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Cognitive control, attention and awareness

Neural mechanisms of cognitive control enable us to coordinate, execute, and update behaviour.

The prefrontal cortex has long been associated with cognitive control but the architecture of the prefrontal system is one of the great unsolved mysteries in cognitive neuroscience.

Within the broad field of cognitive control (or 'executive functions'), our research focuses on understanding the neural basis of response inhibition, response selection, and the link between inhibition and risk-taking (including gambling and eating behaviour), principally through the application of training methods, TMS and TES.

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Our sensory environment contains a vast quantity of information, only a fraction of which can guide behaviour. Brain mechanisms of attention are crucial for enhancing the processing of stimuli that are relevant to current goals.

Within the field of attention, our research focuses on the use of TMS and fMRI to understand the cognitive neuroscience of attentional control and spatial representations. We're also interested in the neurophysiology and neurochemistry that supports consciousness in the occipital and frontal cortex.

Team members

Collaborators

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Dr Pete Etchells

Senior Lecturer in Biological Psychology, Bath Spa University

Email
p.etchells@bathspa.ac.uk
Telephone
+44 (0)12 2587 6262
Website:
Read Dr Etchells' academic profile
Dr John Evans

Dr John Evans

MRI Research Fellow & MRI Lab Manager

Email
evansj31@cardiff.ac.uk
Telephone
+44 (0)29 2087 6402
Professor Derek Jones

Professor Derek Jones

Professor, Director of CUBRIC

Email
jonesd27@cardiff.ac.uk
Telephone
+44(0)29 2087 9412
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Dr Natalia Lawrence

Associate Professor (in Translational Medicine), University of Exeter

Email
natalia.lawrence@exeter.ac.uk
Telephone
+44 (0)13 9272 4672
Website:
Read Dr Lawrence's academic profile
Professor Antony Manstead

Professor Antony Manstead

Emeritus Professor

Email
mansteada@cardiff.ac.uk
Telephone
+44 (0)29 2087 0139
Professor Petroc Sumner

Professor Petroc Sumner

Professor and Head of School, School of Psychology

Email
sumnerp@cardiff.ac.uk
Telephone
+44(0)29 2087 0091
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Professor Frederick Verbruggen

Professor, Ghent University

Email
frederick.verbruggen@ugent.be
Website:
Read Professor Verbruggen's academic profile