HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 1 Discussion
Your Background Beliefs
Each one of us has a worldview – an interpretive framework through which we view life. Worldviews are composed of our core beliefs and commitments. They are the sum total of the background beliefs that we have.
This week, you will share some of your core beliefs that make up your worldview. These can be general beliefs or specific beliefs, but make sure they are among the most important beliefs that you hold. Refer to Chapter 1 in your book for more information about worldviews. Here are some examples of beliefs you might include:
Human nature is fundamentally good/bad.
It is always wrong to lie to someone.
Anyone can succeed at a task if they put the effort into it.
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.
In your follow up posts, respond to two other students and compare and contrast your worldview with theirs. What are some areas of similarity? What are some areas of difference? How might you relate to someone with a different worldview?
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 2 Discussion
Cogent Reasoning
The goal of an argument, as we are using the term, is to persuade. Specifically, a good argument persuades someone into adopting a conclusion that is rational on the basis of its premises.
This week, you will recount a time when you were persuaded or had your mind changed by a good argument.
Make sure that you identify a situation in which you were convinced or had your mind changed on the basis of good evidence.
Note: An “argument” for the purposes of this class does not refer to a verbal altercation, but a collected series of statements intended to prove some conclusion.
In your follow up posts, respond to two other students and assess their situation from your point of view. Would you have been persuaded? What does it take for you to be persuaded by an argument?
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 3 Discussion
Moral Decision-Making
There are many different moral theories, each of which provides a different way of analyzing the moral dilemmas we face in our lives. These moral theories provide a systematic framework for making reasoned moral decisions.
This week, you will write about a time in which you had to make a difficult moral decision.
Which moral theory did you use?
What steps did you take to make the decision?
What was your reasoning process?
In your follow up posts, respond to two other students and their justifications for the decisions they made. Was cogent reasoning involved?
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 4 Discussion
Faulty Inferences
While there are various kinds of fallacies, all share one common feature: they are errors of reasoning. We engage in fallacious reasoning when we fail to satisfy the three requirements of cogent reasoning (see Chapter 1 in your textbook).
This week, you will write about a time in which you were persuaded by fallacious reasoning.
What was the fallacious reasoning?
Why was it fallacious?
Why were you convinced?
How did you discover that the reasoning you were initially persuaded by was in fact fallacious?
In your follow up posts, respond to two other students and compare and contrast your experiences with fallacious reasoning. Give each other advice on how to avoid fallacious reasoning.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 5 Discussion
Inductive Fallacies
Statistics carry with them the air of authority. The accuracy and precision they offer makes a given position more credible and believable. But statistics can also be misused to convince us of things that aren’t .
This week, you will write about a time in which you were persuaded by faulty statistics.
What was the faulty statistic?
Why was it faulty?
Why were you initially convinced?
How did you discover that the statistic was in fact faulty?
In your follow up posts, respond to two other students and compare and contrast your experiences with bad statistics. Give each other advice on how to avoid being misled by faulty statistics.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 6 Discussion
Your Cognitive Biases
Despite our rational nature, we are not perfectly rational. We often fall prey to non-rational biases that affect our judgement on certain matters. These biases are an impediment to cogent reasoning because they lead us away from what is and good.
This week, you will write about your own cognitive biases.
What are some cognitive biases that you currently have or used to have?
How have these biases affected the way you view things?
In your follow up posts, respond to two other students and compare and contrast your experiences with cognitive biases. Give each other advice on how to break free from the temptations of cognitive bias.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 7 Discussion
Trust, But Verify
We are surrounded by news and media. It has never been easier to access information about any given topic or world event. Yet despite living in an age where information-on-demand is only a click away, misinformation abounds. News programs mislead, pundits exaggerate, and articles distort.
Select a recent news article and identify its key claims. Essentially, you will be acting as a fact checker for the news. Make sure that what you’re analyzing is a news article, not a blog post or social media post.
Post a link to the article you chose.
Attempt to find corroborating information that verifies the article's claims.
Use primary sources whenever available.
Post links to the information you find.
If information is found that disproves the key claims of the article, post that instead.
In your follow up posts, respond to two other students and double check their fact checking. Post any corroborating or contradictory evidence alongside your analysis.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 8 Discussion
Bad Reasoning on Social Media
Social media offers a powerful means of communication. With just a click, we can broadcast our thoughts to the entire world. But like the news, social media is even more prone to misinformation and distortion of various kinds. A lie can spread halfway around the world before the truth comes out to correct it.
