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Annett Schirmer is a Professor and head of the Department of General Psychology II (Emotion and Motivation) at the University of Innsbruck, Austria, a position she assumed in 2022 after appointments at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (2017-2022), National University of Singapore (2006-2017), and the University of Georgia (2004-2006). Her research centers on nonverbal communication mechanisms, particularly vocal and tactile behaviors, and their impact on emotion processing and social interaction. Educational Background: PhD (2002) from Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Germany Research Focus: Schirmer's work investigates affective touch and vocal emotion processing through behavioral and neurophysiological methods. Her lab examines how CT afferents mediate pleasant touch, cultural differences in touch perception, cross-species emotion communication (including human-dog interactions), and the role of musicality in vocal emotion recognition. Key methodologies include EEG, eye/body motion tracking, and cross-cultural experimental designs focused on health and well-being applications. Publication Trends: Recent work (2023-2025) emphasizes neural correlates of prolonged gentle stroking, human-animal touch dynamics, multisensory integration in attraction, and individual differences in vocal emotion processing. A strong thread connects affective touch mechanisms to subjective well-being across species, with increasing use of EEG to map temporal dynamics of somatosensory processing. Scientific Awards: No specific awards are documented in the provided materials. Advising and Grants: While her role as department head and editorial positions indicate leadership, specific student mentorship details and grant funding information are not disclosed in available texts. Laboratory: The Brain & Behavior Lab (https://sites.google.com/view/brainbehaviorlab/home) employs multimodal approaches to study nonverbal communication, with active projects on tactile comfort mechanisms, cross-cultural touch exchanges, and comparative analyses of emotion expression in humans and companion animals.

• Emotion and Motivation
• Nonverbal Communication
• Affective Touch
• +4 more

Lauri Nummenmaa is a Professor at the Turku PET Centre and Department of Psychology at the University of Turku (since 2019). Previously held positions include Associate Professor (2016–2019) and Academy of Finland Fellow (2011–2016). He earned his PhD in Psychology from the University of Turku in 2006 and holds an MA in Psychology from the same institution (2001). His research focuses on biological psychology, emotions, neuroimaging, and neurotransmission, with notable contributions to understanding the neural basis of emotions, social interaction, and obesity. He has received prestigious awards including the ERC Starting Grant (2012), Academy of Finland Award (2016), and Alfred Kordelin Prize (2012). Nummenmaa has supervised seven PhD theses and secured over €4.7 million in research grants. He is an editorial board member for Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B and serves on editorial roles for multiple neuroscience journals. His current projects investigate neuromolecular mechanisms of obesity, social attachment, and brain health determinants. Teaching highlights include instructing over 10 courses in statistics, emotions, and research methods. He has collaborated with industry partners such as Samsung and Fazer Foods on applied neuroscience projects.

• Biological psychology
• Social interaction
• Neurotransmission
• +5 more

Jana Herwig serves as a Lecturer at the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) of the University of Vienna, where she teaches courses including Development of Media and Forms of Communication and Didactics: Teaching and Learning with Media . The CTL provides university-wide support for educational media production and teaching innovation. Her research critically examines digital media through interdisciplinary lenses, prioritizing Media Studies , Digital Humanities , and Educational Technology . Key focal points include accessibility in higher education ( Disability Studies ), algorithmic power structures ( Critical Algorithm Studies ), and sensory perception in media interfaces ( Sensory Studies ), with particular emphasis on haptic media and touch. Analysis of her recent publications reveals consistent exploration of how media technologies shape human experience and social structures. Recurring themes include digital proximity in virtual communication, self-service automation, disability representation, and historical-contemporary media transitions. Her work bridges critical theory with practical educational applications, advocating for inclusive, alternative media practices. Within the CTL, she actively supports faculty through the service desk for producing teaching videos and audio materials, integrating her scholarly research on media into practical educational infrastructure development.

