Hello everybody.
I have a neuroaimging PhD studentship that I'd like to advertise.
If you could circulate it to anyone you think might be interested, or to the
students at your institution I'd be very grateful.
With many thanks indeed.
Rachel Mitchell
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Dr Rachel Mitchell
Affective and Cognitive Neuroscience PhD Studentship
To coincide with her appointment in the Department of Psychology, at the
University of Durham (from 1st July 2007), Dr. Mitchell is pleased to be
able to offer a PhD studentship (fees & stipend) relating to Affective &
Cognitive Neuroscience.
In the first instance, informal enquiries are to be made directly to Dr.
Mitchell by email ([log in to unmask]).
Further details on postgraduate study in Psychology at the University of
Durham can be obtained at http://www.dur.ac.uk/psychology/postgraduate/.
Possible PhD Topics
Dr. Mitchell’s main research interest is the cognitive and neural bases of
emotion cue decoding (facial expressions & tone of voice).
Related research interests include:
§ Right hemisphere language functions
§ Abnormal lateralisation of the human brain
§ The cognitive processing of conflicting sources of information
(Stroop phenomena etc.)
Pertinent questions include….
(a) Emotion: How do we process emotional stimuli such as facial
expressions and tone of voice? How is verbal emotion processed in the brain
at a sub-conscious level? What social and psychological problems may be
caused by impairments in the ability to decode the emotion conveyed by
facial expression or tone of voice? Are semantic emotion cues more important
than intonational cues? How does mood affect the way we perform standard
cognitive operations? Can we improve peoples’ ability to decode emotion
cues? How does decoding of emotion cues interact with emotion, and does this
vary over time? How is the expression of emotion mediated in the brain? Does
the mediation of emotion cue decoding in the brain differ according to the
specific emotion? Does the mediation of emotion comprehension differ in
sentences vs. words? What is the relationship between theory of mind and
emotion cue decoding?
(b) Incongruity: How do we process incongruent and ambiguous stimuli
(Stroop like phenomena etc.)? Are conflicting sources of emotional
information processed in the same way as conflicting sources of cognitive
information? Does practice or experience have any effect on our ability to
process incongruent information effectively?
(c) Lateralisation: What brain functions are lateralised to one
hemisphere or the other beyond left-lateralisation of language and
right-lateralisation of visuo-spatial functions? Which language functions
are mediated by the right hemisphere? How does handedness relate to IQ and
language lateralisation? How is lateralisation of auditory emotion cue
decoding affected by gender and handedness?
She is particularly interested in studying these processes in psychiatric
populations (schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, personality
disorders/psychopaths), but also in neurological populations (Parkinson’s
disease) and the healthy elderly.
Thus we might ask how do abnormalities in these functions relate to symptom
profile or in bipolar disorder, the phase of illness? How can we disentangle
the effects of potential confounds such as age, illness chronicity and
medication from the effects of the disease itself? In the elderly, how can
we be sure dysfunctions are primary dysfunctions rather than secondary
consequences of other aspects of ageing?
Normal variation in associated behaviours can also be studied in ‘healthy’
young adults (e.g. depression, schizotypy, personality traits, aggression,
anxiety, hyperacusis etc).
Techniques used include functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and
transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) analyses of brain activity,
cognitive/neuropsychological tests of psychological processes, and
electrophysiological measurements of peripheral nervous system activity
(heart rate and skin conductance).
Potential PhD candidates may select a PhD programme in any of these areas
(or some combination of them). Packages could also be formulated to suit
individual applicants.
Required Skills
Essential:
# 1st Class degree in Psychology or related discipline, OR 2.1 class
degree plus a relevant Masters degree, OR a medical degree (current students
who are on course to meet these requirements may also apply).
# Good research design and data analysis skills, including experience
with SPSS.
# Excellent interpersonal skills
# Excellent organisational skills
# Experience with word processing packages
# The ability to meet the demands of a PhD
Desirable:
# Previous experience of experiment generation software (Superlab,
E-prime etc.), or computer programming skills (Labview, Matlab etc.).
# Previous experience of interaction with relevant patient group.
# Previous experience of TMS or fMRI where relevant to proposed topic
of study (running experiments and analysing consequent data).
# Previous work relevant to proposed topic of study (undergraduate
project, MSc/MPhil project, employment as Research Associate).
To Express an Interest
Please contact Dr. Mitchell at the email address given above.
In your communication please include
(i) Your current CV
(ii) ONE paragraph outlining your particular area of interest/proposed
topic of study.
(iii) ONE paragraph outlining how you meet the criteria listed above.
(iv) A summary of grades for the modules studied in the final year of
your undergraduate degree, grades received for any research methods/data
analyses modules throughout your degree, and grades relevant to your final
year dissertation/project. Where applicable Masters degree grades should
also be provided.
The deadline for expressions of interest is 31st March.
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Dr Rachel L. C. Mitchell.
Lecturer in Cognitive Psychology, University of Reading.
Senior Honorary Research Fellow, Institute of Psychiatry.
Research Psychologist, Berkshire Healthcare NHS Trust.
Correspondence Address:
School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, Whiteknights Road
University of Reading Reading Berkshire
RG6 6AL
Tel: +44 (0)118 378 8523
Direct Dial: +44 (0)118 378 7530
Fax: +44 (0)118 378 6715
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