Conceptual developments in the neurosciences relevant to psychiatry

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Abstract
During the past decade, there has been an enormous increase in our knowledge in the field of neuroscience.In particular, cognitive neuroscience has become a major driving force of research at the interface of mind and brain, which is exemplified using the concepts of neuroplasticity and neuromodulation. Neural network simulations have produced highly counterintuitive, far-reaching results, of which some examples are provided. We argue that these developments are relevant to psychiatry, not just at an empirical level but also at a deeper conceptual level. Hallucinations, delusion, formal thought disorder and affective pathology are briefly discussed to illustrate this point.