Handbook

This course will provide you with an advanced-level understanding of the current theories, methods and controversies in four key areas of cognitive psychology: 1) Judgment and Decision-making; 2) Theory and Models; 3) Categorisation and Reasoning; and (4) Intelligence and Thinking. The Judgment and Decision-making strand asks and answers questions like: Do we make rational decisions? Are we constrained to fall prey to systematic biases when we make judgments? Are we risk averse and if so what does that mean? It will also cover the burgeoning field of “behavioural insights” and the tools to ‘nudge’ people to change their behaviour. The Theory and Models strand focuses on the development and testing of computational models of cognitive processes, with an emphasis on models of working memory and long-term memory. The component is focused on how quantitative instantiations of models are necessary to provide a rigorous test of psychological theories. The Categorisation and Reasoning strand examines how and why people organise things in their physical and social environment into groups (e.g., dogs vs. cats, male vs. female, left-wing politician vs. right-wing politician?), and how they use such knowledge to reason and make predictions. The Intelligence and Thinking strand will address questions like: What is intelligence? Do IQ tests really measure intelligence (and if not, what DO they measure)? How do people use their past experience to solve new problems?