Title: The diachronic account of attentional selectivity

Abstract: Many models of attention assume that attentional selection takes place at a specific moment in time which demarcates the critical transition from pre-attentive to attentive processing of sensory input. I argue that this intuitively appealing account is not only inaccurate, but has led to substantial conceptual confusion (to the point where some attention researchers offer to abandon the term ‘attention’ altogether). As an alternative, I offer a “diachronic” framework that describes attentional selectivity as a process that unfolds over time. Key to this view is the concept of attentional episodes, brief periods of intense attentional amplification of sensory representations that regulate access to working memory and response-related processes. I present data from a distractor intrusion paradigm that demonstrate the existence and importance of attentional episodes, and describe how attentional episodes are linked to earlier attentional mechanisms and to recurrent processing at the neural level. Finally, I argue that breaking down the dichotomy between pre-attentive and attentive (as well as early vs. late selection) offers new solutions to old problems in attention research that have never been resolved. It can provide a unified and conceptually coherent account of the network of cognitive and neural processes that produce the goal-directed selectivity in perceptual processing that is commonly referred to as “attention”.

Location:  2D17 (Senior Common Room), D Block Priory Road Complex

Time: 15:00 - 16:00

Title: Breaking Boundaries: Transforming Mental Health through Transdiagnostic and Modular Treatment Innovations

Abstract: Traditional diagnostic methods face several challenges, including high comorbidity, limited ability to differentiate between disorders, significant heterogeneity within disorders, and difficulties in disseminating multiple treatment protocols. Transdiagnostic and modular interventions have the potential to address these challenges by focusing on shared processes across various disorders and offering greater flexibility in treatment. This presentation explores the question, "What defines success in the transdiagnostic approach?" Three distinct examples will be discussed: the Modular Intervention for Children with Epilepsy (MICE), drop-in mental health centres at paediatric hospitals (the 'Lucy Project'), and the treatment of perfectionism. The presentation will conclude by exploring innovative ways to advance mental health science and treatment, including the potential of new technologies to enhance outcomes and access for all.

Location:  2D17 (Senior Common Room), D Block Priory Road Complex

Time: 15:00 - 16:00

Title: Teaching and learning about neurodiversity in schools: Addressing contributors of poor educational experiences and outcomes for neurodivergent children

Abstract: Neurodivergent children educated in mainstream classrooms too often face poor school experiences and poor outcomes compared to neurotypical peers. These may be caused, or exacerbated, by stigma and the negative attitudes and actions of classmates and staff. One strategy to address these circumstances is to directly address knowledge gaps and negative attitudes by teaching about neurocognitive diversity. The Learning About Neurodiversity at School (LEANS) programme uses this strategy as the basis of a comprehensive, whole-class resource for introducing neurodiversity concepts to learners age 8-11 and discussing their daily-life implications in an age-appropriate and engaging way.

Location: 2D17 (Senior Common Room), D Block Priory Road Complex

Time: First talk - 15:00 - 15:30

Title:  Introducing Reproducibility by Design and surveying the reasons and perceived barriers underlying poor and varied data availability across the faculty

Abstract: Are we in a reproducibility crisis? Perhaps. Is there room for improvement? Most definitely! In this talk I will introduce Reproducibility by Design, a programme designed to help researchers build data integrity, Open Research and ultimately a greater level of reproducibility into their research. In addition, I will also present the results from a faculty-wide survey we conducted to better understand the reasons and perceived barriers underlying the poor and varied data availability across FLHS.

Location: 2D17 (Senior Common Room), D Block Priory Road Complex

Time: Second talk - 15:30 - 16:00

Title: EMC2: An R Package for cognitive models of choice

Abstract: I introduce EMC2, an R package for Bayesian hierarchical analysis of cognitive models of choice. EMC2 bridges the gap between standard regression analyses and cognitive modelling through linear-model specifications for each type of cognitive-model parameter. The flexible implementation of the linear modelling language allows users to map model parameters directly to complicated designs and hypotheses. EMC2 implements recent developments in Bayesian parameter estimation and hypothesis testing, including powerful and efficient sampling and marginal likelihood estimation algorithms, so it is computationally feasible to estimate many
different cognitive models, and perform inference among them. Using two leading evidence-accumulation models, we illustrate how EMC2 provides a workflow that makes it easy to specify diverse parameterisations and informative priors, and to evaluate, refine, compare, and interpret models. A preprint about the base package can be found at https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/2e4dq, in this talk I address more advanced features implemented in the development version of the package and discuss plans for future expansions.

