Feeling and thinking: affect, implicit social cognition and behaviour. Although affect plays a major role in human affairs, the psychological mechanisms linking affect to thinking and behaviour remain incompletely understood. This project will investigate the influence of affective states on implicit cognitive processes and subsequent social behaviours. The project aims to develop and to test an innovative information processing theory linking affect to implicit cognition, and apply new experime ....Feeling and thinking: affect, implicit social cognition and behaviour. Although affect plays a major role in human affairs, the psychological mechanisms linking affect to thinking and behaviour remain incompletely understood. This project will investigate the influence of affective states on implicit cognitive processes and subsequent social behaviours. The project aims to develop and to test an innovative information processing theory linking affect to implicit cognition, and apply new experimental methods to measure the cognitive and behavioural consequences of affect. Studies will also explore the applied consequences of affect infusion for real-life social behaviours with expected implications for health, clinical, organisational, and educational outcomes.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
Functional impact of high fat and high sugar diets on memory encoding. This project aims to determine the functional mechanisms of how fats and sugar affect neuronal processes vital for learning and memory. Expected outcomes will define the neural mechanisms underpinning cognitive changes in emotional and spatial memory encoding, and how these relate to brain and metabolic parameters. This will provide benefits by unveiling the possible consequences of dietary fat and sugar on the brain, and th ....Functional impact of high fat and high sugar diets on memory encoding. This project aims to determine the functional mechanisms of how fats and sugar affect neuronal processes vital for learning and memory. Expected outcomes will define the neural mechanisms underpinning cognitive changes in emotional and spatial memory encoding, and how these relate to brain and metabolic parameters. This will provide benefits by unveiling the possible consequences of dietary fat and sugar on the brain, and the mechanisms of neuroplasticity enhancing interventions.Read moreRead less
Australian Laureate Fellowships - Grant ID: FL180100094
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,749,550.00
Summary
Responding to the challenge of identity change. This project aims to advance our understanding of factors that promote successful adjustment to collective-level change, which is imperative for well-being and the fabric of society. The psychological and financial cost of not understanding these dynamics is significant, and is at the forefront of concerns in organisational, educational, community and national contexts. This project will help elucidate the complexities of collective-level change an ....Responding to the challenge of identity change. This project aims to advance our understanding of factors that promote successful adjustment to collective-level change, which is imperative for well-being and the fabric of society. The psychological and financial cost of not understanding these dynamics is significant, and is at the forefront of concerns in organisational, educational, community and national contexts. This project will help elucidate the complexities of collective-level change and adjustment to such change, providing benefits to communities, organisations and policy makers. The project builds on The Social Identity Model of Identity Change (SIMIC), a theoretical approach which helps to understand how people might effectively cope with change; it forms the basis of an ambitious and integrated theoretical program of research that will examine SIMIC predictions in novel contexts.Read moreRead less
A role for sleep in optimising attention. All animal brains are prediction machines, which allows even tiny flies to effectively navigate complex environments. To predict what will happen next is important for guiding attention, but also for detecting anything surprising. This project aims to understand how prediction is optimized by sleep in Drosophila flies. We aim to use electrophysiology and calcium imaging to map visual prediction error signals across the fly brain, and then determine how g ....A role for sleep in optimising attention. All animal brains are prediction machines, which allows even tiny flies to effectively navigate complex environments. To predict what will happen next is important for guiding attention, but also for detecting anything surprising. This project aims to understand how prediction is optimized by sleep in Drosophila flies. We aim to use electrophysiology and calcium imaging to map visual prediction error signals across the fly brain, and then determine how genetically controlled delivery of sleep regulates the quality and distribution of these signals. This knowledge will benefit our understanding of how brains balance a capacity for prediction versus surprise, by examining how evolution has solved this difficult problem in the smallest brains.Read moreRead less
