- Docente: Paolo Maria Russo
- Credits: 1
- Language: Italian
- Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures
- Campus: Bologna
- Corso: Single cycle degree programme (LMCU) in Medicine and Surgery (cod. 8415)
Learning outcomes
Course contents
Methodology for studing cognitive processes. The design of a descriptive, correlational and experimental
study. Definition of
dependent and
independent variables. Control group. Control
conditions. Randomization. Practical exercises to
evaluate what is the best choice among the
various types of
experimental design to
test the validity of some specific
assumptions.
Behavioural measures: reaction time and mental chronometry. Neuropsychology and the importanceof
the neural bases of mental function. Brief mention of neuroimaging methods: PET (positron emission tomography) and fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging).
EEG (electroencephalography)
and evoked
potentials.
Memory. The 3 stages: encoding, retention, retrieval. Photographic memory. The fallibility of memory and the experiments of E.
Loftus. Serial model of Atkinson and Shiffrin. Exercises on the
ability of short-term memory. Exercises on the serial position curve. Long-term
memory explicit and implicit. Exercises on priming. Forgetfulness and amnesia, and the
patient HM.
The emotions. The classical
theories. Contemporary
theories with particular attention to the somatic marker theory
of A. Damasio. Adaptive role of emotions: facial
expressions. P. Ekman and FACS system. Neurobiological basis of emotions. The mirror
neurons. The amygdala
and its role in social
behavior. Role of emotional response
in maternal
behavior.
Readings/Bibliography
Textbook: Schacter, Gilbert, Wegner (2010). General Psychology.
Zanichelli.
In addition, students will use the handouts provided by the teacher
(which correspond to the slides of the lectures) that summarize the
information in the textbook and provide some supplementary
information that can be evaluated in the exam.
Teaching methods
Lectures and illustration of psychological testing materials.
Assessment methods
Test with forced choice and open-ended questions. Oral examination.
Teaching tools
Powerpoint slides, softwares to illustrate the experimental tasks, exercises in psychological testing.
Office hours
See the website of Paolo Maria Russo
SDGs
This teaching activity contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN 2030 Agenda.