Module: Possibility Studies

Latest Module Specifications

Current Academic Year 2025 - 2026

Module Title	Possibility Studies
Module Code	PSY1041 (ITS: PSYC309)
Faculty	Science & Health	School	Psychology
NFQ level	8	Credit Rating	5

Description

This module will enable students to develop knowledge and competences that help them adapt to and thrive within VUCA environments (i.e., those marked by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity) by cultivating their agency, creativity, imagination, anticipation, and innovation skills. The module will offer an introduction to psychological approaches within the emerging, transdisciplinary field of Possibility Studies.

Learning Outcomes

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2. Discuss key theories and methods associated with creativity research, Futures Studies, and Possibility Studies.
5. 1
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7. Assess the importance of psychology within the inter- and transdisciplinary context of Possibility Studies.
10. 2
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12. Be able to use psychological knowledge in order to envision positive change within a series of applied domains and vis a vis the societal challenges of today.
15. 3
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17. Be able to think critically and ethically about the kinds of possibilities individuals and collectives imagine and enact.
20. 4
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22. Effectively identify and understand a specific problem or opportunity.
25. 5
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27. Generate novel ideas relating to a given topic or scenario.
30. 6
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32. Appropriately evaluate novel ideas relating to a given topic or scenario.
35. 7
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37. Critically reflect upon the creative thinking process.
40. 8
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42. Generate and classify ideas relating to expected, possible and desirable futures.
45. 9
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47. Identify and critically reflect upon the assumptions informing ideas about expected, possible and desirable futures.
50. 10
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52. Demonstrate knowledge of key concepts and specific approaches relating to Futures Literacy.
55. 11
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57. Identify and explain trends in specific domains and consider how they may shape future developments.
60. 12
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62. Generate actionable strategies, individual or collective, relating to possible futures.
65. 13

*Type*	*Hours*	*Description*
Workload	Full time hours per semester
Lecture	13	No Description
Seminars	13	Readings, case studies and invited speakers
Group work	12	Collaborative and methodological skills
Independent Study	87	No Description
Total Workload: 125

Section Breakdown
CRN	11483	Part of Term	Semester 1
Coursework	100%	Examination Weight	0%
Grade Scale	40PASS	Pass Both Elements	N
Resit Category	RC1	Best Mark	N
Module Co-ordinator	Sinead Smyth	Module Teacher

Type	Description	% of total	Assessment Date
Assessment Breakdown
Essay	Short essay on the psychology of the possible	20%	n/a
Group project	Podcast with creatives and critical reflection	30%	n/a
Portfolio	ePortfolio and reflective critique of a societal problem	50%	n/a

Reassessment Requirement Type
Resit arrangements are explained by the following categories; RC1: A resit is available for both^* components of the module. RC2: No resit is available for a 100% coursework module. RC3: No resit is available for the coursework component where there is a coursework and summative examination element. ^* ‘Both’ is used in the context of the module having a coursework/summative examination split; where the module is 100% coursework, there will also be a resit of the assessment

Pre-requisite	None
Co-requisite	None
Compatibles	None
Incompatibles	None

All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml

Indicative Content and Learning Activities

Classes
Introduction to Possibility Studies Agency within constraints Creativity and innovation Play and imagination Serendipity and discovery Curiosity, awe, and wonder Counterfactual thinking Futures and anticipation studies Utopias and dystopias The possible in education The possible in organisations The possible in health and well-being The possible in society

Indicative Reading List

Books:

GlÄƒveanu: 0, Creativity: A very short introduction, Oxford University Press, 2021,
Meretoja: 2017, The ethics of storytelling: Narrative hermeneutics, history, and the possible, Oxford University Press,
Mulgan: 2022, Another world is possible: How to reignite social and political imagination, C. Hurst & Co. Publishers Ltd,
Seligman, Railton, Baumeister & Sripada: 2016, Homo prospectus, Oxford University Press,

Articles:
None

Other Resources

None