Angelo Mattia Gervasi, Luca Tummolini, Ilenia Falcinelli, Chiara Fini, Anna Borghi, Claudio Brozzoli, Claudia Mazzuca. Not in the picture: Chiara de Livio, Fernando Maggio. All individual profiles are below.
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Anna Borghi, Ilenia Falcinelli, Claudia Mazzuca, Chiara Fini. (picture: gift by Tommaso Lamarra)
principal investigator
principal investigator
anna m. borghi
anna m. borghi
Anna received a Master degree in Philosophy and a PhD in Psychology (1997) from the University of Bologna. She is now professor in Psychology at Sapienza University of Rome. Before moving to Sapienza, she held a faculty position at the University of Bologna. Since 2001 she is also research associate at ISTC-CNR (Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, Italian National Research Council), Rome.
Anna's research addresses the relationship between body, action, objects, and language in humans. She is interested in how we categorize and interact with objects, other entities and other people (affordances, social affordances), in how we develop the sophisticated ability of abstract thought and that to use abstract words (abstraction, abstractness), in how language empowers our cognitive abilities, and in how different bodies, cultures and languages shape our mind.
In the free time Anna plays with her children, swims, when possible skies, sings old gospel songs and reads all sorts of novels.
To download papers, see also this website: http://laral.istc.cnr.it/borghi/
Google Scholar profile: https://scholar.google.it/citations?user=ylEWFyYAAAAJ&hl=it&oi=ao
Bluesky profile: @annaborghi.bsky.social
This is anna's webpage: https://sites.google.com/view/anna-m-borghi/home-page
RESEARCHERS AND post docs
RESEARCHERS AND post docs
chiara fini
chiara fini
Chiara received her master’s degree in Neuropsychology from the University of Bologna. She got her PhD in Neuroimaging at the University of Chieti-Pescara. Her line of research focuses on the Embodied perception of the extrapersonal space. She has been working as Post Doc to a project about the action tendencies as function of low or high control, at the Department of Experimental Psychology, Gent and KU Leuven, Belgium. She gathers advanced skills in the use of brain stimulation, and specifically Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) and Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS). Overall, her theoretical interests concentrate within the Field of the Embodied Cognition, ranging from the perceptual processing of space/objects to the language acquisition, with a particular attention to the philosophical perspective of the Theory of the Words as Social Tools WAT (Borghi et al., 2018). Such theory sustains that abstract concepts would need to be processed through the inner language. Inner language could namely help participants to re-explain to themselves the meaning of the word, to keep information active in working memory, and to prepare themselves to ask information to more competent people.
In the free time Chiara runs, reads novels, travels.
Google Scholar Profile: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=8KMsi_gAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao
Claudia mazzuca
Claudia mazzuca
Claudia is currently working as a Post-doc at Sapienza University of Rome, Department of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology, and Health Studies under the PRIN-PNRR project Democratising Concepts. She previously worked within the EU project From Social Interaction to Abstract Concepts and Words: Towards a Human-centered Technology Development, TRAINCREASE.
Before moving to Sapienza, she was a Research Associate at the University of York, Department of Psychology, on a project investigating cross-cultural and cross-linguistic variability in conceptual representations. She received her PhD in Cognitive Science from the University of Bologna.
Her research interests are mainly focused on the interplay between language(s) and cognition, which she addresses using behavioural (e.g., categorisation tasks) and linguistic (e.g., free-listing tasks) methods and measures.
She is fascinated by abstract concepts acquisition and representation. Her research has addressed how both bodily and social aspects contribute to the conceptual representation of gender across different individual experiences and cultures. Recently, she focused on how and when expertise shapes both abstract and concrete concepts.
She is an Open Science enthusiast, previously member of the Steering Committee of the Italian Reproducibility Network (ITRN), and recently elected vice-president of the new Steering Committee (2026-2028) of the Italian Association of Cognitive Science (AISC).
