Teaching Cognitive/Behavioral Neuroscience Through a DEI Lens

Abstract

As higher education continues to prioritize diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), cognitive/behavioral neuroscience and other physiologically based psychology courses may face challenges incorporating DEI issues into the curriculum relative to other subfields of psychology. Instructors of these courses may believe that their discipline is more objective than other psychology subfields, or may simply be unsure where to insert discussion of DEI issues into their course material. There is a substantial evidence regarding both the fallacy of total scientific objectivity and how structural inequalities can impact brain structure and function in historically marginalized populations. I discuss where and how in the neuroscience curriculum instructors can implement relevant discussion of DEI issues, as well as provide practical suggestions for how to increase belongingness for historically marginalized students, including open educational resource lecture slides and a critical-thinking assignment. Excluding DEI content from neuroscience courses harms our students and perpetuates the myth of total scientific objectivity, so it is imperative that faculty include DEI discussions in neuroscience-based courses.