Neuropsychology & Psychopathology Research

Lab Director: Dr. Amitai Abramovitch

 


NEUROPSYCHOLOGY & PSYCHOPATHOLOGY RESEARCH

Neuropsychology is a scientific discipline concerned with the integration of psychological processes, behavioral functions and cognitive functions (e.g., attention, memory, executive function) as they relate to brain functions. Traditionally, neuropsychological research focused on disorders of the nervous system as traumatic brain injury and neurodegenerative diseases. However the rise of the bio-medical model of psychiatric disorders, and advancements in imaging technology, led to an exponential increase in scientific investigations exploring the neuropsychology of psychiatric disorders. Today, neuropsychology research of psychiatric disorders is an important part of Psychopathology research (i.e., the scientific study of mental disorders). 


However, our view is that neuropsychological research has been 'borrowed' by psychiatry research with largely insufficient validation research within psychiatric populations. Moreover, very little is known about daily functions, behavioral, and clinical correlates of neuropsychological indices, as well as their specificity to distinct psychopathological processes or conditions, and the utility of cognitive 'biomarkers'... 
 

OUR RESEARCH

​Utilizing cognitive neuropsychology, experimental psychopathology, and meta analytic research methodologies, our research aims at gaining insight into cognitive functions associated with psychopathological processes, as well as into psychopathological correlates of heightened versus reduced control. 
 

 
Our research can be divided into two overarching themes:

1. Neuropsychological functions associated with psychopathology -
  •   Neuropsychology of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and related disorders
  •   Viability of disorder-specific cognitive endophenotypes/markers of psychological disorders
  •   Ecologically-valid functional and clinical correlates of neuropsychological test-performance
  •   Neuropsychology, clinical correlates, and psychopathological mechanisms of Misophonia

2. Cognitive and behavioral correlates associated with heightened versus lowered control -
  •   Cigarette smoking and drug use in OCD
  •   Anhedonia in OCD and related disorders
  •   Impulsivity, compulsivity and inhibitory control