Critical thinking skills are central to the discipline of psychology and are expected of students in a variety of college programs. The APA Guidelines for the Undergraduate Psychology Major (APA, 2013) include critical thinking as a broad goal, with specific skills of demonstrating psychology information literacy, using scientific reasoning, problem-solving, and research design. Numerous activities have been developed and used in psychology courses that give students an opportunity to apply critical thinking to understanding psychological concepts. This symposium will highlight people affiliated with the Science of Magic Association (SoMA) who have incorporated elements of magic and magic tricks to encourage critical thinking or support the teaching of psychology. Magic provides a perfect opportunity for students to examine their own assumptions about a situation and to realize how easily their assumptions, perceptions, and expectations can be manipulated by a skilled magician. Magic tricks exploit automatic assumptions and heuristics that allow for quick decisions in the natural world. As such, they can be a powerful tool for exemplifying the fallibility of cognitive systems and encouraging students to engage in skeptical, critical thought.  Symposium participants will discuss the ways they have used magic in their specific courses, including recommendations for other instructors. All presenters have found that magic tricks engage students beyond many other types of course activities and are a unique window into understanding human perception and belief.

Recent years have seen widespread interest in and call for a “science of magic” that learns from the psychological insights and methods of magicians. In just the last decade, renowned magicians, like Teller, Mac King, James Randi, and Apollo Robbins, have authored papers meant to be read not by magicians, but by scientists who study attention and perception. Although much of the work up until now has been one-sided (in that scientists are benefiting from magicians), the collaboration should be a two-way street. In his presentation, Dr. Barnhart will illustrate some of the ways that magicians can enhance their performances by integrating principles and discoveries from cognitive science.