Last week, you acted as a fact checker for a news article. This week, you’ll be doing much the same. Head over to Twitter and locate a tweet about current events from a politician, celebrity, or any user with a “verified” status. Note: You are not required to make a Twitter account to complete this assignment. Please pick a user whose posts are publically available. Do not share private posts.
Share your chosen post in this week's Discussion Forum by copying and pasting it into your initial discussion response.
Make sure the tweet makes a factual claim.
Attempt to fact-check that tweet by including independent evidence to corroborate its content.
If information is found that disproves the key claims of the tweet, include that as well.
In your follow up posts, respond to two other students and double check their fact checking. Post any corroborating or contradictory evidence alongside your analysis.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 1 Assignment
The Nature of Arguments
Critical thinking makes use of arguments. In this week’s lesson, you gained an overview of what arguments are and what it means for something to be a good or bad argument. In your week one assignment, you will be writing a five paragraph essay in which you explain and illustrate the nature of the critical thinking process.
Paragraph one should answer the following questions:
· What is an argument?
· What are some indicators of an argument?
· What is an example of an argument?
Your example does not have to be detailed. It can be a single sentence or two. It can be informal – there’s no need to make a premise-by-premise argument. Make sure your argument contains a rational inference, otherwise it isn’t an argument.
Paragraph two should explain the meaning of cogent reasoning. In this paragraph, be sure to reference the three criteria for cogent reasoning.
Paragraph three should explain the difference between deductive valid and inductively strong arguments.
Paragraph four should explain the role of background beliefs, worldviews, and philosophies to the critical thinking process. Be sure to give examples of what some background beliefs might be.
Finally, in paragraph five, write about a time in which you used a rational argument to persuade someone. What was the argument about? What evidence did you utilize in order to make your case?
Your completed assignment should be written primarily in first person and should be 500-750 words in length. If you use sources in your writing, be sure to identify them. If you use any direct language from a source, be sure to place those words in quotation marks.
Your assignment should adhere to the stated page length requirement for the week and use APA style formatting including a title page and reference section. APA resources and a template are available in the Supplemental Materials folder.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 2 Assignment
Constructing Deductive and Inductive Arguments
Arguments consist of premises and conclusions. Premises are structured so as to lend support to conclusions. The kind of support that a premise lends to a conclusion allows us to distinguish between deductive and inductive arguments. This week, you will be constructing both kinds of arguments.
1. In three premises each, construct one example of each following deductive argument form:
· Modus ponens
· Modus tollens
· Hypothetical syllogism
· Disjunctive syllogism
Make sure your arguments are deductively valid and that your examples are your own. Here are two examples of the general format that your arguments should take:
Modus ponens:
1. If it is raining, then it is pouring.
2. It is raining.
3. Therefore, it is pouring.
Modus tollens:
1. If Jack went to the grocery store, then he bought cookies.
2. Jack did not buy cookies.
3. Therefore, Jack did not go to the grocery store.
2. After you construct the preceding deductive argument forms, construct a three premise syllogism. For example:
1. All men are mortal.
2. Socrates is a man.
3. Therefore, Socrates is mortal.
3. After you construct a three premise syllogism, construct one of each of the following inductive argument patterns:
· Induction by enumeration
· Reasoning by analogy
· Statistical induction
· Higher-level induction
Your examples of inductive argument patterns should not be expressed in premise form. Rather, they should be informally expressed in writing. You should have one paragraph for each pattern. Be as detailed as possible.
Finally, please remember to label your arguments. This makes it easier for them to be graded. Include your name, course section, and the date at the top of your assignment document
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 3 Assignment
The Hierarchy of Value
The most basic moral obligation that we have is to pursue what is good and avoid what is evil. But what counts as “good” and “evil”? How do we rank the various things that are good or evil? Friendship is a good thing, but is more important than (say) honesty? Cheating is generally a bad thing, but is it worse than (say) hypocrisy?
This assignment will require a bit of thinking. You will attempt to rank moral values and vices on a hierarchy.
· Begin by listing the top five moral values or obligations that you think are definitive of a life well-lived.
· For each value or obligation, give a (minimum) one-paragraph description of what it is and why you have ranked it that way.
· You should not simply give a list – you should explain and justify the hierarchy you have put together. Make sure you organize them by order of importance. If you’re not quite confident in your ranking, give it your best attempt.
You will then do the same thing for moral vices.
· In order of heinousness, list five vices that you consider to be among the worst.
· Make sure that you include at least a one-paragraph description of each vice along with an explanation of why you have ranked that vice in the way you did.
