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COMSATS INSTITUTE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, ISLAMABAD

DEPARTMENT OF HUMANITIES
SYLLABUS
Creative Thinking & Decision Making (BPY III) Fall 2016
Day/Time: Mon/Tue 1:00-2:30 PM
Instructor: Azeema Faizunnisa Vogeler, PhD, University of Hawaii
Email: azeema@gmail.com
Office Hours: By appointment.
Course Description:
This course outline has been compiled to meet the needs of students studying Creative
Thinking and Decision Making as a compulsory subject for undergraduate level students
of Psychology in CIIT, Islamabad. This is a 3 credit hour course, comprising 3 hours of
teaching per week.
Course Objectives:
The aim of this course is to develop a conceptual clarity about thinking creatively and
decision making, and how these concepts are manifested in studies as well as in
professional and personal life.
After studying this course the participants should be able to:

Identify various styles of thinking and explain how these thinking techniques
apply to creativity and decision making.
To become an active creator of their own knowledge base by becoming a learner
through direct observations of examples in daily life.
Apply various perspectives to collective behavior, human social need, and
individual social and personal life.

Class Participation:

Throughout the semester, there will be opportunities to earn participation points through
intelligent engagement in class activities. There will be various assignments to enhance
the understanding of course materials.
Assignment guidelines:
All written assignments are expected to be processed according to APA guidelines (refer
to Perdue night owl APA) before they are turned in for grade. All work is expected to be
turned in as hard copy with names of student and teacher, class and section, date, and
assignment title on the left hand top corner of the first page in single space; the rest of the
text typed and double spaced on a 12 font, Times Roman, and duly stapled. No
handwritten, emailed, or unstapled work is ever accepted in this class.
Note: No late quizzes or presentations without documented reasons for absence.

Methods of Teaching:

Lectures, case studies, small group discussions.

Relevant projects and other activities like role play
Reading materials and lectures will be occasionally supplemented with relevant
videos and other materials

Grading:
Participation in class, assignments, projects
and quizzes
Sessional 1
Sessional 2
Final Exam

25 points
10 points
15 points
50 points

Tentative schedule

Lecture 1
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture

2
3
4
5
6
7

Lecture 8
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture

9
10
11
12
13
14
15

Lecture 16
Lecture 17
Lecture 18

Introduction of class, syllabus, objectives, activities

during the semester
What is creativity? Class discussion (individual
assignment on plastic free weekend)
Basics of critical thinking and logic/reasoning
Arguments, premises, logical fallacies
Exercises: Arguments, premises, logical fallacies
Persuasion including ethos, pathos and logos
Solving logic puzzle and games
Cultural hegemony and ideology formation, discourse
creation, agency
Celebrating culture (with assignment on how and why
cultures shift)
Ethical Dilemmas & Decisions
Concept mapping, process maps
Stakeholder analysis
Lateral thinking (6 thinking hats) of Edward Bono
Hegemony, subalterns and human agency
Public policy in Pakistan (guest lecture)
Objectification of women, gender sub-texts, analyzing
ads for subliminal messages
Analysis of advertisements, class presentations
Who is a hero and why? How we choose our heroes?
Class write up and presentations on unknown heroes

Lecture 19
Lecture 20
Lecture 21
Lecture 22
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture

23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30

from Pakistan.
Gambit
Reasoning styles including inductive/deductive
Ethics, thinking about our moral compass (Steven
Pinker article)
Pinker article and SWOT analysis
What is vested Interest and other topics related to
creative writing
Necessary and sufficient conditions
Science vs. Pseudoscience, Gambit exercise
Misc. topics: zero sum game, paradox, oxymoron
Student presentations on selected articles
Student presentations on selected articles
Student presentations on selected articles
Student presentations on selected articles

Important notes: If you have any physical disability or circumstantial hindrance which
will make it difficult for you to carry out the work outlined and/or if you need special
accommodations due to the disability, please contact me immediately so that appropriate
arrangements/accommodations can be arrange, if possible.
Use of cell phones and other electronic device are not allowed in the class unless advised
by the instructor.

Please make sure that your work is plagiarism free. If you have any
questions on what entails plagiarism, please contact me.