Syllabus
Course Schedule
Course Requirements
Grading Procedures
Professor:
Amy Jo Stavnezer
Office: Morgan
109
Office hours: Monday 11-12, Tuesday and Wednesday 3-4, or by appointment
Contact info:
ajstavnezer@wooster.edu, x2215
Required
Textbook:
Cialdini, R.B. (2001). Influence: Science and Practice,
4th Ed. Allyn and Bacon: Boston.
Goldman, R. & Papson, S. (2003). Nike Culture. Sage: Thousand
Oaks, California.
Kilbourne, J. (1999). Can’t Buy My Love: How Advertising Changes
The Way We Think And
Feel. Touchstone: New York.
Supplemental readings provided on Electronic Reserve (ERes), password:
ADS
Classroom Etiquette:
The classroom is meant to be a learning environment, both from the instructor
and from one another. However, learning is inhibited when there is a
lack of respect for one another’s individuality as well as for
the class as a whole. In order to better facilitate a beneficial environment
for all, I have decided to set a few ground rules.
• BE ON TIME. People coming in late disrupts
the flow of the class and places them behind in the material covered
in class. Our class time is precious and limited, and no one would like
to spend that time repeating material for late-comers. Occasionally,
being late cannot be helped, and that is fine. But routine tardiness
shows a lack of respect for the entire class, and
it will not be tolerated.
•
DO NOT PACK UP EARLY. As stated above, our time together is limited
and we will use the entire 50 minutes. Please do not begin to
pack up until that time has expired, it disrupts your classmates who
are trying to pay attention.
•
RAISE YOUR HAND WHEN YOU WISH TO SPEAK. There are times when several
people want to speak, so some just blurt out their responses. This behavior,
especially when repeatedly perpetrated, takes away people’s equal
access to the classroom forum. If you speak out of turn, you will be
ignored.
•
NO TALKING out of turn. Discussions or comments with your neighbors
while I or one of your classmates is speaking is disrespectful to us
all. If you missed something that was said, let us know and the speaker
will repeat it.
•
Any beepers or phones will be turned off or otherwise silenced
during class time. If your phone rings during class, leave.
•
Breakfast really is an important meal and should not be skipped.
If you need to, you can bring it to class as long as you are respectful
and dispose of the trash at the end of class.
These
rules may seem brutally obviously, but I am laying them out to let you
know how serious I am about establishing a learning environment built
on mutual respect.
Course
Schedule:
| Date |
Topic |
Readings |
Writing Assignments |
| 31-Aug |
Intro to Advertising and Classical Conditioning |
Pavlovian Conditioning (ERes) |
Begin Formal Assignment #1 |
| 2-Sep |
Intro to Operant Conditioning |
Operant Conditioning (ERes) |
|
| 7 |
Intro to Motivation and Decision Making |
Cialdini - Chapter 1; Consumers (ERes) |
Formal Assignment #1 due |
| 9 |
Intro to Advertising |
Kilbourne - Chapter 2, Truth in Advertising
(ERes)
Sept 10 - Last day to add courses |
|
| 14 |
Prof. Jim Hornsten - The
Business of advertising |
Goldman and Papson - Chapter 1 |
|
| 16 |
Reciprocation |
Cialdini - Chapter 2 |
|
| 21 |
Commitment and Consistency |
Cialdini - Chapter 3 |
|
| 23 |
Social Proof |
Cialdini - Chapter 4 |
Formal Assignment #2 Draft Due |
| 28 |
Liking & Celebrity |
Cialdini - Chapter 5; Goldman and Papson
- Chapter 3 |
|
| 30 |
Authority & Celebrity |
Cialdini - Chapter 6; Goldman and Papson
- Chapter 3 |
Formal Assignemnt #2 Due |
| 5-Oct |
Prof. Amy Carter - Political
advertising |
Goldstein and Strach (ERes) |
|
| 7 |
Metacommunication |
Goldman and Papson - Chapter 2
Oct 8 - Last day to drop courses |
|
| 12 |
Metacommunicating |
Kilbourne - Chapters 4 & 5 |
|
| 14 |
Memory's influence on Advertising |
Make My Memory (ERes) |
|
| 19 |
No Class- Fall Break |
no class |
no class |
| 21 |
Women in Advertising |
Kilbourne - Chapter 6 |
|
| 26 |
Women in Advertising |
Kilbourne - Chapter 12; Goldman and Papson
- Chapter 6 |
|
| 28 |
Women and Body Image Practice with empirical
articles |
Examining the Links Among Magazine Preference;
The Impact of Exposure; Does Size Matter (ERes) |
|
| 2-Nov |
Relationships in Advertising |
Kilbourne - Chaper 3 & 10 |
|
| 4 |
Peer Review |
no readings - peer review in class |
Formal Assignment #3 Rough Draft Due |
