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Social Neuroscience
Antonia HamiltonGroup Leader
+44 20 7679 4640 |  |
Social Neuroscience Research
The Social Neuroscience group studies the underlying mechanisms of social interaction, and whether these develop differently in individuals with autism spectrum condition.
Our research spans many domains and questions:
- Social - how do people interact with other people, in particular nonverbal interaction and hand actions?
- Cognitive - what are the information processing mechanisms involved in social interaction?
- Developmental -how does social cognition develop over childhood and why does this development sometimes go wrong?
- Motor - how do we move in response to others, interacting as well as perceiving?
- Neuroscience - what brain systems and connections are involved in social interaction?
To answer these questions, we use behavioural, cognitive, virtual reality and brain scanning methods to study healthy children and adults as well as those with autism spectrum condition.
Group Members
PhD Students
- Paula Wicher
paula.wicher.20@ucl.ac.uk I am interested in studying mechanisms and neural effects of motor and emotional mimicry. Particularly, I am interested in exploring dyadic social interactions in ecological settings. During my PhD, I aim to use a variety of techniques, including video recordings, motion capture, virtual reality (VR) and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS).
- Dwaynica Greaves
I am an interdisciplinary researcher interested in the effects of theatre training on the theory of mind and sense of self of professional actors. My research contributes to the wider work on the importance of the arts for socio-cognitive development. My project utilises wearable technology such as functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), and physiological measurement devices to conduct experiments in naturalistic environments with naturalistic stimuli. I am also interested in effective science communication and how researchers can dissect their work for the wider populations understanding.
- Laina Townsend
- Francesco Di Cio'
francesco.cio'.20@ucl.ac.uk
- William Wells
Post-doctoral Research Fellows
- Lena Matyjek
I am a neuropsychologist fascinated by social cognition: How do we interact with others? What makes people “click”? My special area of interest is autism in adulthood and the unique strengths and difficulties related to it. I employ a range of methods, including behavioral studies, physiological measures (pupillometry), and neuroimaging (EEG). For more about my research and activities, visit my personal website: lenamatyjek.com or view my ORCID profile: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4546-6480.
Honorary Research Fellows
- Anna Ciaunica
a.ciaunica@ucl.ac.uk I am a philosopher and cognitive scientist interested in interdisciplinary approaches to embodied cognition. My research focuses on the relationship between (a)typical forms of self-consciousness and social interactions. I am a Principal Investigator at the Institute of Philosophy Porto, the Mind, Language and Action group (MLAG); and a Research Associate at the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience,University College London, and the Social Neuroscience Group. I coordinate the international and interdisciplinary Network for Embodied Consciousness and the Arts (NECTArts) aiming at fostering creative collaborations between philosophers, scientists, artists and performers worldwide.
