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Matthew Ainsworth
PhD
Postdoctoral Research Associate
Research Summary
I am a postdoctoral researcher in the Brain & Behaviour Research Group, where I conduct research into the cortical networks supporting perception, memory, and decision making. My current research is focussed on understanding communication between areas of the temporal and prefrontal cortex during sensory processing, and aims to understand how these areas communicate to process incoming information and to form decisions and choices.
My research involves the use of several techniques in combination to link neuronal activity with behaviour. This includes developing behavioural testing paradigms as well as the analysis of both neuroimaging (fMRI), and electrophysiology data to find neural activity associated with sensory features, or outcomes and to quantify how this information is communicated between areas of the brain.
Recent publications
Transient frontopolar cortex stimulation induces prolonged disruption to counterfactual processing.
Journal article
Ainsworth M. et al, (2025), PLoS Biol, 23
Disentangling frontal-striatal contributions to exploration.
Journal article
Ainsworth M. and Buckley MJ., (2025), Neuron, 113, 2554 - 2555
Memories or decisions? Bridging accounts of frontopolar function.
Journal article
Boschin EA. et al, (2025), Neuropsychologia, 211
Dissociating Frontal Lobe Lesion Induced Deficits in Rule Value Learning Using Reinforcement Learning Models and a WCST Analog.
Journal article
Capkova L. et al, (2025), eNeuro, 12