Improving the performance and wellbeing of introverted leaders. This project aims to investigate the performance and wellbeing of introverted leaders. It intends to test a theoretical model of leader performance and wellbeing which recognises that introverts regularly need to act out of character, that is, extraverted, in order to perform competently in leadership positions. The project proposes that the necessity for introverted leaders to act extraverted will compromise their effectiveness and ....Improving the performance and wellbeing of introverted leaders. This project aims to investigate the performance and wellbeing of introverted leaders. It intends to test a theoretical model of leader performance and wellbeing which recognises that introverts regularly need to act out of character, that is, extraverted, in order to perform competently in leadership positions. The project proposes that the necessity for introverted leaders to act extraverted will compromise their effectiveness and make them vulnerable to low wellbeing. Expected outcomes from this project include a better understanding of the performance and wellbeing of introverted leaders. Intended benefits for introverted leaders include demonstrated efficacy of affective forecasting intervention strategies.Read moreRead less
Paving the way for ultra-long haul flights: strategies to mitigate jetlag. This project aims to develop and test strategies to mitigate jetlag, founded on biophysical modelling of circadian rhythms. It sets out to quantify the speed of circadian adaptation of sleep, alertness, and metabolism after transmeridian travel and to maximise speed of adaptation via optimised timing of light exposure, food, and exercise in-flight and on-the-ground. Expected outcomes include powerful models for jetlag str ....Paving the way for ultra-long haul flights: strategies to mitigate jetlag. This project aims to develop and test strategies to mitigate jetlag, founded on biophysical modelling of circadian rhythms. It sets out to quantify the speed of circadian adaptation of sleep, alertness, and metabolism after transmeridian travel and to maximise speed of adaptation via optimised timing of light exposure, food, and exercise in-flight and on-the-ground. Expected outcomes include powerful models for jetlag strategies, ready for application in air travel. The project will directly inform Qantas’ operations for ultra-long haul flights and their international network more broadly. Project outcomes will benefit society and the economy through improving travellers’ alertness, sleep, and reducing the risk of fatigue-related accidents.Read moreRead less
Square Eyes or All Lies? Understanding Children's Exposure to Screens. This project will examine Australian parents’ number one concern about their children’s health and behaviour – their interactions with electronic screens. Current screen time guidelines are based on low-quality evidence and lack the nuance required to address this complex issue. This project will use innovative technology to resolve these weaknesses. Wearable cameras will measure what children are doing on screens, and where, ....Square Eyes or All Lies? Understanding Children's Exposure to Screens. This project will examine Australian parents’ number one concern about their children’s health and behaviour – their interactions with electronic screens. Current screen time guidelines are based on low-quality evidence and lack the nuance required to address this complex issue. This project will use innovative technology to resolve these weaknesses. Wearable cameras will measure what children are doing on screens, and where, when, and how long they are doing it. The project will also investigate how screen time impacts children’s development and how it is influenced by their environment. This evidence will benefit children by improving screen time guidelines, and help parents understand the impact of screen time on children’s development.
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Things don’t always go better with Coke. This project aims to test whether soft drink use is governed partly by automatic processes (cognitive biases) that operate largely outside of conscious control. In so doing, the project expects to generate a new conceptual understanding of the mechanisms that drive the overconsumption of soft drinks. Expected outcomes include theoretical innovation, new research methodologies, and accessible cost-effective technologies for reducing excessive sugar intake ....Things don’t always go better with Coke. This project aims to test whether soft drink use is governed partly by automatic processes (cognitive biases) that operate largely outside of conscious control. In so doing, the project expects to generate a new conceptual understanding of the mechanisms that drive the overconsumption of soft drinks. Expected outcomes include theoretical innovation, new research methodologies, and accessible cost-effective technologies for reducing excessive sugar intake from soft drinks, in line with recent World Health Organization guidelines. These outcomes will contribute to combatting obesity and tooth decay.Read moreRead less
The impact of light intensity during night shifts on circadian adaptation. Each year, the sleep loss and body clock disruption caused by night work cost the Australian economy $2–3 billion in lost productivity, impaired well-being, and poor health. Current regulations limit sequences of night shifts to a maximum of four in a row. However, recent research suggests that this blanket limit may be a well-intentioned, but ill-informed, policy. As a result, we may be inadvertently increasing, rather t ....The impact of light intensity during night shifts on circadian adaptation. Each year, the sleep loss and body clock disruption caused by night work cost the Australian economy $2–3 billion in lost productivity, impaired well-being, and poor health. Current regulations limit sequences of night shifts to a maximum of four in a row. However, recent research suggests that this blanket limit may be a well-intentioned, but ill-informed, policy. As a result, we may be inadvertently increasing, rather than reducing, work-related fatigue. This project will determine whether longer sequences of night shifts may reduce sleep loss and body clock disruption in some workplaces. The project will provide the evidence base for a more nuanced approach to fatigue regulation and a safer workplace for Australian shiftworkers. Read moreRead less