Dr Flavia Cardini

• Psychology (Undergraduate)

Flavia’s research is focused on the study of the brain representation of one’s own body as a result of the interaction between information from different sensory modalities.

[email protected]

Background

Flavia is interested in the study of bodily self-representation as a result of multisensory interaction mechanisms, with particular attention to visual, tactile and proprioceptive modalities. In her research she uses bodily illusions to trick the brain and to study how the brain responds to conflicting perceptual information. The research aims to answer questions such as 'How do I recognise my body as my own body?' and 'Is vision of a body part enough to recognise it as belonging to me?' Flavia employs behavioural, psychophysics and EEG techniques, with the aim of unveiling the neural mechanism underling bodily self-awareness.

Her research activity is also aimed at investigating the role of self-representation in high order cognitive mechanisms recruited during self-other interactions, such as emotion processing and social categorisation. In particular, Flavia is interested in the mechanisms whereby we understand other people’s sensory and emotional experiences, by simulating them into our sensorimotor and affective systems.

Research interests

Flavia is a member of our Body and Self Group which forms part of our ARU Centre for Mind and Behaviour.

Find out more about our Psychology PhD.

Teaching

Flavia teaches on the modules Neuropsychology, Psychology Projects, Research Techniques for Psychology, Psychology of Everyday Life, and Fundamentals of Cognitive Psychology.

Qualifications

• PGCert Higher Education, Anglia Ruskin University, 2014           
• PhD Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Bologna & UCL, 2011
• Masters in Clinical and Neuropsychological Assessment, University of Florence, 2007        
• BSc/MSc Clinical Psychology, University of Florence, 2007

Research grants, consultancy, knowledge exchange

Funding and awards

• Experimental Psychology Society Grindley Grant for attending IMRF conference, Oxford 2012 (£500)
• April 2012. IBRO-CEERC-WERC InEurope Short Stay Fellowship (€2500), April 2012
• COST Action BM0605 Grant on Consciousness: a Transdisciplinary, Integrated Approach (€2500), July-August 2011
• UCL Graduate School Student award approval for attending IMRF Conference, Liverpool (£250), 2010
• BIAL Foundation Maternal Brain Gain: Changes in neural representations and body perception during pregnancy (€43,600), December 2014
• BA/Leverhulme Small Research Grant 2016

Selected recent publications

E. Vagnoni, J. Lewis, A. Tajadura-Jiménez, F. Cardini (2018) “Listening to a conversation with aggressive content expands the interpersonal space”. PLOS One (in press)

Cardini, F., Giovagnoli, G., Serino, A. and Ladavas, E., 2008. 'I feel what I see, if the other is similar to me'. Enacting intersubjectivity. Paving the way for a dialogue between cognitive science, social cognition and neuroscience. Ed. Carassa, A., Morganti, F., & Riva, G. Lugano, Switzerland. pp.90-98.

Cardini, F., Costantini, M., Galati, G. Romani, G. L., Ladavas, E. and Serino, A., 2011. Viewing one’s own face being touched modulates tactile perception: a fMRI study. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 23, pp.503-13.

Cardini, F., Longo, M.R. and Haggard, P., 2011. Vision of the body modulates somatosensory cortical inhibition. Cerebral Cortex, 21, pp.2014-2022.

Cardini, F. Bertini, C., Serino, A. and Ladavas, E., 2012. Emotional modulation of Visual Remapping of Touch. Emotion, 12, pp.980-987.

Cardini, F., Longo, M.R., Driver, J. and Haggard, P., 2012. Rapid enhancement of touch from non-informative vision of the hand. Neuropsychologia, 50, pp.1954-1960.

Cardini, F., Tajadura, A., Serino, A. and Tsakiris, M., 2013. It feels like it’s me: interpersonal multisensory stimulation enhances visual remapping of touch from other to self. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 39, pp.630-637.

Cardini, F., Haggard, P. and Ladavas, E., 2013. Seeing and feeling for self and other: proprioceptive spatial location determines multisensory enhancement of touch. Cognition, 127, pp.84-92.

Fini, C.*, Cardini, F.*, Tajadura, A., Serino, A. and Tsakiris, M. Embodying an outgroup: the role of racial bias and the effect of multisensory processing in somatosensory remapping. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, 7, pp.1-9.

