Engineering Consent: The Psychology and Communication of Propaganda.

Catalog description

This interdisciplinary course examines propaganda at the critical intersection of human psychology, communication theory, and rhetoric. Co-taught across the Departments of Psychology and Communication & Rhetorical Studies, students will analyze how mass persuasion exploits cognitive vulnerabilities, manipulates affective states, and shapes public consciousness through deliberate linguistic and visual structures. We will deconstruct the mechanics of disinformation?interrogating how symbols, narratives, and media ecosystems bypass rational thought to foster conformity, fuel outgroup hostility, and manufacture consent. A mandatory, experiential travel component to Germany serves as the historical crucible for this study, providing a visceral, site-specific encounter with the devastating efficacy of National Socialist propaganda during World War II and the Holocaust. By walking the physical landscapes where these toxic ideologies were institutionalized, students will bridge theory with historical reality. Ultimately, this course equips undergraduate scholars with the analytical frameworks and ethical urgency necessary to critique contemporary landscapes of deception and defend the democratic sphere.