• Media Studies
• Digital Humanities
• Educational Technology
• +3 more

Albert Wabnegger (Mag. Dr. rer. nat.) is a researcher at the Institute of Psychology , Faculty of Natural Sciences , University of Graz in Austria. His work is anchored in clinical psychology and affective neuroscience, with a strong emphasis on neuroimaging approaches that illuminate the neural underpinnings of emotion, phobia, and impulse-control disorders. Research Interests Neurobiological bases of disgust processing and its maladaptive variants (e.g., dental phobia, skin-picking disorder) Functional and structural brain alterations in anxiety and impulse-control disorders Placebo and nocebo effects on emotional distress and motor performance Social cognition, conspiracy beliefs, and their neural correlates Sex-specific neural responses to personal-space intrusion and affective touch Publication Trends Across more than 40 peer-reviewed articles (2012-2025), Wabnegger’s research demonstrates a clear trajectory from basic affective neuroscience toward translational clinical applications. Early work mapped structural brain differences in phobia and disgust propensity using voxel-based morphometry. Subsequent studies integrated fMRI to explore amygdala, cerebellar, and prefrontal contributions to emotion regulation, placebo effects, and aberrant social cognition. Recent mega-analyses within the ENIGMA consortium extend these findings to large-scale, cross-disorder investigations of brain aging and morphological alterations in youth psychopathology. Collaborations & Networks Active member of the Brain and Behavior research network at the University of Graz Contributor to the ENIGMA Anxiety working group, participating in international mega-analyses Ongoing interdisciplinary projects with clinical partners, integrating neuroimaging and behavioral interventions Contact Institute of Psychology, University of Graz Universitätsplatz 2/III, 8010 Graz, Austria Phone: +43 (0)316 380-5131 Email: albert.wabnegger@uni-graz.at

• Clinical Psychology
• Neuroimaging
• Affective Neuroscience
• +7 more

Dr. Fuchs Xaver is a Senior Scientist at the Paris Lodron University of Salzburg, affiliated with the Reach & Touch Lab. He holds a PhD in Clinical and Cognitive Neuroscience from the University of Heidelberg and a Psychology Diploma from Philipps University of Marburg. His research focuses on how sensory information shapes body perception, particularly touch perception and its interplay with vision, spatial perception, and motor processes. Key methods include bodily illusions assessed via psychophysics and psychophysiology. Special populations studied include amputees with phantom phenomena and chronic pain sufferers. Education : 2011–2017: PhD, Institute of Clinical and Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Heidelberg 2004–2010: Psychology Diploma, Philipps University of Marburg Research Interests : Sensory processing, body representation, phantom limb pain, tactile localization, and multisensory integration. His work bridges clinical and cognitive neuroscience, exploring how altered sensory inputs affect pain perception and body ownership. Publications : Recent work includes studies on tactile illusions, phantom pain correlations, and multisensory coding. His 2022 Cortex paper on cross-limb tactile illusions and 2021 European Journal of Pain study on heat pain thresholds in amputees highlight his contributions to clinical neuroscience. Labs/Teams : Leads the Reach & Touch Lab, investigating touch perception and body schema dynamics. Collaborates on projects involving chronic pain mechanisms and neurorehabilitation strategies.

• Perceptual Psychology
• Sensory Neuroscience
• Clinical Psychology
• +4 more

Andreas Gartus is a researcher at the Faculty of Psychology , University of Vienna , affiliated with the Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology . His work focuses on empirical aesthetics, exploring how visual features like symmetry and complexity influence aesthetic experiences in art and everyday life. He is responsible for managing the Cognition Research Lab , EEG Lab Vienna , and the EVA LAB (Empirical Visual Aesthetics). His research integrates computational methods, statistical analysis, and neurophysiological techniques to study emotional responses to art, embodied cognition, and decision-making processes. Key research areas include the psychological and neural mechanisms behind aesthetic judgments, the role of context in art perception, and the application of machine learning to analyze visual stimuli. He has contributed to over 28 peer-reviewed publications since 2011, with recent work examining movement behavior in art galleries, symmetry preferences, and emotional video analysis. His activities include international conference presentations and collaborations across disciplines. His studies often address how embodied experiences (e.g., facial muscle responses, movement) interact with aesthetic evaluation, reflecting a multidisciplinary approach to understanding human perception and emotion. Despite no listed awards, his extensive publication record highlights sustained contributions to empirical aesthetic research.