· Make sure that you are specific. Do not simply say “be good” or “avoid harming people” – you should be referencing specific virtues or vices.
The goal of this assignment is to organize your thoughts on morality. Not all good things are equally good, and not all bad things are equally bad. We often prioritize certain things when making moral decisions, so it is good to develop a framework for a hierarchy of virtues and vices.
As a tip, you might look at some of the lists of virtues and vices that have been assembled by philosophers and theologians throughout history. Two examples are the four cardinal virtues and Dante's seven deadly vices. But avoid copying them – this assignment should be your own work and reflect your own thinking.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 4 Assignment
Evaluating Arguments
Below is a series of five fallacious arguments. In one paragraph each, explain why each argument is fallacious and identify the fallacy being committed. In identifying the relevant fallacy, be sure to give an explanation of what that fallacy is. Be comprehensive in your explanations, and cite at least one source to support each explanation (in APA format).
Argument 1
1. My algebra class is a nightmare.
2. Nightmares are bad dreams.
3. Therefore, my algebra class is a bad dream.
Argument 2
We can trust the Andrew’s testimony because Andrew himself said so, and Andrew is a trustworthy person.
Argument 3
If we loosen the office dress code, soon everyone will start showing up naked! Therefore, we shouldn’t loosen the office dress code.
Argument 4
Nobody has disproven that there exists alien life. So, until proven otherwise, it’s reasonable to conclude that alien life does exist.
Argument 5
You shouldn’t vote Republican because Republicans hate the poor, and you shouldn’t vote Democrat because Democrats hate business owners.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 5 Assignment
Misleading Statistics
Statistics are powerful and convincing when used properly. This feature of statistical reasoning, however, also makes them liable to misuse. In this week’s assignment, you will find a legitimate statistic and explain how it might be used to mislead an audience.
· Start by searching the internet for a reliable statistic. Make sure the statistic you find comes from an original or primary source – whether it be a peer-reviewed article, think-tank, or other organization. Do not use news articles that report the findings of a study; use the original study itself. Please remember to cite your source.
· After you locate your statistic, explain how it might be used to mislead an audience into embracing conclusions that the statistic does not support by playing the role of someone who is trying to lie with statistics.
· Design a fake advertisement or news story in which you will try to use the statistic in question to make a persuasive point.
o Your advertisement or story can consist of a written document, graphic, or video.
o Whatever you decide to do, you should feature a depiction or description of the statistic and an explanation of how it might be used to support a misleading agenda.
· After creating your fake advertisement or news story, include a short one paragraph statement on why it is misleading and what can be done to avoid being misled by it.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 6 Assignment
Overcoming Cognitive Biases
It is easy to be taken in by cognitive biases, especially given that they operate at a subconscious or non-rational level. It is therefore important that we be aware of them. Accordingly, this week’s assignment will be a poster project in which you design warning posters. You will be creating three warning posters for three different cognitive biases. A warning poster might look something like this:
Here is a direct link to the image.
Begin by selecting three cognitive biases covered in this week’s reading or lectures. Using an online tool or application such as Microsoft Word, create three warning posters that explain the dangers behind the three cognitive biases you have selected. Each warning poster should contain the name of the cognitive bias, a very brief explanation of what it is, a message on how to avoid falling into it, and at least one image. All three posters should be different.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 7 Assignment
Analyzing the News
News reporting is done by journalists, who are charged with the important responsibility of curating information in ways that are fair and honest.
This week you will assume the role of a news editor or executive. Using the knowledge gained from this week’s readings and lectures, write a mock job posting for a journalist. Your job posting should include:
· A description of what the journalist will do (feel free to be creative, given that there are many different kinds of journalists)
· A list of qualities necessary for being a good journalist
· A list of expectations that the journalist will fulfill. Make sure to include required skills that address reliability and validity in reporting.
Make your mock job posting look as realistic as possible. If you are unsure about how to write a job posting, look for examples online.
View your assignment rubric.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 8 Assignment
Civility on the Internet
The internet offers anonymity, and anonymity changes the way in which we present ourselves. Many individuals, acting behind the veil of a screen, say things and do things that they would otherwise not do in a face-to-face environment. This has led to an online phenomenon known as “trolling,” wherein individuals deliberately act to incite anger or resentment. Add to this the ways in which online discussions can get heated very quickly, and it is clear that civility is becoming a lost art.
You will be writing a five-paragraph essay in which you explain the nature of civility, why it is important in an online setting, and what can be done to recover civility in the context of news media and cyber-culture.