| 9 |
Glenn Zimmerman - Packaging |
Kilbourne - Chapter 1 |
Formal Assignment #3 Rough Draft Due |
| 11 |
Advertising to Children |
Saturday Morning Fever; Dear Santa; The Meaning
of Brand Names to Children; Fast Food Nation (ERes) |
|
| 16 |
Sarah Bergin - Marketing
a product |
New Branded World (ERes) |
peer reviews outside of class |
| 18 |
Children in Advertising |
tba
Nov 20 - Spring Registration |
Formal Assignment #3 Due |
| 23 |
Alcohol and Rebellion |
Kilbourne - Chapter 7; Goldman and Papson
- Chapter 4 |
|
| 25 |
No Class - Thanksgiving Break |
no class |
no class |
| 30 |
Cigarettes and Transcendence |
Kilbourne - Chapter 8; Goldman and Papson
- Chapter 5 |
|
| 2-Dec |
In class Peer Review of Commercial Presentations |
peer review of presentations with TA |
|
| 7 |
Group presentations of Commercials |
|
Group Project, Individual Written Piece Due |
| 9 |
no class |
no class |
Formal Assignment #4 Due, Dec 9th by 5pm. |
Course
Requirements:
Attendance: For several reasons attendance
in this class is required. First of all, this is a course to help
acquaint you with college life, and attending classes is the main reason
one attends college. Second, this is a discussion-based class,
and discussion can only happen if there are bodies in the room, okay
I like to hear myself talk, but not for 80 minutes straight! Third,
I want to hear your thoughts on this topic, which again is impossible
if your vocal apparatus is not present in the room. Fourth, this
will hopefully become a class that you enjoy attending as bonds are
formed between class members and also with the material.
Class Participation and Discussion: Picking up from #4
above, I chose a topic that I thought would generate meaningful discussion.
With so many ads surrounding us each day, it's something we can't really
ignore. Why do you like/dislike that ad? What about that
ad draws you toward/repels you from that product? Being a discussion
based course, with a heavy emphasis on students learning to think critically
about the material, if you donÕt participate we sit in silence, which
I promise you is not comfortable. The point of this course is
not for me to tell you what I think about ads or media or propaganda,
but for you to form your own opinions through the assignments we complete
and the critical thinking we do about the arguments in the process of
discussing and writing. In order to receive full-credit for participation,
you must participate actively on a regular basis during class discussions
and you must participate in the in-class writing assignments.
Daily Class Preparation: Again following from the above,
participation requires that you come to class prepared. The first thing
required in this process is that you come to class having completed
all reading assignments BEFORE class. This does not mean simply skimming through
the pictures or headings while walking to class. It means reading
all of the information, taking notes on concepts that are unclear, formulating
questions for clarification, and relating previous knowledge to new
concepts. This will benefit you in multiple ways. Being
that this is a new topic for many of you, there is a good chance that
the vocabulary, concepts and theories are unfamiliar. By reading
the text prior to class, you will expose yourself to these new concepts
and when we cover them in class you will have a much better chance of
understanding, rather than being bewildered by foreign concepts.
Repetition is a key in learning. The second thing required in
this process is that you read and respond to discussion questions that
will be posted online for each topic, sometimes this will mean each
day, sometimes once a week. In order for you to discuss, you need
to not only read, but to have thought about the material, beginning
to interpret it for classroom discussion. These questions will
be thought provoking and force you to begin that interpretive process.
You will write a response to each question prior to coming to class.
This does not need to be a formal written assignment, but can be a sketch
of arguments or a mini-outline of related points for discussion, even
a list of additional questions that the reading prompted for you.
These will be collected un-announced 3-4 times throughout the semester
to ensure that you are reading, interpreting and keeping up with the
material.
