This version of the course guide is provisional until the period for editing the new course guides ends.

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Biopsychological Aspects of the Person

Code: 105047 ECTS Credits: 6
2024/2025
Degree Type Year
2500260 Social Education FB 1
2500261 Education Studies FB 1

Contact

Name:
Francesc Xavier Borras Hernandez
Email:
xavier.borras@uab.cat

Teachers

Nair Elizabeth Zárate Alva

Teaching groups languages

You can view this information at the end of this document.


Prerequisites

As this is a first-year course, it has no formal prerequisites, but students are recommended to review the basic knowledge of biology that they have acquired during their previous studies (brain, nervous system, genetics, hominisation, evolution and other related concepts). A review of psychological aspects that they have been able to study previously (sensation, attention, perception, consciousness, learning, memory, motivation, emotion, thinking, language, intelligence and personality) is also considered desirable.

In addition, high motivation, the ability to organise information, synthesis strategies, analysis and critical reflection are desirable.


Objectives and Contextualisation

The aim of this subject is to bring students closer to the study of human reality, both from a phylogenetic and ontogenetic point of view (life, development, psychological processes, gender, culture, society, etc.). Students are expected to understand and critically reflect on the biological and psychological bases that describe and explain the behaviour and mental processes of human beings.


Competences

    Social Education
  • Contextualize educational action based on the different theoretical paradigms that have developed in science and education in accordance with the socio-historical context of individuals, groups and institutions.
  • Master the theoretical and applied knowledge of Educational Sciences to develop the capacity for analysis and observation of the social and educational reality.
  • Recognize and evaluate the social reality and the interrelation between factors involved as necessary anticipation of action.
  • Take sex- or gender-based inequalities into consideration when operating within one's own area of knowledge. 
    Education Studies
  • Analyse and understand the theoretical, historical, cultural, political, environmental and legal references and situations involved in education and training proposals.
  • Recognize and evaluate the social reality and the interrelation between factors involved as necessary anticipation of action.
  • Take sex- or gender-based inequalities into consideration when operating within one's own area of knowledge.
  • Understand the processes that occur in educational and training activities and their impact on learning.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Consider how gender stereotypes and roles impinge on the exercise of the profession.
  2. Know and identify the main developmental and personality disorders, their impact on development and educational implications.
  3. Understand and analyse the biological basis of psychological processes.
  4. Understand and analyse the educational implications of learning theories and models.
  5. Understand how biological and psychological aspects affect development throughout the life cycle.

Content

1. Basic psychological processes applied to education (2 ECTS) (Block 1) / Unit of Basic Psychology

1.1. Access to knowledge: the nature of sensation, perception and conscious experience.

1.2. The elaboration of knowledge: learning and memory.

1.3. The activation of behaviour: motivation and emotion.

2. The nervous system and psychological processes (2 ECTS) (Block 2) / Department of Theories of Education and Social Pedagogy

2.1. Structural and functional aspects of the human brain.

2.2. Communication between neurons. Neural networks.

2.3. Characteristics of the human brain (plasticity, functional asymmetries, enclosure, self-organization, emergence, asynchronous maturation, etc.)

2.4. Brain and mental processes.

2.5. Cognition, language and communication. States of consciousness.

3. Genetic and socio-biological factors conditioning development and learning (2 ECTS) (Block 2) / Department of Theories of Education and Social Pedagogy

3.1. Life and evolution. The complexity of living beings.

3.2. Genetics and evolution. Neo-Darwinism. The process of hominisation.

3.3. Phylogenetic aspects of human behaviour (motor activities, key stimuli, primary motivations and emotions, impregnation, etc.)

3.4. Perceive, knowing and feeling.

3.5. Ethics and evolution. Bioethics.


Activities and Methodology

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Lectures 30 1.2
Seminars/practices 15 0.6
Type: Supervised      
Supervised tasks 30 1.2
Type: Autonomous      
Autonomus tasks 75 3

The teaching methodology proposed in this course has the following general lines:

 - Lectures (30 hours): presentation by the teaching staff of the central contents of the subject, presentations by groups of students to deepen the reflection and/or application related to specific topics, viewing of videos or films of interest for the subject, among others.

 - Seminars/practices (15 hours): work in smaller groups to organise different tasks (locating information, preparing oral presentations, etc.), analysis and discussion of cases, research articles and/or texts, extension, illustration and commentary on the contents of the lectures and the compulsory bibliography, preparation of concept maps, organisation and development of practices, discussion groups, among others.

Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.


Assessment

Continous Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Assessment: Cognitive processess 33,3% 0 0 2, 3, 4
Biology assesment 33,3% 0 0 2, 3, 5
Group Work-Biology 33,3% 0 0 1, 3, 5

This course has three content sections (see Contents) distributed in two thematic blocks. Students are required to acquire a minimum basic training in each and every one of them. Therefore, students must show evidence of these minimums in the different thematic blocks of the subject, structured as follows:

Block 1 (33.3%): section 1.

Block 2 (66.7%): sections 2 and 3.

Assessment will be based on written exams and practical tasks. In BLOCK 1 there will be an individual exam at the end of the block: 18 March 2025 at 10 a.m. (PEDAGOGY) and 19 March 2025 at 10 a.m. (SOCIAL EDUCATION). BLOCK 2 will have i) a written group work (20%), which is presented in class and whose presentation gives rise to an individual mark (30%); and ii) an individual exam at the end of the block (50%): 17 June 2025 at 9 a.m. (PEDAGOGY) and 18 June 2025 at 9 a.m. (SOCIAL EDUCATION). Thus, in general, the assessment of the subject is a product of individual effort.

Attendance at the practical work sessions (seminars) is mandatory. In any case, a few justified absences may be assessed as long as the total attendance is at least 80%.

In order to pass the course, students will have to show evidence of minimum achievements in each of the two blocks mentioned above. If the student passes the two blocks with a minimum grade of 5 points (out of 10), the final grade will be taken from the weighted average of the two thematic blocks (33.3% block 1 and 66.7% block 2), in correspondence with their percentage weight in ECTS (2 ECTS and 4 ECTS, respectively).

If the student does not pass any of the blocks, his/her final grade will correspond to the grade of the failed block (or the weighted average of the two failed blocks), and he/she will have to take the scheduled assessment as a recovery of the block. In order to participate in the recovery, students must have been previously assessed in a set of activities whose weight is equivalent to a minimum of two thirds of the total grade of the subject.

The recovery exams of both blocks are individual. The grade obtained in the recovery exam of block 1 will replace in any case -whether it is higher or lower- the grade previously obtained in the exam of the block. Likewise, the grade obtained in the recovery exam for block 2 will replace the grade previously obtained in the block exam, which corresponds to 50% of the total grade for the block, maintaining the grades derived from the practical work, which are not recoverable.

The recovery exam for BLOCK 1 will take place on 1 July 2025 at 11:15 a.m. (PEDAGOGY) and on 25 June 2025 at 10 a.m. (SOCIAL EDUCATION). The recovery exam for BLOCK 2 will take place on 1 July 2025 at 9 a.m. (PEDAGOGY) and 2 July 2025 at 9 a.m. (SOCIAL EDUCATION).

If the student does not pass with a minimum grade of 5 points (out of 10) in any of the blocks, it will mean that he/she has not reached the minimum expected and will fail the course with the grade corresponding to the failed block (or the weighted average of the two failed blocks).

The student who has not taken any of the assessments of any of the blocks during the course, nor in the recovery assessment, will obtain the grade of Not assessable. When one of the evaluations within a block is taken, the student will be considered to have taken the corresponding block, and therefore must take the rest of the evaluations; otherwise, the average will be made with the grade of the evaluation that has been taken and the "zeros" corresponding to the rest of the evaluations not taken within that block.

The results of each of the assessments will be published on the virtual campus within a maximum period of 20 working days after their completion, and their revision may be requested within 7 calendar days after their publication, with the exception of the recovery exams, whose revision must be requested within 24 hours after their publication.

Copying or plagiarism will be grounds for failing the course.

The coordination of the course will ensure that the final evaluation criteria with respect to the overall grade of the subject are adopted by consensus by the entire teaching team.

Students who are not enrolled for the first time in the course will be assessed with the same activities as those enrolled for the first time. A synthesis test is not contemplated.

This course does not include a single evaluation system.

This and other additional information will be posted at the beginning of the course on the virtual campus (moodle) of the subject, which we will use as a communication tool with students.


Bibliography

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Almendro, M. (2018). El laberinto de la ayahuasca. Barcelona: Kairós.

Alloway, T., Wilson, G. i Graham, J. (2006). Sniffy. La rata virtual. Madrid: Thomson (inclou CD-ROM).

