Re: [tips] Silly season for psychic psychology?

2011-01-11 Thread Jim Clark
Hi

Personally, I believe that Stephen's posting is quite appropriate given the 
subject matter.  But putting my naturalistic biases aside, I would assume that 
even believers in a supernatural realm would have some issue with claims that 
certain people are able to communicate with the deceased (or whatever 
immaterial elements are left of them).  Indeed one of the ironies, perhaps, of 
claiming such an ability is that it brings the whole area of the "beyond" under 
scientific purview, whereas large numbers of believers appear to prefer that 
the two domains remain separate (i.e., Gould's separate magisteria).  I guess 
one concern could be that discrediting claims of scientific contact with the 
supernatural plane might only serve to undermine further people's beliefs.

Take care
Jim

James M. Clark
Professor of Psychology
204-786-9757
204-774-4134 Fax
j.cl...@uwinnipeg.ca

>>> Michael Smith  11-Jan-11 9:49:02 PM >>>
In reading your post, it seems as though your posting is riddled with
sarcasm, ridicule, and a-priori assumption.


When reading it, a scientific attitude is not what comes to mind.


--Mike

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Re: [tips] Mnookin on Vaccine and Autism

2011-01-11 Thread Jim Clark
Hi

Absolutely agreed ... it was ironic that the CBC program had first aired a 
member of an anti-vaccine group (she is in Winnipeg where I live) before 
Mnookin.  But it did give him a chance to point out her (and other's) errors.  
And he clearly made the point that mentioning a few pro and con advocates 
grossly misrepresents reality when there are relatively few on one side and a 
vast number on the other.  Mnookin himself is a journalist (contributing editor 
to Vanity Fair), apparently with a degree in history and science from Harvard, 
according to his website at

http://sethmnookin.com/bio/

Mnookin also described the problem of under-vaccination that many attribute in 
part to the vaccine-autism myth.  A little googling revealed serious problems 
in a number of locales with the percentage vaccinated falling below the 
critical level to protect the collective (i.e., reduced herd immunity).

Take care
Jim

James M. Clark
Professor of Psychology
204-786-9757
204-774-4134 Fax
j.cl...@uwinnipeg.ca

>>>  11-Jan-11 7:41:00 PM >>>
On 11 Jan 2011 at 15:52, Jim Clark wrote:

> The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) aired a radio interview with Seth 
> Mnookin, who has a book out on
> the vaccine - autism controversy.  In the part I heard, he gave a very 
> reasonable response on some of the
> claims made and harm done by the anti-vaccine group.  The audio is at: 
> http://www.cbc.ca/thecurrent/episode/2011/01/11/panic-virus---seth-mnookin/ 
> 
> Some of his final points included the false impression given by so-called 
> "balanced reporting" on
> controversial issues, and the importance of having reporters who understand 
> science. 

It's ironic that it's the CBC which brings us an interview in which 
the point is made that "balanced reporting" is not always a good (or 
responsible) idea. I distinctly recall that when the CBC recently 
reported on the breaking news of the Wakefield fraud,  they first let 
us hear from autism experts opposed to the theory that vaccines cause 
autism. Then they turned for a sound bite from another sort of 
expert, a naturopath (a naturopath!!!), who predictably claimed that 
there were still lots of reasons to fear vaccination. Now that's 
balanced reporting. 

The problem, it seems to me, is that it's difficult for reporters and 
the general public to distinguish between true experts and those who 
falsely claim to be. So reporters present both sides, believing them 
to be equally valid, and the public accepts them the same way. 

Wakefield would be a particularly difficult case. Here we have an 
apparently respected medical doctor, at  a respected hospital, with a 
research paper on a seemingly plausible hypothesis published in one 
of the most respected of medical journals. Long before the current 
fraud revelations, the untrustworthiness of his claim was well known 
in the scientific community, due to the weakness of his paper,  its 
lack of evidence, and the existence of substantial contrary evidence. 
We knew the claim that vaccination causes autism is junk science. But 
how could reporters and the public know that? So the two sides are 
given equal time and receive equal respect.

Siimilarly, when naturopaths and chiropractors tell us that 
fluoridation of drinking water is poisoning us, when psychoanalysts 
tell us that it's our parents who messed us up, or when gender 
feminists assert that Einstein stole credit for the theory of 
relativity from his wife,  reporters report and people listen. 
Because they perceive those proponents of nutty theories to be 
experts too. 

