Programs
Psychology
| — | Decision Psychology Ph.D. |
| Focuses on research in basic cognitive, affective, and social processes in forming judgments and making decisions with a cross-disciplinary menu of courses and research methodologies. |
Courses
Communication
| COMM 3331 | Communication and Decision Making |
| Decision-making as a process; comparisons between interpersonal, bargaining-negotiation contexts, and group organizations; descriptive and prescriptive models of decision-making in small groups and organizations. | |
| COMM 3332 | Risk Communication |
| Students will learn how to plan, implement and evaluate a risk communication effort. Message design is an integral part of this class. | |
| COMM 3628 | Contemporary Persuasion Theory |
| Persuasion theories and issues in mass audience settings; persuasion in interpersonal contexts, including organizations, communities, family, and personal relationships. |
Economics
| ECON 4050 | Experimental Economics |
| Introduction to economics as an experimental social science. Students participate in and study results of economic experiments dealing with markets, individual decision making, and a broad array of game theoretic economic models. | |
| ECON 5001 | Game Theory in Economics |
| Analysis of behavior in strategic situations - when a person or firm's best action depends on what others do. | |
| ECON 5870 | Neuroeconomics and Decision Neuroscience |
| The focus of this course will be on the psychology and neuroscience underlying economic behavior. Discussion will cover various domains of economic decision making and what Neuroeconomics has taught us about them. | |
| ECON 8194 | Experimental Economics Methodology |
| This course will equip students with the tools needed to design, run, and analyze a laboratory experiment that conforms to the norms and expectations of the field of experimental economics. | |
| ECON 8817 | Advanced Economic Theory II |
| Thorough treatment of major developments in game theory and a survey of major applied game theory topics such as mechanism design, bargaining, and oligopoly. | |
| ECON 8818 | Advanced Economic Theory III |
| Theoretical approaches to economics of information; how information affects individual behavior and market equilibrium; moral hazard; adverse selection; incomplete contracts; rational expectations; and principal-agency models. | |
| ECON 8819 | Economics of Uncertainty |
| Classical and modern approaches to decision-making and economic behavior under uncertainty; classical expected utility; subjective probability; behavioral theory of economic choice under uncertainty. | |
| ECON 8873 | Industrial Organization III: Economic Analysis of Auctions |
| A survey of auction theory, experiments, and empirics; topics include private and common value auctions, multi-unit demand auctions, sequential and simultaneous auctions, and related research material. | |
| ECON 8875 | Experimental & Behavioral Economics |
| A survey of concepts and methods in experimental and behavioral economics for advanced graduate students; topics include impacts of heuristics and biases on "rational" behavior, other-regarding preferences, bargaining, public goods and market design. |
Environment and Natural Resources
| ENR 3400 | Psychology of Environmental Problems |
| The theory and psychology behind individual and group behavior as it relates to current environmental problems. | |
| ENR 7400 | Communicating Environmental Risk |
| Introduction to the design and implementation of public-focused risk communication as it relates to environmental, agricultural, and public health contexts. | |
| ENR 8150 | Advanced Environment, Risk, and Decision Making |
| Theory of individual and participatory risk-based decision making and applications to improve decision making in environmental and other risk-based management contexts. |
Human Sciences
| CONSCI 3930 | Consumer Decision Making I |
| Contemporary consumer behavior theories and decision-making processes with implications for consumers, marketers, policy makers and managers in a global economy. | |
| CONSCI 8250 | Normative Approaches to Consumer Sciences |
| Focuses on derivation of normative guidelines for household financial decisions, but normative guidelines related to other aspects of consumer sciences will also be covered. |
Marketing & Logistics
| BUSML 4201 | Consumer Behavior |
| This course examines how and why people behave as consumers — either industrial or consumer. Its goals are to provide an understanding of consumer behavior based on extensive research and to provide experience in the application of this knowledge to marketing management and social policy decision making. | |
| BUSML 5389 | Logistics Decision Making |
| Analysis of logistics decision making in the context of the business environment; application of the solution methods needed to meet business goals. Capstone designed to expand on previous courses & prepare students to implement logistics concepts. | |
| BUSML 7202 | Consumer Behavior |
| Development of the consumer decision process and its application to marketing strategy decisions. | |
| BUSML 7211 | Consumer Psychology |
| Course delves into consumer psych, and the means by which consumer behavior can be influenced or altered. Course will explore the psychological underpinnings of consumer information processing, attitude formation and persuasion, learning and memory. | |
