Topics in Cognition: Information and Decision Making

Catalog description

Why do people expose themselves primarily to media that aligns with their prior beliefs? When two people from opposing political parties read the same exact news article, how can they end up with even stronger conflicting opinions? What underlying mechanisms might be driving people’s decisions to post specific clickbait on Facebook? Despite the fact that neoclassical economic theory dictates that individuals should seek out a diverse array of information in order to make the best judgments and decisions, there is abundant evidence that they do not. We will explore these types of questions throughout this course as we investigate how people engage with information across three distinct stages: exposure to, consumption of, and sharing of information. Through the readings and discussion, you will be exposed to relevant literatures in decision science, experimental economics, behavioral economics, and social psychology.