Stephen


Stephen L. Black, Ph.D.  
Professor of Psychology, Emeritus   
Bishop's University
Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada   
e-mail:  sblack at ubishops.ca
-

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Re: [tips] Silly season for psychic psychology?

2011-01-11 Thread Michael Smith
In reading your post, it seems as though your posting is riddled with
sarcasm, ridicule, and a-priori assumption.


When reading it, a scientific attitude is not what comes to mind.


--Mike

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Re: [tips] Mnookin on Vaccine and Autism

2011-01-11 Thread sblack
On 11 Jan 2011 at 15:52, Jim Clark wrote:

> The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) aired a radio interview with Seth 
> Mnookin, who has a book out on
> the vaccine - autism controversy.  In the part I heard, he gave a very 
> reasonable response on some of the
> claims made and harm done by the anti-vaccine group.  The audio is at: 
> http://www.cbc.ca/thecurrent/episode/2011/01/11/panic-virus---seth-mnookin/
> 
> Some of his final points included the false impression given by so-called 
> "balanced reporting" on
> controversial issues, and the importance of having reporters who understand 
> science. 

It's ironic that it's the CBC which brings us an interview in which 
the point is made that "balanced reporting" is not always a good (or 
responsible) idea. I distinctly recall that when the CBC recently 
reported on the breaking news of the Wakefield fraud,  they first let 
us hear from autism experts opposed to the theory that vaccines cause 
autism. Then they turned for a sound bite from another sort of 
expert, a naturopath (a naturopath!!!), who predictably claimed that 
there were still lots of reasons to fear vaccination. Now that's 
balanced reporting. 

The problem, it seems to me, is that it's difficult for reporters and 
the general public to distinguish between true experts and those who 
falsely claim to be. So reporters present both sides, believing them 
to be equally valid, and the public accepts them the same way. 

Wakefield would be a particularly difficult case. Here we have an 
apparently respected medical doctor, at  a respected hospital, with a 
research paper on a seemingly plausible hypothesis published in one 
of the most respected of medical journals. Long before the current 
fraud revelations, the untrustworthiness of his claim was well known 
in the scientific community, due to the weakness of his paper,  its 
lack of evidence, and the existence of substantial contrary evidence. 
We knew the claim that vaccination causes autism is junk science. But 
how could reporters and the public know that? So the two sides are 
given equal time and receive equal respect.

Siimilarly, when naturopaths and chiropractors tell us that 
fluoridation of drinking water is poisoning us, when psychoanalysts 
tell us that it's our parents who messed us up, or when gender 
feminists assert that Einstein stole credit for the theory of 
relativity from his wife,  reporters report and people listen. 
Because they perceive those proponents of nutty theories to be 
experts too. 

Stephen


Stephen L. Black, Ph.D.  
Professor of Psychology, Emeritus   
Bishop's University
Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada   
e-mail:  sblack at ubishops.ca
-

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Re: [tips] Mnookin on Vaccine and Autism

2011-01-11 Thread don allen

Hi Jim-

This sounds like a good resource. Thanks for passing it along. Unfortunately, 
the Jenny McCarthy's of this world don't give up their beliefs that easily.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jenny-mccarthy/vaccine-autism-debate_b_806857.html

"Post hoc ergo propter hoc" seems to be all of the logic that some people need.

-Don.
- Original Message -
From: Jim Clark 
Date: Tuesday, January 11, 2011 12:52 pm
Subject: [tips] Mnookin on Vaccine and Autism
To: "Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS)" 

> Hi
> 
> The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) aired a radio 
> interview with Seth Mnookin, who has a book out on the vaccine - 
> autism controversy.  In the part I heard, he gave a very 
> reasonable response on some of the claims made and harm done by 
> the anti-vaccine group.  The audio is at:
> 
> http://www.cbc.ca/thecurrent/episode/2011/01/11/panic-virus---
> seth-mnookin/
> 
> Some of his final points included the false impression given by 
> so-called "balanced reporting" on controversial issues, and the 
> importance of having reporters who understand science.  I 
> haven't read his book, but it sounds like it might be useful on 
> this issue.
> 
> Take care
> Jim
> 
> 
> James M. Clark
> Professor of Psychology
> 204-786-9757
> 204-774-4134 Fax
> j.cl...@uwinnipeg.ca
> 
> 
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Don Allen
Retired professor
Langara College



