Unit convenor and teaching staff |
Unit convenor and teaching staff
Julie Fitness
Tutor
Alessa Teunisse
Tutor
Christine Leonards
Tutor
Brad Skinner
Tamara Paulin
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Credit points |
Credit points
3
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Prerequisites |
Prerequisites
39cp at 100 level or above
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Corequisites |
Corequisites
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Co-badged status |
Co-badged status
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Unit description |
Unit description
Human beings are fundamentally social creatures who depend on one another for their survival and well-being, both physical and psychological. Everyone is born with powerful needs for love, friendship and belonging; similarly, we fear and avoid rejection, loneliness and the disapproval of others. Despite the central role they play in our lives, however, developing and maintaining happy and healthy relationships with family members, spouses, friends and even workmates is not easy, and professional psychologists spend the bulk of their time dealing with clients' relationship problems. This unit examines a variety of relationship topics from a social psychological perspective including attraction, love- and mate selection; kinship, friendship and enemyship; jealousy, betrayal and forgiveness; communication, conflict and aggression; and the processes involved in relationship breakdown and repair. Throughout, there is a strong emphasis on critically examining so-called 'pop' psychological approaches to relationships, and students are encouraged to examine the complexities of relationship structures and processes from different cultural perspectives.
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Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
Name | Weighting | Hurdle | Due |
---|---|---|---|
Oral presentation | 10% | No | During semester |
Research Report | 20% | No | 4th September |
Essay | 30% | No | 16th October |
Final examination | 40% | No | End of semester |
Due: During semester
Weighting: 10%
Each student is to present a brief talk on the paper they wrote about for their Research Report.
Due: 4th September
Weighting: 20%
The purpose of this report is to give students some experience of finding and critically reviewing relevant psychological literature on a relationship-related question of their own choosing. Markers will be looking for a well-structured, coherent and thoughtful critique of the chosen literature.
Due: 16th October
Weighting: 30%
A 1200-word essay on one of the topics provided in the second week of semester.
Due: End of semester
Weighting: 40%
An 80-item, multiple-choice exam on material from lectures and lecture readings.
A 2-hour lecture is presented every Tuesday at 4-6pm in C5CT1. Lectures are also accessible via ECHO recordings. Tutorials are compulsory and comprise one, 2-hour class every fortnight, beginning in Week 2.
LECTURE OUTLINE
Week |
Date |
Topic |
Lecturer |
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1 |
(1/8) |
Human Relationships: Types, functions & processes Text: Chapters 1 and 2 No tutorials this week |
Professor Julie Fitness |
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2 |
(8/8) |
Attraction, attachment and pairbonding Text: Chapters 5 and 7 Tutorials begin this week |
Professor Julie Fitness
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3 |
(15/8) |
Mate selection: The psychology of beauty Text: Chapters 4 and 6 |
Dr. Ian Stephen |
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4 |
(22/8) |
Relationship cognition – perceiving, thinking, judging and remembering in close relationships Text: Chapters 3 and 8 |
Professor Julie Fitness |
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5 |
(29/8) |
Feelings and emotions in close relationships Reading: Fitness, J. (2015). Emotions in relationships. In J.A. Simpson & J. Dovidio (Eds.), APA Handbook of personality and social psychology, Vol. 3: Interpersonal relations (pp. 297-318). American Psychological Association, Washington DC. |
Professor Julie Fitness
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6 |
(5/9) |
Communication and conflict in relationships Text: Chapters 9 and 11 |
Professor Julie Fitness |
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7 |
(12/9) |
Families and family dynamics Reading: Fitness, J., & Duffield, J. (2004). Emotion communication in families. In A. Vangelisti (Ed.), Handbook of family communication (pp. 473-494). New Jersey: Erlbaum. |
Professor Julie Fitness |
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BREAK |
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8 |
(3/10) |
Relationships and the internet Reading: Finkel, E., Eastwick, O., Karney, B., Reis, H., & Sprecher, S. (2012). Online dating: A critical analysis from the perspective of psychological science. Psychological Science in the Public Interest 13(1) 3–66. |
Ms. Alessa Teunisse |
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9 |
(10/10) |
Psychopathy and close relationships (hour 1) Reading: Kirkman, C. A. (2005). From soap opera to science: Towards gaining access to the psychopaths who live amongst us. Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice, 78, 379-396.
Emotional intelligence in relationships (hour 2) Reading: Fitness. J. (2006). The emotionally intelligent marriage. In J. Ciarrochi, J. P. Forgas, & J Mayer (Eds.), Emotional intelligence in everyday life (2nd ed.), NY: Psychology Press.
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Dr Mem Mahmut
Dr Alissa Beath |
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10 |
(17/10) |
Betrayal, punishment and forgiveness in close relationships Reading: Fitness, J. (2012). Betrayal and forgiveness in close relationships: Exploring the roles of pain and punishment in relationship repair. In P. Noller & G. Kerantzas (Eds.), Couples and family relationships: A guide to contemporary research, theory, practice and policy (pp. 259-270). UK: Wiley-Blackwell.
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Professor Julie Fitness |
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11 |
(24/10) |
Relationship loss and repair Text: Chapter 12
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Professor Julie Fitness
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12 |
(2/11) |
Friendship and social support Reading: Perlman, D., Stevens, & Carcedo, R. (2015). Friendship. In J.A. Simpson & J. Dovidio (Eds.), APA Handbook of personality and social psychology, Vol. 3: Interpersonal relations (pp. 463- 493). American Psychological Association, Washington DC
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Professor Julie Fitness
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13 |
(9/11) |
Unit review: Relationships in an ethical context. Exam preparation |
Professor Julie Fitness |
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Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central. Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:
Academic Honesty Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/academic_honesty/policy.html
Assessment Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/assessment/policy_2016.html
Grade Appeal Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/gradeappeal/policy.html
Complaint Management Procedure for Students and Members of the Public http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/complaint_management/procedure.html
Disruption to Studies Policy (in effect until Dec 4th, 2017): http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/disruption_studies/policy.html
Special Consideration Policy (in effect from Dec 4th, 2017): https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policies/special-consideration
In addition, a number of other policies can be found in the Learning and Teaching Category of Policy Central.
Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/support/student_conduct/
Results shown in iLearn, or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au.
Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/
Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to improve your marks and take control of your study.
Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Service who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.
For all student enquiries, visit Student Connect at ask.mq.edu.au
For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/.
When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.
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