| BUSML 7381 | Logistics Decision Making |
| A case-based course that will prepare students to make data-driven decisions on key logistics issues and then make these decisions actionable through a focus on appropriate solution methods needed to achieve firm financial goals. | |
| BUSML 8250 | Consumer Behavior |
| Study of the academic literature on consumer behavior with emphasis on the theoretical and empirical contributions of consumer research. |
Political Science
| POLITSC 3500 | Political Games: Rational Choice Theory and the Study of Politics |
| Are political outcomes and institutions the result of decision-making by rational, self-interested political actors? This course explores how the assumption of individual rationality has shaped the field of political science. | |
| POLITSC 4132 | Supreme Court Decision Making |
| Study of explanations for Supreme Court decisions; use of those explanations and independent research to predict justices' positions in current cases. | |
| POLITSC 4137 | The Politics of Legal Decision Making |
| An examination of the literature relating social-science theories and research to the law, focusing on the criminal justice system. | |
| POLITSC 4553 | Game Theory for Political Scientists |
| Provides entry-level understanding of the basic concepts of game theory and how these concepts are applied to the study of political phenomena. |
Psychology
| PSYCH 2301 | Psychology of Extraordinary Beliefs |
| Considers beliefs in extraordinary phenomena through the application of the findings and principles of psychological science. | |
| PSYCH 4508 | Psychology of Judgment and Decision Making |
| An overview of current models and empirical research on cognitive processes in human decision-making and judgment under risk or uncertainty. | |
| PSYCH 4518 | Attitudes: Structure, Function, and Consequences |
| Survey of theory and evidence related to the structure and functional value of attitudes and their effects on information processing, judgments, and behavior. | |
| PSYCH 4630 | Attitudes and Persuasion |
| Overview of the major psychological theories and research in the area of attitudes and persuasion - how people's opinions, beliefs, and evaluations are formed and modified. | |
| PSYCH 5870 | Neuroeconomics and Decision Neuroscience |
| The focus of this course will be on the psychology and neuroscience underlying economic behavior. Discussion will cover various domains of economic decision making and what Neuroeconomics has taught us about them. | |
| PSYCH 7708 | Psychology of Judgment and Decision Making |
| Introductory graduate course in the psychology of judgment and decision making, including applications to health, law, economics, environmental issues, and social, cognitive, and clinical psychology. | |
| PSYCH 7816 | Action and Decision Making |
| Considers theories of decision making in static and dynamic environments, and theories of action control in dynamic systems (e.g., those involved in driving, sports and music performance). Includes experience with simple dynamic simulations. | |
| PSYCH 7873 | Attitudes and Persuasion |
| Coverage of key psychological theories and research on attitudes and persuasion - how opinions, beliefs, and evaluations are formed and modified, and how they influence thinking and behavior. | |
| PSYCH 8877 | Current Research in Attitudes |
| Advanced training in the conduct, evaluation, and presentation of research related to attitudes, attitude change, and the consequences of attitudes for judgments and behavior. | |
| PSYCH 8880 | Current Research in Decision Psychology |
| Advanced training in the conduct, evaluation, and presentation of research related to the psychology of decision making. | |
| PSYCH 8890 | Topical Seminar in Decision Psychology |
| Provides an in-depth analysis of a specialized research area in decision psychology. The course will cover theoretical distinctions and might cover their application to practical domains such as health, finances, and the environment. |
Public Affairs
| PUBAFRS 2620 | Science, Engineering and Technology for Policy and the Public Interest |
| A collaborative, project-base course focused on trans-disciplinary skills in designing and deploying science and technology to tackle public problems and improve human well-being. In this course, students work in teams to 1) define a complex problem at the intersection of science and society, 2) conduct research on plausible policy actions and the relevant decision points and decision makers, and 3) develop materials to inform a set of diverse policy stakeholders and spur them to action. This survey-level course also satisfies the general education “Citizenship for a Diverse and Just World” theme. | |
| PUBAFRS 4010 | Public Affairs Decision Making |
| Introduces students to research on decision-making and its practical application in the public and non-profit sectors. Draws on interdisciplinary scholarship that examines how people make decisions and considers the application of these insights in the design of public policy and the management of public and non-profit organizations. | |
| PUBAFRS 5620 | Rapid Innovation for Public Impact |
| A project-base course built around applied organizational, human-centered decision making. This course has students work in multi-disciplinary teams to find a solution to a “wicked problem” for a government, non-profit, or industry sponsor. |