Lurking on the Internet aims to put a human face on psychopathology for the abnormal psychology course. Student groups are assigned major diagnostic categories and instructed to search the Internet for discussion forums, individual blogs, or YouTube videos where affected individuals discuss their symptoms and lives. After discussing the ethics of…

This article describes an activity for an undergraduate abnormal psychology course that used student-generated data to illustrate normal versus clinically significant anxiety responses related to specific phobias. Students (N = 37) viewed 14 images of low- or high-anxiety valence and rated their subjective response to each. Discussion in a…

Describes the use of drama students to role play subjects of case studies in simulations of standard interviews in a college-level abnormal psychology class. Graduate drama students role-played clients in interviews with instructors or student panels. After the interviews, class discussion covered alternative possible diagnoses and possible…

We designed a cooperative learning classroom activity to enhance students' ability to understand psychological disorders and distinguish among anxiety, mood, and psychotic disorders. We employed a group interviewing approach with the instructor (or a graduate student) serving as the pseudo-client. Students interacted with a pseudo-client to arrive…

A graduate level practicum that introduces clinically-oriented psychology students to the applied and practical aspects of the field of psychiatry is described. The course format, goals, and benefits are examined. (RM)

Presents results from a survey of students in two sections of an abnormal psychology course. Assessed the number of students who had firsthand exposure to a psychiatric disorder (friend, family member, or themselves), the nature of the relationship, the average number of personal relationships with people with psychiatric disorders, and the…

Higher level thought involves both critical and creative thinking skills. Although the psychological literature is rich with research on teaching critical thinking, relatively little published work addresses ways of promoting creative thinking. In this article we describe the use of poetry writing in an abnormal psychology class to encourage…

Discusses a means for increasing undergraduate and graduate students' level of empathy. Assigned students to write about and role play a character that they create who suffers from a psychological disorder. Explains that after quantitative and qualitative analyses it was demonstrated that students' empathy increased. (CMK)

Presents results of a study that evaluated using popular movie clips, shown in the first class meeting of an abnormal psychology course, in relation to student enthusiasm. Compares two classes of female juniors, one using clips and one class not using them. States that the films portrayed psychological disorders. (CMK)

Explores six methods for incorporating into courses published autobiographies written by individuals suffering from mental disorders: (1) outside readings; (2) examples for classroom lectures; (3) primary texts for discussion sections; (4) remedial or extra-credit assignments; (5) information resources; and (6) source books for topical seminars.…

Theories and treatments of mental illness reflect the social, philosophical, and historical context in which they developed. This article describes ways to invite students to grapple with complex questions about "madness" from an interdisciplinary perspective. Looking at the construct of madness through multiple lenses (e.g., literature,…

An advanced undergraduate seminar in adolescent psychopathology is described. Course content, course materials, and special problems to be considered by the instructor are discussed. (RM)

Describes an 11-week course given at a nursing home to nursing home aides that focused on abnormal psychology and behavior intervention skills. Discusses the course goals, class composition, and course description. Addresses the problems and issues encountered with teaching this course to a nontraditional population in an unconventional setting.…

In this article we describe an in-class case-conference exercise designed to enhance the teaching of paradigms in abnormal psychology courses. The primary pedagogical goals are to increase awareness of how paradigms are applied in real-life settings; better distinguish between paradigms; and recognize how paradigms influence understanding of…

In this article, I describe the evolution of a problem-based service learning project in an undergraduate Abnormal Psychology course. Students worked in teams on a semester-long project to locate and evaluate information and treatment for specific psychiatric disorders. As part of the project, each team selected relevant bibliographic materials,…