Attentional and conditioning mechanisms that mediate overcoming anxiety. Anxiety is a common emotion for most Australians that can cause substantial costs for individuals and society. This project uses dominant psychological models to identify critical mechanisms that are believed to predict capacity for, and change in, anxiety. Outcomes substantially advance knowledge about how humans overcome anxiety.
Memory consolidation - Integrating cognitive science and neuroscience approaches to how we remember and how we forget. How can we forget what happened yesterday, but vividly remember our first kiss? Neuroscientists think the brain has a special mechanism to strengthen memories with time, but many psychologists disagree. The project aims to bring the brain and the mind closer together, using the cutting-edge combination of brain imaging and psychological modelling.