Cognition and Cognitive Neuroscience (C&CN)
Source: https://www.brookes.ac.uk/research/units/hls/groups/cognition-and-cognitive-neuroscience Parent: https://www.brookes.ac.uk/engage-and-innovate/consultancy
Cognition and Cognitive Neuroscience (C&CN)
Group Leader(s): Dr Sanjay Kumar
Contact:
About us
There are 3 dominant research themes in this group relating to the investigation of Movement, Sensory and Attention processes, and Self, Emotion and Memory:
Movement
- Investigating human movement and motor control, particularly in individuals with developmental Coordination Disorder.
- Investigating the impact of spelling and working memory on handwriting speed.
Sensory and Attention processes
- Understanding object formation processes, visual representations and the comparison of visual information.
- Investigating brain bases of sensory process in clinical conditions.
Self, Emotion and Memory
- Investigating how memory and future thinking are related to identity and wellbeing.
- Exploring dynamic interactions between the self and emotional systems at the brain level and how such interactions manifest in depression.
Our research includes work in healthy adult populations, as well as in certain clinical groups such as those with dementia, Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD), Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) and depression. Some members of the group work alongside clinicians at local hospitals and have collaborators at other academic institutions both nationally and internationally.
Part of
Related courses
Leadership
Dr Sanjay Kumar
Reader in Psychology
Membership
Staff members Research students
- Staff
- Students
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Staff
| Name | Role | |
|---|---|---|
| Dr Olivia Afonso | Senior Lecturer in Psychology | afonso.o@brookes.ac.uk |
| Professor Anna Barnett | Professor of Psychology | abarnett@brookes.ac.uk |
| Dr Hsin-Yuan Chen | Psychology Technician | hchen@brookes.ac.uk |
| Professor Angus Gellatly | Emeritus Professor of Psychology | agellatly@brookes.ac.uk |
| Dr Lisa Hinkley | Senior Lecturer in Psychology | lhinkley@brookes.ac.uk |
| Dr Michael Pilling | Senior Lecturer in Psychology | mpilling@brookes.ac.uk |
| Dr Clare Rathbone | Associate Professor in Psychology | crathbone@brookes.ac.uk |
| Dr Nichola Stuart | Associate Researcher in Psychology | nstuart@brookes.ac.uk |
| Dr Alfred Veldhuis | Senior Lecturer in Public Health | aveldhuis@brookes.ac.uk |
| Professor Kate Wilmut | Professor of Psychology | k.wilmut@brookes.ac.uk |
Methods and techniques
Various methods and techniques are used in this research, with a range of equipment in our specialised research labs:
- PuMA Lab(Perception and Motion Analysis) houses a 3D motion analysis system, with 6 infrared cameras to track the coordinates of small reflective markers placed on the body. This equipment helps us understand how movements are planned and executed and to investigate the nature of movement difficulties, for example in individuals with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD).\
- PAAC Lab(Perception, Attention & Affective Cognition) encompasses 3 labs which house our state of the art electroencephalogram (EEG) recording facility for event related potential (REP) research, our Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) equipment which can temporarily excite or inhibit a small area of the brain, and our visual cognition lab.\
- Writing Lab offers a range of equipment to record and measure handwriting and keyboarding behaviour.\