Psychology and social processes

MATTEO CANDIDI
MARTINA FUSARO

Social Neuroscience is an emerging field of study that combines a variety of disciplines ranging from social psychology to cognitive neuroscience. This course aims at offering a broad overview of the relationships between brain and social behavior, through the study of the main topic and techniques pertaining the field of Social Neuroscience.
Knowledge and understanding
The analysis of theoretical and empirical contributions of current literature will allow students to acquire knowledge about the functional mechanisms and neural bases of social cognition and social behavior and their alteration in individuals with brain damage. Moreover, the students will acquire knowledge about the main neuroscientific techniques and their integration in cognitive and social neuroscience.
Applying knowledge and understanding
Students will be able to develop general skills in deepening knowledge related to the same topic explored by different scientific disciplines (e.g. The link between social action and cognitive neuroscience studies of motor cognition.)
Making judgements
Each class will include a collegial discussion on a different topic so that the students will be able to critically evaluate the methodological approach of consolidated theories and experimental data. The students will be able to comment and give explanations and alternative interpretations of theoretical and empirical contributions of current literature.
Communication skills
The course will include collegial discussion of scientific articles conducted by groups of students recruited on a voluntarily basis.
Learning skills
Students will be able to read and critically discuss scientific papers as well as will acquire the theoretical and methodological knowledge in order to perform research on a variety of affective and social processes within a large variety of contexts.

General aims
This corso aims at providing an up-to date overview of the theories and research areas in the field of Social Neuroscience and offering a comprehensive view of the methods used in the field. The course has two main teaching goals. The first one is to promote an understaning of the social, clinical and technological potentiality of studies concerning social functions in neurotypical individuals, along the typical and atypical development as well as in psychiatric patients or patients with brain lesions. The second teaching goal is to strengthen the stu-dent ability to search, understand, report, and utilize information offered by scientific papers from the field of so-cial neuroscience.

Specific aims
- Understanding the cognitive and neural mechanisms supporting social functions (knowledge and under-standing).
- Understanding the relevance of social functions for the development of higher order cognitive functions, in clinical settings and for technological purposes (applying knowledge and understanding).
- Critically evaluate the methodological approach and theoretical impact of papers from the field of Social Neuroscience (making judgements).
- Ability to report and comment the content of scientific papers from social neuroscience field (communica-tion skills).
- Development of general skills in deepening studies in fields related to social neuroscience such as neuropsychology, psychophysiology, behavioral neuroscience (learning skills).

Good knowledge of english language, good background on system neuroscience.

Textbook: Aglioti-Berlucchi, Neurofobia, Cortina, 2013 (english version expected in 2018).

Bibliography
Scientific articles uploaded on the course site. Mandatory to pass the exam.

Textbook: Aglioti-Berlucchi, Neurofobia, Cortina, 2013 (english version expected in 2018).

Bibliography
Scientific articles uploaded on the course site. Mandatory to pass the exam.

The course has 6 CFU of frontal lectures, and 3 CFU of Laboratory activities. In presence attendance is warmly requested, especially for the lab activities that will need to be done also by students that will not attend the course.

Warmly indicated attendance.

The exam will evaluate the student's understanding of the neural and cognitive bases of social functions and of their impairments in neurological patients, and the principal methods used to study brain functions and their integration in the field of social neuroscience. The exam will consist in a timed written test with 4 open questions lasting 90 minutes. The final grade is made of the average of the evaluation of the single responses at the written exam and at the laboratory part.

Open questions on topics of Social Neuroscience.

Examples:
What is neuroeconomics?
Methods and techniques in Social Neuroscience.

• Theoretical bases of social neuroscience
  • Books: Aglioti-Berlucchi, Neurofobia, Cortina, 2013


• Methods of social neuroscience
  • Books: Aglioti-Berlucchi, Neurofobia, Cortina, 2013