Psychodynamic Psychopathology and Clinical Relationship in Developmental age and Adulthood

General aims The course aims at providing theoretical and practical skills related to communicative development that allow the students to recognize a typical and atypical developmental path. The course examines the transition from preintentional to intentional communication and from non-verbal to verbal communication. The acquired knowledge implies to be able to detect the relationship between several do-mains that characterize language acquisition at different stages of development: a) production vs. comprehension; b) lexicon vs. syntax; c) gestures vs. words. The laboratory offers students the possibility of using different types of instruments that imply direct evaluation (observations) and indirect assessment (standardized questionnaires, check-lists, parent reports, e.g. QSCL, PVB, ASCB, LUI) that allow to de-lineate different profiles of communicative development to detect any conditions of risk or de-lay (late talkers). Specific aims Knowledge and understanding Passing the exam would imply being capable of understanding and using the most widespread and important tools to detect any risk conditions in the communicative and linguistic development. Applying knowledge and understanding Passing the exam would imply mastering specific techniques of both research and assessment of verbal and nonverbal skills that characterize the early stages of development. Making judgments Passing the exam implies mastering the ability to make judgments in order to choose more suitable methods to be applied to evaluate the child's current communicative skills and/or in a longitudinal perspective. These abilities would be attained through discussions on complex research issues, and complex analytical results, and would be held both in the traditional lessons, through the critical analysis of scientific articles, and during the laboratory sessions, through the direct analysis of different profiles of communicative skills. Communication skills Passing the exam would attest that students master the communication abilities and tools needed for an efficacious scientific communication. These skills are acquired during teaching through with emphasis on scientific terminology linked to the technical ability to evaluate and understand the different factors that contribute to the development of communication or on the contrary, that may constitute risk factors. Learning skills Passing the exam involves the acquisition of transversal learning skills common to the theory and practice of observation and detection of communication behaviors that characterize the early stages of development. These abilities will allow the student to deepen the theoretical and practical issues in the field of the typical and atypical developmental psychology in the course of her/his academic and professional career. Learning skills are acquired both in traditional lessons highlighting the descriptive aspects of developmental psychology and in laboratory sessions using and applying assessment techniques.