Dr. Gass
HCOM 332
Spring 2010
Processes of Social Influence
HCOM 332
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General
Information
Office: College Park, 420-5 (4th<=
/sup>
floor)
Office Hours: Tues/Thur 10:00-11:15 am,
2:30-3:45 pm, or at other times by prior appointment
Phone: 657-278-3269
Email: rgass@fullerton.edu
Website: http://commfaculty.fullerton.edu/rgass
Text
and Assigned
Gass, R. H., & Seiter, J. S. (2007). Persuasion, social
influence and compliance gaining, 3rd ed.
Course
Aims and Goals
The primary goal of this course is to provide students with a
solid grounding in theories, principles, and strategies of social influenc=
e as
they relate to everyday life. Students will gain familiarity with findings=
from
empirical investigations on persuasion, social influence, and
compliance-gaining, and will learn about strategies and techniques of
persuasion relating to a wide variety of real-life communication contexts,
situations and settings.
Assignments
& Requirements
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Each
test or paper represents 25% of your course grade.
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=
1.
Tests: Two tests will be given, a midterm exam and a final exam. Ea=
ch
test will cover the material introduced during that portion of the semeste=
r. The
format of the tests will be objective (multiple choice) and the tests will=
be
non-cumulative. (25% of course grade per test)
=
2.
Application papers: Two application papers are required. The application is an a=
nalysis,
and application of a specific construct, principle, process, strategy, or
theory of persuasion and how it applies to a specific real-world setting. =
The
goal of the application paper is to build a bridge between theory and prac=
tice.
You should develop one specific application in depth and detail. You should
conduct outside research to supplement your analysis. I need a
“hard” copy of your paper, not just an electronic copy (5-7 pa=
ges,
typed, double-spaced, not counting references) (25% of course grade per pa=
per)
Writing
Style
Your paper should demonstrate upper division writing skills. =
Your
writing also should display your critical thinking ability; your ability to
understand theories, grasp concepts, discover interrelationships, and gene=
rate
your own insights. You should write clearly and succinctly and proofread y=
our
paper carefully for grammatical and syntactical errors. The format of your paper should c=
onform
to the guidelines set forth in the A.P.A. style manual, 5th edi=
tion.
Attendance
and Participation
You should be prepared to ask and answer questions, provide
thoughtful commentary, and engage in meaningful discussions. This will req=
uire
that you do more than “skim” the reading material. A pattern of
lack of preparation to discuss assigned readings may result in a reduction=
in
your course grade. You may miss a maximum of four class meetings wi=
thout
penalty. Late arrivals and early departures also count as absences. Additional absences will result i=
n a one
letter-grade reduction in your course grade, per absence. Absences do n=
ot
excuse you from assignments that are due on the date of an absence. Your d=
egree
of participation and enthusiasm in class discussions, exercises, and homew=
ork
assignments will be taken into account if you are between grades at
semester’s end.
Late
Assignments and Make-Up Exams
Make-up exams will be given only if a serious, compelling, an=
d verifiable
cause (such as an acute medical emergency) can be demonstrated, and the st=
udent
has made every reasonable effort to contact the instructor beforehand. Mak=
e-up
exams will not be given for reasons such as car trouble, work sched=
uling
conflicts, family or relationship crises, or non-school related travel pla=
ns.
All assignments will be announced sufficiently in advance to allow for tho=
rough
preparation and timely completion. All assignments should be submitted in
class, on their scheduled due dates. Assignments that are submitted one cl=
ass
meeting late will be docked one letter grade. Assignments that are submitt=
ed
two class meetings late will be accepted for half-credit. Assignments will=
not
be accepted two class meetings beyond their due date.
Grading
System
You
will receive a letter grade on all assignments. Plus
and minus grades will be given on individual assignments. Letter gr=
ades
correspond to a “4.0” scale.
|
A |
B |
C |
D |
F |
|
4.0 =3D A |
3.3 =3D B+ |
2.3 =3D C+ |
1.3 =3D D+ |
.6 or less =3D F |
|
3.7 =3D A- |
3.0 =3D B |
2.0 =3D C |
1.0 =3D D |
|
|
|
2.7 =3D B- |
1.7 =3D C- |
.7 =3D D- |
|
Your
overall semester grade is based on the combined, weighted letter grades you
receive on all assignments. For example, if you received a “B”
(3.0) on a test that was worth 20% of your course grade, the weighted value
would be 3.0 X .25 =3D .75. A grade of C+ (2.3 on a paper that was worth 2=
5% of
your grade) would be: 2.3 X .25 =3D .575.
A hypothetic=
al
student’s grade might work out as follows:
Application =
paper 1 =
B =
=3D
3.0 X .25 =3D .75
Midterm Exam=
=
C+ =
=3D
2.3 X .25 =3D .575
Application =
paper 2 =
B- =
=3D
2.7 X .25 =3D .675
Final exam
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;
2.925 (B)
Academic
Integrity Policy:
The department is committed to the highest standards of ethic=
al
conduct and academic excellence. Any student found guilty of plagiarism,
fabrication, cheating on exams, purchasing or downloading papers or other
assignments will receive a failing grade in the course (see University cat=
alog
statement on academic misconduct). A complete reference must be pro=
vided
whenever you refer to the words, ideas, statistics or other information
provided by an author. All direct quotations must be in quotation marks wi=
th a
page number (for Websites, the paragraph number). Failure to do so constit=
utes
an act of plagiarism.
Students
with Special Needs
I’m happy to make reasonable accommodations for any student =
with
special needs. A student making such a request should inform me during the
first week of classes about any disability or special need that may require specific
arrangements/accommodations related to attending class sessions, completing
course assignments, writing papers or quizzes/tests/examinations. Please note that for special arra=
ngements
to be made, a student with disabilities must register with the Office of
Disabled Student Services (DSS), located in UH-101
and at
(714-27=
8-3112).
Emergency Information
See the link below to access informati=
on on
what to do in the event of a campus emergency
h=
ttp://www.fullerton.edu/emergencypreparedness/ep_students.html
Emergency calls: dial 911
Non-emergency calls: (657) 278-2515
24 Hr. recorded emergency information:
(657) 278-0911, (657) 278-4444