In her free time Claudia practices yoga, reads all kinds of books, cultivates her passion for plants, and tries to learn how to play guitar.
Google Scholar Profile:
https://scholar.google.it/citations?user=7IfWKwIAAAAJ&hl=it&oi=sra
Get in touch at claudia.mazzuca@uniroma1.it
BlueSky: @claudiamazzuca.bsky.social
X: @ClaudiaMazzuca
FERNANDO MAGGIO
FERNANDO MAGGIO
Fernando is currently a researcher at Sapienza University of Rome, Department of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology, and Health Studies, working under the PRIN project ASSO (Abstract Concepts and Social Interaction).
He received both his master’s degree and PhD in Electrical Engineering from Sapienza University of Rome. His PhD research was in the field of bioelectromagnetics, which studies the interaction mechanisms between electromagnetic fields and biological systems. In particular, he focused mainly on deep brain stimulation as a case study because, despite its success as a clinical technique for treating Parkinson’s disease, the underlying therapeutic mechanisms of action are still not fully understood. He developed computational models, such as a 3D dosimetric model and biophysical neuronal conductance-based models, to predict neuronal responses to stimulation using electrical data evaluated within the targeted brain areas.
He has many interests outside work, like sound engineering and audio mixing, in which he got a master’s degree in Sonic Arts from Tor Vergata University of Rome, as well as social issues, reading, watching movies, political activism, and more. So, in his free time, he prefers to sleep.
ILENIA FALCINELLI
ILENIA FALCINELLI
Ilenia is currently working as a Post-doc at Sapienza University of Rome, Department of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology, and Health Studies, under the Sapienza Excellent Project “Ecological, Technological and Gender Concepts and Their Variations across the Lifespan” and the PRIN project ASSO (Abstract Concepts and Social Interaction).
She received both her PhD in Psychology and Social Neuroscience and her master's degree in Clinical Psychology from Sapienza University of Rome.
Her research line focuses on categorization processes. She is mainly interested in investigating how the general population and different generations (younger and older adults) conceptualize the recently emerged and increasingly impacting domains of ecology and technology in the light of studies on abstractness. To reach these goals, she uses both behavioral (e.g., semantic fluency, rating, categorization tasks) and EEG paradigms. Recently, she also opened her interest in performing hyperscanning studies to investigate social dynamics occurring between individuals engaged in interactive tasks such as conversations.
In her free time Ilenia enjoys practicing yoga and meditation, reading a lot of books, and trying her hand at piano playing and bonsai cultivation.
ResearchGate Profile: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ilenia_Falcinelli
E-mail: ilenia.falcinelli@uniroma1.it
PhD students
PhD students
A. MATTIA GERVASI
A. MATTIA GERVASI
Mattia received a Master of Science with honors in Applied Cognitive Psychology at University of Bologna.
He has been working as research intern at the “Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon”, where he worked on peripersonal space and on the anatomical and functional link between tool-use and language.
In addition, he has been working as post-lauream intern at the “A. Gemelli Polyclinic”, in Rome, where he worked on children affected by neurodevelopmental disorders and adults affected by cognitive impairment.
He is mostly interested on the link between action and high cognitive functions.
In his free time Mattia plays tennis and football, takes photos and walks through the streets and monuments of Rome.
LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/a-mattia-gervasi-1a5410152/
ResearchGate profile: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Angelo-Mattia-Gervasi
CHIARA DE LIVIO
CHIARA DE LIVIO
Chiara received her master's degree in Clinical Psychology from Sapienza University of Rome.
She is currently a PhD student in the CoSAN (Cognitive, Social and Affective Neuroscience) program at the Department of Psychology of Sapienza University of Rome. Her research explores the role of human interactions—both between individuals and within the self (inner speech)—in the acquisition, representation, and use of concepts.
She is also interested in the conceptual representation of gender across different gender and sex identities and configurations.
In her free time, Chiara enjoys taking long walks, reading poetry, and wandering through vintage markets.