• Empirical Aesthetics
• Visual Perception
• Cognitive Neuroscience
• +3 more

Anna Hermes is a researcher in the Faculty of Business, focusing on the intersection of personality psychology, retail customer experience, and human-computer interaction. Her work explores how personality traits influence purchasing behaviors, emotional experiences, and neurophysiological responses in retail environments. Research Interests : Personality traits, customer experience, neurophysiological measurement techniques, and behavioral neuroscience applications in retail. Recent publications analyze the role of the Big Five personality traits in omnichannel purchasing decisions, the integration of heart rate variability with self-report measures for affective experience analysis, and the application of virtual/augmented reality in retail research. These studies emphasize methodological innovation and cross-disciplinary collaboration between psychology and computer science.

• Personality Traits
• Customer Experience
• Retail
• +5 more

Dr. Mathias Streicher is an Assistant Professor of Retail Management and Scientific Director of the Retail Lab at the University of Innsbruck's Faculty of Business and Management. His affiliation is with the Department of Strategic Management, Marketing and Tourism. He focuses on consumer behavior, shopper marketing, and sensory marketing, employing experimental field and lab designs to explore how physical interactions (e.g., touch, posture) and environmental cues influence purchasing decisions. His research has been published in top journals like the Journal of Marketing , Journal of Consumer Research , and Journal of Consumer Psychology , earning multiple awards from the American Marketing Association. Notable studies include investigations into how shopping cart designs activate arm muscles to influence spending, and how visual attention patterns affect unplanned purchases. Dr. Streicher collaborates with a team including Oliver Koll, Roland Schroll, and others. He has secured grants like the FFG Innovation Grant (€10.5k) and the Aktion D. Swarovski Research Grant (€2k). His work has been featured in Harvard Business Manager , The Daily Mail , and radio/TV programs such as ARD and ORF 2. He teaches SE Retail Management II and leads the Retail Lab, emphasizing interdisciplinary approaches to decision-making research. Key societal contributions include advancing understanding of self-education for informed consumer decisions and optimizing retail environments through sensory interventions.

• Consumer Behavior
• Shopper Marketing
• Sensory Marketing
• +3 more

Levi Pritz is a textile artist and educator at Mozarteum University Salzburg's Department of Fine Arts and Design, where she teaches in the Design: Technology.Textile program since 2022. She holds a Magistra artium degree and works as a Senior Artist specializing in textiles, dyeing, and textile technology/design. Her multidisciplinary practice spans sculpture, printmaking, textile art, installations, digital works, and performance art. Central themes include aesthetics and unaesthetics, the human body and social/cultural norms affecting it, and concepts of decay and transience. As a member of the Vienna-based intersectional queer feminist artist collective Haus of Rausch, her work consistently challenges traditional norms through queer and feminist perspectives. Ms. Pritz has been actively engaged with the Spektrum association's children's and youth programs since 2017, focusing on art and STEM education. Her exhibition history demonstrates a progressive exploration of textile traditions through contemporary social commentary, with increasing institutional recognition. 2023: Artist in Residence at Textilkunstgalerie in Salzburg 2022: 'Hautkontakt' at Museum Fronfeste (Neumarkt am Wallersee) 2022: 'Honeymoon in Hennyland' at Queer Museum Vienna 2019: 'IN Time: Veränderung in Veränderung' at Galerie DAS ZIMMER 2018: 'Extending the Thread' at Stadtgalerie Salzburg 2017: 'Landmarks' at Universität Mozarteum Salzburg 2015: 'Mehr als Verhüllung' at Residenzgalerie Salzburg Her artistic trajectory shows a consistent evolution from site-specific installations to more conceptually complex explorations of cultural identity through textiles. Recent works increasingly engage with institutional critique while maintaining technical excellence in textile processes, particularly experimental dyeing techniques and sustainable textile practices.

• textiles
• textile design
• textile technology
• +15 more