ESRC seminar series on Developmental Social Neuroscience, Ethics and the Law
This one-year ESRC Seminar series, hosted by the departments of Law and Psychology at the University of Exeter, brings together specialists from the fields of Neuroscience, the law, and policy, to address questions relating to brain development, neurological injury, and the law.
Advances in paediatric neuroscience show that the brains of children and adolescents develop right through to the late teenage years. Many factors may influence such maturation. Moreover, neurological injury, from accidents or assaults, are common and may have long term consequences.
These can lead to particular problems in brain development, social cognition and behaviour. An understanding of how maturity develops, and what might influence it, is critical for clincians, lawyers and policy makers. For example, how can we tell if a young person is fit to plead to a criminal charge? Or take responsibility for their actions? How should we take account of brain injury in childhood on such abilities?
The series will consist of four seminar “days”:
- Day one (October 7 2011) will feature leading neuroscientists and clinicians giving an overview of recent advances in understanding the development of the brain, consequences of adversity and injury, and status of interventions
- Day two (December 2 2011) will be lead by lawyers, who will explore implications of such advances for the law, particularly regarding the justice system in general and criminal and medico-legal cases in particular. Ethical and policy issues within the UK and Europe will then be identified
- Days three and four (2012, dates to be confirmed) will address the ethical and policy issues identified during day two
Registration and booking
An online registration and booking process for the second day will be available shortly. Please see the individual seminar pages (linked at the top-right of this page) for details.
Contact
For further details regarding the seminar series, please contact either:
Professor Huw Williams (Psychology)
Email: W.H.Williams@exeter.ac.uk
Dr Karen McAuliffe (Law)
Email: K.McAuliffe@exeter.ac.uk
Useful resources
These documents contain links to websites useful for those interested in youth justice and brain injury.
