Psychology of Brain Injury Overview

Topic 1 - Introduction and overview of brain injury 

1. To understand the basics of neuropsychology as a science

2. To understand the basic causes of, and basic anatomical and behavioural processes that follow, brain injury

3. To understand the basic methods of studying those with brain damage

4. To understand the critical role double dissociations have in neuropsychology

5. To understand the basics of rehabilitation

Topic 2 - Neuropsychological assessment 

1. Key principles and purposes of neuropsychological testing and assessment

2. Terminology, types of tests, domains of tests, selecting tests

3. Examples of neuropsychological tests:

Traditional vs. Computerised tests

Cambridge Neuropsychological Automated Battery (CANTAB)

4. Sensitivity, Specificity, Validity, and Issues in interpreting test performance

Topic 3 - Aphasia 

1. Understand the key characteristics and common classifications of aphasia

2. Describe commonly used tasks to assess language

3. Understand what the study of aphasia can tell us about how language is represented in the brain

Classical and more recent models

4. Does the right hemisphere care about language at all?

Topic 4 - Neglect and rehabilitation 

1. To describe some of the neuropsychological assessments used with neglect patients

2. To review some of the main models of neglect

3. To provide a detailed account of some of the main theoretical and empirical issues emerging from interventions used to rehabilitate patients with unilateral neglect

4. To develop an understanding of the major issues relating to the rehabilitation…