PSYCHOLOGY 489- SOCIAL STIGMAS.docVIP

PSYCHOLOGY 489: SOCIAL STIGMAS Spring 2007 Instructor: Dr. Jennifer Richeson Class Time: 3-6 WED Office: Swift 119 Location: Swift 231 Email: jriches@northwestern.edu This course is an upper-level graduate seminar. Students will be introduced to classic and contemporary theory and research on the social psychology of stigma, primarily from the perspective of the stigmatized. The goal of the course is to provide an overview of this area of psychology and to stimulate creative thinking and research on this topic. Topics covered will include functions and nature of stigma, stigma and the self-concept, stereotype threat, attributional ambiguity, stigma and social interaction, and implications of stigma concealability and controllability. Course Requirements Readings Goffman (1963) Stigma: Notes on the management of a spoiled identity. Additional readings to be assigned. I expect that you will carefully and critically read all material prior to class. Carefully reflecting upon the material will not only help you understand the material and make valuable contributions to the discussion, but will also help you to incorporate new ideas, perspectives, and techniques into your own research. In short, an exciting and lively class discussion depends in large part on everybody carefully and critically reading the course material. There is only 1 required book for this class: Goffman, E. (1963). Stigma: Notes on the management of spoiled identity. Prentice Hall: Englewood Cliffs, NJ. All other class readings will be available either electronically on in hard copy on the Psychology main office. Attendance Participation (25%) Class attendance and participation are required and constitute a substantial portion of your grade. I like to think of my classroom as a community, where success depends upon the contributions of every member. A successful classroom community exists when we all come to class prepared and contribute to the class discussion in a thoughtful, cri