Location:  2D17 (Senior Common Room), D Block Priory Road Complex

Time: 11:00 - 12:00

Title: Protecting Adolescent Mental Health in a Digital World

Abstract: In our rapidly evolving digital world, there is increasing concern about the impact of digital technologies such as social media on the mental health of young people. Policymakers and the public are nervous. Psychologists are facing mounting pressures to deliver evidence that can inform policies and practices to safeguard both young people and society at large. However, research progress is slow while technological change is accelerating. Dr Orben will reflect on this, both as a question of psychological science and metascience, during her keynote address.

Location:  2D17 (Senior Common Room), D Block Priory Road Complex

Time: 15:00 - 16:00

Title: What do ultra-processed foods have to do with optimal foraging?

Abstract: Many now claim that ultra-processed foods (UPFs) play a key role in promoting a range of non-communicable diseases, including obesity. However, evidence that UPFs impact energy balance is mainly observational, and only two randomised controlled trials have been conducted to date. Furthermore, this evidential base is often misinterpreted or oversimplified. In this talk, I will argue that humans are not passive consumers. Instead, by drawing on examples from my own work, I will show that they exhibit the hallmarks of an optimal forager and that our intake of UPFs may be rooted in an underlying biology that is adapted to maximising 'energy to satiety ratio'. Here, my work focuses on the metabolic benefits of combining fat and carbohydrate, and how this has promoted the development of 'combo’ foods that are especially rewarding. Finally, I will suggest that to develop effective public health strategies, we need to acknowledge the complex psychological and biological processes supporting our ability to discriminate foods that can maximise energy intake. Moreover, framing UPFs in the context of this 'nutritional intelligence' is helpful because it provides a grounded theoretical basis to understand their potential causal impact on public health.

Location: 2D17 (Senior Common Room), D Block Priory Road Complex

Time: 15:00 - 16:00

Title: How do we reduce youth vaping without unintended consequences?

Abstract: The number of young people who vape dramatically increased over the last few years. As a result, there has been considerable pressure for the Government to take action to reduce the appeal and accessibility of vapes. Vapes contain chemicals and toxicants that could harm those who use them, but they contain fewer and lower levels of these chemicals and toxicants than cigarettes. They also usually contain nicotine and there is strong evidence that they can help people to stop smoking. Any policy action aiming to reduce the appeal and accessibility of vapes could have the intended consequence of reducing youth vaping, but could unintentionally impact smoking rates, vaping intentions among adults, illicit product use and other nicotine product use. In this talk, Jasmine will discuss some of her research related to these unintended consequences and how she has communicated these issues with policy makers.

Location: 2D17 (Senior Common Room), D Block Priory Road Complex

Time: 15:00 - 16:00

Title: Spatial abilities and Mathematics; from the lab to the classroom

Abstract: A robust finding in cognitive psychology is that training children’s spatial abilities is a proven route to improving mathematics performance. However, in most countries, these research findings have not been translated into practice and there is limited representation of spatial reasoning in school curricula. I will present projects which took place in England, where there is currently little emphasis on spatial reasoning in practitioner training or in the curriculum. A shared aim of these projects was to attempt to bridge the gap between research and practice. I will present the Spatial Reasoning Toolkit, a set of accessible resources designed to facilitate the transfer of research knowledge into practice and to equip practitioners to integrate spatial thinking into their curricula so that children develop the spatial skills they need to succeed in mathematics (and STEM). The toolkit has been adopted for inclusion in the early years and primary teacher training pathways by a national teacher-training organisation in England and included in a new spatial reasoning training pathway for primary school teachers run by the English government’s 40 Maths Hubs who have introduced the toolkit to 1,690 practitioners through their training programmes.

Title: The Hidden Risks: Investigating the Appeal of Gambling Advertising to Children and Young People

Abstract: 

Recent figures from the UK Gambling Commission estimate that up to 85,000 children in the UK experience ‘gambling problems’, a concerning statistic that has been linked to the pervasive presence of gambling advertising. Despite regulations prohibiting gambling ads from ‘strongly appealing’ to minors, social media marketing often uses emotional and subtle content marketing strategies that engage young audiences. This presentation draws on two studies to explore these issues.

The first study, with over 650 participants aged 11 to 78, shows that gambling ads are significantly more appealing to children and young people than adults. Children predominantly experience positive emotions after exposure, while adults show negative reactions, raising concerns about the role of advertising in priming children for gambling.

The second study uses biometric measures alongside self-reported data to explore the unconscious appeal of gambling ads to 58 children aged 11–17. Content marketing emerges as particularly problematic, being four times more appealing to children than conventional ads. Only 7% of children identified such content as advertising. A national educational intervention aimed at improving recognition and reducing appeal showed limited success, underscoring the challenge of mitigating these risks.

Together, these studies reveal the hidden dangers of gambling advertising for young people and call for stricter regulations, innovative educational strategies, and enhanced research methods to better protect vulnerable audiences.

Title: Uncovering developmental paths to neurodevelopmental conditions: Dynamics over time

Abstract: Autism is a neurodevelopmental condition that occurs in around 2% of people, and can be associated with differences in social interaction, communication and interests. Autism is connected with genetic changes that are present from conception, but is often not identified until children are in school. Prospective longitudinal studies that follow infants from near birth to childhood can reveal the earliest developmental changes that precede the later emergence of autistic traits. Here, I describe a series of studies examining some of the earliest changes in infants with later autism and their interrelation over both short and long timescales. Within prospective studies, we see differences in sensory reactivity across touch, audition and visual domains, and changes in sleep that precede an autism diagnosis. Sensory differences are related to sleep differences, and both may relate to emerging trajectories of fearfulness and later anxiety, indicating they may be important targets for supportive interventions. Further, changes in sleep may be linked to alterations in daytime brain states that have been associated with longer-term cognitive development. Taken together, examining changes in early sensory development and sleep may provide important insights into the early development of children with neurodevelopmental conditions. I discuss how these approaches can help us think about neurodevelopment from the perspective of neurodiversity.

Location: Lecture Room 8 (G115), Arts Complex, 21 Woodland Road.

Time: 11:00 - 12:00

Title: The (meta) science of the moral mind/brain

Abstract: The science of morality has grown rapidly into one of the most exciting interdisciplinary areas of inquiry in the mind/brain sciences. A fascination with the science of our sense of right and wrong has also permeated popular culture, with New
 York Times best sellers invoking multiple moral cognitive systems (or “foundations") to explain the political "culture wars.” I present work that tests competing explanations of inconsistent findings that support the influential multiple moral cognitive systems
 view of the moral mind/brain. This work highlights the importance of stimulus category confounds, generalization (across stimuli and from group to individual), sample size simulation for mixed-effects models, model checks, and testing support for the null.
 Focusing on these methods and practices and the relationship between statistical and scientific inference resolve inconsistent findings and suggest that the evidence for multiple moral cognitive systems is, at best, suggestive. I will argue that reflective
 thought (aka “metascience") is necessary to develop an explanatory, replicable, robust, reproducible, and generalizable science of the moral mind/brain and to help prevent the possible harms of scientific overreach. 

Location: 2D17, Priory Road Complex

Time: 11:00 - 12:00

Title: Towards a behavioural science of close relationships

Abstract: In this talk, I’ll describe real-world studies that sit at the intersection between behavioural science and relationships science, and discuss the potential for each area to capitalise on the other.

The Capability, Opportunity, Motivation model of Behaviour (COM-B, Michie et al., 2014) is an extremely useful tool for framing behaviour and targeting interventions to change behaviour. It has been widely used in health and there is a burgeoning literature applying COM-B to environmental behaviours too. But what can behavioural science do for behaviours related to social well-being and relationships? I argue that this is an inherently ‘messier’ domain. Unlike medication adherence, or uptake of screening, it is hard to define specific target behaviours that need addressing, in part because relationships comprise intricate and complex processes over time, and in part because they are an interplay between two people, meaning one person’s behaviour is only ever half the story.

Focusing on the specific area of inter-parental conflict, I take a behavioural science lens to existing interventions, asking to what extent is behavioural science already being used, and where could it be applied to improve effectiveness?

I’ll present initial findings from a systematic review, a randomised controlled trial, and a qualitative interview study. I’ll also describe a programme of work utilising behavioural science to promote uptake of family-focused interventions to improve social well-being.

Location: 2D17 (Senior Common Room), D Block Priory Road Complex 

Time: 15:00 - 16:00