Dr Celia Harris (Western Sydney University) Abstract Theoretical approaches from philosophy and cognitive science emphasise how experience, cognition, memory, and self are embedded within and distributed among the social and material environment. This ‘scaffolding’ perspective implies that the characteristics of the social and material environment are critical for cognition. This perspective provides new avenues for […]

Dr Nathan Holmes (UNSW) Abstract Animals and people integrate information acquired at different times when responding to novel situations or problems. For example, after being attacked by a boy at school, a child may become fearful of places where the boy had been previously encountered; and after learning the relationship between a particular sound and […]

Dr Ashley Luckman (University of Exeter) Abstract Reason-based accounts of decision-making, such as Query Theory, have been successfully applied to a range of binary preferential choice phenomena, such as default, framing and immediacy effects. In a series of Experiments we explore the role reasons play in multi-alternative choice, particularly the attraction effect. In Experiment 1 […]

A/Prof Mac Shine (University of Sydney) Abstract Perception is thought to rely upon evolving activity within a recurrent, distributed thalamocortical network whose interconnections are modulated by bursts of noradrenaline. To test this hypothesis, we leveraged a combination of pupillometry, fMRI and recurrent neural network modelling of an ambiguous figures task. Shifts in the perceptual interpretation […]

Dr Laura Bradfield (UTS) Abstract Neuroinflammation has been observed in the striatum and hippocampus of individuals with psychiatric disorders and neurodegenerative diseases to different extents, but whether this causes the behavioural disturbances experienced by such individuals or is simply another symptom of their disease is unknown. In our lab we have begun to piece together […]

Dr Alexis Whitton (UNSW) Abstract In the face of escalating rates of depression among young people, effective and scalable treatments are urgently required. Although a range of different interventions have been found to be effective, the pivotal question is Which treatments yield the greatest benefit, and for whom? This talk explores a new approach to […]

Prof Tim Slade (USYD) Abstract The Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use promotes excellence, innovation and collaboration by bringing together world-leading researchers, clinicians, people with lived experience and community to share skills, synergise data, harness new technologies and trial innovative programs to prevent and treat mental and substance use disorders. This […]

A/Prof Rebecca Collie (UNSW) Abstract Decades of research underscores the significance of student motivation for promoting positive academic outcomes. Now, growing awareness is emerging regarding the role of motivational drivers in shaping social-emotional outcomes. In this talk, Associate Professor Rebecca Collie will discuss the role of one motivational driver, perceived social-emotional competence (perceived-SEC). Perceived-SEC reflects […]

Prof Susan Hespos (Western Sydney University) Abstract Human cognition is striking in its brilliance and adaptability. To gain an understanding of our species’ extraordinary cognition we investigate the origins and development of these abilities in infants. How do infant’s initial abilities change with experience, and what conditions foster or impede learning? Answers to these questions […]

Dr Daniel Bennett (Monash University) Abstract Contemporary sports-betting products offer a raft of novel in-play betting features designed to incentivise customer engagement. Among these, one prominent feature available on most interactive betting platforms is ‘cash out’. The cash-out feature allows customers who have wagered on an event to forgo their stake in the event prior to its conclusion in exchange for […]