Introduction to Judgement and Decision Making

What it is about

You gain an overview of judgment and decision making research: fundamental theories (normative and descriptive), measurement and research methods, as well as central findings on biases, risk perception, intertemporal decisions, social and group decision making. By the end you will be able to explain how people decide under risk and uncertainty, why behavior often deviates from normative models, and how decision concepts can be practically applied.

What you will be able to do

• Name the basic concepts of judgment and decision theory
• Explain differences between normative and descriptive models
• Describe essential biases and heuristics
• Apply/interpret methods for studying decisions
• Critically reflect on application fields (e.g., Nudging/Boosting)
• Reflect on and improve your own decision processes

What the module consists of

• Seminars (6 sessions)Conveying key concepts in the first part; interactive workshops with experiments, discussions and guest lectures in the second part
• Asynchronous video lecturesProvision of lecture content and background knowledge to prepare for the seminars
• Individual assignmentsDeepening and applying the content between the seminars

Teaching method

• Interactive workshopsFoster discussion, experiments and practical application of the concepts
• Asynchronous video lecturesConvey prerequisite knowledge and allow flexible preparation
• Guest lecturesComplement professional perspectives through external experts
• In-class experiments and surveysDemonstrate empirical findings and research methods