Why do we make bad decisions?

Serious Topics

Why do we sometimes make choices that we later regret? Why can intelligent people make errors in judgment, especially under pressure or in complex situations? This course offers an accessible introduction to the psychology of decision-making. Through the key contributions of cognitive psychology, we will explore the mechanisms that influence our everyday choices: emotions, cognitive biases, heuristics, mental overload, thinking habits, and the influence of context. The aim is not to learn how to make perfect decisions, but to better understand how our minds work so that we can recognize the most common pitfalls and develop clearer, more nuanced thinking. Illustrated by numerous examples from everyday life, this course is intended for anyone curious to better understand their own psychological functioning.