Dr Jane Aspell, Senior Lecturer in Psychology

How does the brain generate a sense of self? How does the feeling of personal identity arise? There is growing evidence that the fundamental neurobiological basis of self-consciousness - including 'higher' conceptual and language-based aspects such as personality - is the brain's representation of the body. Each of us identifies with our own body - we feel 'ownership' for it. But how do I know that my body belongs to me? And why does it seem that my self is 'located' inside my body and not elsewhere? Scientific answers to these enigmatic questions are now starting to emerge thanks to inventive experimental designs that can investigate so-called 'bodily self-consciousness' in the lab. My research investigates how the brain integrates signals from multiple sensory modalities - touch, vision, proprioception, audition and interoception - to generate an holistic perception of the body and self. Experiments involve the induction of multisensory conflicts in healthy subjects that result in abnormal self perception and body illusions in which the self is experienced outside of the body and a feeling of ownership is experienced for virtual bodies.

If you are interested in undertaking a project in this highly novel and rapidly expanding area of research email me at: jane.aspell@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Peter Bright, Reader in Psychology

Episodic autobiographical memory is the system that allows conscious reliving of personal experiences, a subjective ability to mentally travel back in time and recreate the unfolding of a specific event from our past. Recollecting autobiographical events is a reconstructive and subjective process, influenced by multiple factors, including the age and nature of the event and the characteristics of the individual retrieving it. In contrast, personal semantic memory refers to factual information about oneself and in this sense is not event-based.

Evidence for the dissociability of episodic and semantic components has been demonstrated in neuropsychological studies of brain damaged patients and functional neuroimaging studies of healthy participants.The distinction is also of central importance in ongoing debates concerning the neural bases of long term memory storage and retrieval. Complex interactions between episodic and semantic memory are likely at all stages of memory formation and retrieval and therefore these systems might best be considered as dimensional rather than independent or discrete.


As researchers are trying to develop increasingly sensitive measures of autobiographical memory in order to differentiate between the major theories of medial temporal involvement in long term memory storage and retrieval the conceptualisation of episodic memory is increasingly emphasising a 'binding' function in which spatial and temporal elements of our past are integrated into coherent representations. In this context, true episodic retrieval is characterised by perceptual, affective and spatiotemporal contextual details - it is the ability to mentally re-experience specific details of an event which distinguishes it from other similar ones. Research has also highlighted a role for medial temporal lobe structures (particularly the perirhinal cortex) as the endpoint of a hierarchically organised visual object processing network providing the basis for fine-grained discrimination among objects. More recently, evidence that this region may provide the neural structure for the emergence of conceptual knowledge (not necessarily rooted in the visual input modality) has been presented. The role of autobiographical memory in the formation and continuity of self-identity is also an emerging theme. If you are interested in exploring commonality and divergence among these themes, please contact me.

Other active areas of interest include intelligence, attention and executive functions.

Contact: Peter.Bright@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Matt Bristow, Principal Lecturer in Psychology

The relationship between stress, endocrine and immune markers. The development and use of salivary biomarkers. The relationship between stress & health.

Contact: Matt.Bristow@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Rachel Cook, Head of Department and Principal Lecturer in Health Psychology

Psychological implications of reproduction, infertility and medical technologies. Stress, coping and health. Psychological causes and consequences of illness. Motivations and decision-making in choices about health.

Contact: Rachel.Cook@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Roberto Filippi, Lecturer in Psychology

Learning a second language is a remarkable ability, which is not limited to a particular age.

More than half of the world's population (>3 billion people!) is bilingual and there is now great scientific attention given to this phenomenon.

New exciting behavioural and neuroimaging research in the field of bilingualism have advanced our understanding of how language develops in the brain and how second language acquisition both in early stages of life and in adulthood may enhance some vital cognitive processes, such as our ability to learn and making decisions.

If you are interested in this fascinating line of research, please contact me at: Roberto.Filippi@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Mick Finlay, Reader in Psychology

I have two areas of research. The first concerns individuals with intellectual/developmental disabilities and everyday practices of interaction and communication. I would be very interested in supervising projects looking at: a) verbal communication either in formal assessment situations (e.g. health-care consultations, psychiatric assessments), interviews (e.g. police) or informal interactions, b) non-verbal interaction and communication among people with severe or profound intellectual disabilities, c) issues of choice and empowerment.

The second area I am interested in concerns intergroup conflict. I have been carrying out research into political discourse in situations of violent conflict, looking at how notions of identity, group membership and loyalty are constructed to promote positions of hostility or violence. I'd be very interested in supervising projects looking at issues of loyalty and identity in general, or at the discourses around particular conflict situations around the world.

