Cognition and Neuroscience Group
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Cognition and Neuroscience Group
Overview
Researchers in the Cognition and Neuroscience Group examine human cognitive and emotional processes in neurotypical adults as well as in individuals with brain impairments and mental health disorders. We employ state of the art neuroimaging techniques, including electroencephalography (EEG), eye-tracking, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), and non-invasive brain stimulation (TCS).
Face, Scene and Object Processing
The group has considerable expertise in research on visual object and face processing. This includes the investigation of the cognitive and neural features of typical and atypical face-processing. Prof. Thoma assesses the role of attentional load in perceiving faces (as well as everyday objects) while Dr Vitkovitch is interested in how we retrieve the names for faces and objects, and Dr Budd addresses similar questions for people with dyslexia. Dr Stone is exploring emotional reactions and attitudes of the general public to people with facial disfigurement. Professor Fu has been investigating face processing in relation to mental health disorders, namely depression. Dr Wakui and Dr Gosling are using EEG and brain stimulation to investigate the differences in representations between object and face recognition.
Other Cognitive Processes
Individuals within the group also have particular strengths in other areas of cognition. These include synaesthesia (Dr Spiller), neuro-psychopharmacology (Prof. Fu), thinking styles in relation to paranormal beliefs (Dr Stone), decision making (Prof. Thoma), object name retrieval (Dr Vitkovitch), communication in language and emotion (Dr Budd), eye tracking as potential biomarker (Dr Harwood), pain perception (Dr Martini, Dr Fidalgo), and risk-taking and social perceptions (Dr Lemoine).
Developing Novel Treatments
Prof. Fu is investigating the potential of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) as a community-based treatment for depression. tDCS offers a potential treatment option for individuals who might wish to have pharmacological or psychological treatment. Prof. Thoma explores the use of tDCS in treating disordered gambling.
Aims
A key aim for the group is to advance theoretical models of cognition to better understand both difficulties and abilities in cognition and social cognition. We also work towards predicting performance on specific cognitive tasks and predict clinical responses in mental health disorders. We make use of innovative technology (e.g., brain stimulation, EEG, virtual reality) to facilitate assessment and rehabilitation of individuals with cognitive impairments. The overall goal is therefore to promote individual health and wellbeing. The impact of the research is evident in exchanging knowledge in clinical, organisational and other user-environments (e.g., user-experience agencies, financial trading, charities, the general public).
Contact us
Work with us
Dr Elley Wakui - EEG and Object Recognition
Visual attention and object processing
Elley Wakui's EEG work has been on the processing of visual information, particularly that which we do not allocate attentional resources. This extends previous behavioural work investigating the development of mental representations of objects. Her PhD student (Montserrat Gonzalez-Perez) is currently investigating the enhancement of face processing using transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS).
Dr Mary Spiller - Synesthesia and Mental Imagery
Individual differences in multisensory processing
Mary Spiller's research investigates how individual differences in multisensory perception (e.g. synaesthesia) might be related to other cognitive or visual-spatial abilities (e.g. mental imagery). For example, we have found that individuals with synaesthesia (synaesthetes) report more vivid mental imagery than non-synaesthetes. Importantly, we were the first to explore this in relation to modalities other than just visual imagery, finding that synaesthetes also report more vivid auditory, smell, touch and taste imagery. Furthermore, we have shown that sequence-spatial synaesthetes (who experience sequences such as time in a spatial sequence) perform better than non-synaesthetes on mental rotation tests.
Professor Volker Thoma - Decision Making and Visual Cognition
Cognitive reflection in judgment and decision-making
Volker Thoma's work on judgment and decision-making investigates the role of cognitive reflection, a thinking disposition as well as a performance measure linked to executive functions. In brain stimulation work cognitive tests were increased after transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to the right prefrontal cortex. Cognitive reflection is also found to be linked to forms of schizotypy and may be the basis of expert decision-making (e.g., in financial expertise).
Dr Mary-Jane Budd - Dyslexia, Language
Mary-Jane Budd is looking for enthusiastic and scientifically minded people to work in her lab investigating the neural correlates of object and word identification in dyslexics using EEG. Mary-Jane would be happy to hear from anyone interested in working with her on this topic by emailing m.budd@uel.ac.uk.
Dr Mark Harwood - Clinical Aspects of Eye-tracking Research
Mark Harwood's work on motor control and learning (with particular emphasis on eye movements and active vision) studies the interplay between decision-making, learning, motor control and visual attention systems. Current projects involve healthy adults and children, as well as conditions such as Parkinson's disease, schizophrenia, dyslexia and amblyopia. These involve collaborations in the USA and France primarily.
Professor Cynthia Fu - Neural Correlates of Mental Health
Cynthia Fu is looking at how brain regions change with talking therapy as well as with pharmacological therapy, what the potential is to develop biomarkers to help us to identify depression and to predict response, and whether the novel brain stimulation technique tDCS could be a potential community-based treatment for depression.
Dr Antonio Fidalgo - Work and Mental Wellbeing
Wellbeing
Antonio Fidalgo's research focuses on aspects associated with positive mental health and wellbeing. Previously conducted research on the impact of zero-hour contracts on care-workers wellbeing, and; currently, he is investigating the impact of the lockdown in the UK has on sleep, pain management, and mental wellbeing.
Decision-making: his initial research here focused on the impact of briefly presented visual stimuli on multisensory integration and identification. Since then he has conducted research on the cognitive strategies that people use to identify incorrect information. In a similar manner, he has conducted research on the impact of social media in creative thinking.
Dr Anna Stone - Paranormal Belief
Belief in the paranormal
Anna Stone investigates the factors contributing to belief in the paranormal, including thinking styles and narrative conventions. She has recently published a new wide-ranging questionnaire measure of paranormal belief.
Perceptions of people with facial disfigurement: Anna investigates the reactions of members of the general public to individuals with facial disfigurement, looking at their emotional reactions and their evaluations of personal traits and abilities. Recent projects have included eye-tracking research looking at the relationship between attentional focus and emotional reactions and the effectiveness of a short intervention to reduce automatic bias.
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