Barlow, D., Farchione, T., Sauer-Zavala, S., Murray, H., Ellar, K., Bullis, J., Bentley, K., Boettcher, H., y Casiello-Robbins, C. (2019). Protocolo Unificado para el tratamiento transdiagnóstico de los trastornos emocionales. Madrid: Alianza Editorial.

Bauman, Z. (2009). Modernidad líquida. Buenos Aires: fondo de Cultura.

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Budayicioglu, G. (2019). La chica de la ventana. Sevilla: Lantia Publishing S.L.

Bueno, D. (2016). Cerebroflexia. El arte de construir el cerebro. Barcelona: Plataforma Editorial.

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Carrasco, J. L. (2024). La personalidad y sus trastornos. Barcelona: Arpa.

Castellanos, N. (2022). Neurociencia del cuerpo. Cómo el organismo esculpe el cerebro. Barcelona: Kairós.

Damasio, A. (2913). El error de Descartes: La emoción, la razón y el cerebro humano. Barcelona: Crítica.

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Estupiña, F. (2022). Manual de Telepsicología. Nuevos medios para aplicar a la picología en el siglo XXI. Alianza Editorial.

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Fernández, C. (2019). Melancolía clínica y transmisión generacional. Barcelona: Xoroi.

Godfrey-Smith, P. (2017). Otras mentes. El pulpo, el mar y los orígenes profundos de la consciencia. Barcelona: Taurus.

Gonzalez, A. (2023). ¿Por dónde se sale?. Barcelona: Planeta.

González, R., Gullón, P., González, A y Carmona, M. (Coords). (2022). Transformar los barrios para evitar el sufrimiento psíquico. Una mirada salubrista a la salud mental. Madrid: Asociación Española de Neuropsiquiatría.

Jay, M. (2016). La década decisiva. Por qué son importantes de los veinte a los treinta años y cómo sacarles el máximo partido ahora. Madrid: Asertos.

LeDoux, J. (1999). El cerebro emocional. Barcelona: Ariel/Planeta.

Levine, A. y Kline, M. (2016). El trauma visto por los niños. Barcelona: Eleftheria.

Martí, J.J. (coord.). (2022). Manual de telesalud mental. Tecnologías digitales en la práctica clínica. Madrid: Pirámide.

Morgado, I. (2012). Cómo percibimos el mundo. Una exploración de la mente y los sentidos. Barcelona: Ariel.

Morgado, I. (2014). Aprender, recordar y olvidar: Claves cerebrales de la memoria y la educación. Barcelona: Ariel.

Morgado, I. (2019). Deseo y placer. La ciencia de las motivaciones. Barcelona: Ariel.

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Nanzer, N. (2015). La depresión postparto. Salir del silencio. Barcelona: Octaedro.

Perry. B. y Szalavitz (2016). El chico a quien criaron como perro. Madrid: Capitán Swing Libros.

Petersen, H. (2021). No puedo +. Cómo se convirtieron los Millennials en la generación quemada. Madrid: Capitán Swing Libros S.L.

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Porges, S. (2018). Guía de bolsillo de la Teoría Polivagal. El poder transformador de sentirse seguro. Barcelona: Eleftheria.

Ramachandran, V. S. i Blakeslee, S. (1999). Fantasmas en el cerebro. Madrid: Debate.

Schacter, D. L. (2003). Los siete pecados capitales de la memoria. Barcelona: Ariel.

Schore, A. (2022). El desarrollo de la mente inconsciente. Barcelona: Eleftheria.

Velasco, P. (2018). Criminal-Mente. Barcelona: Ariel.

Villar, F. (2022). Morir antes del suicidio. Prevención en la adolescencia. Barcelona: Herder.

Williams, M. i Penman, D. (2013). Mindfulness. Barcelona: Paidós.


Software

None program.


Language list

Name Group Language Semester Turn
(SEM) Seminars 111 Catalan/Spanish second semester morning-mixed
(SEM) Seminars 112 Catalan/Spanish second semester morning-mixed
(SEM) Seminars 113 Catalan/Spanish second semester morning-mixed
(SEM) Seminars 211 Catalan/Spanish second semester morning-mixed
(SEM) Seminars 212 Catalan/Spanish second semester morning-mixed
(SEM) Seminars 213 Catalan/Spanish second semester morning-mixed
(TE) Theory 1 Catalan/Spanish second semester morning-mixed
(TE) Theory 2 Catalan/Spanish second semester morning-mixed