If you are interested in any of these areas, or in research related to these areas, please contact me at Mick.Finlay@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Roberto Gutierrez, Lecturer in Psychology

I am interested in emotions and the way the work in typical and atypical populations. How we use emotions in order to help or hinder our decisions and how we make sense and react based on of emotional expressions of others.

Another one of my areas of research is group processes. Particularly I am interested on the way we change our evaluations of things and people when we are in a group and we feel part of it.

If you are interested in any of these topics please contact me at Roberto.Gutierrez@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Peter Hills, Senior Lecturer in Psychology

Face recognition is one of our most expert abilities. However, there are types of faces that we cannot recognise so well: inverted faces, other-group (race, age, gender) faces are not recognised so well. My research explores the underlying mechanisms behind why these types of faces are not recognised so well. In addition to the theoretical studies, I also explore how this ability can be improved at identity checkpoints.

I also have exciting projects exploring face recognition and other perceptual deficits in clinical populations, such as schizophrenia, autism, and dyslexia. I use behavioural, psychophysical, eye-tracking, and electrophysiological in order to study face perception. In addition, I lead research projects in working memory, driving, and colour perception.

If you are interested in studying these exciting areas of research, please email me at: Peter.Hills@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Cathrine Jansson-Boyd, Senior Lecturer in Psychology

Visual and haptic elements that affect aesthetic evaluation. Social Psychological issues of consumer behaviour and consumer culture (e.g. the effects of modern day materialism on mental well being) and cross-cultural differences.

Contact: Catherine.Jansson@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Helen Keyes, Senior Lecturer in Psychology

Throughout our lives, we see thousands of faces. We get a lot of important social information from faces, and we are experts at processing them compared with other objects. In particular, we are highly expert at processing familiar faces - those of our friends, family and even our own faces. What makes the processing of these familiar faces special?

Behavioural and neurophysiological studies looking at self-face, familiar face and unfamiliar face processing can tell us a lot about how we process information about ourselves and others. If you are interested in developing this exciting and innovative area of research, please contact me at Helen.Keyes@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Sarah Kuppen, Senior Lecturer in Psychology

A small proportion of children struggle to learn to read despite good tuition and ample opportunity. These children are considered to have a reading disability and although a large amount of evidence identifies a poor level of phonological awareness in these children, the underlying causes remain unclear. A number of candidates have been suggested by various academics. One theory is that children with reading and language difficulties may have problems with auditory processing, more specifically with the rhythmic aspects of language. Such research suggests that using rhythm or promoting rhythm in language through the use of rhyming couplets such as can be delivered in poetry or song may help young children develop early literacy skills.

If you are interested in early literacy development and the role that auditory skills may play, please contact me at Sarah.Kuppen@anglia.ac.uk

Dr John Lambie, Reader in Psychology

People often assume that when we have an emotion we are automatically aware of it, but research shows that this is not the case. In many instances we experience emotions without being explicitly aware of them, and I am interested in the processes by which emotional awareness comes about and how it can be improved, and also in the consequences of a lack of emotional awareness. Certain kinds of attention seem to be necessary for emotional awareness, and in adults these can be faciltated by cognitive therapy and mindfulness training, and in children by emotionally validating parenting. A lack of emotional awareness may lead to more mental health problems and more irrational decision making. If you are interested in any of these topics - in summary: theoretical conceptualization of emotional experience; attentional processes underlying emotional awareness; emotional validation; emotional awareness and mental health; emotional awareness and rationality.

Please contact me at John.Lambie@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Rachel Manning, Senior Lecturer in Psychology

My main areas of research span Social, Environmental and Community Psychology, and examine the role of spatial and group processes in phenomena such as 'prosocial' and 'antisocial' behaviour. This work has included an examination of the impact of location on intervention in emergencies, the role of national identity in charitable giving, volunteerism, and young people's experiences of public places in the context of spatial restriction.

My research is informed by social identity approaches, place identity, and insights from related disciplines such as children's geographies and criminology. My research also includes work with the emergency services, community development and social activism. If you are interested in any of these areas, please contact me at: Rachel.Manning@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Daragh McDermott, Lecturer in Psychology

Sexual (i.e., Gay, Lesbian & Bisexual) and Gender (i.e., Transgender/Transsexual) minorities are often the victims of prejudice as a result of their sexual orientation or gender identity. This prejudice can manifest in very overt and often blatant forms (e.g., victimisation), but more often, it is much more subtle and indirect (e.g., subtle discrimination).

Through the careful exploration of a societies beliefs (i.e., cognitions) and emotional (i.e., affective) responses towards sexual and gender minorities, researchers are developing a more comprehensive and nuanced understanding of the factors that influence such prejudices. My research encompasses both global assessments of societal attitudes as well as specific empirical assessments of individuals controlled (i.e., explicit) and automatic (i.e., implicit) reactions. In addition, I also develop and explore the efficacy of specific methods of reducing such prejudice. Ultimately, it is hoped that a better understanding: 1) the factors at play and; 2) the development of effective prejudice reduction strategies will encourage global acceptance for sexual and gender minorities.

