Course Syllabus

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Semester & Location:

Fall 2022 - DIS Copenhagen

Type & Credits:

Core Course - 3 credits

Study Tours:

Western Denmark- Aarhus (short study tour) &
London (long study tour)

Major Disciplines:

Neuroscience and Psychology

Prerequisite(s):

One course in neuroscience or psychology at university level.

Faculty Members:

Angela Mastropasqua

(current students please use the Canvas Inbox)

Program Contact:

psy.cns@dis.dk 

Time & Place:

Tuesday and Friday, 8.30-9.50

Classroom: N7-C25 (Nørregade 7)

 

Description of Course

Prerequisites: One course in neuroscience, physiological psychology, or biological psychology at university level.

How do we understand creativity and the brain? This course asks you to explore and debate human creativity through neurobiological, cognitive, and psychological perspectives. Main topics include discussions of the definition of creativity; psychological and cognitive profiles of creative individuals; functional neuroanatomy; the neurochemistry of the creative processes; the neural correlates of creative thought; cognitive processes and lastly, cognitive strategies for optimizing creative output. Study tours within Denmark and Europe will provide the experiential foundation for further understanding theory and research in the field.

 

Learning Objectives

By the end of this course, students should demonstrate a clear understanding of the complexity of creativity, brain-related functions, individual differences and the challenges inherent in the neuroscientific approach. Students should be able to identify central constructs, theories, models, and research in the understanding of creativity from a neurocognitive perspective.

 

Faculty

Angela Mastropasqua: Ph.D. (Cognitive Neuroscience, Graduate School of Systemic Neuroscience, LMU Munich , 2020). M.Sc. (Psychology, University of Turin, 2013). B.A. (Psychological Sciences and Techniques, University of Bari, 2010). Research interest in higher brain functions studied with a multi-techniques approach, in particular combining non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) and neuroimaging. 

 

Approach to Teaching

A key component of this course is student participation and discussion. It is thought that students should take responsibility for their own learning, and that discussion and debate is the cornerstone of a good learning environment.

Each class is structured and will include aspects such as: A) mini-lectures, where bullet points and essential ideas are explained to the class. B) group-work and discussions, in order to summarize and understand the day’s readings. C) short exercises to activate and engage the students.

 

Expectations of the Students

This course emphasizes collaborative learning. This involves in-class group activities and frequent discussion among peers. It is expected that all students engage actively in class.

 

Methods of Evaluation and Grading

Methods of Evaluation

How Evaluated

Percentage of Grade

Participation and Engagement 

Individual

25%

Midterm Exam

Individual

20%

Final Presentation (+ individual paper)

Group/Individual

25%

Final Exam (Essay)

Individual

30%

Total

 

100%

 

Evaluation

Attendance and Participation (25%):

This class is driven by student participation. The primary character of the class will be exploration of ideas, idea generation, inquiry and discussion. Students must bring to class an inquisitive mind, a willingness to share their thoughts, ideas and questions. Grades will be deducted when readings have not been completed and when participatory efforts are lacking. Please see participation rubric on canvas for specifics. Unexcused and frequent absenteeism will result in a loss of grade.

 

Midterm Exam (20%):

There will be an Midterm exam based on the readings and class slides (there will be more information as the semester progress).

 

Creativity of Neuroscience Presentation & Paper (25%):

The Creative Presentation and Paper is a individual/group assignment (3-4 students in each).

Each group has to choose an artistic discipline and produce a creative output within that field.

  1. Language: Write a 3-page short story or poem.
  2. Music: Compose and record a 3 minute song.
  3. Body: Create and perform a choreography/Stage a short play.
  4. Visual: Draw three pencil drawings, investigating a technique or topic

Additionally, it is required a short academic paper (max 1000), describing and explaining the creative discipline using at least 2 peer-reviewed neuroscience articles.

The presentation will be performed at the end of course.

Presentation will account for 20% of the grade.

Paper will account for 80% of the grade.

 

Final Exam: Neuroscience of Creativity Essay (30%):

Analysis/critique of a peer-reviewed article.

