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LD1004 Psychology and Critical Thinking 2.0 credits

Administer About course

Being able to interpret and analyze news, reports, and research is crucial for making good long-term decisions. Therefore, understanding how different cognitive biases and thought traps can affect your judgments is essential. In this course, you will learn to analyze how cognitive biases and thought traps can affect your assessments of information. You learn about practical strategies to deal with these pitfalls of thinking to make better decisions.

Information per course offering

Choose semester and course offering to see current information and more about the course, such as course syllabus, study period, and application information.

Termin

Information for Autumn 2025 Start 27 Oct 2025 single courses students

Course location

KTH Campus

Duration
27 Oct 2025 - 12 Jan 2026
Periods

Autumn 2025: P2 (2 hp)

Pace of study

10%

Application code

10036

Form of study

Distance Daytime

Language of instruction

Swedish

Course memo
Course memo is not published
Number of places

50 - 80

Target group
No information inserted
Planned modular schedule
[object Object]
Schedule
Schedule is not published
Part of programme
No information inserted

Contact

Examiner
No information inserted
Course coordinator
No information inserted
Teachers
No information inserted

Course syllabus as PDF

Please note: all information from the Course syllabus is available on this page in an accessible format.

Course syllabus LD1004 (Spring 2023–)
Headings with content from the Course syllabus LD1004 (Spring 2023–) are denoted with an asterisk ( )

Content and learning outcomes

Course contents

  • Lectures on how people assess information and how different cognitive bias and thought traps influence these assessments.
  • Presentation of key concepts about how people's interpretation  of information is influenced by social context, pre-understanding and earlier experiences.
  • Practice on identifying bias and thought traps when we interpret news feeds, reports and research.

Intended learning outcomes

After passing the course, the student should be able to:

  1. Explain central psychological concepts connected to how people assess information and understand how cognitive bias and thought traps influence these assessments.
  2. Analyse underlying theories of how people validate and assess different types of information and understand how different contexts could influence these assessments.
  3. Give an account of and analyse strategies that are used at marketing, news reporting and public opinion formation from a psychological perspective and be able to apply basic strategies to respond to such communication strategies.

Literature and preparations

Specific prerequisites

General entry requirements only

Literature

You can find information about course literature either in the course memo for the course offering or in the course room in Canvas.

Examination and completion

Grading scale

P, F

Examination

  • INLA - Assignment A, 1.0 credits, grading scale: P, F
  • INLB - Assignment B, 1.0 credits, grading scale: P, F

Based on recommendation from KTH’s coordinator for disabilities, the examiner will decide how to adapt an examination for students with documented disability.

The examiner may apply another examination format when re-examining individual students.

If the course is discontinued, students may request to be examined during the following two academic years.

Examiner

Profile picture Elizabeth Keller

Ethical approach

  • All members of a group are responsible for the group's work.
  • In any assessment, every student shall honestly disclose any help received and sources used.
  • In an oral assessment, every student shall be able to present and answer questions about the entire assignment and solution.

Further information

Course room in Canvas

Registered students find further information about the implementation of the course in the course room in Canvas. A link to the course room can be found under the tab Studies in the Personal menu at the start of the course.

Offered by

ITM/Learning in Engineering Sciences

Main field of study

Technology and Learning

Education cycle

First cycle