Module POL3267 for 2021/2
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
POL3267: Misinformation, Misperceptions and Conspiracy Theories
This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.
How this Module is Assessed
In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.
Formative Assessment
A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.
Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
---|---|---|---|
Presentation of paper outline | 4 minutes | 1-7 | Verbal |
Summative Assessment
A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.
Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
---|---|---|
100 | 0 | 0 |
...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.
Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
---|---|---|---|---|
Essay | 80 | 3000 words | 1-7 | Written |
Individual presentation | 20 | 13 minutes | 1-7 | Verbal |
Re-assessment
Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.
Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
---|---|---|---|
Essay | Essay (3000 words) (80%) | 1-7 | August/September Reassessment Period |
Individual presentation | Written report covering the topic of the presentation (20%) (1500 words) | 1-7 | August/September Reassessment Period |
Indicative Reading List
This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.
- Douglas, K. M., Uscinski, J. E., Sutton, R. M., Cichocka, A., Nefes, T., Ang, C. S., & Deravi, F. (2019). Understanding conspiracy theories. Political Psychology, 40, 3-35.
- Flynn, D., B. Nyhan and J. Reifler (2017). The nature and origins of misperceptions: understanding false and unsupported beliefs about politics. Political Psychology38 (S1): 127–150.
- Guess, Andrew M., Michael Lerner, Benjamin Lyons, Jacob M. Montgomery, Brendan Nyhan, Jason Reifler, and Neelanjan Sircar. (2020) A digital media literacy intervention increases discernment between mainstream and false news in the United States and India. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences117, no. 27: 15536-15545.
- Guess, Andrew, Jonathan Nagler, and Joshua Tucker. Less than you think: Prevalence and predictors of fake news dissemination on Facebook. Science advances5, no. 1 (2019): eaau4586.
- Jerit, Jennifer, and Yangzi Zhao. "Political misinformation." Annual Review of Political Science23 (2020): 77-94.
- Uscinski, J.E., 2018. Conspiracy theories and the people who believe them. Oxford: Oxford University Press.