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Intellectual Humility: Science

Approx. 21 hours to complete

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Course Summary

This course explores the concept of intellectual humility and how it can be applied to science. You will learn how to recognize and address your own biases, communicate with others respectfully, and engage in constructive debates about scientific topics.

Key Learning Points

Understand the importance of intellectual humility in science
Recognize your own biases and limitations
Communicate respectfully with others who have different perspectives
Engage in constructive debates about scientific topics
Develop skills to critically evaluate scientific evidence

Learning Outcomes

Develop a deeper understanding of intellectual humility and its role in science
Recognize and address personal biases in scientific research
Communicate respectfully with others who have different perspectives

Prerequisites or good to have knowledge before taking this course

Basic understanding of scientific research
Willingness to reflect on personal biases and limitations

Course Difficulty Level

Intermediate

Course Format

Online
Self-paced

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Carol Tavris
Adam Grant
Barbara Oakley

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Description

It’s clear that the world needs more intellectual humility. But how do we develop this virtue? And why do so many people still end up so arrogant? Do our own biases hold us back from becoming as intellectually humble as we could be—and are there some biases that actually make us more likely to be humble? Which cognitive dispositions and personality traits give people an edge at being more intellectually humble - and are they stable from birth, learned habits, or something in between? And what can contemporary research on the emotions tell us about encouraging intellectual humility in ourselves and others?

Experts in psychology, philosophy and education are conducting exciting new research on these questions, and the results have important, real-world applications. Faced with difficult questions people often tend to dismiss and marginalize dissent. Political and moral disagreements can be incredibly polarizing, and sometimes even dangerous. And whether it’s Christian fundamentalism, Islamic extremism, or militant atheism, religious dialogue remains tinted by arrogance, dogma, and ignorance. The world needs more people who are sensitive to reasons both for and against their beliefs, and are willing to consider the possibility that their political, religious and moral beliefs might be mistaken. The world needs more intellectual humility. In this course, we will examine the following major questions about the science of intellectual humility: • How do we become intellectually humble? • What can human cognition tell us about intellectual humility? • How does arrogance develop, and how can we become more open-minded? • How do emotions affect our ability to be intellectually humble? All lectures are delivered by leading specialists, and the course is organised around a number of interesting readings and practical assignments which will help you address issues related to humility in your daily life. This course can be taken as a part of a series which explores the theory, the science and the applied issues surrounding intellectual humility. In the previous course on the theory behind intellectual humility, we considered how to define intellectual humility, the nature of an intellectual virtue, and how we know who is intellectually humble. If you are interested, complete all three courses to gain a broader understanding of this fascinating topic. Look for: • Intellectual Humility: Theory - https://www.coursera.org/learn/intellectual-humility-theory • Intellectual Humility: Practice - https://www.coursera.org/learn/intellectual-humility-practice

Outline

Getting Started
Trailer - Intellectual Humility: Science
About this course
Course assessments and exercises

Humility, exploration, and the psychology of child development
Ian introduces Module 1
Introduction
Learning and explanation
Inconsistency, explanation and belief revision
Implications for child education
Before you begin...
Optional companion book
"How Do We Become Intellectually Humble?" by Ian Church & Peter Samuelson (recommended)
"How Do We Develop and Maintain Humility?" by Bob Roberts (recommended)
"Confirmation Bias: A Ubiquitous Phenomenon in Many Guises" by Raymond S. Nickerson (further reading)
Initial thoughts
Practice Quiz
Module Quiz
Back to school
Reading quiz on "How Do We Develop and Maintain Humility?" by Bob Roberts

What makes us arrogant? Biases, heuristics and cognitive psychology
Ian introduces Module 2
Introduction
Humility, arrogance, and base rate neglect
Developmental over-optimism
The illusion of explanatory depth
Illusions of argument justification and insight
Illusions of the outsourced mind
"What Can Human Cognition Tell Us About Intellectual Humility?" by Ian Church & Peter Samuelson (recommended)
"Searching for Explanations: How the Internet Inflates Estimates of Internal Knowledge" by Matthew Fisher et al. (recommended)
"The Illusion of Argument Justification" by Matthew Fisher and Frank Keil (further reading)
"Overestimation of Knowledge About Word Meanings: The 'Misplaced Meaning' Effect" by Jonathan Kominsky and Frank Keil (further reading)
"The Misunderstood Limits of Folk Science: An Illusion of Explanatory Depth" by Leonid Rozenblit and Frank Keil (further reading)
"Overoptimism about future knowledge: Early Arrogance?" by Lockhart et al. (further reading)
Rose-coloured biases in action
Practice Quiz
Examples of biases
More examples of biases
Module Quiz
Reading quiz on "What Can Human Cognition Tell Us About Intellectual Humility?" by Ian Church and Peter Samuelson

Dogmatism and open-mindedness in politics, religion, and life
Ian introduces Module 3
Open-minded cognition
Open-minded cognition: relations with other constructs
The flexible merit standard model
Message tenability effect
The reciprocal nature of open-minded cognition
The earned dogmatism effect
The attitude justification effect
Concluding remarks
"Are Some People Born Humble?" by Ian Church and Peter Samuelson (recommended)
The Big 5 Personality Test
"When Self-Perceptions of Expertise Increase Closed-Minded Cognition: The Earned Dogmatism Effect" by Ottati et al. (further reading)
Initial thoughts
Untenable messages
Practice Quiz
Module Quiz
Open-mindedness in public discourse and life
Reading quiz on "Are Some People Born Humble?" by Ian Church and Peter Samuelson

Humility, emotions and human relations: a view from social psychology
Ian introduces Module 4
Why not intellectualise?
Towards engagement: seeing the other as a person
Towards engagement: being involved
Towards engagement: not focusing on the self
Towards engagement: Dialogue, value and difference
An exploratory study
Conclusions
Before you finish...
"How Do Emotions Affect Our Ability to Be Intellectually Humble?" by Ian Church and Peter Samuelson (recommended)
"The role of emotional engagement in lecturer-student interaction and the impact on academic outcomes of student achievement and learning" by Vathsala Sagayadevan and Senthu Jeyaraj (further reading)
Quiz: Initial thoughts
Practice Quiz
Deceptive self-justification
Module Quiz
Reading quiz on "How Do Emotions Affect Our Ability to Be Intellectually Humble?" by Ian Church and Peter Samuelson

End of course assignments
Show what you learned by editing the Wikipedia entry on intellectual humility!
A brief How-To
TRAILER: Intellectual Humility: Theory
TRAILER: Intellectual Humility: Practice

Summary of User Reviews

Discover the importance of intellectual humility in science with this comprehensive course on Coursera. Users have praised the course for its engaging content and insightful exercises that help foster humility and open-mindedness.

Pros from User Reviews

Insightful exercises that promote open-mindedness
Expert instructors with a wealth of knowledge
Easy-to-follow lectures that cater to different learning styles
Great resource for those interested in science and philosophy
Helpful feedback and support from instructors and peers

Cons from User Reviews

Some users found the course too basic or introductory
Occasional technical issues with the platform
Limited interaction with instructors outside of scheduled office hours
Some users felt that the course did not go deep enough into certain topics
No option for a certificate of completion unless you pay for it

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