Dear Students – This letter is to introduce you both to me and to the course. I am a Professor of Psychology at Indiana State University (ISU) in Terre Haute, IN. I got my undergraduate degree in psychology at Indiana University (IU) in Bloomington and my Ph.D. in clinical psychology at the University of Missouri in Columbia, MO. I did my clinical psychology internship at the IU Medical School Internship Consortium in Indianapolis, IN. I case you haven’t guessed by now, I grew up in Indiana (Warren Central High School class of ’79). Although I had hoped to end up living somewhere with mountains, my family and I have been in Terre Haute since 1993 and do enjoy living here (although my daughter hopes to end up in the UK at some point). As a clinical psychologist I have worked in hospital, community mental health, and correctional settings. Thus, I have been able to work with a diverse array of clients with a wide variety of presenting concerns. My research has focused primarily on social influences on substance use and abuse, including studies about drinking games in college students, the role of religion and spirituality in influencing substance use and problems, and substance use in the Electronic Dance Music (EDM) scene. Some of that work has been funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. I have also collaborated on various research projects on the psychology of religion, as well as studies of the effects of exposure to violent media on commission of extreme violence. At ISU I teach courses in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Theories of Addiction, Positive Psychology, Psychology of Music, Positive and Negative Effects of Music, and History of Psychology. I have also been a musician since I was in the 5th grade, starting out on trumpet and later picking up keyboards, guitar, and even trying my hand at tin whistle. I have played in various rock and jazz groups and studied music at IU, at the University of Wisconsin, and here at ISU. I think of myself primarily as a composer/songwriter and I continue to write jazz, choral works, and chamber music. I have also written book, music, and lyrics for two full length musicals, which were performed in Terre Haute in 2011 and 2016. This course thus combines a number of my interests (psychology, addictive behaviors) and passions (music, history, and all things British). In my academic life, I have been fortunate to be able to do interdisciplinary work, collaborating with individuals from medicine, philosophy, theology, sociology, history, and other disciplines. This course is intended to be interdisciplinary in nature. We will be drawing primarily on the scholarship of psychologists, sociologists, and musicologists, but also work by life scientists, anthropologists, historians, and people who would identify themselves as scholars in the area of cultural studies, subcultural studies, and/or postsubcultural studies. (You will learn more about those terms in the course.) Part of our task will be to examine certain phenomena (specific subcultures) through the various lenses that different disciplines provide. Finally, although this is only my fifth trip to UK, I have been a committed Anglophile for as long as I can remember. (If you don’t know what that means, look it up, and don’t worry, it is nothing that would get me arrested.) I love Celtic and British history, music, and literature, so I am very excited to be able to offer this course in London, one of history’s truly great cities! Tom Johnson, Ph.D., HSPP SEX, DRUGS, AND ROCK & ROLL: MUSIC AND DRUG SUBCULTURES IN THE UK Syllabus & Schedule June 2017 Draft Instructor: Thomas J. Johnson, Ph.D. [email protected] Dr. Johnson’s course will examine some different ideas about why and how specific subcultures have become associated with specific types of drug use, types of music, and political and ideological views, including attitudes towards gender and sexuality. The course is interdisciplinary in nature drawing primarily from psychology, sociology, and musicology, but also drawing on material from history and biology. Being located in London gives us an excellent opportunity to compare British and US culture and subcultures. We will begin with early British subcultures and focus extensively on the psychedelic scene of the late 1960s and early 1970s. We will also cover a variety of other scenes and styles of music, including punk, goth, Hip-Hop, and Rave or Electronic Dance Music (EDM). We will also listen to and learn about reggae, glam, heavy metal, new romantics, emo and subcultures related to these genres. When we listen to some of the music associated with these different subcultures we will aim to identify aspects of performance and musical style unique to each. We will use a variety of “lenses” (i.e., academic disciplines) to try and understand how and why individuals are drawn to these specific subcultures and the music, substances, and lifestyles that characterize each. Biological explanations for drug use (and sexuality) have tended to focus on the pleasure circuits of the brain. Activity in these same pathways also occurs in response to music. Brain circuits involved in inhibition of behavior have also been implicated as connected to various kinds of risky behavior, including drug use and risky sexual activity. While there are numerous psychological theories related to drug use, music preferences, and sexuality, we will focus on models that have considered the role of identity, personality, affect regulation, and incentive motivation (reinforcement, etc.). Many sociocultural theories have focused on political and economic factors that influence the development of subcultures. Additional sociological models have considered how drug use or particular forms of music are related to group identity, rejection of middle class values, and/or sanctioning time out from typical social obligations. More recently, sociologists have viewed subcultures and youth movements as filling a number of positive functions in the lives of members. We will discuss and evaluate how these different theories help us understand subcultures, considering both the strengths and limitations of various ways of viewing such subcultures. We will have two formal half day class meetings and one full day field trip each week of the course. An additional meeting is scheduled during the last week of classes for the mandatory final exam (required in all courses in the London program). Grading for the course is addressed below. Readings: Required Book – Purchase through Amazon or some other on-line source. As of May 2017 it is selling for $14.54 new on Amazon; used for $13.00 and $10.00 for a Kindle version. Baddeley, G. (2015). Street Culture: 50 Years of Subculture Style. London: Plexus. Readings Provided: The remainder of the required readings will be provided by your instructor. I will e- mail every student PDF copies of these readings before we leave for the UK. Before you leave – It is common for instructors of courses in the London program to have assignments to be completed before leaving for London. For this class, I have already sent you PDFs of article on Post World War II youth culture, subcultures, and British culture in general to read before we leave for London (or at least on the plane). Some students like to “pre-read” course materials so that they have more time in London, so you are welcome to read all the assigned material before the trip. However, if you do this, you’ll still probably need to remind yourself of the contents prior to each class meeting. You are expected to come to class each day having read, and /or listened to, the material assigned for that day. In addition to the readings for each class, there are also links to musical performances or videos related to the genre or topic for the day. While we will listen to and discuss music in class, I also expect you to listen to some material outside of class as well. Each set of readings and listening assignments has a corresponding set of questions you will be asked to address in the journal you will keep for the course (see the section on grading below). These questions will help prepare you for class discussion and the quiz that will start each day of class, as well as get you thinking about important issues for the course. MAKE SURE YOU KEEP UP WITH THE READINGS! If you do read much of the material before we leave, at the very least you will want to review these before each class so that you are ready for quizzes and discussion. CLASS POLICIES 1) Attendance - Students are expected to attend all scheduled classes and field trips. As in any summer class, the short amount of time available means that we have to pack a lot into each class meeting. If you miss a class or fieldtrip without a VERY good and documentable excuse (i.e., being in the hospital would count, but being hungover would NOT) I will deduct one letter grade from your final grade in the class for each unexcused absence. 2) Academic Integrity - We will follow Standard Student Honor Code practices for this course. You will be expected to turn in your own original work for papers and journal assignments and to perform honestly on all quizzes and exams. Violations of these practices can result in penalties that vary with the severity of the infraction, but an instance of serious cheating or plagiarism (or multiple less serious infractions) could result in your failing the course. CCSA will report violations of academic integrity to your home university. Thus, what happens in London will NOT stay in London, and you can assume that whatever policies regarding academic dishonesty or academic integrity your home university has will apply while you are in London.