In this minor, you will gain comprehensive knowledge about the interplay between genes, cognition and the brain and how these affect our behaviour.
You will learn to read and value literature on the genetics of health and disease, cognitive processes concerning perception, attention, awareness, and memory, and neuroscience. You will also learn to set up and perform psychophysiological and neurocognitive experiments and analyze large genetic datasets. This English minor is the choice for students who want to continue in academic science or work in a job in which research skills are needed. At the end of the track Genes, Cognition and Behaviour, students will:
- have acquired knowledge of the relation between genes and behaviour and (psychological) disease, and between cognition, brain, and behaviour;
- be acquainted with the current literature on behaviour genetics, cognition, and neuroscience;
- have knowledge and skills to perform simple psychophysiological and neurocognitive experiments;
- have knowledge and skills to analyze (genetic) datasets and report on scientific findings.
Integration between disciplines
The integration between disciplines, such as behavioural genetics, cognitive psychology, and neuroscience plays a central role in this minor. You learn to think critically about how knowledge of the human genome, cognition, and the brain can be applied to deal with a large variety of fundamental and applied questions concerning human behaviour.