A challenging but fascinating topic on the way to achieving self-knowledge is the unconscious. For well over a century, psychologists, philosophers, and many others have posited a level of mentality that is not immediately open to introspection; some would even say that certain unconscious elements cannot be known through introspection. This course will examine some of the most influential ideas about the unconscious starting with the work of Sigmund Freud, and follow the development of theories of the unconscious all the way to present research in experimental psychology. But be warned: some of the things you may learn about your unconscious mind may be surprising, and possibly even disturbing!
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Know Thyself - The Value and Limits of Self-Knowledge: The Unconscious
Université d'ÉdimbourgÀ propos de ce cours
Ce que vous allez apprendre
Gain an appreciation of the relation of methods of learning about oneself that do not depend on introspection.
Become familiar with contemporary research in experimental social psychology, philosophy, and neuroscience into the emotions and the unconscious.
Understand the role of affect in decision making, and self-deception.
Be able to identify and analyse unconscious mechanisms motivating own and other people's actions.
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Université d'Édimbourg
Since 1583 the University of Edinburgh has been at the forefront of innovation in education and research. Ranked 20th in the world, we have been an international leader in online learning since our first online degree launched in 2005. As part of our commitment to making learning accessible to all, we offer free courses in a variety of subjects including philosophy, health, animal welfare and STEM courses, all designed to build the skills of the global community.
Programme de cours : ce que vous apprendrez dans ce cours
Getting started
Here you will get an overview of this course, including the topics covered and questions addressed, as well as what you need complete the course.
The Freudian Unconscious
In this first week of the course we will acquaint ourselves with the ideas of Sigmund Freud, who is probably the most famous advocate and practitioner of psychoanalysis. Shockingly for his time, Freud proposed that many facts of human behavior, including the mistakes we make, what we dream, as well as much behavior that seems on the surface to be irrational, are to be explained as being due to forces in our minds of which we are not conscious. We will look at Freud's reasons for this hypothesis and consider whether those reasons are compelling.
Freud's legacy
In this second week of the course we explore some developments in psychoanalytic theory that were dominant in the middle of the 20th Century. Focusing on the work of Anna Freud (Sigmund Freud's youngest daughter) and Melanie Klein, we will consider some psychoanalytic themes that emerged after Sigmund's death. Both of A. Freud and Klein were intensely interested in the psychological development of children, and we will learn about some of their ideas on this topic. Also, we will consider some phenomena that have potential resonance for our daily lives such as transference, reaction-formation, and what is now termed "gaslighting".
The Adaptive Unconscious
Much of the last three decades of research related to the unconscious mind has focused on its automatic character, and draws attention to the vast extent of cognitive and affective processing that occur with little or no conscious effort. Such processing is thought to have been evolutionarily adaptive in the past, as well as to simplify our daily lives even now. But these processes can also be hard to modify if they are not working for us, and may account for certain biases that seem to perpetuate some current forms of injustice in many of the world's societies. In this third week of the course we will learn about the "adaptive unconscious", paying attention both to the benefits it confers and the challenges it raises.
Rationality and Emotions
In this final module we will consider the relation between emotions and rationality. These are popularly thought to be at odds with one another, and many people hold that to be rational, one must keep emotions at bay. With a focus on the work of neuroscientist Antonio Damasio, we will consider reasons for thinking that one important kind of rationality could not function properly without emotions.
Final assessment
Apply your knowledge of the unconscious!
Avis
- 5 stars78,98 %
- 4 stars16,46 %
- 3 stars3,15 %
- 2 stars0,52 %
- 1 star0,87 %
Meilleurs avis pour KNOW THYSELF - THE VALUE AND LIMITS OF SELF-KNOWLEDGE: THE UNCONSCIOUS
I loved the course , it gave me indeed a very good introduction to psychology and helped me with new ways of analysing myself, and knowing myself better.
Really outstanding. The course lectures were extremely good. The supplementary material were of very high quality. Learnt a lot.
Very insightful course, I really enjoyed it. It also gave a lot of extra source material that was very helpful in getting a better understanding of concepts.
This course was very interesting and it had me deep in thought. The lecturer was amazing and was able to communicate really well.
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