Psychology

This course provides an experimental approach to psychology. It introduces the use of probability and common tools to analyze and synthesize data and apply various methods involved in the practice of the discipline.

This course explores the role of parents and parenting strategies in children's growth and development. Students learn the basic theory of child development and how specific parenting methods and practices affect children's cognitive, social, and emotional development at all stages of growth. Students also learn about parental roles, parenting concepts and behaviors in different social and cultural backgrounds, and discuss the social and cultural factors affecting contemporary families and parenting. The course introduces basic child rearing and parenting skills, and provides the basis for students who are interested in working with teenagers and children in the future. Topics include: 1) theoretical basis of parenting research and practice; 2) changes in parenting styles and strategies at various stages of development from early childhood to adolescence; 3) cross-cultural comparison and interdisciplinary discussion of parental roles, parenting concepts/styles, and parent-child relationship

This course is part of the Laurea Magistrale program. The course is intended for advanced level students with adequate preparation. Enrollment is by consent of the instructor. The course offers an overview of psycholinguistic research from the second half of the twentieth century to the present. Special attention is placed on cognitive processes involved in language comprehension and production. The first part of the course deals with theoretical issues from a psycholinguistic point of view (i.e. development and origin of language, research methods, biological bases of language, and the system of language processing) and the study of language from the point of view of cognitive science. The second part of the course addresses issues related to research on language from an interdisciplinary perspective and the study of language as interactional practice (i.e. pragmatic and communicative aspects of language and language as joint activity). Required reading includes PSICOLOGIA DEL LINGUAGGIO by C. Cacciari, USING LANGUAGE by H.H. Clark. Exchange students who are more comfortable studying in English may substitute the Cacciari text with PSYCHOLINGUISTICS: INTRODUCTION AND APPLICATIONS by L. Menn. Assessment is based on a written exam (essay format) on course materials, readings and class discussions. Students may also be asked to elaborate on a possible experiment connected to one of the topics of the course.

This course provides a critical analysis of the criteria used to distinguish between normal and abnormal behavior and apply psychopathological diagnosis. Topics covered include: history of clinical psychology and psychopathology; general models of abnormal behavior; evaluation, classification and diagnosis of abnormal behavior; disorders of perception, awareness and attention; memory disorders; disorders of thought and language; psychomotor disorders; food and sleep disorders. 

This course introduces an area of research exploring how nature influences the psyche. It provides a broad and representative overview by examining empirical research and theories from natural science, humanities, and social science. Topics include evolutionary psychology and biophilia, the Connectedness to Nature Scale, nature and cognition, Arne Næss’ deep ecology, Getnot Böhme’s Weather phenomenology, Preben Bertelsen’s life skills, Margarete Archer’s agency theory, Hartmut Rosa’s concept of resonance in nature and how nature fits in critical theory, and biophobia. The course involves excursions to facilitate discussion about clinical effects of nature interventions. Assessment is based on an individual or group written assignment of 12-18 pages.

The course discusses topics including space and cognition; geographical space; measurements of spatial knowledge; spatial knowledge acquired from maps; spatial knowledge acquired by navigation; the main neuro-cognitive structures involved in cognitive maps formation, landmark recognition, allocentric, and egocentric knowledge and switching between them; clinical conditions associated with spatial orientation and knowledge; weakness and challenges in spatial knowledge and representations; space and language; individual visuospatial differences in processing and representing spatial information; the relationship between individual visuospatial differences and environment learning using different modalities (maps, navigation and descriptions) with different methodologies; and spatial representations in motor activities and sport. The course requires prerequisite knowledge of introductory aspects of psychology (as perception, language, memory and learning), models of cognitive psychology, and individual differences.