Projects

Our research has been supported by funding from Versus Arthritis (fibromyalgia project), The British Academy (interoception-altruism project), The Bial Foundation (depersonalisation project & pregnancy project), The Wellcome Trust (interoception-addiction project), The Urology Foundation (pelvic mesh project), the Leverhulme Trust (pain in gymnasts project).

Current and Recent Projects include:

Understanding Bodily Self-Consciousness This group of projects investigates how the brain's integration of multisensory bodily inputs provides the neural bases for the self. Experiments include manipulations of both external (exteroceptive) sensory signals and internal (interoceptive signals) in body illusion paradigms. We are currently working on how 'low level' aspects of [bodily] self interact with 'higher level' aspects such as autobiographical memory. 

Multisensory Integration and the Body Bodily experience is inherently multisensory and this group of projects investigates components of bodily experience such as peripersonal space and body ownership as well as their changes across developmental stages such pregnancy (project funded by The Bial Foundation) and childhood.

Interoception and Cognition Individual differences in interoception predict many aspects of cognition. There is also mounting evidence for interoceptive deficits in many physical and mental health conditions. This group of projects investigates links between interoception and body image, altruism (funded by The British Academy/Leverhulme), musical ability and addiction (funded by The Wellcome Trust). Our experiments involve the measurement of behavioural (cardiac and gastric interoceptive measures), EEG and self-report indices of interoception.

Bodily Self-consciousness and Interoception in Autism Autism has long been described as a disorder of self. This group of projects examines alterations in the processing and integration of bodily signals - both exteroceptive and interoceptive -  in autism, and how these relate to and may underlie difficulties in social interaction and emotional processing. We have recently commenced a new (PhD) project investigating body image in autism.

Chronic Pain and the role of altered Multisensory Body Representations There is growing evidence that many chronic pain disorders are triggered or maintained by misrepresentations of the body. This project investigates this further by testing body illusions in patients with chronic pain (fibromyalgia). Project funded by Versus Arthritis and in collaboration with Dr Mike Lee, Dr Flavia Cardini and Dr Paola Finoni. We have also recently commenced a new project, funded by The Leverhulme Trust (PI Flavia Cardini and Co-Is Jane Aspell, Francesca Cavallerio and Elisa Ferre) to investigate pain in gymnasts.

Depersonalisation and the Bodily Self This project examines how the bodily self may be altered in waking and dreaming states in people who experience symptoms of depersonalisation. Funded by The Bial Foundation and in collaboration with Anna Ciaunica, Bigna Lenggenhager and Jennifer Windt.