K2SP 3715 - From Political Behavior to Political Dynamics: A Cognitive Approach to the Political Sphere

This course offers a panorama of how cognitive approaches can help to understand the dynamics of the political sphere. Through an in-depth analysis of key issues related to political dynamics, it introduces the main cognitive mechanisms relevant for both the analysis of political behaviour and the evaluation of public policies. To this end, the course will be organised around a combination of formal lectures and student-led discussions on the application of psychological insights to concrete situations and actual public policies. The first half of the semester will be devoted to understanding key democratic issues such as political participation and polarisation, and the second half to analysing larger social dynamics such as attitudes to inequality and social trends. Importantly, the ethical and methodological aspects of this approach will be discussed throughout the semester.
Lou SAFRA
Cours magistral seul
English
None
Spring 2024-2025
10% class participation 40% case study presentations (cognitive analysis of a concrete issue, twice per semester, collective work) 50% Final paper - writing a cognitive analysis of a real policy issue (3000 words - individual work)
This course aims to be as engaging and interactive as possible. Students will have regular opportunities to reflect on the cognitive insights and two sessions will be dedicated to discussing their behavioural analyses.
Starmans, C., Sheskin, M., & Bloom, P. (2017). Why people prefer unequal societies. Nature Human Behaviour, 1(4), 1-7.
Payne, B. K., & Hannay, J. W. (2021). Implicit bias reflects systemic racism. Trends in cognitive sciences, 25(11), 927-936.
Mercier, H. (2017). How gullible are we? A review of the evidence from psychology and social science. Review of General Psychology, 21(2), 103-122.
Todorov, A., Mandisodza, A. N., Goren, A., & Hall, C. C. (2005). Inferences of competence from faces predict election outcomes. Science, 308(5728), 1623-1626.
Aarøe, L., & Petersen, M. B. (2014). Crowding out culture: Scandinavians and Americans agree on social welfare in the face of deservingness cues. The Journal of Politics, 76(3), 684- 697.
Bastardoz, N., & Van Vugt, M. (2019). The nature of followership: Evolutionary analysis and review. The Leadership Quarterly, 30(1), 81-95.
Crowder-Meyer, M., Gadarian, S. K., & Trounstine, J. (2020). Voting can be hard, information helps. Urban Affairs Review, 56(1), 124-153.Kelly, D., & Setman, S. (2020). The psychology of normative cognition.
El Zein, M., Bahrami, B., & Hertwig, R. (2019). Shared responsibility in collective decisions. Nature human behaviour, 3(6), 554-559.
Sijilmassi, A., Safra, L., & Baumard, N. (2024). Our Roots Run Deep': Historical Myths as Culturally Evolved Technologies for Coalitional Recruitment. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 1-44.