Prospectus

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Intervention Strategies in Clinical Neuropsychology

Course
2017-2018

Entry requirements

Only open to master’s students Psychology with specialisation Clinical Neuropsychology. Prior knowledge is assumed on a level of a third year bachelor course in Clinical Neuropsychology.

Description

Neuropsychological intervention is an important aspect of the neurorehabilitation of patients with cognitive and emotional dysfunctions due to brain injury resulting from stroke, traffic accidents, genetic dysfunctions and long term occupational exposure to neurotoxic solvents. This master course provides the theoretical base of several compensation or strategy skills for problems in distinctive cognitive domains such as memory, attention and executive functioning, both in adults and children. Furthermore, so-called holistic neuropsychological rehabilitation programmes will be discussed. This implicates that also psychosocial interventions based on cognitive behavioural principles are taught. The focus lies on treatment programmes that are theoretically sound and empirically supported (evidence-based).

Course objectives

Upon completion of the course, students will:

  • Know about the current state of the art of neuropsychological interventions in several cognitive domains;

  • Understand the difference between restorative and compensatory treatment methods and have knowledge of different usages of both;

  • Know about psychosocial problems in neurological afflictions and several treatment strategies thereof; and

  • Understand the differences in the methods of evaluations of treatments, and are able to discuss different research designs and their scientific evidence

Timetable

For the timetables of your lectures, work groups and exams, please select your study programme in:
Psychology timetables

Semester 2:
Lectures
Exams (coming soon)

Registration

Course

Students need to enroll for lectures and work group sessions.
Master’s course registration

Examination

Students are not automatically enrolled for an examination. They can register via uSis from 100 to 10 calendar days before the date. Students who are not registered will not be permitted to take the examination.
Registering for exams

Mode of instruction

The course consists of 8 2-hour mandatory lectures. All lecturers are experts in the field of clinical neuropsychology, working within an academic and/or clinical setting. Furthermore, a responsie college at the end of the course is offered in case of sufficient questions about the material.

Besides this, students are asked to work in unsupervised workgroups (approx 24 hours in total) to make a video-clip on an intervention strategy and to discuss other video-clips.

  • Lectures will be held to give information about the current state of the art of neuropsychological interventions in several cognitive domains; about the difference between restorative and compensatory treatment methods and have knowledge of different usages of both;about psychosocial problems in neurological afflictions and several treatment strategies thereof. In these lectures the methods of evaluations of treatments and their scientific evidence are also discussed.

  • A textbook and articles are provided that give information about all the goals.

  • Students make a video clip about a treatment strategy tailored to a specific target population. For this they need to find literature on this population and the treatment possibilities thereof.

  • Students peer-rate 5 video clips from other students. This will increase their knowledge of treatment strategies. Furthermore they will discuss the scientific evidence of this treatment program.

Assessment method

The final grade is based on: a written exam consisting of multiple choice questions (70%), the video clip (25%) and the discussion of other video-clips (5%).
All literature as mentioned in the reading list, as well as all lectures will be examined during the written exam.

  • A written exam will assess the knowledge and understanding of all the goals

  • The video- clip will assess whether students know and understand which treatment to use in a particular situation, its pro’s and con’s and how it works.

  • The peer-review will assess students ability to discuss the scientific evidence regarding a treatment and its current state within research.

The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences has instituted that instructors use a software programme for the systematic detection of plagiarism in students’ written work. In case of fraud disciplinary actions will be taken. Please see the information concerning fraud.

Reading list

  • Goldstein, L.H. and McNeil, J.E. (Edt). Clinical Neuropsychology. A practical guide to assessment and management for clinicians (2nd Edition). Wiley Blackwell 2013. ISBN: 978-0-470-68371-2.

  • Selection of journal articles

Contact information