If you have a research idea that is related to work in the lab or you would like to discuss a potential PhD application, please contact me at djkb1@le.ac.uk. Applications can be made via the university's website and there are regular calls for studentship proposals via funders including the BBSRC, ESRC, MRC, charities, and overseas funders (e.g., The Chinese Scholarship Scheme). These schemes are competitive, and applicants will need to provide a research proposal and a rationale explaining why the project is relevant to the funder. If you are interested in these opportunities, please contact me early so that we can discuss the call and develop your application.
Disturbances of attentional control are considered a key symptom of schizophrenia (SZ).
Evidence for attentional deficits is usually inferred using tasks that compare the ability to select or inhibit
stimuli in the visual field. Contrasts between individuals with and without SZ on these tasks are typically
based on summary statistics that aggregate responses across multiple trials. Whilst informative, these analyses
are insensitive to fluctuations in attentional control that occur at smaller time intervals, for example on a
trial-by-trial basis.
Recent evidence suggests attentional control is mediated by interactions between neural
networks that prioritize external or internal stimuli over time. Connectivity between these networks fluctuates,
with lapses of attention during task performance reflecting competitive interactions between the internally
directed default mode and externally directed dorsal and ventral attentional systems. Resting state fMRI data
indicate SZ is associated with changes in the connectivity between these networks, which is thought to underlie
symptomatic dissociations between self-representation, salience, and task-oriented endogenous attention to
external stimuli. SZ-related fluctuations in connectivity between networks should elicit measurable interference
on tasks that require the ongoing evaluation of external visual input.
The objective of this studentship is to
evaluate the sensitivity and reliability of time-locked changes in sustained attention as a measure of network
connectivity in SZ and controls. To do this, the project will investigate the relationship between clinical
symptoms of SZ and trial-by-trial variability in behavioral, pupillometric, and electrophysiological measures of
performance on tasks that measure the consistency of visual selective attention over short periods of time.
Supervision: The project will be jointly supervised by academics in the School of Psychology and Vision
Science and a Clinical Psychiatrist at Leicester Partnership NHS Trust.
Call Details:
Midlands Mental Health Neuroscience DTP Competition, 2025
2)Project Page
Note: This application is open to healthcare professionals currently employed by the NHS and is designed to support individuals seeking to combine a clinical and academic career. See the eligibility section on the website above for more details.