Critical Thinking in Psychology PSYC103 Doug Stenstrom (213) Office Hours: W 6:00-7:00pm in SS-30 (I am also available after class if you have questions)

Syllabus Course Website Objective of the course Textbooks Weekly Schedule Grading Calculations Grading Categories Late Policy Extra Credit “Question of the Day”

What is “Critical Thinking” there is no consensus… A general definition for our class –The delicate balance between open-mindedness and skepticism As nobel-prize winning physicist Richard Feynman (1985) reminds us “Science forces us to bend over backwards to prove ourselves wrong”.

What is “Critical Thinking” Another type of definition: –The logical and rationale process of avoiding one’s preconceptions by gathering evidence, contemplating and evaluating alternatives, and coming to a conclusion

What is “Critical Thinking” Another type of definition: –A set of skills to process and generate information, and the habit of using those skills based on intellectual commitment to critical thinking skills

Why is Critical Thinking important? Can be learned Improves your understanding of psychology Understand difference between science and pseudoscience Transferable to all topics, not just psychology Transferable to all aspects of life Protect yourself against false information Expose erroneous claims

What is covered in this course? Some examples… Psychological issuesPseudosciencePsychic Phenomena Distorted PerceptionsHomeopathyPsychics and ESP Framing EffectsGhostsFaith Healing Memory BiasesMysticismDowsing Power of SituationUFOsTarot Card Reading Misleading StatisticsAlien AbductionsFortune Telling Self-deceptionConspiracy theoriesTelekinesis HypnosisSuperstitionsRemote Viewing Popular PressPolygraphCommunicating with the dead

Always keep in mind… Our goal is the search, not the answer Every topic/issue has more than one side The point of the class is NOT to decide which side is correct or whether the topic is scientifically valid or not. There are no right or wrong answers When discussing/debating these topics, remember to focus your comments about the topic, not the person

Survey A and B Please answer honestly

Survey A Reverse items: 2, 4, 5, 7, 10, 11, 13, 16, 18, becomes 3 -2 becomes 2 -1 becomes 1 0 stays a 0 1 becomes -1 2 becomes -2 3 becomes -3 Add up all scores Higher = more dogmatism Survey B Reverse items: 1, 3, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, becomes 3 -2 becomes 2 -1 becomes 1 0 stays a 0 1 becomes -1 2 becomes -2 3 becomes -3 Add up all scores Higher = more open-minded

Dogmatism… What is it? … an established belief with relatively unchangeable certainty … exists among advocates of any belief system FYI – even science and the scientific method can be dogmatic to some scientists!

Dogmatism… What are the consequences? … slightly more resistant to opposing fact and evidence … slightly more often associated with authoritarian personality … NOT associated with weak reasoning powers … Instead, associated with less DESIRE to be open-minded about sources of possible disconfirming evidence

Some helpful suggestions about how to get an A in this class… Pay attention to the syllabus Attend every class, and be on time Read assigned chapters before each class Take notes during class Ask questions during class Use your classmates are resources