Ageing drivers: Cognitive ageing and technology. This project aims to enhance our understanding of whether cognitive changes associated with ageing impacts older drivers' use of emerging vehicle automation and assistive technologies. Through analysis of insurance claims databases, a large consumer survey and a naturalistic driving study, evidence will be obtained on how ageing and cognition interact with assistive technology. Findings will inform older drivers, government policy makers and indus ....Ageing drivers: Cognitive ageing and technology. This project aims to enhance our understanding of whether cognitive changes associated with ageing impacts older drivers' use of emerging vehicle automation and assistive technologies. Through analysis of insurance claims databases, a large consumer survey and a naturalistic driving study, evidence will be obtained on how ageing and cognition interact with assistive technology. Findings will inform older drivers, government policy makers and industry on ageing, cognitive changes and the use of assistive technology in vehicles. This will provide benefits for older drivers by promoting optimal driving which will enhance social engagement as well as safety. Read moreRead less
Individualised predictions of circadian timing, sleep, and performance. The body's 24-hour clock regulates when we feel sleepy or alert. In shift workers, disrupted sleep and rhythms leads to fatigue and costly, often deadly, workplace accidents. Existing methods for measuring body clock timing are costly, impractical for operational settings, and do not work in real time. Using a shift-worker population, this project will develop models that accurately predict body timing, sleep/wake patterns, ....Individualised predictions of circadian timing, sleep, and performance. The body's 24-hour clock regulates when we feel sleepy or alert. In shift workers, disrupted sleep and rhythms leads to fatigue and costly, often deadly, workplace accidents. Existing methods for measuring body clock timing are costly, impractical for operational settings, and do not work in real time. Using a shift-worker population, this project will develop models that accurately predict body timing, sleep/wake patterns, and performance for an individual, requiring only a simple activity/light sensor and an assessment of the body clock's sensitivity to light. The new model would revolutionise fatigue management and make safer work environments for millions of shift workers. Read moreRead less
Understanding biological pathways underlying social behaviour in humans. This project aims to show for the first time how oxytocin interacts with neural social and reward pathways to guide social behaviour. Oxytocin is a natural neuropeptide and hormone that has a critical role in the regulation of social behaviour across mammalian species. In animals, direct evidence demonstrates how endogenous and exogenous oxytocin interacts with social and reward neural pathways to alter social behaviour, in ....Understanding biological pathways underlying social behaviour in humans. This project aims to show for the first time how oxytocin interacts with neural social and reward pathways to guide social behaviour. Oxytocin is a natural neuropeptide and hormone that has a critical role in the regulation of social behaviour across mammalian species. In animals, direct evidence demonstrates how endogenous and exogenous oxytocin interacts with social and reward neural pathways to alter social behaviour, including social recognition, relationship formation, and long-term bonds. The project intends to use radio-labelling techniques in combination with positron emission tomography to track oxytocin and show what regions of the brain oxytocin impacts to then influence social cognition and behaviour in humans.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE220101019
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$451,343.00
Summary
Understanding how neural oscillatory phase affects perception and attention. The project examines rhythmic 'waves' in human brain activity, with the aims of determining the mechanisms behind their involvement in attention and visual perception, and of differentiating the types of rhythmic activity involved in different aspects of attention. The project will generate new knowledge, and benefit cognitive neuroscience in Australia, by characterising the fundamental rhythmic nature of visual percept ....Understanding how neural oscillatory phase affects perception and attention. The project examines rhythmic 'waves' in human brain activity, with the aims of determining the mechanisms behind their involvement in attention and visual perception, and of differentiating the types of rhythmic activity involved in different aspects of attention. The project will generate new knowledge, and benefit cognitive neuroscience in Australia, by characterising the fundamental rhythmic nature of visual perception. In addition to resolving existing scientific controversies, the outcomes of this project include the creation of a large, public repository of behavioural and neural data, and the generation of new knowledge to guide development of cognitive enhancement strategies for attentionally demanding, real-world scenarios.Read moreRead less
CogChip: development of a targeted genotyping chip for executive function. This project aims to use DNA sequencing technology to identify the genetics of executive function. Our capacities to focus on a task at hand, to filter distractions and to inhibit unwanted impulses, are collectively referred to as executive functions. Executive function varies on a continuum in the general population across the lifespan, with individual differences largely due to differences in underlying genetics. The pr ....CogChip: development of a targeted genotyping chip for executive function. This project aims to use DNA sequencing technology to identify the genetics of executive function. Our capacities to focus on a task at hand, to filter distractions and to inhibit unwanted impulses, are collectively referred to as executive functions. Executive function varies on a continuum in the general population across the lifespan, with individual differences largely due to differences in underlying genetics. The project proposes to leverage this knowledge to develop a customised genotyping chip, which may find application for prediction of individual differences in executive ability across multiple settings including education and industry. Expected outcomes for the project will include breakthrough insights into the biology of cognition, and a genetic read-out of individual differences in executive ability, which could have broad application including the potential to facilitate the targeting of cognitive, educational or workplace training for those most at risk of adverse outcomes.Read moreRead less