If you are interested in helping add to this developing area of research, please contact me by email at: Daragh.Mcdermott@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Bettina Mohr, Reader in Psychology

My research focuses on the study of functional brain asymmetry of cognitive processes, in particular during language and face processing. In addition, we focus on neurorehabilitation where we develop and evaluate new treatment programmes for neurological patients. The aim of this research is to link specific cognitive and perceptual processes to brain structure and to understand the underlying neurophysiological mechanisms of certain aspects of human cognition. The methods used in this research comprise neuroimaging techniques such as EEG and fMRI, as well as the study of patients with focal brain damage and neurodegenerative diseases. At present, we are investigating the clinical effects of intensive language-action therapy for stroke patients with aphasia and the impact of this short-term treatment on brain reorganization.

If you are interested in undertaking research in this area, please contact me at: Bettina.Mohr@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Michael J. Pake, Senior Lecturer in Psychology

How do infants begin to make sense of their first language? Why do only humans seem to have this ability? My research is predominantly aimed at identifying cognitive mechanisms which may be used by the child to make sense of language. My primary approach is computational modelling - essentially trying to simulate what an infant does when they hear a lot of their native language and work out the underlying structure.

My general position is that humans are special, not because they are endowed with a specific 'Language Acquisition Device', but because they have a more general ability to find structure in the stream of events they encounter and the ability to learn language is just one manifestation of this more general ability.

As well as using computational models, I am also interested in experimental and other sources of evidence that pertain to human learning of structure in language and other complex domains. If you are interested in this area of research email me at: Mike.Pake@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Richard Piech, Senior Lecturer in Psychology

Throughout their lives, people have to make a large number of choices. Some of them are trivial, but others have profound consequences for oneself and for others. When people choose, the evaluation of options depends not only on rational deliberations, but also on emotional influences, and on personal values. The aim of my research is to investigate which emotional factors shape decisions in individuals and in their interaction with others. I aim to determine if these factors can be utilized to optimize choice, and what personal value systems lead to choices which are beneficial to the individual and to the group that person is a part of.

You can contact me at Richard.Piech@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Fiona Richardson, Senior Lecturer in Psychology

The process of learning and cognitive development is continuous across lifespan. For instance, in the domain of language we learn new vocabulary every day even as adults. Understanding the mechanisms that support our ability to learn and how information is represented in the brain is central not only to understanding typical development, but is also the basis for understanding developmental disorders.

If you are interested in carrying out research into learning and cognitive development, and/or developmental disorders of language, please contact me at Fiona.Richardson@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Poul Rohleder, Principal Lecturer in Psychology

HIV has taught us much about how our health is shaped and determined by who we are and how we are positioned in society - our gender, our sexuality, our ethnicity, our economic status, and so on. Efforts to combat the HIV epidemic has taught us to think beyond just the individual or just our immediate discipline. I think that qualitative research and the sub-disciplines of critical health psychology, critical social psychology or applied psychoanalysis are useful in exploring issues of sexuality, sexual heath and identity in depth. If you are interested in research in this fascinating area, which is relevant to us all, then contact me at Poul.Rohleder@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Steven Stagg, Lecturer in Psychology

My current research investigates the relationship between social attention and language development in children with autism spectrum disorder.

I am also interested in social development. This includes theory of mind ability in children and adults as well as the processing and response to emotion.

I am interested in working with people who wish to explore this area using both qualitative and quantitative research techniques. Contact me at Steven.Stagg@anglia.ac.uk

Dr Theodora Zarkadi, Lecturer in Psychology

My research interests are in the area of Psychology and Law. More specifically, I am interested in the causes that lead to wrongful imprisonment of innocent people. Some of the questions I try to answer include: Are eyewitnesses to crimes typically reliable? How do jurors decide on the guilt or innocence of a defendant? Are juries a safeguard against miscarriages of justice? Currently my research follows two threads: (1) improving police lineup procedures to eliminate the risk of mistaken eyewitness identifications and (2) identifying the factors that influence jurors' judgment and can lead to biases in their verdict decisions.

I am also interested in how bodily states affect the judgment and decision-making of legal actors. Research has shown that people intuitively associate physical states with abstract concepts, feelings, and perceptions, often reflected in everyday language (e.g., feeling 'up' for feeling good and feeling 'down' for feeling bad). Following this line of research, I am currently investigating whether certain verbal expressions have an embodied basis and as such are linked to specific sensorimotor experiences.

If you are interested in one of the above areas, please contact me at: Theodora.Zarkadi@anglia.ac.uk