Curriculum Vitae

I am a Reader in Cognitive Psychology at the Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London. My general interest is in the psychological and neural mechanisms that underlie social cognitive abilities including imitation, empathy and theory of mind. I am also a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and was previously an Associate Editor at Psychonomic Bulletin and Review.

Early in my career I carried out a range of studies demonstrating how our brains represent other people's actions, in particular showing how social experience helps the brain's "mirror neuron" system to develop. Subsequently my research team used brain stimulation to investigate the brain basis of social interaction, with a particular focus on imitation and theory of mind. Recently we have carried out a series of studies identifying the underlying processes that contribute to empathic ability, and in our current work we are developing a new theory of how people represent others' minds.

My research has been generously supported by the Economic and Social Research Council, in particular through the Future Research Leaders scheme; by the award of a Philip Leverhulme Prize in Psychology from the Leverhulme Trust; and by a project grant from the John Templeton Foundation. I have also received research support from the Royal Society, the Experimental Psychology Society, and the Wellcome Trust.

I was previously a lecturer at the Department of Psychology, University of Surrey, and before that I worked as a postdoctoral research fellow funded by the Economic and Social Research Council through the Centre for Economic Learning and Social Evolution at University College London. Prior to this, I completed a postdoctoral position working with Professor Matthew Rushworth in the Decision and Action Laboratory at the Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford.

I carried out my PhD research in Professor Cecilia Heyes’ research group at the Department of Psychology, University College London, researching the mirror neuron system and the effects that sensorimotor experience has upon it. I used a variety of methods: behavioural experiments, electromyography, single-pulse and repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (with Professor Vincent Walsh), and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). In 2006 I spent a period of time working with Dr Marcel Brass at the Max Planck Institute for Cognitive and Brain Science in Leipzig as part of my PhD research, which was funded by the European Union 6th framework programme grant ‘Evolution, Development and Intentional Control of Imitation’ (EDICI).

Prior to beginning my PhD I worked as a research assistant to Professor Uta Frith at the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience. I researched various cognitive functions in adults with autism and autistic spectrum disorders, using a range of methods including eyetracking, fMRI, psychometrics and behavioural experiments. Before this I was employed as a care worker for adults with learning disabilities at Cheam Day Centre, Sutton and Merton Primary Care Trust.

I studied for my first degree in Experimental Psychology at the Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, where I graduated with first class honours.