarism. Whenever another person's written work is utilized, whether it be single phrase or longer, quotation marks must be used and sources cited. Paraphrasing another's work, i.e., borrowing the ideas or concepts and putting them into one's ``own'' words, must also be acknowledged. Students are expected to take responsibility for knowing the limits of permissible or expected cooperation on any assignment. You are encouraged to study together and to discuss information and concepts covered in lecture and the sections with other students. During examinations, you must do your own work. Talking or discussion is not permitted during the examinations, nor may you compare papers, copy from others, or collaborate in any way. Any collaborative behavior during the examinations will result in failure of the exam, and may lead to failure of the course and University disciplinary action. If you are at all uncertain about the application of these standards, please consult your course instructor.

Additional Resources
In addition to the resources of the department, a wide range of services is available to support you in your efforts to meet the course requirements.
Campus Learning Assistance Service: 893-3269. CLAS helps students increase their mastery of course material through course-specific tutoring and academic skills development. Check out our tutorial groups and drop-in tutoring schedules posted on our web site: www.clas.ucsb.edu. Sign up for services at our main office, Building 477, 9-5 daily.
Counseling & Career Services: (893-4411, www.counseling.ucsb.edu) offers counseling for personal & career concerns, self-help information and connections to off-campus mental health resources.
Disabled Students Program: 893-2668; www.sa.ucsb.edu DSP provides academic support services to eligible students with temporary and permanent disabilities. Please inform Dr. Jochim if you require special classroom accommodations due to a disability. You must register with DSP prior to receiving these accommodations.

1.) - From Steven Pinker’s page describing his book The Blank Slate: the modern denial of human nature http://pinker.wjh.harvard.edu/books/tbs/index.html