4 pages (2000 words max) excluding title page and reference (at least 3 references of peer-reviewed articles!); all in APA-style

  • Introduction: contextualize the topic/selected issue from the paper that you would like to explore and your reason for doing so. Present issues as a question or questions you would like to answer
  • Summary of article: include (a) introduction of the key issues from the article, (b) method employed to investigate issue/s, (c) identification and discussion of key findings from the study (d) critique of method, findings and (e) implications of findings (research, practical application)
  • Critique/Analysis: why you agree/disagree with the paper, what you think the authors should/should have not included, what you think would be beneficial to have considered in the paper, other considerations/evaluations.
  • Conclusion: Summarize your main points and suggest possible, future directions.

 

Field Studies

See Course Schedule

 

Study Tours

Short Study Tour: Aarhus, Denmark

Long Study Tour: London, England

 

Readings

Required Textbooks (available at DIS library):

  • Abraham, Anna - The Neuroscience of Creativity. Cambridge University Press. 2018.

Articles (on Canvas):

  • Abraham, A. (2013) The Promises and Perils of the Neuroscience of Creativity. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, Vol.7, Art. 246, p.1-9.
  • Beaty, R et al. (2016) – Creative Cognition and Brain Network Dynamics. Trends Cogn Sci. 20(2): 87-95.
  • Beaty, R et al. (2017). Robust Prediction of Individual Creative Ability from Brain Functional Connectivity. PNAS. Vol.115, no.5, p.1087-1092.
  • Bashwiner DM et al., (2016) Musical Creativity “Revealed” in Brain Structure: Interplay between Motor, Default Mode, and Limbic Networks. Nature. Scientific Reports. 6:20482, p. 1-8.
  • Dietrich, A. (2004). Neurocognitive mechanisms underlying the experience of flow. Conscious Cong. 13(4): 746-61.
  • Dietrich, A. (2004). The cognitive neuroscience of creativity. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 11(6), 1011–1026.
  • Friederici, A. D. (2011) The Brain Basis of Language Processing: From structure to Function.Physiol Rev 91: 1357-1392.
  • Heilman, K.M & Discher, I.S. (2018).  Creativity and the Aging Brain (pp476-492). In R. E. Jung & O. Vartanian (Eds). The Cambridge Handbook of The Neuroscience of Creativity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Jung, R. al. (2013) The Structure of Creative Cognition in the Human Brain. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience. Vol.7, Article 330. P.1-13.
  • Kaufman, J. C. (2002). Dissecting the Golden Goose: Components of Studying Creative Writers. Creativity Research Journal 14(1): 27-40.
  • Kozbelt, A., Beghette, R. A., & Runco, M. A: (2010) Theories of Creativity. The Cambridge Handbook of Creativity. Cambridge: Cambridge University press. P.20-47.
  • Laland, K., Wilkins, C., Clayton. (2016) The Evolution of Dance. Current Biology 26, Issue 1, P 5-9.
  • May, J., et al. (2011) Points in Mental Space: an Interdisciplinary Study of Imagery in Movement Creation. Dance Research, 29 (2), p.404-432.
  • N. C. (2008). The Relationship between Creativity and Mood Disorders. Dialogues Clin Neurosci. 10(2): 251-255.
  • Peretz, I. (2006) The Nature of music from a biological perspective. Cognition, 100(1), p. 1-32.
  • Raichle, M. E. (2008) A Brief history of human brain mapping. Trends in Neurosciences. Vol. 32. N0.2, P.118-126.
  • Raymond, S. M. (2017). Neural Foundations of Creativity: A Systematic Review. Rev Colomb Psiquiat. 46(3):187-192.
  • Schwartz, A. B. (2016). Movement: How The Brain Communicates with the World. Cell, 164(6): 1122-1135.
  • Trimble, M & Hesdorffer, D. (2017). Music and the Brain: The neuroscience of music and musical appreciation. BJPSYCH International. Vol. 14. Number 2. P.28-30.

 

Academic Regulations

Please make sure to read the Academic Regulations on the DIS website. There you will find regulations on:

 

DIS - Study Abroad in Scandinavia - www.DISabroad.org

 

Course Summary:

Date Details Due