Special Topics in Moral Psychology

Catalog description

This course examines how morality, rules, their intersection, and related topics shape human thought and behavior. We will investigate why rules exist, what influences how people make moral judgments about those who break rules (and those who follow them), how rules relate to social institutions, and more. Drawing on research from philosophy, social, cognitive, and moral psychology, we will explore questions about moral judgment, norm enforcement, and more. Our discussions will also consider broader contexts—drawing on perspectives from philosophy, law, political science, and evolutionary biology to examine rules not only as psychological phenomena but as central features of institutions and social life.