Elena Throm

Elena Throm is a Researcher affiliated with the Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development at Birkbeck College, University of London. Her work focuses on neural responses during social interactions in infancy, particularly how these responses evolve with age and differ in infants with neurodevelopmental conditions. She employs Neuroadaptive Bayesian Optimisation to study individual infant neural signatures.

Education:

• PhD in Psychology, Birkbeck College, University of London (2019–present)
• M.Sc. in Psychology, University of Vienna (2017–2019)
• B.Sc. in Psychology, University of Vienna (2013–2017)

Research Interests: Her research integrates developmental neuroscience and real-time neuroimaging techniques to understand social brain specialization in infants. She investigates individual differences in neural responses to social stimuli, with implications for early detection of neurodevelopmental conditions like autism and ADHD.

Awards:

• 2023 Birkbeck/Wellcome Trust ISSF2
• Marie Sklodowska-Curie Doctoral Fellowship (EU Horizon 2020, 2019–2022)
• University of Vienna Scholarship for Academic Excellence (2018)

Grants & Projects: Her work is part of the SAPIENS Innovative Training Network, funded by the European Union. She also leads community engagement initiatives, including public talks and an online project website to involve parents of infants in studies.

Labs & Teams: Collaborates with the Birkbeck Babylab and the National Child Trust, focusing on translational research bridging academia and public engagement.