MSCA-PF: Joint application at the University of Granada. Department of Experimental Psychology

Professor Pedro Macizo Soria, from the Department of  Experimental Psychology (Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center (CIMCYC) at the University of Granada, welcomes postdoctoral candidates interested in applying for a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship (MSCA-PF) in 2023 at this University. Please note that applicants must comply with the Mobility Rule (for more information about the 2023 call, please consult:(http://sl.ugr.es/0d7F)

Brief description of the institution:

The University of Granada (UGR) was founded in 1531 and is one of the largest and most important universities in Spain. With over 51,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students and almost 3,000 members of staff, the UGR offers over 90 undergraduate degrees, 160 master’s degrees (8 of which are international double degrees) and 28 doctoral programmes via its 124 departments and nearly 50 centers. Accordingly, the UGR offers one of the most extensive and diverse ranges of higher education programmes in Spain.

The UGR has been awarded with the "Human Resources Excellence in Research (HRS4R)", which reflects the institution’s commitment to continuously improving its human resource policies in line with the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers. The UGR is also internationally renowned for its excellence in diverse research fields and ranked among the top Spanish universities in a variety of ranking criteria, such as national R&D projects, fellowships awarded, publications, and international funding.

The UGR is one of the few Spanish Universities listed in the Shanghai Top 500 ranking - Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU). The 2022 edition of the ARWU places the UGR in 201-300th position in the world and as the 2-5 highest ranked universities in Spain (http://sl.ugr.es/0d7D), reaffirming its position as an institution at the forefront of national and international research. The UGR stands out in the specialties of Library & Information Science (position 38); Food Science & Technology (30) and Hospitality & Tourism Management (51-75), according to the latest edition of this prestigious ranking by specialties (http://sl.ugr.es/0bSp). A little lower in the ranking, the UGR also stands out in Mathematics (76-100).

Additionally, the UGR has 9 researchers who are at the top of the Highly Cited Researchers (HCR) list (http://sl.ugr.es/0d7E), most of these related to the area of Computer Science. It is also well recognized for its web presence (http://sl.ugr.es/0a6i), being positioned at 42th place in the top 200 Universities in Europe.

Internationally, the University of Granada is firmly committed to its participation in the calls of the Framework Programme of the European Union. For the duration of the last Framework Programme, Horizon 2020, the UGR obtained a total 120 projects with a total funding of around 29,4 million euros.  For the current Framework Programme, Horizon Europe, the UGR has obtained 38 projects, so far, with total funding around 11 € million.

Brief description of the Centre/Research Group:

The Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center (CIMCYC) located in Granada (Spain) has all the equipment to conduct behavioral studies (e.g., cabinets for the recording of latency and response accuracy), the recording of brain activity (e.g., for studies of event-related evoked potentials -ERPs-; time-frequency analyses; etc.), equipment for the measurement of eye movements, (e.g., for the analysis of eye fixations, gaze duration, pupillary dilation, etc.), brain magnetic stimulation (e.g., to identify brain areas associated with cognitive processes) and magnetic resonance imaging (3T) (e.g., for fMRI studies, tractography, etc.). At CIMCYC, there are a large number of research groups working on a wide variety of topics related to human neurocognition (e.g., memory, language, numerical cognition, attention, cognitive control, emotion, learning to read, cognitive ergonomics), which favors the theoretical enrichment of the researchers working at the center. On the other hand, the center receives renowned international researchers on a frequent basis. These researchers give plenary lectures and are willing to establish scientific relationships with CIMCYC researchers.

Project description:

Currently, our research group is focused on the study of language and mathematics from a neurocognitive perspective. Specifically, we propose that the same biological bases and neural networks (e.g., dorsal tracts and ventral tracts) would underlie simple language tasks (e.g., reading, writing, word recognition) and mathematics (e.g., accessing numerical magnitude, performing simple arithmetic operations). Cross-sectionally, in this line of research we address how people exert cognitive control to regulate the functioning of these networks (e.g., by means of inhibitory mechanisms). Furthermore, we also study the role that personality factors or processing styles may play in modulating how people process information (e.g., highly sensitive individuals or HSP). The target populations in our research are monolinguals, second language learners, and expert bilinguals. We are also interested in the development and acquisition of language and numerical skills in children. On the other hand, in the clinical field, we are mainly working on autism spectrum disorder (e.g., working memory capacity, global/local perceptual analysis, etc.). Finally, with respect to research methodology we work with both behavioral methods and brain activity recording analyses. Moreover, we are currently conducting combined fMRI/tractography studies to understand the brain areas and interconnections involved in language and numerical processing.

Research Area:

• Social Sciences and Humanities (SOC)
•  Life Sciences (LIFE)

For a correct evaluation of your candidature, please send the documents below to Professor Pedro Macizo Soria (pmacizo@ugr.es):

• CV
• Letter of recommendation (optional)