Writing assignments
Informal In-class Writing Assignments
These
writing assignments will be graded, but are meant to be a continuous
source of writing put into practice. The idea follows that of
a guided journal entry. Which means that you should spend a few
minutes thinking about a response, and then write for 10 minutes straight.
It is not important that you proofread as you write, what is important
is that you think of arguments and support for you response. We
will use these in class to develop your critical thinking and argument
development, but in addition will also use them to develop your writing
by taking samples of the assignments and critiquing them together in
order to assist you in better formulating arguments and expanding your
way of thinking. Some of the topics we may use include:
á
Is there advertising on campus (for campus organizations/activities)?
Where? Does it work? What could be done to make it more
effective? Support your argument.
á
The admissions office is looking for some new informational material
and packets to send to prospective students. Create the text for
this new College of Wooster admissions pack and discuss the layout of
the packet including photos or other media you would include (outside
of the text).
á
Which advertising persuades you most, TV, radio, internet, magazine,
newspaper? Why?
á
Letter to the editor: Find a magazine advertising that is counter to
the perspective of that magazine and explain to the editor why it is
wrong and how that ad uses persuasion to sell it's product.
á
According to the psychological principles in use in advertising, does
the mudslinging of political ads work, seem reasonable, influence people
in a meaningful way? Support your argument.
á
Does advertising coerce people into buying things they do not need?
Support your argument.
á
Do you think models used in ads and commercials have negative effects
on body image (women and/or men)? Is it appropriate to use computer-enhanced
models to sell fashions, exercise clothing and equipment or cosmetic
surgery? Support your argument.
Formal Writing Assignments (in chronological order of the semester)
1.
Present your current attitude and opinions toward advertising.
Why do you feel this way? Have you ever taken time to think about
advertising or have you just experienced it? This paper will involve
one draft that we will discuss anonymously as a class, and a version
I will read and comment on to return to you for final rewriting.
2.
Take one ad (any of the 5 medium) and analyze it according to
the Ad executive, Consumer, and Company. What works, what doesnÕt, explain
and expand upon those ideas for each group. As the Ad exec Ð have
you created something new and different, followed an old model of successful
advertising of psychology. As the Consumer Ð would this ad make
you purchase the product, how would you feel about the product, would
it capture your attention or would you just pass it by. As the
Company Ð was your money well spent, did the ad capture your intentions
about the product. This will most likely be an in-class assignment
involving peer-review in the form of talking about the ad to others
and then reading drafts of each otherÕs papers before turning in a final
draft to me.
3.
Research paper ideas (the writing of this paper will involve
peer-review and multiple drafts):
á
Choose one long-lasting company and research what has made them effective
over the years.
á
Choose one product through history and research and discuss how the
ads have changed with the times, why has this occurred, was the advertising
successful at each time period?
á
Complete research on what technique(s) work particularly effectively
in one particular medium.
á
How is advertising targeted to children and how could we educate children
and educators to help children understand the persuasive intent of ads.
Is this type of advertising ethical? Is it doing harm or good
for the children?
á
What are the implications of heavy political advertising on television,
and how does that interact with the amount of money the candidates have
to spend? Should that amount of money or the amount of advertising
be controlled in some way? How/what would that benefit and would
the political parties and candidates agree with it?
á
Or choose a different topic (of course related to advertising) and discuss
the project with me before you begin researching or writing.
4.
Final writing assignment for the semester Ð How have your opinions
toward advertising changed since you wrote your first essay during the
first day of class, if they have changed. Support your answer
with facts that we have covered this semester. There is no formal
draft or review process for this paper, but you should arrange informal
peer review sessions with class-mates, as you will have seen by this
point in time how beneficial drafting and reviewing a paper will be.
Group Project - Create a Commercial, (groups of 3-4 people):
Create a TV commercial (between 45 sec and 1 minute) for an actual product
(one that already exists). Write the script, get the images, add
the music, film and edit the entire thing. This actual ad will
be presented to the entire class on December 7th. The
process will involve peer-review and practice presentations to peers
and TA.
Written piece: Individually, write about the decisions that you made along the
way, why did you personally want to include, not include certain portions,
how did our research over the semester influence those decisions, do
you feel the commercial is a success based upon the evidence we used
over the semester. Be sure that you are presenting evidence and
factual support and not simply opinion on these matters.
