Course Syllabus

Semester & Location:	Spring 2023 - DIS Copenhagen
Type & Credits:	Elective Course - 3 credits
Major Disciplines:	Human Development, Neuroscience and Psychology
Prerequisite(s):	One semester of neuroscience, physiological psychology, or biological psychology course at university level.
Faculty Members:	Angela Mastropasqua (current students please contact via the canvas inbox function)
Time & Place:	Monday and Thursday, 10:05-11:25 Classroom: V10-A32
Office Hours:	Thursday, 13.00-14.00 (please email me to schedule the meeting)

 

Description of Course

Pre-requisite: One semester of neuroscience, physiological psychology, or biological psychology course at university level.

Human beings are inherently social creatures, yet relatively little attention has been paid to social influences on the brain. The primary goal of this course will be to begin to explore the neural basis of social interaction, and the neural basis of beliefs about our social world.  Contributions from social cognitive neuroscience and social psychology will be addressed and emphasis will be placed on analysis of primary literature investigating social, environmental, and cultural influences on human brain processes.  

 

Learning Objectives

1) Application of knowledge using critical thinking skills: Students should be able to use critical thinking to evaluate and interpret evidence, and to apply social cognitive neuroscience concepts, theories, and research findings to individual, social, and cultural issues.

2) Application of research methods: Students should be able to apply basic research methods in social cognitive neuroscience.

3) Communication skills: Students should be able to learn how to analytically address topics within these field and demonstrate effective communication skills.

4) Awareness of methodological and theoretical diversity: Students should be able to understand the complexities of this interdisciplinary approach, such as social cognitive neuroscience.

 

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.  

 

Readings

1. Required Textbooks (available at DIS library): As this course draws on both social psychology and social neuroscience, materials will be provided from both disciplines.

• Social Psychology Textbook: Hewstone, M., Stroebe, W., & Jonas, K. (2012). An introduction to Social Psychology (5th ed.). London: Blackwell.
• Social Neuroscience Textbook: Ward (2017). The Student's Guide to Social Neuroscience (2nd ed.). Hove: Psychology Press.

2. Articles (on Canvas):

• Adolphs, R. (2001). The neurobiology of social cognition. Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 11: pp. 231 239.
• Carter, E. J. & Pelphrey, K. A. (2008). Friend or for? Brain systems involved in the perception of dynamic signals of menacing and friendly social approaches. Social Neuroscience 3(2): pp. 151-163.
• Castelli, et al. (2002). Autism, Asperger Syndrome and brain mechanisms for the attribution of mental states to animated shapes. Brain 125: pp. 1839-1849.
• Charpentier, C. J., & O’Doherty, J. P. (2018). The application of computational models to social neuroscience: promises and pitfalls. Social Neuroscience, 13(6), 637–647. 
• Cheng (2010). Love hurts: An FMRI study. Neuroimage 51: pp: 923-929.
• Corrigall, E. A., & Konrad, A. M. (2007). Gender Role Attitudes and Careers: A Longitudinal Study. Sex Roles, 56(11–12), 847–855. 
• Deen, B., Koldewyn, K., Kanwisher, N., & Saxe, R. (2015). Functional Organization of Social Perception and Cognition in the Superior Temporal Sulcus. Cerebral Cortex, 25(11), 4596–4609.
• Derks, B., Inzlicht, M., & Kang, S. (2008). The Neuroscience of Stigma and Stereotype Threat. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 11(2), 163–181.
• Dunbar (2007). Evolution in the Social Brain. Science 317: pp. 1344-1347.
• Ebner, N. C., Johnson, M. K., & Fischer, H. (2012). Neural Mechanisms of Reading Facial Emotions in Young and Older Adults. Frontiers in psychology, 3, 223.
• Edelson, M., et al. (2011). Following the crowd: brain substrates of long-term memory conformity. Science, 1(333): pp. 108-111.
• Eisenberger, et al. (2003) Does rejection hurt? Science, 302: pp. 290-292
• Frith, U. & Frith, D. (2003). Development and neurophysiology of mentalizing. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. B.
• Heatherton, T. F. (2011). Neuroscience of Self and Self-Regulation. Annual Review of Psychology, 62(1), 363–390.
• Lovell, M. (2006). Caring for the elderly: changing perceptions and attitudes. In J Vasc Nurs. Mar;24(1):22-6.
• McDermott, Fowler, & Christakis (2013). Breaking Up is Hard to Do, Unless Everyone Else is Doing it Too: Social Network Effects on Divorce in a Longitudinal Sample. In Soc Forces. 2013 92(2): 491–519.
• Ochsner, K. N. & Lieberman, M. D. (2001). The emergence of social cognitive neuroscience. American Psychologist, 56: pp. 717-734.
• Pitcher, D. (2014). Facial Expression Recognition Takes Longer in the Posterior Superior Temporal Sulcus than in the Occipital Face Area. Journal of Neuroscience, 34(27), 9173–9177.
• Sato, W., & Uono, S. (2019). The atypical social brain network in autism: advances in structural and functional MRI studies. Current Opinion in Neurology, 32(4), 617–621.
• Saxe, R., Schulz, L. E., & Jiang, Y. V. (2006). Reading minds versus following rules: Dissociating theory of mind and executive control in the brain. Social Neuroscience, 1(3–4), 284–298.
• Schurz, M. (2020). Toward a hierarchical model of social cognition: A neuroimaging meta-analysis and integrative review of empathy and theory of mind. Psychological Bulletin, 147(3), 293.
• Tso, I. F., Rutherford, S., Fang, Y., Angstadt, M., & Taylor, S. F. (2018). The “social brain” is highly sensitive to the mere presence of social information: An automated meta-analysis and an independent study. PLOS ONE, 13(5), e0196503.
• Vogeley, K. & Fink, G. R. (2003). Neural correlates of the first-person-perspective. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 7: pp. 38-42.
• Willingham, D. T., & Dunn, E. W. (2003). What neuroimaging and brain localization can do, cannot do and should not do for social psychology. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85(4), 662–671.
• Yoder, K. J., & Decety, J. (2018). The neuroscience of morality and social decision-making. Psychology, Crime & Law, 24(3), 279–295.
• Zhu, et al. (2007). Neural basis of cultural influence on self-representation. NeuroImage 34: pp. 1310–1316.
• Zilbovicius, M., Meresse, I., Chabane, N., Brunelle, F., Samson, Y., & Boddaert, N. (2006). Autism, the superior temporal sulcus and social perception. Trends in Neurosciences, 29(7), 359–366.

