Scienze Naturali, Scienze dei Sistemi Naturali,
Evoluzione del comportamento animale e dell’uomo

Social cognition and behavior in humans

Social cognition and behavior in humans

Anno accademico 2022/2023

Sommario insegnamento

• Obiettivi formativi
• Risultati dell'apprendimento attesi
• Modalità di insegnamento
• Modalità di verifica dell'apprendimento
• Attività di supporto
• Programma
• Testi consigliati e bibliografia
• Strumenti didattici

Obiettivi formativi

This advanced class discusses influential studies that have informed how the brain enables complex social behaviors. Students will thoroughly read selected original research papers in the field of social neuroscience across several animal species and using multiple modern neuroscience methodologies. In class, the instructor and students will work together to discuss these studies in depth. Focused topics include neural mechanisms behind face processing, emotion recognition, empathy, cooperation and competition, prosocial decision-making, brain region coupling, brain-tobrain coupling, oxytocin’s prosocial effects, and social dysfunction.

Risultati dell'apprendimento attesi

At the end of the course, students should become acquainted with basic neuroscientific principles underlying neuroanatomical and neurofunctional underpinning of complex social behavior.

This course will provide a strong foundation in neuroscience for students. In each class, we will cover a couple of major research papers from the relevant topics. Different students will describe following sections in each paper: Introduction/Background, Methods, Results (figure-based), and Discussion. During each description, we will discuss the paper in depth collectively as a class.
Therefore, students should be familiar with the relevant papers before each class.
Please note that students taking this class will be required to propose a novel experiment (Background, Methods, Hypotheses, and Predictions) in social neuroscience

Modalità di insegnamento

Academic teaching (frontal lessons) will be used as the main teaching method.

For the academic year 22-23, the lessons will be held in person. Alternative teaching methods (streaming) may be introduced following new University recommendations in relation to the state of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Modalità di verifica dell'apprendimento

The assessment of the preparation will take place in oral form. The exam will be in English.

Attività di supporto

Students can e-mail the professors to schedule a meeting for clarification about the course materials or for discussing the possibility of a master thesis

Programma

• Introduction of a theoretical framework about social neuroscience
• Description of the neurobiological basis about emotion recognition in both humans and animals
• Description of the neuro-scientific studies investigating the theory of mind, empathy, interpersonal distance, and affective touch
• Description of the neuroanatomical and functional bases underlying social decision-making, social learning, cooperation, competition, and altruism
• Description of the main hormones involved in social behavior
• Description of both brain regions interactions and brain to brain coupling 

Slides, other materials presented during the class, and scientific papers published in international peer-reviewed journals. The materials will be posted online and available on the course web page.

• Materiale didattico
• Bacheca appelli
• Vai a Moodle
• Visita i forum