Presentation piece: the group will present the ad and then
discuss the group decision process. Be sure that you are presenting
evidence and factual support and not simply opinion on these matters.
Academic Honesty and Integrity: The College's understanding
and expectations in regard to issues of academic honesty are fully articulated
in the Code of Academic Integrity as published in the Scot's Key and
form an essential part of the implicit contract between the student
and the College. The Code provides a framework at Wooster to help students
develop their own personal integrity.
While you are a student at this college, you will
be treated as adults. You are expected to know and abide by the
rules of the institution as described in The Scot's Key and The Handbook
of Selected College Policies (http://www.wooster.edu/policies).
Particular attention should be directed to the appropriate use of referenced
or cited materials available from print and on-line sources. It is important
that you read and understand the ethical use of information (http://www.wooster.edu/library/instruction/ethics/ethics.html).
Whether intentional or not, improper use of materials can be considered
a violation of academic honesty.
Cheating in any of your academic work is a
serious breach of the Code of Academic Integrity and is grounds for
an F for the entire course. Such violations include turning in
another person's work as your own, copying from any source without proper
citation, going beyond what is allowed in a group project and lying
in connection with your academic work. You will be held responsible
for your actions. If you are unsure as to what is permissible, please
consult your course instructor before trying it out.
Grading
Procedures:
Participation 10%
Discussion Question responses
5%
In-Class writing assignments
10%
Formal Assignment 1
5%
Formal Assignment 2
15%
Formal Assignment 3
20%
Formal Assignment 4
15%
Group Presentation (in-class)
10%
Individual Written assignment
from group project
10%
Explanation of Grades Assigned to Written Work (Adapted from
Sandra Jamieson)
A: An "A" paper
addresses the assignment carefully and thoughtfully, and then goes a
little beyond it to say something original. The paper identifies
a clear and focused thesis about the text and follows it in a well-organized
manner, presenting a clear and persuasive argument to support the thesis
and adequate evidence to back it up. Such a paper maintains a
consistent style, presents quotations effectively when necessary, paraphrases
properly, avoids repetition and digression, and is proofread to catch
all grammatical errors and create smooth and effective transitions.
In addition to a clear introduction setting up the thesis, an "A"
paper also has a thoughtful conclusion discussing the implications of
the argument and encouraging the reader to consider the issue further.
B: A "B"
paper addresses the assignment but does not go beyond it in any significant
way. It may also lack a clear structure. The paper identifies
a thesis but does not fully explore the way the issue plays itself out
in the text or discussion nor consider its implications. The paper
may make some intelligent connections but not explore them fully, or
it may have a thoughtful thesis which is not fully developed.
Some "B" papers have the feeling of being unfinished, and
many "B" papers have the capacity to be "A" papers
with one more draft. Sometimes they need to be more effectively
organized or more carefully proofread; indeed, sometimes working on
the grammatical and organization structure allows the writer to see
how to strengthen the overall argument.
C: A "C"
paper may somewhat address the assignment but seems to miss its essential
point or go off on a tangent that never connects back to the thesis.
The paper may articulate an interesting thesis, but then either contradicts
itself or simply moves off in another direction. Some "C"
papers are the result of the writer's unfamiliarity with the text; however
more often they result from the writer have too much to say on an issue
about which s/he has strong feelings. Many "C" papers
have the capacity to be "A" papers with several more careful
drafts.
D: A "D"
paper does not seriously address the assignment. It may raise
some issues that connect with the assignment, but for the most part
it revels a lack of understanding of the assignment or, in some cases,
a writer who was simply not yet ready to begin the paper and needed
more time to carefully consider the issues. The paper may address
a question outside of the text, may simply be an elaborate plot summary,
or may stem from problems because the writer was not sure how to write
an analytical paper. In any case, the paper should be used as
research notes towards another paper rather than a first draft to be
revised.
Your
final grade will be determined by the average of all scores above, weighted
as indicated.
|
A
|
93+
|
B-
|
80-82.5
|
D
|
60-69.5
|
|
A-
|
90-92.5
|
C+
|
77-79.5
|
F
|
below 60
|
|
B+
|
87-89.5
|
C
|
73-76.5
|
|
|
|
B
|
83-86.5
|
C-
|
70-72.5
|
|
|