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Re: [tips] Mnookin on Vaccine and Autism

2011-01-11 Thread David Hogberg
Along those same lines, this past weekend's NPR "On the Media" dealt witht
he same topic.   It was most informative.  DKH

On Tue, Jan 11, 2011 at 3:52 PM, Jim Clark  wrote:

> Hi
>
> The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) aired a radio interview with
> Seth Mnookin, who has a book out on the vaccine - autism controversy.  In
> the part I heard, he gave a very reasonable response on some of the claims
> made and harm done by the anti-vaccine group.  The audio is at:
>
> http://www.cbc.ca/thecurrent/episode/2011/01/11/panic-virus---seth-mnookin/
>
> Some of his final points included the false impression given by so-called
> "balanced reporting" on controversial issues, and the importance of having
> reporters who understand science.  I haven't read his book, but it sounds
> like it might be useful on this issue.
>
> Take care
> Jim
>
>
> James M. Clark
> Professor of Psychology
> 204-786-9757
> 204-774-4134 Fax
> j.cl...@uwinnipeg.ca
>
>
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-- 
David K. Hogberg, PhD
Professor of Psychology, Emeritus
Department of Psychological Science
Albion College
Albion MI 49224

Tel: 517/629-4834, Mobile: 517/262-1277

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[tips] Mnookin on Vaccine and Autism

2011-01-11 Thread Jim Clark
Hi

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) aired a radio interview with Seth 
Mnookin, who has a book out on the vaccine - autism controversy.  In the part I 
heard, he gave a very reasonable response on some of the claims made and harm 
done by the anti-vaccine group.  The audio is at:

http://www.cbc.ca/thecurrent/episode/2011/01/11/panic-virus---seth-mnookin/

Some of his final points included the false impression given by so-called 
"balanced reporting" on controversial issues, and the importance of having 
reporters who understand science.  I haven't read his book, but it sounds like 
it might be useful on this issue.

Take care
Jim


James M. Clark
Professor of Psychology
204-786-9757
204-774-4134 Fax
j.cl...@uwinnipeg.ca


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Re: [tips] Chair advice?

2011-01-11 Thread Claudia Stanny
If your department has graduate programs, there is a Council of chairs of
graduate program in psychology (COGDOP) that has a listserv and an annual
meeting.  The chair of the UWF psychology program has always been involved
with that group.

I just googled them and they have a web site:  http://www.cogdop.org/

Locally, the three colleges created an All Chairs group that is organized by
a triumverate of chairs from each of the three colleges.  The group meets
periodically - usually at least once a term but more often as needs arise.
The group functions as peer mentoring and a means of communication among
chairs and between chairs and other administrators.  I'm not a chair, but I
attend this group's meetings to assist with questions about assessment and
faculty development.

Either Stylus or Jossey-Bass have some books on being a chair.  Check their
web sites.  I've got a few of these in the CUTLA library (you can search
that from the web site).
There are some good books on administration in HE in general.  Peter Seldin
has a book on creating an administrative portfolio - like a teaching
portfolio - that addresses some of these issues.  Robert Diamond edited a
book, *Field Guide to Academic Leadership *(2002 / Jossey-Bass) that has
excellent advice.  Jossey-Bass publishes *The Academic Chair's Handbook *(now
in a second edition).  Jossey-Bass also publishes a newsletter called *The
Department Chair.*
**

Claudia J. Stanny, Ph.D.
Director
Center for University Teaching, Learning, and Assessment
Associate Professor
School of Psychological and Behavioral Sciences
University of West Florida
11000 University Parkway
Pensacola, FL  32514 – 5751

Phone:   (850) 857-6355 or  473-7435

csta...@uwf.edu

CUTLA Web Site: http://uwf.edu/cutla/
Personal Web Pages: http://uwf.edu/cstanny/website/index.htm



On Tue, Jan 11, 2011 at 11:24 AM, Carol DeVolder
wrote:

>
> Hi,
> Now that I am once again able to see and respond to messages on TIPS, I
> have a question that is only tangentially related to teaching of psychology.
> Do any of you have resources on the ins and outs of being a good chair? Are
> there listservs for that? I've read books on it, but I'm still dissatisfied.
> My biggest issue is the area of conflict management. I suppose I could
> Google it, but I thought your collective wisdom might be better.
>
> Thanks,
> Carol
>
> --
> Carol DeVolder, Ph.D.
> Professor and Chair, Department of Psychology
> St. Ambrose University
> 518 West Locust Street
> Davenport, Iowa  52803
> 563-333-6482
>
> This e-mail might be confidential, so please don't share it.
>
>
>
> ---
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>
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Re: [tips] Chair advice?

