prof. dr. M.M. (Monicque) Lorist
Research interests
Healthy human task performance is characterized by significant differences between and within individuals. The dynamics in behaviour, underlying the richness of behavioural diversity, are largely undelineated. My line of research explicitly aims at enhancing our understanding of mechanisms underlying this variability in cognitive performance within and between individuals.
Of specific importance is the comprehension of changes in the
flexibility and limitations of the information processing system in
the ageing human brain and how the dynamics in this system might be
used to deal with cognitive task demands and to prevent age-related
performance deteriorations.
The combination of measures of behaviour (reaction time and
accuracy) and brain activity (e.g., EEG, ERP and fMRI) to examine
task performance, forms a crucial aspect of this research.
Especially, the simultaneous use of these non-invasive techniques
provides particularly important ways to generate new information
about brain dynamics in healthy individuals.
Research topics that I am working on at the moment
include:
• Effects of healthy ageing on attention, working memory
and reward processing
• Mental fatigue and task performance
• Gender differences and stress
• Sensory and liking of food
• Effects of caffeine on cognition