Mind in Society: Cognitive Science and Justice

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

This course explores the interaction of thinking and action for justice, of cognitive science and social change. In this contested moment, how might we examine the ideas with which we think as we envision social transformation and work toward solidarity and the common good? We will draw from psychology and neuroscience to understand how to overcome attribution errors, implicit bias, and motivated reasoning in work to promote justice. We will examine how assumptions about knowledge and our theories of mind impact our communication and work, and explore means to overcome conflict through engagement, reciprocity, and reparation. We will explore, in seminar format, means to promote intellectual humility, ethical imagination, practical wisdom, and commitment to action. Students will be encouraged to learn through experience and community engagement, and apply the lessons of the course in their own journeys. This fall, the course will have a particular focus on restorative justice: students will be given the opportunity to participate in and co-lead restorative circles that honor each participant’s voice and story. After the first week, we will travel to Indiana University’s Civil Rights Heritage Center in South Bend for class each week.