2011-01-11 Thread Ken Steele


Carol:

Have you seen this site?

http://www.acenet.edu/resources/chairs/


Ken

---
Kenneth M. Steele, Ph.D.  steel...@appstate.edu
Professor and Assistant Chairperson
Department of Psychology  http://www.psych.appstate.edu
Appalachian State University
Boone, NC 28608
USA
---


Carol DeVolder wrote:
 


Hi,
Now that I am once again able to see and respond to messages on TIPS, I 
have a question that is only tangentially related to teaching of 
psychology. Do any of you have resources on the ins and outs of being a 
good chair? Are there listservs for that? I've read books on it, but I'm 
still dissatisfied. My biggest issue is the area of conflict management. 
I suppose I could Google it, but I thought your collective wisdom might 
be better.


Thanks,
Carol

--
Carol DeVolder, Ph.D.
Professor and Chair, Department of Psychology
St. Ambrose University
518 West Locust Street
Davenport, Iowa  52803
563-333-6482

This e-mail might be confidential, so please don't share it.




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[tips] Chair advice?

2011-01-11 Thread Carol DeVolder
Hi,
Now that I am once again able to see and respond to messages on TIPS, I have
a question that is only tangentially related to teaching of psychology. Do
any of you have resources on the ins and outs of being a good chair? Are
there listservs for that? I've read books on it, but I'm still dissatisfied.
My biggest issue is the area of conflict management. I suppose I could
Google it, but I thought your collective wisdom might be better.

Thanks,
Carol

-- 
Carol DeVolder, Ph.D.
Professor and Chair, Department of Psychology
St. Ambrose University
518 West Locust Street
Davenport, Iowa  52803
563-333-6482

This e-mail might be confidential, so please don't share it.

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RE: [tips] Revealing the grade distributions for our courses

2011-01-11 Thread Mike Palij
On Mon, 10 Jan 2011 20:36:44 -0800, Paul C Bernhardt wrote:
>I see no problem, also. I thought that the grade distribution was public 
>information for those of us teaching at public institutions (unless the class 
>has fewer than 10 students, then it can't be released by FERPA rules). 

Well, clearly opinions differ on this position which may be why 
SUNY-New Paltz had to await a Freedom of Information  request
before releasing its grades.  The fact that not all colleges in the U.S.
are listed on the CourseRank page (again, Harvard, etc.), including
public institutions such as UC-Los Angeles, UC-Irvine, UC-San Diego
(though other UC schools such as Berkeley, Merced, Santa Barbara,
San Francisco, etc. are listed) suggests that not all institutions agree
that such information is or should be public.  I'm sure that this issue
will be settled in the courts.

I would, however, ask that people seriously consider what info is actually
on the CourseRank website.  Relying upon one's experience with previous
attempts to provide course grades is one thing but what might be on the
CR website might be considerably different (unless, of course, your
administration never makes bureaucratic errors when it comes to filing
and reporting grades).  

-Mike Palij
New York University
m...@nyu.edu






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Re:[tips] Revealing the grade distributions for our courses

2011-01-11 Thread Rob Weisskirch
A company, Pic-a-Prof, sued the entire California State University to get
access to grade distributions.  At first, I think some faculty were alarmed,
particularly those part-timers who have less job security.  After all the
hoopla, nothing really became of it.

Rob

Rob Weisskirch, MSW. Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Human Development
Certified Family Life Educator
Liberal Studies Department
California State University, Monterey Bay
100 Campus Center, Building 82C
Seaside, CA 93955
(831) 582-5079
rweisski...@csumb.edu

This message is intended only for the addressee and may contain
confidential, privileged information.  If you are not the intended
recipient, you may not use, copy or disclose any information contained in
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sender by reply e-mail and delete the message.

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RE: [tips] Revealing the grade distributions for our courses

2011-01-11 Thread Jim Matiya

Our son went to Indiana about ten years ago.  When his grades arrived , we were 
very surprized. The report listed how any students in the class received As, 
Bs, Cs, Ds, and Fs.