Neurophysiological predictors of brain stimulation outcomes. This project aims to determine the cognitive and neurophysiological factors that predict an individual’s response to non-invasive brain stimulation used to target learning and executive function processes. Stimulation methods show immense promise for elucidating the causal neural substrates of cognition, and for enhancing performance in a range of applied settings. However, there are large individual differences in response to such int ....Neurophysiological predictors of brain stimulation outcomes. This project aims to determine the cognitive and neurophysiological factors that predict an individual’s response to non-invasive brain stimulation used to target learning and executive function processes. Stimulation methods show immense promise for elucidating the causal neural substrates of cognition, and for enhancing performance in a range of applied settings. However, there are large individual differences in response to such interventions. Using advanced imaging techniques, the project aims to provide comprehensive insights into the determinants of these individual differences. Outcomes and benefits include identifying brain characteristics that determine stimulation efficacy and informing the design of protocols for applied use.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE210101138
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$437,623.00
Summary
Habit formation and change in ageing: Developing a neuropsychological model. This project aims to investigate the neurobiological and neuropsychological determinants of habit formation and change in the context of ageing, by combining cutting-edge techniques in psychology, behavioural neuroscience and neuroimaging. This research expects to generate new knowledge in the area of automatic habits and behaviour change, by investigating how these processes are affected in ageing using an interdiscipl ....Habit formation and change in ageing: Developing a neuropsychological model. This project aims to investigate the neurobiological and neuropsychological determinants of habit formation and change in the context of ageing, by combining cutting-edge techniques in psychology, behavioural neuroscience and neuroimaging. This research expects to generate new knowledge in the area of automatic habits and behaviour change, by investigating how these processes are affected in ageing using an interdisciplinary approach. Expected outcomes include a new, comprehensive model of habit formation and change in ageing. This should provide significant benefits, as it will lay the foundation for future habit-based behaviour change interventions to support older people to age well and productively.Read moreRead less
The emotional face: What determines preferential expression processing. The processing of facial expressions of emotion is essential for successful social functioning. However, we still lack a good understanding of key factors that facilitate or impede the processing of these important social signals. The current project aims to address this knowledge gap by providing a) a more rigorous test of the currently dominant account of expression processing, the evaluative congruence account, and deline ....The emotional face: What determines preferential expression processing. The processing of facial expressions of emotion is essential for successful social functioning. However, we still lack a good understanding of key factors that facilitate or impede the processing of these important social signals. The current project aims to address this knowledge gap by providing a) a more rigorous test of the currently dominant account of expression processing, the evaluative congruence account, and delineating how b) contextual factors and c) person knowledge affect expression processing. The research aims to advance our understanding of facial expression processing, to build international collaborations, and to train the next generation of emotion scientists.Read moreRead less
Drivers and constraints of romantic partner choice. This project aims to illuminate how genetic and environmental factors drive and constrain romantic partner choice. This choice can be the most significant in people’s lives, but how it works is not scientifically understood. This project will analyse the preferences and actual partners of thousands of twins using multivariable statistics and theoretic models of partner choice. The project aims to reveal why some people pair with incompatible pa ....Drivers and constraints of romantic partner choice. This project aims to illuminate how genetic and environmental factors drive and constrain romantic partner choice. This choice can be the most significant in people’s lives, but how it works is not scientifically understood. This project will analyse the preferences and actual partners of thousands of twins using multivariable statistics and theoretic models of partner choice. The project aims to reveal why some people pair with incompatible partners, and the consequences of partner mismatch for psychological wellbeing and for evolutionary processes driven by mate selection. This could lead to more effective relationship management.Read moreRead less
Evaluative learning: do all roads lead to Rome? This project aims to enhance understanding of how likes and dislikes are acquired and changed across a range of different settings. Evaluative learning, the acquisition and change of likes and dislikes, is ubiquitous and occurs in situations that range from trivial to traumatic. However, it is unknown whether evaluative learning in these different situations is mediated by a single or distinct learning mechanisms. Answering this question is critica ....Evaluative learning: do all roads lead to Rome? This project aims to enhance understanding of how likes and dislikes are acquired and changed across a range of different settings. Evaluative learning, the acquisition and change of likes and dislikes, is ubiquitous and occurs in situations that range from trivial to traumatic. However, it is unknown whether evaluative learning in these different situations is mediated by a single or distinct learning mechanisms. Answering this question is critically important for emotion science and the design of effective interventions for anxiety disorders and public health campaigns. The expected outcomes from this project will provide significant benefits, such as creating new knowledge to assist in applied areas ranging from the design of public health messages to the treatment for anxiety.Read moreRead less