Freberg Laura A, Brosnan-Watters Gayle
Psychology Department, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, California 93407;
J Undergrad Neurosci Educ. 2005 Spring;3(2):A63-9. Epub 2005 Jun 15.
Information competency refers to skills that allow a student to identify appropriate sources of information, evaluate information critically, and use it ethically. Although the sudden increase of information available in electronic form has stimulated interest in information competency, the basic principles apply to all sources of information, including print. Information competency is especially critical in biological psychology. New discoveries in the neurosciences are featured every day by the mainstream media. As a society, we are being asked to make informed decisions about increasingly complex concepts, as in the case of the recent California proposition regarding stem cell research. Ideally, our students will become community leaders who will help shape these and other policy decisions, but the assumption of this role requires skills that extend long after the completion of a particular course or degree. Because of the perceived complexity of biological psychology, students new to the discipline may be reluctant to venture out into the experimental literature. A variety of activities are presented here that will build student confidence and shape information competency. Although these exercises can be used in a variety of disciplines, they are particularly well suited to biological psychology. The various exercises lend themselves to different levels of student expertise. Many of the exercises are quite appropriate for all levels and abilities, including graduate level students. As a bonus, these activities involve students in writing about biological psychology, providing a foundation for the writing of formal term papers or research reports.
信息能力指的是让学生能够识别合适的信息来源、批判性地评估信息并合乎道德地使用信息的技能。尽管以电子形式提供的信息突然增多激发了人们对信息能力的兴趣，但基本原则适用于所有信息来源，包括印刷品。信息能力在生物心理学中尤为关键。神经科学的新发现每天都在主流媒体上有所报道。作为一个社会，我们被要求就日益复杂的概念做出明智的决策，比如最近加利福尼亚州关于干细胞研究的提案。理想情况下，我们的学生将成为社区领袖，帮助塑造这些及其他政策决策，但承担这一角色所需的技能在特定课程或学位完成后仍需长期培养。由于生物心理学被认为较为复杂，刚接触该学科的学生可能不愿涉足实验文献。这里介绍了一系列活动，这些活动将增强学生的信心并塑造信息能力。尽管这些练习可用于多种学科，但它们特别适合生物心理学。各种练习适合不同水平的学生专业知识。许多练习对所有水平和能力的学生都相当合适，包括研究生。此外，这些活动让学生参与撰写关于生物心理学的文章，为撰写正式的学期论文或研究报告奠定基础。