I use to go to Ratemyprofessor, but I gave up a few years ago. I would read the 
ratings and say, "Hey, how about my side of the story? This student didn't come 
to class, didn't do the assignments,etc." 
 
I work really hard to get my students to do well. The bottom line is coming to 
class, doing assignments, reading the text, and studying for tests is what the 
students need to do. 

Jim
 
Jim Matiya 
Visiting Instructor in Psychology
Florida Gulf Coast University
jmat...@fgcu.edu
 
 

> Subject: RE: [tips] Revealing the grade distributions for our courses
> Date: Mon, 10 Jan 2011 23:36:35 -0500
> From: pcbernha...@frostburg.edu
> To: tips@fsulist.frostburg.edu
> 
> I see no problem, also. I thought that the grade distribution was public 
> information for those of us teaching at public institutions (unless the class 
> has fewer than 10 students, then it can't be released by FERPA rules).
> 
> When I was an undergraduate at Georgia Tech an enterprising group of students 
> started rating professors based on student feedback. They put forms in drop 
> boxes on campus (how they got permission, I don't know). Students filled them 
> out and they collected the ratings (this was before institutionalized teacher 
> evaluations were done) and comments. If you remember those days, you also 
> remember grades being posted on the teacher's office door, often listed by 
> student number which was your SSN (!) for the longest time. So, getting the 
> grade distribution for nearly all classes was just an exercise in walking the 
> hallways the week after finals. So, grade distributions were published, too. 
> They published it in book form and sold it for a few bucks. It was always too 
> late to use for the next quarter, but it was useful for many terms later. We 
> bought them in droves.
> 
> I see sites like ratemyprofessor as the same thing as that book from over 30 
> years ago. I'm surprised students don't enter information into it more.
> 
> Paul C. Bernhardt
> Department of Psychology
> Frostburg State University
> Frostburg, Maryland
> 
> 
> 
> -Original Message-
> From: don allen [mailto:dap...@shaw.ca]
> Sent: Mon 1/10/2011 9:03 PM
> To: Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS)
> Subject: Re: [tips] Revealing the grade distributions for our courses
> 
> Hi Miguel-
> 
> I don't see a problem with this at all. In fact, I think that it is a 
> positive. Really not very different than ratemyprofessors.com. If I were to 
> become a student again (in a formal sense; I hope I never stop being a 
> student) I would want to have access to a resource like this. I once worked 
> with a person who regularly failed half of his class. By midterm, his class 
> of 15 (all he could muster) was down to seven. A lot of the students didn't 
> even bother to attend his classes. I once walked down the hall and saw him 
> lecturing to TWO! students. If these students had had access to course eval 
> information and grade distributions they would have voted with their feet & 
> we could have gotten rid of him far more quickly. Information empowers. Sure, 
> some will use it in the search for the "easy A", but others will use it to 
> avoid the (hopefully few) toxic profs.
> 
> -Don.
> 
> - Original Message -
> From: roig-rear...@comcast.net
> Date: Monday, January 10, 2011 3:17 pm
> Subject: [tips] Revealing the grade distributions for our courses
> To: "Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS)" 
> 
> 
> >
> >
> > This weekend's edition of the NY Times included the Education
> > Life section, which had an interesting opinion piece about how a
> > private company used the Freedom of Information Act
> > to successfully force professors at one state university to
> > reveal the grade distributions for their courses.
> >
> >
> >
> > From the article:
> >
> >
> >
> > "The company is in the process of uploading the grades on
> > CourseRank.com , a class planning Web site that Chegg acquired
> > in August. Students who register for CourseRank will be able to
> > take into account a professor's grade distribution, along with
> > peer reviews and ratings, when deciding whether to take a
> > class".
> >
> >
> >
> > http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/09/education/edlife/09notebook-
> > t.html?_r=1&ref=edlife
> >
> >
> >
> > The piece raises a number of questions: Will students begin to
> > make course section selections based on the instructor's grading
> > profile? Does this approach further encourage grade inflation?
> >
> >
> >
> > Miguel
> >
> >
> > ---
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[tips] Statistical analysis & Bem's ESP article

2011-01-11 Thread Helweg-Larsen, Marie
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/11/science/11esp.html?nl=todaysheadlines&emc=tha210



Marie Helweg-Larsen, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Psychology
Danish Institute for Study Abroad (DIS), +45 2065 1360
Dickinson College (on leave 2010/2011)
http://users.dickinson.edu/~helwegm/index.html



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