81838 - Cognitive Psychology and Ergonomics

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course the student has acquired a general knowledge of the main theoretical accounts of Psychology, of the most important cognitive processes, of the main experimental methods of cognitive psychology and their applications in the field of ergonomics

Course contents

In the first part of the course the general aspects of cognitive psychology will be addressed with the aim of providing a historical and thematic overview of the main psychological currents and the most important research methods used in psychology.

In the second part of the course the individual cognitive processes, such as perception, attention, memory, thinking and reasoning, will be addressed in more detail, with particular reference to the theoretical models used in the study and explanation of psychology. In addition, more applicative issues will be addressed in relation to the experimentation and application in the ergonomic field of some general principles of cognitive psychology. Particular attention will be paid to the experimental paradigms used in psychology and some of the best known experiments in cognitive psychology will be analyzed, considering their effects in the ergonomic context and in the psychology of everyday life.

Prior knowledge in psychology is required.

Readings/Bibliography

Psicologia. Processi cognitivi, teoria e applicazioni. Nicoletti, Rumiati, Lotto. Il Mulino, Bologna. Edizione 2017

Introduzione all'ergonomia cognitiva. Nicoletti, Vandi. Carocci Roma. Edizione 2021.

Teaching methods

Lectures with the help of Power Point presentations in which the debate on the individual problems addressed will be promoted.

In addition, it is possible to participate in experimental research (also online).

The Power Point presentation will be available on Virtuale

Assessment methods

The final exam will be a multiple-choice test. The questions will concern the topics studied and their applications. The exam aims at verifying:

1. the competence of the acquired contents

2. the level of assimilation and critical-conceptual elaboration of the proposed contents

3. the ability to orientate between the main lines of interpretation

They will be evaluated with marks of excellence:

• the students' acquisition of an organic vision of the topics addressed in class together with their critical use

They will be evaluated with discrete marks:

• a mnemonic knowledge of the subject,
• a capacity for synthesis and analysis

They will be evaluated with insufficient marks:

• knowledge gaps
• lack of orientation in the bibliographic materials offered during the course

The exam offers a further opportunity for discussion with the teacher, a comparison that the student is invited to look for during the lessons, intervening in person with the request for clarification or with proposals for further information.

Students who have already taken a Cognitive Psychology examination may, if they wish, opt for an oral interview in which they will have to present and discuss a paper on a topic covered during the course. In this case students are asked to contact the teacher.

Foreign students who feel more confortable to take the exam in English, are kindly asked to contact the professor in order to arrange the examination procedure.

Teaching tools

Participation (also online) in experimental sessions for the deepening of experimental paradigms

Office hours

See the website of Gioacchino Garofalo