Neuroscience and neuropsychological rehabilitation
Class: LM-51 - Psychology
A course with a strong interconnection between basic and applied research, especially in the clinical setting. Students will study the main models of cognitive (attention, memory) and affective processes (emotions, social and communicative functions) and on its neurobiological bases. Particular emphasis is placed of the deficits of consequences to developmental pathologies (neurodevelopmental disorders), degenerative (dementia, Parkinson's disease) or acquired deficits (head trauma, stroke). Students will study the neurobiological bases of brain plasticity needed to plan rehabilitative treatments and to evaluate cognitive functions and disorders and prepare prevention, rehabilitation and cognitive impairment treatment for congenital or acquired deficits. Students will be able to operate in institution of both public and private social-health and welfare.
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Characteristics and objectives
Pursuant to Law no. 163 of 8 November 2021 and subsequent implementation decrees, the holders of a Master's degree in Neuroscience and neuropsychological rehabilitation are qualified to work as professional psychologists in Italy. The master degree in Neuroscience and neuropsychological rehabilitation is characterized by a strong interconnection between basic and applied research, particularly in the clinical domain. The educational path embraces a direct application of the most timely and advanced research avenues in cognitive and affective neuroscience to innovative methods of prevention, diagnostic assessment and neuropsychological rehabilitation of cognitive disorders across the lifespan (i.e., typical and atypical development, adulthood, normal and pathological aging). Specifically, students will acquire sound knowledge about: the main theoretical models of cognitive (e.g., attention, memory, thought and reasoning) and affective (e.g., emotions, social and communication behaviors) processes and their neurobiological bases; the main deficits in behavioral, cognitive, and affective functions resulting from developmental (e.g., genetic syndromes, neurodevelopmental disorders, etc.), degenerative (e.g., dementia, Parkinson's disease), and acquired (e.g., traumatic brain injury, stroke, other cerebral lesions) disorders; the neurobiological bases of neuroplasticity, defined as the ability of the nervous system to adapt its structure both in response to environmental factors (e.g. learning language, reading and writing, etc.) and as spontaneous functional recovery and post-rehabilitation following acute pathogenic situations (e.g. brain strokes, traumatic brain injuries, etc.); theories and techniques of neuropsychological assessment and rehabilitation.
Occupational opportunities
The master degree course in Neuroscience and Neuropsychological Rehabilitation trains professionals to: a) assess cognitive functions and
disorders across the lifespan using multidimensional investigation tools and techniques that have been scientifically validated; b) develop appropriate interventions, based on valid scientific models, for prevention, rehabilitation, and treatment of congenital or acquired cognitive deficits. After a practical qualifying examination, graduates can enroll in the professional register and can practice as psychologists (with further possibility to practice as psychotherapists after obtaining a professional license by attending a School of Specialization). The degree course, by providing specific professional competence in the field of neuropsychology, allows employment opportunities in health, nursing, and social care services, either public (in compliance with the existing rules of the National Health System) or private, pertaining to prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cognitive disorders across the lifespan.
