Tarleton State University - Central Texas

Department of Psychology & Counseling

 

CPSY 558 110 Counseling Perspectives on Psychopathology

Spring 2008

Thursday 6-9 PM

 

Professor:         Coady Lapierre, Ph.D., LSSP

Phone:              (254) 519-5428

E-Mail:             lapierre@tarleton.edu

Web Site:         www.tarleton.edu/~lapierre

Office:  Rm.      133B, TSU Center

Office Hours:    Monday - Friday 12 – 5 PM   

                            Additional Hours by Appointment

 

Textbooks (Required):

American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental

Disorders, (4th ed.) Text Revision. Washington, DC: Author.

ISBN 0890420254

Note: DSM-IV is acceptable, but not preferred.

Maxmen, J.S., & Ward, N.G. (1995). Essential Psychopathology & Its Treatment (2nd

ed.) W.W. Norton.

ISBN 0393701735

Textbooks (Optional): (Note, these are helpful study guides, but not required)

Spitzer, R., Gibbon, M., Skodol, A., Williams, J., & First, M. (2002). DSM-IV-TR Case Book. Washington DC: American Psychiatric Publishing Inc.

            ISBN 1585620599

Othmer, E. & Othmer, S. (2002). The clinical interview using the DSM-IV-TR Volume 1: Fundementals. Washington DC: American Psychiatric Publishing Inc.

            ISBN 1585620513

Readings:       Materials and articles may be assigned as they become available.

 

Course Description:

            An overview of psychopathology that includes the history of abnormal behavior and an in-depth study of the specific diagnostic psychological disorders. Emphasis will be on classification systems currently used in clinical settings and treatment alternatives from a counseling perspective. Covers related ethical concerns. (Tarleton State University, 2007, p. 321).

 

Course Objectives:

            Students will demonstrate mastery of the following:

1)                  An ability to accurately diagnose mental illnesses and issues.

2)                  An understanding of what approaches and techniques are most effective with various disorders.

 

Course Calendar:                   DSM section/topic                        Maxmen.&Ward Chap.

Week 1            Jan. 17             Introduction & Overview                     

Week 2            Jan. 24             Multiaxial Assessment; GAF                                         2         

Week 3            Jan. 31             Clinical Assessment & Diagnosis                    3 & Appendix F

Week 4            Feb. 7              Test 1  Developmental (Childhood) Online                    20

Week 5            Feb. 14            Developmental (Childhood)                                          20

Week 6            Feb. 21            Research Paper Due   Mood & Personality               10&19

Week 7            Feb. 28            Eating, Somatoform and Impulse Control                      12&16 
Week 8            Mar. 6              Sleep, Sexual/Gender & Adjustment                             15&17

Week 9            Mar. 13            Test 2   

Week 10          Mar. 20           Spring Break

Week 11          Mar. 27            Schizophrenia & Psychotic                                            9              

Week 12          Apr. 3              Research Paper Due  Anxiety & Substances 11

Week 13          Apr. 10            Dissociative, Delirium, Dementia                                   7 & 14

Week 14          Apr. 17            Mini-Conference

Week 15          Apr. 24            Ethical, Legal & Professional Issues & Final Review

Week 16          May 1              Comprehensive Final                                    

 

Course Grades:                                                                                  Final Grade:

Test 1                                       20 pts.                                                  90-100 pts.      A

Test 2                                       20 pts.                                                  80-89 pts.        B

Research papers:                      30 pts. (15 pts. each x 2)                      70-79 pts.        C

Classroom Participation:           5 pts.                                                    60-69 pts.        D

Final                                         25 pts.                                                  Below 60 pts.   F

 

Exams:

Examinations will cover assigned readings, lecture material, and class discussions. Students are expected to take all examinations as scheduled. It is the student’s responsibility to contact the professor to arrange alternative times to take tests. This should be completed in advance of scheduled test times. Tests 1 will focus on technical information and vocabulary. It will be in multiple choice and/or short answer format. Test 2 will be application based. The final examination will be a comprehensive overview of the course with technical and conceptual information required.

 

Classroom Participation:

Students should arrive at class prepared to share their views on the week’s assignments and readings. Students will be required to behave in a manner expected of professionals in the field of psychology and students at Tarleton State. This includes but is not limited to issues of: confidentiality, attendance, polite disagreements of view, timely completion of assignments, classroom participation, and factual verbal statements. Additional assignments to insure learning in these areas may be assigned. Late work will not be accepted without a documented University excused absence.

 

 

 

Research Papers:

The research papers will focus on conceptual understanding and real world application. Paper topics will focus on a psychopathology and the student will research current treatment methodologies. Topics will be assigned by the instructor. Students should be prepared to present their findings to the class. The paper will include 5 current (within 10 years) peer reviewed journal articles and be from 4 to 6 pages of text, not including title, abstract and reference pages. The papers will be in APA style.

 

Academic Honesty:

Tarleton State University expects its students to maintain high standards of personal and scholarly conduct. Students guilty of academic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary action. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, cheating on an examination or other academic work, plagiarism, collusion, and the abuse of resource materials. The faculty member is responsible for initiating action for each case of academic dishonesty that occurs in his/her class. (Tarleton State University, 2007, p. 37).

            Each student’s honesty and integrity are taken for granted. However, if your instructor finds evidence of academic misconduct he will pursue the matter to the fullest extent permitted by the university. Students are strongly advised to avoid even the appearance of academic misconduct. When you use a source’s actual words, you must place those words in quotation marks (or a block quote) and credit the source of the information (i.e., cite the author(s) name (s) and the year of the publication) along with the page number(s) where the information is located in the source document. Please note – the quotation requirement (either using quotation marks or block quotes) is not circumvented when the writer simply changes a few words in a passage written by someone else. When you use another person’s ideas, but not their exact words, you must cite them as a source in the text of the paper. According the APA Style the author(s), name(s), and date of publication must be included in, or immediately follow, the writer’s statement of information from the source. Refer to the APA Publication Manual 5th edition for specifics. Another helpful source is: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/ (click the APA Style Guide).

 

Americans with Disabilities Act

If you have or believe you have a disability, you may wish to self-identify. You can do so by providing documentation to the office of the Disability Services Director on the Stephenville campus or to the office of the Academic Dean of the Tarleton State University - Central Texas. I encourage students with disabilities to speak with me about accommodations they might need to help assure success in this class.

Trina Geye                                           Pat Thomas

Director of Disabilities Services Asst.    Dean, Tarleton- Central Texas

Box T-0010                                         1901 S. Clear Creek Rd.

Stephenville, TX 76402                        Killeen, TX 76549

(254) 968-9480                                   (254) 519-5713

 

Reference: Tarleton State University (April 2006). Catalog 2007-2008: Undergraduate and graduate studies. Stephenville, TX: Author.

While this represents the focus and direction of this course, this syllabus is subject to change.