Dana S. Dunn

Introspection, Attitude Change, and Attitude-Behavior Consistency: the Disruptive Effects of Explaining Why we Feel the Way we Do

Publisher Summary The chapter presents evidence consistent with the observations of Roethke and Vargas Llosa that introspection can be disruptive. The focus is on one type of introspection-thinking—the reasons for ones feelings. The chapter demonstrates that this type of thought can cause people to change their minds about the way they feel and lead to a disconnection between their attitudes and their behavior. It is clear that asking people to think about reasons will often produce attitude change, particularly for affectively based attitudes. The direction of this change, however, has been difficult to predict. The chapter explains people who think about reasons and end up with an attitude that is significantly more negative or positive, on the average, than the attitudes of control subjects. The direction of attitude change is difficult to predict, because it is closely related to the hypothesis about the generation of a biased sample of reasons. In the chapter, there are at least two sorts of harmful attitudes that might be changed by thinking about reasons—those that are undesirable from the individuals perspective and those that are undesirable from a societal perspective.

Quality Benchmarks in Undergraduate Psychology Programs

Performance benchmarks are proposed to assist undergraduate psychology programs in defining their missions and goals as well as documenting their effectiveness. Experienced academic program reviewers compared their experiences to formulate a developmental framework of attributes of undergraduate programs focusing on activity in 8 domains: curriculum, assessment issues, student learning outcomes, program resources, student development, faculty characteristics, program climate, and administrative support. A continuum of performance was conceptualized for each attribute in each of the domains to characterize underdeveloped, developing, effective, and distinguished achievement for undergraduate programs. The authors hope to inspire a national conversation about program benchmarks in psychology in order to improve program quality, encourage more effective program reviews, and help optimally functioning programs compete more successfully for resources on the basis of their distinguished achievements.

Disability identity: exploring narrative accounts of disability.

OBJECTIVE To review a type of narrative identity, disability identity, which is a potentially important topic concerning the social psychology of disability. Disability identity entails a positive sense of self, feelings of connection to, or solidarity with, the disability community. A coherent disability identity is believed to help individuals adapt to disability, including navigating related social stresses and daily hassles. Attention to disability narratives will enable rehabilitation psychologists to develop detailed theories and plan empirical investigations aimed at exploring the psychosocial applications of disability identity. METHOD We examined six narratives (e.g., articles, chapters, books, blogs) written by people with disabilities in order to identify excerpts illustrating disability identity. RESULTS Using themes drawn from disability-identity research (i.e., communal attachment, affirmation of disability, self-worth, pride, discrimination, personal meaning), we categorized excerpts from the narratives. CONCLUSION By highlighting positive aspects of disability identity, the study of disability narratives can inform persons with and without disabilities about how individuals live with disabilities. We discuss reasons rehabilitation researchers and practitioners should consider disability identity and narratives in their respective efforts.

Measuring up : educational assessment challenges and practices for psychology

Psychology teachers and administrators in high school through graduate programs are repeatedly challenged by parents, politicians, and school reformers to provide solid evidence that their instruction is both effective and demonstrative. This practical volume addresses that challenge head on, by providing the most up-to-date thinking and concrete practices of experienced scientist-educators. Using the information provided in this volume, educators will be able to demonstrate learning, track and measure student achievement, and gauge quality of instruction.

Collaborative Writing in a Statistics and Research Methods Course

I apply two writing techniques—collaborative writing and peer review—to an experimental project in a statistics and research methods course. Student reactions to the collaboration and peer exercise are discussed.

Lessons Learned from an Interdisciplinary Writing Course: Implications for Student Writing in Psychology

I discuss writing techniques and assessment methods and their use in Communication, the interdisciplinary writing course I teach. The writing techniques are freewriting, small-group work, and peer tutoring. The assessment methods include commentary on written assignments by more than one faculty evaluator, peer feedback, and optional versus mandatory rewriting. I then recommend applications for these writing techniques and assessment methods in psychology courses.

The Collaborative Honors Project in Psychology: Enhancing Student and Faculty Development

A collaborative honors project in psychology, in contrast to the traditional approach, allows more than one student and more than one faculty adviser to investigate a broad range of research issues. We discuss the advantages and demands of collaborative research and review our experience with one such project.

Revisiting a Constructive Classic: Wright's Physical Disability: A Psychosocial Approach.

Beatrice A. Wrights (1960) classic book, Physical Disability: A Psychological Approach is a landmark publication in rehabilitation psychology. The authors believe that Division 22s forthcoming 50th anniversary, the results of a recent survey on essential readings in rehabilitation psychology, and a public critique concerning the relevance of individuating language in psychology are compelling reasons for revisiting the influence of Physical Disability. After discussing these catalysts, the authors review the books history, scholarly impact, and link to positive disciplinary directions. The authors conclude by encouraging rehabilitation psychologists and other members of the discipline to (re)acquaint themselves with this important book and the timeless concepts it espouses.

Integrating Psychology into the Interdisciplinary Core Curriculum.

I argue that the discipline of psychology can be effectively presented to undergraduates in an interdisciplinary core curriculum. I briefly review ways to place psychology in core curricula and present an illustrative curriculum introduced at Moravian College in 1990. I discuss how psychology is covered in three of seven courses from this curriculum and conclude by discussing benefits of interdisciplinary core programs.

Best practices for teaching beginnings and endings in the psychology major : research, cases, and recommendations

Introductory and capstone experiences in the undergraduate psychology program are crucial ways to engage students in their major and psychology department, impart realistic expectations, and prepare them for life beyond college. Providing the right orientation and capstone courses in psychology education is increasingly a concern of instructors, department chairs, program directors, and deans, and both types of courses have become important sources for gathering pre- and post-coursework assessment data for degree learning outcomes. The strategies presented here have been designed to help educators examine issues around teaching the introductory or careers course and developing a psychology-specific orientation program. The authors also provide concrete suggestions for building capstone experiences designed to fit the needs of a department, its pedagogical philosophy, or the educational agenda of the college or university. Undergraduate psychology curriculum designers and instructors can benefit from learning innovative and effective strategies for introducing the major to first-year students and, at graduation, for bringing closure, reinforcing the overall departmental learning outcomes, and helping students apply their disciplinary knowledge in capstone experiences and post-graduate life. In this collection of articles, psychology instructors involved in the improvement of teaching and learning review the research and share their own successes and challenges in the classroom. Discussions include effective practices for helping students become acclimated to and engaged in the psychology major, application of developmental knowledge and learning communities to course design, and use of quality benchmarks to improve introductory and capstone courses. Other chapters describe innovations in the design of stand-alone courses and offer concrete advice on counseling psychology graduates about how to use what they have learned beyond their higher education experiences.