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 Welcome to the Home Page
for the
Psychophysiology of Emotion
and Human NeuroCognition Laboratory
a part of the
Department of Psychology
NeuroCognition and Brain Studies Section
The relationship between
Emotion and Attention sits at the focus of the Psychophysiology of Emotion and
Human NeuroCognition Laboratory. We are interested in how emotional
stimuli are perceived, identified, recognized, cognitively represented,
computed, and influence response selection.
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A startled
armadillo!
We have studied the human startle reflex in our lab. However,
we
have never gotten this big of a response |
The goals of our research are to
better understand
(1) the mechanisms by which
physiological systems generate and organize these processes, and
(2) their expression and appearance in
development across the lifespan, in pre-clinical and translational applications
as well as in the diversity of individual differences.
As examples of current
research interests:
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We are interested in how the
human individuals respond to emotional stimuli. In particular, we
are interested in such questions as how the brain and its
cognitive systems identifies a stimulus as emotionally relevant? At what point does the response to
an emotional stimulus differ from responding to
a neutral stimulus -
and in what ways, with what characteristics? How is
attention allocated (or 'grabbed'!) by emotional stimuli. What factors
increase or decrease a person's susceptibility to
distraction, especially when emotional stimuli are presented?
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For
example, one current study asks student volunteers to view a series of images
and to press buttons whenever certain target sequences of images are presented.
This approach allows us to examine the ability of different types of emotional
stimuli (e.g., strongly positive pictures or strongly negative pictures) to
distract attention from the ongoing task or to disrupt working memory as the
target image sequence is processed. Phsyiological data, including the
measurement of brain waves provides an indication of the temporal
characteristics of these effects.
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Another set of studies is examining the processing of emotional stimuli by
individuals with eating disorders. One goal is to identify the ways in
which cognitive processing of words or images of food or of body shape differs
among individuals with different eating disorders and between those with and
without a diagnosed eating disorder. In addition, we are also
investigating the coping response, or emotion regulation to negative feedback
exhibited by individuals with eating disorders. The aim of this researdh
is to improve the efficacy of therapeutic interventions for those diagnosed with
an eating disorder.
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Second, we have begun to develop a relationship with the Neuropsychology Clinic
which is being formed within the NeuroCognition and Brain Studies Section.
This relationship will allow us to expand our investigation of emotion-attention
functions to patients with traumatic brain injury, stroke, or other pathology.
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Third, we are working with the
Radiobiology Program in the Department of Radiation Medicine. Here the
interest is in the the effects of
radiation on the function and integrity of the central nervous
system. We are interested in understanding the types of changes produced
in the nervous system as a result of exposure to ionizing radiation (such
as gamma rays, protons, and HZE radiation).
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One example
of this focus involves the question of what function is lost when the
hippocampus (or another structure) is exposed to radiation sufficient to disrupt neurogenesis.
This focus is also relevant to humans undergoing radiotherapy for cancer or for
new forms of radio-surgery.
It is important to understand the effects of radiation on nervous system tissues
which may cause short-term or transient changes in function so that
accommodations and remediation strategies can be effectively implemented.
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On the other hand, this is important for astronauts in
long-duration space flight such as the trip to Mars who
will be at risk for exposure to radiation, particularly proton
radiation. It is important to assess the kinds of dangers
resulting from that exposure and to identify potential countermeasures which can
be employed to decrease the impact of the exposure.
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To learn more about some of the specific research projects which are
ongoing or recently completed in the lab, click the recent research
link above. To find out more about the graduate students who are working on these
projects and the others associated with the lab, click on the people
link. Finally, if you want information regarding the laboratory itself and some of
the specific apparatus we use, check out the facilities page.
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This page was last updated on
10.Oct.06 |
