Lisa Spiering

My research focuses on the neural circuits that allow humans to learn and make decisions, and how these mechanisms go awry when people suffer from psychological illness. In particular, I study people’s perception of themselves and their environment and how these are negatively affected by depression. To this end, I am using behavioural studies and neuroimaging in combination with computational modelling, such as reinforcement and Bayesian learning models. Using fMRI and a new social learning task, I found that humans strategically change their behaviour in order to establish how much they contribute to joint outcomes relative to someone else (Spiering et al., 2025).

I am very interested in using established and novel modelling approaches to extract more information from data. Prior to coming to Oxford, I worked with Prof Werner Sommer and Prof Olaf Dimigen on applying deconvolution modelling to concurrently acquired EEG and eye-tracking data. This modelling technique allowed us to study emotional face perception under more natural viewing conditions by mathematically unmixing the overlapping brain responses to rapid eye movements (Spiering & Dimigen, 2024).

During my PhD at Oxford, I worked with Dr Jacqueline Scholl and Prof Matthew Rushworth and I was funded by the Oxford-Radcliffe Medical Sciences Graduate School Scholarship. Prior to my PhD, I completed a Master of Science degree in Neuroscience (Freie Universität Berlin, Germany), and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Germany).