Legal, Forensic and Criminological Psychology

The study of Emotions from XIX century to date. Emotions: adaptive roles and modulation in the context of aversive events. Genes and Behaviour. Relationship between an individual's genetic background, environment, and behavioral phenotype. The study of Stress: from the physiological approach to cognitivism and cognitive neuroscience. Relationship between stress and memory processes. Stress and aversive events. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Psychological trauma and traumatic events Cognitive and behavioural effects of trauma: role of genotype and environment in the response to traumatic events e in aggressive behaviour. The study of the relationship between memory and emotions (emotional memory): a contribution to the knowledge of the mechanisms of long-term memory formation and possible clinical implications of traumatic memories. Mechanisms underlying Consolidation and Reconsolidation of memory. Emotions and memory trace strength. Modulation of cognitive and behavioral effects of aversive events: possible interventions. Course activities will also include knowledge of research activities aimed at the study of specific memory processes, with particular emphasis on the memory of events with emotional content. In addition and particularly in the part of the course dedicated to laboratory activities, in-depth literature review activities on specific course topics are planned, with the students developing papers and PowerPoint presentations illustrating possible application and implications of the program topics.

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Laboratory of Emotions and Memory of Traumatic Events Below is a selection of articles used in the preparation of the laboratory lessons Articles recommended for study in preparation for the laboratory component of the exam: Baum, M. L. (2013). The monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) genetic predisposition to impulsive violence: Is it relevant to criminal trials? Neuroethics, 6(2), 287– 306. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12152-011-9108-6 Birkett MA. The Trier Social Stress Test protocol for inducing psychological stress. J Vis Exp. 2011 Oct 19;(56):3238. doi: 10.3791/3238. PMID: 22042290; PMCID: PMC3227197. Beckers, T., Hermans, D., Lange, I. et al. Understanding clinical fear and anxiety through the lens of human fear conditioning. Nat Rev Psychol 2, 233– 245 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44159-023-00156-1 Kindt M, van Emmerik A. New avenues for treating emotional memory disorders: towards a reconsolidation intervention for posttraumatic stress disorder. Ther Adv Psychopharmacol. 2016 Aug;6(4):283-95. doi: 10.1177/2045125316644541. Epub 2016 May 1. PMID: 27536348; PMCID: PMC4971600. Kredlow, M. A., & Otto, M. W. (2015). Interference with the reconsolidation of trauma‐related memories in adults. Depression and Anxiety, 32(1), 32– 37. https://doi.org/10.1002/da.22343 Stark, S. M., Kirwan, C. B., & Stark, C. E. (2019). Mnemonic similarity task: A tool for assessing hippocampal integrity. Trends in cognitive sciences, 23(11), 938-951. Uhrig MK, Trautmann N, Baumgärtner U, Treede RD, Henrich F, Hiller W, Marschall S. Emotion Elicitation: A Comparison of Pictures and Films. Front Psychol. 17 febbraio 2016;7:180. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00180. PMID: 26925007; PMCID: PMC4756121. Recommended reading (optional) Lacy, J. W., & Stark, C. E. L. (2013). The neuroscience of memory: Implications for the courtroom. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 14(9), 649– 658. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn3563 Nathan J. Kolla, Marco Bortolato. The role of monoamine oxidase A in the neurobiology of aggressive, antisocial, and violent behavior: a tale of mice and men. Prog Neurobiol. 2020 November; 194: 101875. doi:10.1016/j.pneurobio.2020.101875. Lange, I., et al. (2017). Behavioral pattern separation and its link to the neural mechanisms of fear generalization. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 12(11), 1720-1729. Lecei, A., & van Winkel, R. (2020). Hippocampal pattern separation of emotional information determining risk or resilience in individuals exposed to childhood trauma: Linking exposure to neurodevelopmental alterations and threat anticipation. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 108,160-170. Eiserbeck, A. et al. (2023). Deepfake smiles matter less—the psychological and neural impact of presumed AI-generated faces. Scientific Reports, 13(1), 16111. Choi, K. H., Kim, J., Kwon, O. S., Kim, M. J., Ryu, Y. H., & Park, J. E. (2017). Is heart rate variability (HRV) an adequate tool for evaluating human emotions?–A focus on the use of the International Affective Picture System (IAPS). Psychiatry research, 251, 192-196. Sandra Ortega Ferreira. Emotional activation in human beings: procedures for experimental stress induction. Psicologia USP 2019 | Journal article DOI: 10.1590/0103-6564E20180176 EID: 2-s2.0-85080105718 , Part of ISBN: 16785177 01036564

As per the obligations set by the Degree Course.

NB: In accordance with the course decisions on laboratory activities and taking into account the opinions expressed by the students, it is considered useful, in their interest, to modify the evaluation methods by introducing a single written examination containing both questions on the laboratory activities (3 CFU) and questions on the theoretical part (3 CFU), to be taken exclusively in the context of the examination dates set by the University. It should be noted that students who do not participate in the laboratory, in addition to the above mentioned assignment, will also have to prepare a PDF paper and a PPT presentation (to be handed in to the lecturer one week before the roll call) on a topic of their choice from the programme, on which they will do an oral integration, which will take place on the same day of the roll call, following the written test.

Lectures/Labs will be delivered in person. Any necessary change in the modality will be timely and officially communicated to students. Lectures will be delivered and organized so as to favour the acquisition of knowledge regarding Psychology as outlined in the Main Objectives section.