Biological psychology, developmental psychology and cognitive psychology (BPS140)

Content

This course covers three different disciplines within psychology that all have the common goal of describing, predicting, determining the cause of and explaining aspects of human behaviour: biological psychology, developmental psychology and cognitive psychology. Through teaching in plenary sessions and seminars, the students will learn key concepts and how to apply them through critical, theory-driven reflection, both within and across the three disciplines.

The part of the course on biological psychology provides an introduction to biological psychology and neuropsychology, covering anatomy, physiology and neurochemistry in both normal and diseased / injury-affected subjects. The main focus is on the central nervous system in general, and the brain in particular.

The part of the course on developmental psychology provides an introduction to different theoretical perspectives on personality development, with a particular focus on the structure, dynamics and development of personality during childhood and adolescence. Developmental psychology attaches importance to the fact that individuals simultaneously undergo a general human development, development as a member of a particular culture, and development as a unique human being, with a main focus on cognitive and emotional development theory.

The part of the course on cognitive psychology provides an introduction to the basic mental and cognitive processes in human beings, as well as cognitive issues and phenomena, which are dealt with by other main areas in psychology, such as developmental psychology, personality psychology and social psychology. The teaching focuses on the relationship between cognitive and neural processes. The students will be introduced to the main human thinking strategies, including heuristics (fast thinking) and analytical thinking (slow thinking), their applications, and their relative strengths and weaknesses.

Learning outcome

Knowledge

On successful completion of this course, students will

• have knowledge of key concepts, methods and empirical results within biological psychology, developmental psychology and cognitive psychology
• have knowledge of the make-up of the nervous system, including in particular the structure of the human brain and the relationship between different parts of the brain and behaviour, emotions and cognition
• have knowledge of the function and structure of neurons and the neural network
• have knowledge of key topics within developmental psychology such as attachment, cognitive development, personality development, moral development and development of pro- and anti-social behaviours
• have knowledge of topics within cognitive psychology such as attention, judgement- and decision processes, problem-solving and language

Skills

On successful completion of this course, students will

• be able to define and apply central concepts from all three disciplines across the disciplines
• be able to explain central experimental test designs to study different perspectives within all three disciplines
• be able to explain and discuss differences between the different theoretical approaches within all three disciplines

General competencies

On successful completion of this course, students will

• have a basic understanding of the different perspectives, methods and theories covered in the course
• be able to apply this understanding to describe, predict, determine causes of and explain human behaviour

Required prerequisite knowledge

Recommended prerequisites

Exam

Coursework requirements

All of the compulsory activities must be approved in order for the student to be eligible for examination. Approval/non-approval of compulsory activities is announced on Studentweb, normally no later than 7 days before the examination. Students who lack approval of one or more compulsory activities will be withdrawn from the examination.

Compulsary activities:

• Seminars: Attendance is mandatory for 75% of all seminars. If more than 50% attendance is achieved, the student may be evaluated individually at the course leader's discretion. It is the student's responsibility to ensure that attendance requirements are met.
• Draft for the term paper, with requirements defined by the course coordinator. Word count: Max. 1000 words

Course teacher(s)

Course coordinator:

Study Program Director:

Method of work

The teaching consists of lectures and seminars.

• Students are expected to prepare for lectures by reading relevant literature. The recommended reading is indicated in the lecture plan.
• The course includes a compulsory individual written assignment.
• In seminars, the different theoretical topics and methods are presented using a variety of different learning activities.

Open for

Course assessment

Literature