This course teaches the basic functions surrounding how the physiology of our body determines and is influenced by psychological states and conditions. Numerous systems are considered (hormonal, immune, cardiovascular, digestive), with a particular emphasis on the nervous system.

In this course, an introduction to the classification of psychological illness is given, along with groundlaying models of illness development, epidemiology, diagnostic criteria and treatment. The framework of the course is given by the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) in its current version, and is expanded on by exploration of case studies, with a focus on differential diagnostics and psychotherapeutic approaches, including cognitive behavioral, psychodynamic, and systemic therapy.

This course delves deeper into the physiology associated with psychological disorders along with treatment options that emphasize neurobiology. These include learning the neural mechanisms of various classes of medication for psychological disorders, as well as rehabilitation for neurodegeneration and brain injury.

Here, we focus on the specifics associated with working psychologically with children, adolescents and their families. This includes forming a therapeutic alliance, understanding differences in motivation and goals between children and their caregivers, and elucidating psychological disorders specific to the developmental phases in childhood and adolescence.

The focus of these modules lays in understanding the (statistical) complexity of measuring individual psychological traits and behavioral tendencies in a methodologically precise way. It includes in particular a focus on estimating measurement error and communicating what we can and cannot conclude based on standardized psychological test instruments, as well as practical guidance in using standardized test instruments, interviewing techniques and qualitative analyses.

This course emphasizes active engagement with current (neuro)psychological research: students read and present recently published research articles on a topic of their interest, with a particular focus on the psychological concepts to be investigated, their measurement, the statistical methods implemented for analysis, and on their own critical reflection of each step of the research process.