- Department: Psychology
- Module co-ordinator: Ms. Maryann Noonan
- Credit value: 20 credits
- Credit level: H
- Academic year of delivery: 2024-25
- See module specification for other years: 2023-24
Occurrence | Teaching period |
---|---|
A | Semester 1 2024-25 |
Adolescence can be a challenging phase of life. Most mental health illnesses begin during adolescence and at the same time there is a peak in deaths and serious injuries from risky behaviours. One important factor that has been linked to atypical adolescent behaviour and mental health is the late broad maturation and residual plasticity of the prefrontal cortex. The prefrontal cortex, within a circuit of other key subcortical structures, controls a range of cognitive functions including decision making. Critically, many of these cognitive functions, like decision making, are affected in mental health conditions. This suggests that some aspects of adolescence physiology or environment creates a window for ill health and poor decisions.
In the context of recent advances in our understanding of the neurobiology of decision making and social cognition in the adult, this course aims to examine typical and atypical adolescent learning, decision making and social cognition. This course will critically examine evidence from developmental psychology, as well as cognitive, computational and comparative neuroscience, in human and non-human animal models.
Task | Length | % of module mark |
---|---|---|
Online Exam -less than 24hrs (Centrally scheduled) The Cognitive Neuroscience of Adolescent Decision-Making & Social Cognition |
5 hours | 100 |
None
Task | Length | % of module mark |
---|---|---|
Online Exam -less than 24hrs (Centrally scheduled) The Cognitive Neuroscience of Adolescent Decision-Making & Social Cognition |
5 hours | 100 |
Marks will be released through e:vision.
Reading lists for each topic will be available via the course home page. Key readings from the lectures will be available via the University library’s e-journals. The main reading involves primary source material and published review papers.
Sample Reading: