Antonia Hamilton's lab for Social Cognition
Postdoctoral Research Associates
I do not have funding for postdoctoral positions at present. Do contact me (a.hamilton - at - ucl.ac.uk) if you would like to apply for funding to join the lab.
PhD positions
I rarely have funding for PhD positions but am happy to support strong candidates to apply for PhD funding. Deadlines are typically in early December. Topics can be flexible within the domain of work going on in the lab (see recent publications). Some possible projects are listed below, but other related questions are also possible.
Group interactions - how do people build friendships and connect with each other during group interactions? Using new wearable sensors, this project will measure how people coordinate in groups and how that relates to cognitive skills and social bonding.
Audience effects - people's behaviour changes when they are being watched, but we still don't know what cognitive mechanisms are involved in this effect. This project would use eyetracking and fNIRS to manipulate the sense of being with another person to see what changes when we are being watched
Face to face interactions between two people involve the complex online coordination of body motion, gaze, language and more. There are many options available to explore the details of our social behaviour, using motion capture, eyetracking, physiological monitoring and brain imaging. Virtual reality also provides a way to test our ideas about what different social signals mean.
Social interaction in autism - individuals with autism find many aspects of online social interaction hard, but the brain mechanisms of this are not clear. Using brain imaging and behavioural methods, this project would examine why individuals with autism do not spontaneously imitate, and what factors can change their performance.
To apply for a PhD email me in September/October with a CV and an idea of what area you want to study. I will review all the CVs and will interview candidates by late November. I can support 1 or 2 candidates per year to complete a full application, and will work with those people in December / January to get the best funding. Applications after 1st December cannot be considered because there isn't time to get funding.
Interns
I am not able to support any interns from outside UCL in the Hamilton lab. This is because unpaid internships are unfair (see this cartoon) and because my priority is supporting UCL students.
MSc Projects
I supervise students on the MSc and MRes in Cognitive Neuroscience at ICN and also on some other MSc programs. The ICN courses are an excellent preparation for PhD level work.
Other opportunities
I am always interested in discussing other collaborations or postdoctoral projects. Possible funding sources include the EU Marie Curie International Incoming Fellowships can support applicants from outside Europe (annual deadline in August). The Newton International Fellowships are a great scheme to support post-doctoral work in the UK (annual deadline in April).
If you are interested in applying for any of these, do email a.hamilton - at - ucl.ac.uk with a CV and details of your research interests
How to apply
If you are interested in any of these positions, please email a.hamilton -at- ucl.ac.uk with a CV and details of your research interests well in advance of the relevant deadline.
Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, Alexandra House, 17 Queen Square, London, WC1N 3AR a.hamilton - at - ucl.ac.uk