 

Approach to Teaching

This course will be taught using a combination of methods. There is a strong emphasis on participation and class discussions and while I am responsible for the overall structure of the class, all of us will contribute to the production of knowledge. 

 

Required Readings 

 

Methods of Evaluation and Grading

Methods of Evaluation	How Evaluated	Percentage of Grade
Participation	Individual	20%
Midterm Exam	Individual	15%
Group Presentation	Group	20%
Discussion Questions	Group	10%
Final Paper	Individual	30%
Group project	Group	5%
Total		100%

 

Participation & Engagement (20%)

 

Midterm Exam (15%)

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

 

Group Presentation (20%)

Groups of approx. 3-4 students will be presenting a topic in class (ca. 20 min.), after which there will be ca. 20 min. discussion with the rest of the class, answering and discussing prepared questions and debate topics (see Discussion Questions below)

• Contents should include (but not be limited to):
  • Introduction of the key issues of the topic
  • Method employed to investigate it
  • Identification and discussion of key findings/knowledge
  • Critique of methods and potentially of the findings
  • Examples/Applied cases

 

Discussion Questions (10%)

• Each group of students not presenting must write out minimum two discussion questions/topics for each presentation. The questions must be posted on Canvas discussion no later than 11pm on the day before presentation takes place. Late submissions will result in grade deduction. Each group must have a tentative answer ready for each of the questions posed to the presenting group, based on readings/reflective considerations. Questions are submitted per group, i.e. minimum two questions per group.

 

Final Paper (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.

 

Group project (5%)

Details on the final group project will be announced during the semester.

 

To be eligible for a passing grade in this class you must complete all of the assigned work. 

Guest Lectures

See Course Calendar for details.

 

Field Studies

See Course Calendar for details.

Policies

Attendance: You are expected to attend all DIS classes when scheduled.  If you miss a class for any reason, please contact the faculty no later than the day of the missed class. If you miss multiple classes the Director of Teaching and Learning, and the Director of Student Affairs will be notified and they will follow-up with you to make sure that all is well.  Absences will jeopardize your grade and your standing at DIS.  Allowances will be made in cases of illness or religious holidays, but in the case of multiple absences you will need to provide a doctor’s note.

Academic Honesty, Plagiarism, and Violating the Rules of an Assignment: DIS expects that students abide by the highest standards of intellectual honesty in all academic work. DIS assumes that all students do their own work and credit all work or thought taken from others.  Academic dishonesty will result in a final course grade of “F” and can result in dismissal. The students’ home universities will be notified. DIS reserves the right to request that written student assignments be turned in electronic form for submission to plagiarism detection software. See the Academic Handbook for more information, or ask your instructor if you have questions.

 

Policy on Late Papers: Late essays will be accepted for up to 3 days after the deadline, but for each day late, excluding the weekends, a 5% penalty will be applied. 

Extensions: You may request an extension for an assignment, but you must ask more than 1 day before the assignment is due. Extension requests on the due date, without an excusable reason, will not be considered.

 

Policy for Students Who Arrive Late to Class: Please come to classes on time as it is disturbing for the lecturer and other students. Repeated lateness will result in a referral to the head of the Teaching and Learning department.

 

Use of Laptops or Phones in Class: Computers and iPhones are allowed in class PURELY for academic purposes (e.g. note taking, literature searching, data handling purposes). In case of other private uses such as Facebook, emails or internet surfing, it will have a very negative impact on your participation grade. The use of cell phones during class is strictly forbidden.

 

Academic Regulations 

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

• Course Enrollment and Grading
• Academic Expectations and Honor Code

 

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