Studentship Title: ESRC +3
Research Area/ Project Title: Perceptual and motor processes in visuo-spatial short-term memory
Location: School of Psychology, Cardiff University
Expected Start Date: 1st October 2011
Duration: 3 Years
Deadline for Application: 31st of July, 2011
This studentship is linked to a 3-year ESRC project grant awarded to Dylan Jones, Bill Macken and Rob Hughes, the focus of which is to examine the auditory perceptual and motor (especially speech planning processes) that determine short-term memory performance. The main proposal of the grant seeks to build on a sustained programme of research in our laboratory in Cardiff that has formed the basis of scores of publications in top international journals, leading to work that has had a major impact in the field of short-term memory (with the grant holders’ h-indices of 35, 17 and 9, respectively), as well as in broader fields, ranging from the human factors of open-plan offices to the neuroscience of language processing to auditory processing in starlings. While this work has focussed primarily on auditory and verbal processing, the purpose of the studentship is to begin to apply the ideas we have developed in this area to visuo-spatial processing. For example, the studentship project may examine the role that the planning of eye movements might play in retaining sequences of visuo-spatial events and the way in which such eye movements may be constrained by perceptual organisation of the visual scene. The overall objective is to examine the extent to which the sort of perceptual/motor processing that we have argued to form the basis of verbal short-term memory performance may be applied to visuo-spatial information processing.
The successful candidate will have the opportunity to contribute to the development of the project at all levels – conceptual and methodological – and to fully engage in dissemination of research findings via high impact journal articles as well as relevant national and international conferences.
Supervisors:
The primary supervisor will be Prof. Dylan Jones (the PI on the grant). Prof Jones has extensive project management and supervision experience, having supervised 35 PhD students. He is also currently secondary supervisor for 1 PhD student. The secondary supervisor will be the co-applicant, Dr William Macken, who has also managed several ESRC and other funded research projects, as well as having supervised 5 PhD students. He is currently supervising 3 PhD students (including one 1+3 ESRC quota student), two of whom will have completed by the start date for the current studentship.
Award:
This award will cover UK/EU Fees plus a Stipend matching the UK Research Council minimum (£13,590 for 2010/11)
Residency:
This award is available to all UK students.
Academic Criteria:
2:1 undergraduate degree in psychology or a related discipline, plus a postgraduate Masters degree which is part of a currently recognised ESRC 1+3 programme.
For information regarding eligibility please see:
http://www.esrcsocietytoday.ac.uk/ESRCI ... index.aspx
General Information:
The School of Psychology is one of the largest and most successful in the UK (http://www.cf.ac.uk/psych/). The School’s excellent standard of research and teaching has been recognised in every Research Assessment Exercise. It has its own brain-imaging centre (http://www.cf.ac.uk/psych/cubric/), enhancing the international-leading research in behavioural neuroscience, cognitive ergonomics, forensic, social and developmental psychology.
Cardiff is the youngest capital city in Europe and the fastest growing in the UK. It plays host to many national and international sporting events at the Millennium Stadium (http://www.millenniumstadium.com/). Culturally, the city is thriving, with the Wales Millennium Centre (http://www.wmc.org.uk/) in Cardiff Bay. Cardiff is in very close proximity to the beautiful Welsh countryside (http://www.breconbeacons.org/), has a two hour rail link to London and a (cheap) one hour air link to Paris and Amsterdam (http://www.cardiffairportonline.com/)
Please address any informal enquiries to:
Professor Dylan Jones; JonesDM@cardiff.ac.uk; +44 (0)29 208 74868
For further information please contact:
Postgraduate Research Enquires
Email: Strabella@cardiff.ac.uk
Phone: +44 (0)29 208 75381
Address:
Mrs Lesley Anne Strabel
School of Psychology
Cardiff University
Tower Building, Park Place
Cardiff
CF10 3AT
Alternatively you can apply online or download the application form by going to: http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/for/prospectiv ... index.html