Google Scholar Profile: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=ZCk1yyEAAAAJ&hl
Email: chiara.delivio@uniroma1.it
Bluesky: @chiaradelivio.bsky.social
X: @Chiara_DeLivio
Associates
Associates
luca tummolini
luca tummolini
Luca received a PhD in Cognitive Science from University of Siena and is senior researcher at the Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies of the National Research Council of Italy (CNR-ISTC).
His interest is in social interaction and the cognitive mechanisms that enable humans to flexibly coordinate and collaborate with one another, from simple joint actions in small groups to population-level regularities sustained by social norms and institutions. Adopting an embodied approach to cognition, he has also extensively worked on the mental representation of abstract concepts and words and how they are grounded in social interaction. He is fascinated (and obsessed) by the cognitive and social processes sustaining our sense of possession and ownership over objects.
In his work, he develops and test formal models (computational modelling, game theory) combining experimental methods spanning from cognitive psychology to experimental economics and sociology.
For his publication list see the google scholar profile.
MARCO TULLIO LIUZZA
MARCO TULLIO LIUZZA
Marco Tullio received a Bachelor's Degree in Communication Science at the University of Roma Tre, a Master's degree in Semiotics at the University of Bologna (2008), and a Ph.D. in Cognitive plasticity and rehabilitation (2011) from the Sapienza University of Rome. He is now an associate professor in Psychometrics at the "Magna Graecia" University of Catanzaro. Before moving to "Magna Graecia" University of Catanzaro, he has been a Post-Doc at Stockholm University, at the Sapienza University of Rome, and at Fondazione Santa Lucia in Roma.
Marco Tullio's research addresses the relationship between olfactory-induced disgust, prejudice, ideology, and sexual behavior in humans. He is also interested in applying Bayesian Multilevel Models in Psychological Research, and in scale validation using both Classical Test Theory and Item Response Theory approaches. He is also active in the Open Science Movement and is involved in the Psychological Science Accelerator (https://psysciacc.org/), the Italian Reproducibility Network (https://www.itrn.org/), and the Many Smiles collaboration.
Marco Tullio plays chess, swims, runs, watches TV series, and reads books (mostly essays) in his free time.
Personal page: https://dsmc.unicz.it/personale/docente/marcotullioliuzza.
Institutional page: https://sites.google.com/view/marcotullioliuzza/home
Google Scholar profile: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=KLD22VkAAAAJ&hl=it&oi=ao
Research Gate profile: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Marco-Tullio-Liuzza
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mtliuzza
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marco-tullio-liuzza-37756a33/
federico da rold
federico da rold
I received a Bachelor's degree in Philosophy from the University of Bologna and a PhD in Computer Science from Plymouth University. Currently, I am a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellow at ISTC-CNR under the supervision of Professor Borghi.
My research focus is on the analysis of embodied and situated systems using information-theoretic principles and tools. My present and past research utilise neurorobotic models. As a member of this lab, I had the chance to extend my experiments to humans.
Recently, I am also interested in pruning deep neural networks by finding optimal subsets of parameters in giant models.
For the publication list see my google scholar profile.
For any enquires please feel free to email me: federico.darold(that_usual_one)istc.cnr.it
Internships / RESEARCH ASSISTANTS
Internships / RESEARCH ASSISTANTS
PAST MEMBERS
PAST MEMBERS
Arthur-Henri Michalland
Arthur-Henri Michalland
Arthur received a PhD in Cognitive Psychology in 2019 from Paul Valéry Montpellier University, France. His research interests are in haptic signals and processing, and their relations with cognition. He uses various criterion (response times, exerted force, movement trajectory, mnesic performance, forms) to assess the embodied part of cognitive processes. He is interested in motor control and various related dimensions: multimodal integration, visual perception, action lateralisation, human-robot interaction, and concept grounding. See also on https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Arthur_Henri_Michalland
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