About the lecture

In this lecture, we think about some practical issues with brain scanning techniques, as well as some genetic and environmental influences on neuroplasticity, focusing in particular on: (i) understanding neurodegenerative disorders, like dementias, to be those where brain atrophy worsens over time and does not recover; (ii) memory loss and a reduction in worldly comprehension and as key symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease; (iii) difficulties attempting to get someone suffering with Alzheimer’s into a scanning machine for a long period of time as a key practical issue with using brain scanning to assess that patient’s condition; (iv) children as another demographic for which brain scanning is not always a practical measuring tool; (v) understanding neuroplasticity to be the brain’s ability to remap functions to non-damaged brain regions; (vi) evidence for a genetic influence on the ability to remap brain functions through neuroplasticity, as well as recover from brain injuries; (vii) the impact of a healthy diet and exercise on recovery from brain injury; (viii) some research evidence which has shown a link between parent-child relationships and functional recovery; (ix) Pickersgill and colleagues’ 2022 paper exploring the impact of environmental factors on neuroplasticity.

About the lecturer

Dr Ivana Babicova is a lecturer in psychology in the School of Social Sciences at Birmingham City University. Dr Babicova’s research interests are in dementia, pain assessment and positive psychology. Some of Dr Babicova’s recent publications include ‘Validation and evaluation of psychometric properties of PainChek®: an electronic pain assessment tool for people with moderate-to-severe dementia’ and ‘Pain in people with dementia: a systematic review and a meta-analysis of the effectiveness of observational pain assessment tools’ (2020).