Overview
This PhD project investigates the neural basis of changes in cognitive performance during exposure to body malodour. Using advanced neuroimaging techniques like EEG and fMRI, the research aims to improve our understanding of the central mechanisms of cross-modal olfactory processing on cognitive functioning using a negatively valanced odour. Conducted through a collaboration between the University of Liverpool and Unilever, the project combines academic research with real-world applications.
About this opportunity
Olfaction (i.e. the sense of smell) serves a key function in human survival through driving approach and avoidance behaviour for external stimuli. This is thought to result from the privileged access that olfaction has to affective brain networks1. In support of this, brain imaging research has demonstrated an overlap in activity for both affective and olfactory processing in the amygdala, hippocampus, insula, anterior cingulate cortex, and orbitofrontal cortex2. Recent work from our lab (https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/population-health/research/groups/unilever-brain-behaviour-collaboration/) has furthermore begun to elucidate the brain dynamics underpinning the cross-modal impact of olfaction (e.g., on the processing of visual stimului)3
Taken together these suggest that: 1) fragrances can have a cross-modal impact on brain processing of non-olfactory stimuli; 2) odour can modulate the neural signature underpinning valence and affective processing.
One area that is under-researched is the potential cross-modal impact of unpleasant odours on cognitive functions. Our project aims to improve our understanding of the central mechanisms of cross-modal olfactory processing on cognitive functioning using unpleasant body malodours.
We will address this challenge through a series of studies with the following objectives:
– Assess how body malodour impacts cognitive performance on neurocognitive / executive functioning tasks
– Use EEG to assess how body malodour modulates ERP components associated with cognitive performance
– Use fMRI to assess cross-modal impact of body malodour in cognitive and affective brain activity and network connectivity
The Department of Psychology at the University of Liverpool is a vibrant research institute, with over 60 academics and more than 70 PhD students. The department
includes three EEG labs equipped with advanced stimulus control, data acquisition and analysis workstations. The successful candidate will join a collaborative research group of five PhD students working on aligned neuroimaging projects. MRI scanning will take place on campus in the Liverpool Magnetic Resonance Imaging Centre (LiMRIC), which houses a Siemens 3T scanner and is supported by full-time radiographers. Together, these facilities provide a robust infrastructure for successful completion of high-quality experimental studies and to support the student’s development.
As part of this PhD, the successful candidate will also undertake an industrial placement with Unilever’s Biosciences team at the Port Sunlight Research Lab. The long-standing collaboration between the University of Liverpool and Unilever has supported UKRI-funded PhD students since 2010, offering a unique opportunity to bridge academic research with real-world application.