The way we think and make decisions has a fundamental effect on virtually all facets of life. Understanding real-world problems starts with an understanding of human behavior and its underlying cognitive processes, as well as the role emotional factors play.
In this course human thinking and decision-making will be addressed using a theoretical framework according to which decisions are made by either a fast automatic system, or a slow deliberate system. Several aspects of decision-making will be discussed on this basis, from heuristics and biases to overconfidence and risky choices. We will address several real world applications such as consumer choices, moral decisions and happiness. The VU research profiles concerning human health and sustainability will further be discussed from a decision-making perspective. The course will follow the framework of the book “Thinking Fast and Slow”, by Daniel Kahneman.
This course is suitable for students at different levels of their bachelor programme (1st, 2nd or 3rd year).
Note: this course is not open for psychology students because of overlap with their regular study.
For more information and course details, go to 'Curriculum' at the top of the page.