1. Your first paragraph should contain a definition of civility and an explanation of what it means to be civil.
2. Your second paragraph should contain an explanation of what it means to be civil in an online setting. Why do we need civility online? Why do you think the internet tends to foster incivility?
3. Your third paragraph should contain a discussion of what can be done to recover civility. How can we promote civility online? What are some ways in which we avoid heated discussions and debates?
4. Your fourth paragraph should apply what you have said about civility to a specific contentious issue in today’s culture (e.g. healthcare, gun control, capital punishment, abortion, war, economic policy). What does it mean to have a civil discussion about said issue? How can being civil advance our understanding of this issue?
5. Your final paragraph will summarize what you have said and make concluding remarks about civility going forward. What advice would you give to internet users about developing and maintaining a sense of civility in the way they approach online interactions?
Your completed assignment should be approximately 1000 words. Submit your paper, written in APA style, including a title page, reference page, and appropriate citations, to the dropbox for grading.
View your assignment rubric.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 1 Quiz
• Question 1Words such as “because,” “since,” and “for” usually signal the presence of
Question 2For the purposes of this course, an argument is a verbal altercation.
• Question 3Reasoning is either fallacious (bad) or cogent (good).
• Question 4There are two basic kinds of reasoning. The first is deductive, the second is
• Question 5Bad reasoning is known as
Question 6Good reasoning varies from person to person.
• Question 7An argument is deductively valid if it is impossible for the conclusion to be when the premises are
• Question 8Our most important beliefs, taken together, make up our worldviews or philosophies.
• Question 9This type of reasoning aims to show why something is .
• Question 10Beliefs about human nature ought to make up a key component of our worldview.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 2 Quiz
Question 1Affirming the consequent and denying the antecedent are examples of deductively invalid argument forms.
Question 2An argument that contains three categorical propositions is known as:
Question 3This type of proposition asserts or denies a relationship between a subject class and predicate class.
Question 4This term refers to a statement that is by definition
Question 5Describe the following kind of induction: all As observed so far are Bs, so all As whatsoever are Bs.
Question 6The truth values of contradictions and tautologies can be determined by deductive means alone.
Question 7The truth or falsity of contingent statements can be determined by deductive means alone.
Question 8Inductive reasoning is often used to discover causes and effects.
Question 9Concatenated reasoning is a type of deductive reasoning.
Question 10Analogical reasoning is a type of deductive reasoning.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 3 Quiz
Question 1This moral theory prioritizes the greatest good for the greatest number of people.
Question 2This moral theory prioritizes the fulfillment of one’s moral duty.
Question 3This moral theory prioritizes the fulfillment of one’s functions
Question 4This moral theory states that moral norms and values are dependent on one’s culture
Question 5Moral theories of this kind view morality as something we invent.
Question 6The principle of utility states that we ought to maximize the greatest amount of good for the greatest number of people.
Question 7Objectivist moral theories view morality as something we discover.
Question 8Moral judgments are not prescriptive.
Question 9Moral theories are interpretive frameworks through which we view moral issues.
Question 10For the natural law theorist, “natural” refers to proper functioning.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 4 Quiz
•Question 1 Identify the fallacy: Misrepresenting someone’s position to make it easier to refute
•Question 2 Identify the fallacy: Giving only two choices when more are possible
•Question 3 Identify the fallacy: Assuming what you are trying to prove
•Question 4 Identify the fallacy: Using the word of alleged authorities when there is not sufficient reason to believe that they have the information we week
•Question 5 Identify the fallacy: Offering or accepting a token gesture in lieu of the real thing
•Question 6 Identify the fallacy: Arguing that something should be done because it has always been done that way
•Question 7 Identify the fallacy: Justifying a wrong by pointing to a similar wrong perpetrated by others
•Question 8 Identify the fallacy: Assuming an item has a certain property because all or most of its parts have that property
•Question 9 Identify the fallacy: Assuming that all or most parts of an item have a property because the whole item has it
•Question 10 Identify the fallacy: An irrelevant attack on an opponent rather than on the opponent’s evidence or arguments
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 6 Quiz
Question 1Loyalty and provincialism are related to prejudice.
Question 2Loyalty inclines us to see our own society and its beliefs in a more favorable light than the evidence may warrant.
Question 3Prejudice makes it easy and natural for us to believe what most others in our society believe.
Question 4Superstitions are beliefs supported by a large amount of evidence.
Question 5Pseudoscientific beliefs are those that help us deal successfully with everyday problems.
