Perception of neuroscience among undergraduate students of psychology and biology of the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus

Perception of neuroscience among undergraduate students of psychology and biology of the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus

Neuroscience research findings about various mental disorders and neurodegenerative diseases have implications for both psychology and biology. This study is part of a project that explores what is the perception of neuroscience among undergraduate students of biology and psychology at UPR-Rio Piedras (UPR-RP). The study aims to gather information on academic interests, attitudes and beliefs about neuroscience of UPR-RP students. We suspected that psychology and biology students have different ideas about neuroscience. We used a questionnaire containing questions about demographic and general interests in neuroscience. Preliminary results (n = 110) show that 82% of psychology students do not know a neuroscientist, while 65% of biology students do not know a neuroscientist. On the other hand, 91% of biology students are interested in neuroscience issues versus 65% of the psychology students. Most students are interested in learning more about neuroscience and would take a course of neuroscience. The results of this study will be useful to identify whether there are differences in the perception of neuroscience between fields of study and to identify misconceptions students might have about neuroscience. Finally, the results could be useful to assess the development and implementation of an interdepartmental Neuroscience program.