Trends in Brain and Behaviour

URL study guide

https://studiegids.vu.nl/en/courses/2024-2025/P_MTRBRBE

Course Objective

This course will address research in applied and basic neuroscience, which aims to elucidate the mechanisms of mental functioning both in healthy individuals and patient populations. The course aims to provide students with background knowledge on the research methods commonly used in neuroscience and neuropsychological research, as well as current trends related to mental health. It will also cover the integration of these research methods with other disciplines in the cognitive sciences in order to give students insight into the multidimensional nature of many conditions. It offers training in integrative thinking and critical evaluation of the value of integrating different scientific methods. Students will work on a research proposal using methods from neuropsychology and neuroscience, and focusing how methods in these fields can be utilized to increase our understanding of psychopathology.

Course Content

This course will focus on using neuropsychology and neuroscience to understand psychopathology. It builds on the theoretical background in psychopathology which students have developed during the first year of the RMCDP programme. This course focuses on extending this knowledge by examining psychopathology using a brain and behaviour approach. Brain-behaviour relationships can be studied in diverse populations ranging from children to adults and patient populations to healthy controls. It is becoming increasingly clear that in the future innovative insights can greatly benefit from integrated studies of brain and cognition. During the course students will become acquainted with neuropsychological and neuroscientific research methods, and the ways in which these methods can be combined with those used in clinical, developmental and cognitive research to further understanding of mental disorders. These methods will subsequently be discussed in relation to two areas of neuroscience research related to psychopathology. The first area, developmental neuroscience, examines normal and abnormal developmental trajectories of behaviour, brain structure and function. Childhood and adolescence are pivotal periods in shaping future mental health, and the origins of many disorders can be found during this period. The second area, social neuroscience, examines the neural and behavioural correlates of interpersonal interactions both within the healthy populations and in various disorders, ranging from psychosis to bipolar disorder. Students will learn how to use these approaches to write a research proposal incorporating neuropsychological and/or neuroscientific methods. Next to writing the proposal, students will be encouraged to practice critically reflecting on their own work, and identifying strengths and weaknesses. Students will receive feedback on their proposal from lecturers and fellow students and be expected to use this to improve their work.

Teaching Methods

Lectures and tutorials

Method of Assessment

To pass this course students will need to:
• Pass the final exam consisting of open-ended questions (50% of final grade)
• Write an integrative research proposal (50% of final grade)
• Actively participate in giving feedback to fellow students on their research questions and research proposals (Graded as pass/fail)

Literature

Research articles and book chapters that can be obtained online through open access or VU account. A literature list will be posted on Canvas.

Target Audience

This course is primarily intended for students of the second year of the RM Clinical and Developmental Psychopathology

Entry Requirements

There are no entry requirements for this course. However, students with little knowledge of neuroanatomy and the structure and function of the nervous system may find the initial lectures challenging.