Question 6Rationalization, suppression, and denial are three forms of
Question 7Others who can be blamed for our own trouble and mistakes are known as
Question 8Believing what we want to believe despite stronger evidence to the contrary is known as
Question 9Viewing everything in terms of an “us against them” mindset is known as
Question 10Putting off until tomorrow what ought to be done today is known as
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 7 Quiz
Question 1Although the mass media are a modestly good source of breaking news, smaller-scale outlets are much better at analysis, at supplying background information, and at investigative reporting.
Question 2There is no such thing as a “value free” approach to news media.
Question 3The Internet is shrinking while television news is growing.
Question 4Media power is not concentrated in the hands of giant media conglomerates.
Question 5Sometimes the media act as self-censors, either out of patriotic intent or to placate their audiences or advertisers.
Question 6Which of the following are examples of non-mass media
Question 7Which of the following are devices that may be used to facilitate objective reporting:
Question 8Which of the following can influence the way in which a story is reported
Question 9News reporting is supposed to be
Question 10Points of view can be conveyed via
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 8 Quiz
Question 1Which of the following is an example of old media?
Question 2Which of the following is an example of new media?
Question 3The norms and modes of public discourse today are marked by which feature(s)
Question 4Which of the following is an example of a traditional gatekeeper?
Question 5New media allows journalists to
Question 6It is very important that we verify what we read on the internet.
Question 7Public life today is largely consistent in our attitudes toward privacy, celebrity, and anonymity.
Question 8We should not exaggerate the cultural, economic, or social benefits of the digital age until it reaches more people around the world.
Question 9The tone of contemporary media discourse is not a major cause for concern.
Question 10New media reinforces the grip that traditional gatekeepers have over media.
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 3 Midterm Exam
Question 1In your own words, explain the difference between validity and soundness.
Question 2In your own words, construct a syllogism showing that John has parents.
Major premise: Jack and Jane have three children.
Minor premise: John is one of Jack and Jane’s children.
Conclusion: Hence, John has parents.
Question 3In your own words, explain the difference between ethical reasoning that is deontological and ethical reason that is consequentialist.
Question 4What are the three requirements of cogent reasoning?
Question 5What is the difference between a descriptive premise and a prescriptive premise?
Question 6Identify the following argument form: If P, then Q. P, therefore Q.
Question 7Beliefs that are the most ingrained and most resistant to amendment of all of our background beliefs comprise our:
Question 8Choose the best answer that applies: Words such as “because,” “since,” “for,” “hence,” “therefore” and “so” are examples of:
Question 9The view that morality is independent of human opinion is known as:
Question 10“Flying on airplanes is probably safe because your chance of dying is lower than dying in a car accident” is an example of what kind of argument?
Question 11What distinguishes moral arguments from descriptive arguments?
Question 12What kind of argument works by assuming the opposite of what we want to prove in order to show its counterintuitive implications?
Question 13A statement that is necessarily (i.e. it must be ) is known as a:
Question 14An argument containing three categorical propositions is known as a:
Question 15Identify the following kind of reasoning: “All X’s observed are Y’s. So, all X’s whatsoever are Y’s.”
Question 16Jack explains to John that it is wrong to lie because it violates the obligation to tell the truth. What kind of reasoning is Jack engaging in?
Question 17Jack explains to John that it is wrong to lie because he will get caught and lose his job. What kind of reasoning is Jack engaging in?
Question 18Reasoning that is in error is known as
Question 19Beliefs concerning the nature of human nature and the reliability of information sources are two kinds of:
Question 20Reasoning that is based off similarities between like cases is known as:
HU260 Strategies for Decision Making
Week 5 Proctored Exam
Question 1Even perfectly good statistics can be misused.
Question 2Polls can be misleading because of
Question 3Identify the fallacy: Labelling A as the cause of B on evidence that is insufficient, negative, unrepresentative, or in serious conflict with well-established high-level theories
Question 4Identify the fallacy: Employing statistics that are questionable without further support
Question 5ly accusing someone of fallacious reasoning is itself fallacious.
Question 6Identify the fallacy: Drawing an analogical conclusion when the cases compared are not alike, or when their similarity is not relevant to the conclusion drawn or when there is some crucial dissimilarity between them
Question 7Identify the fallacy: Drawing conclusions about a population on the basis of a sample that is too small to be a reliable measure of that population
Question 8Identify the fallacy: Accepting an argument on the basis of relevant but insufficient information of evidence
Question 9Identify the fallacy: Reasoning from a sample that is not representative (typical) of the population from which it is drawn
Question 10Identify the fallacy: Erroneously accusing others of fallacious reasoning