Durlik, C., Cardini, F. and Tsakiris, M. Being Watched: The Effect of social self-focus on interoceptive and exteroceptive somatosensory perception. Consciousness and Cognition, 25, pp.42-50.

Maister, L.*, Cardini, F.*, Zamariola, G., Serino, A. and Tsakiris, M. “Your Place or Mine: Shared Sensory Experiences Elicit a Remapping of Peripersonal Space”. Neuropsychologia (in press).

Azanon, E., Stenner, M. P., Cardini, F. and Haggard, P. Dynamic tuning of tactile localization to body posture. Current Biology, 25, pp.512-517.

Book review

Cardini, F. and Haggard, P. The handbook of touch. Neuroscience, behavioral, and health perspectives. Hertenstein, M.J., and Weiss, S.J. (Eds.). New York: Springer Publishing Company. 2011. 520pp. ISBN 9780826121912.

Recent presentations and conferences

F. Cardini, M.R. Longo. Visual induction of somatosensory blurring. Rethinking the senses research day, University of London, 19 June 2014.

F. Cardini, M.R. Longo. Visual induction of somatosensory blurring. IMRF (International Multisensory Research Forum), Amsterdam Netherlands, 11-15 June 2014.

F. Cardini, A. Tajadura, M. Tsakiris. Electrophysiological correlates of plastic changes in self-face recognition. An interdisciplinary summer school on embodied inter-subjectivity: the 1st-person & the 2nd-person perspective, Aegina (Greece), 7-15 June 2013.

F. Cardini, M.R. Longo. Visual induction of somatosensory blurring. BNA 2013: Festival of Neuroscience, London, UK, 6-10 April 2013.

F. Cardini, A. Tajadura, M. Tsakiris. Electrophysiological correlates of plastic changes in self-face recognition. BNA 2013: Festival of Neuroscience, London, UK, 6-10 April 2013.

F. Cardini, A. Tajadura, A. Serino, M. Tsakiris. It feels like it’s me: interpersonal multisensory stimulation enhances visual remapping of touch from other to self. ASSC (Association for the Scientific Study of Consciousness, Brighton, UK, 2-6 July 2012.

F. Cardini, A. Tajadura, A. Serino, M. Tsakiris. It feels like it’s me: interpersonal multisensory stimulation enhances visual remapping of touch from other to self. IMRF (International Multisensory Research Forum),Oxford, UK, 19-22 June 2012.

F. Cardini, P.Haggard, E. Ladavas. Seeing and feeling for self and other: proprioceptive spatial location determines multisensory enhancement of touch. IMRF (International Multisensory Research Forum), Oxford, UK, 19-22 June 2012.

F. Cardini, A. Tajadura, A. Serino, M. Tsakiris. It feels like it’s me: interpersonal multisensory stimulation enhances visual remapping of touch from other to self. UKSA (UK Synaesthesia Association Annual Conference, Oxford, UK, 14-15 April 2012.

F. Cardini, M.R. Longo, P. Haggard. Viewing the body modulates somatosensory cortical inhibition. THEO MURPHY MEETING ON Active touch sensing, Chicheley Hall, Buckinghamshire, UK, 31 January-2 February 2011.

F. Cardini, M.R. Longo, P. Haggard. Viewing the body modulates somatosensory cortical inhibition. IMRF (International Multisensory Research Forum), Liverpool, UK, 16-19 June 2010.

F. Cardini, A. Tajadura, M. Tsakiris, A. Serino. Going beyond the boundaries between self and other. IMRF (International Multisensory Research Forum), Liverpool, UK, 16-19 June 2010.

C. Passamonti, F. Cardini, C. Bertini, E. Ladavas. 'Affective blindsight’ for fearful faces: evidences from a Redundant Target Paradigm in patients with hemianopia. EWCN (European Workshop on Cognitive Neuropsychology), Bressanone, Italy, 24-29 January 2010.

F. Cardini, M. Costantini, G. Galati, E. Ladavas, A. Serino. Neural modulation of felt and seen touch on one’s own face: a fMRI study. IMRF (International Multisensory Research Forum), New York, USA, 29 June-2 July 2009.

F. Cardini, M. Costantini, G. Galati, A. Serino. Correlati neurali dell’osservazione del tocco sul proprio volto: uno studio fMRI. SINP (Società Italiana di Neuropsicologia), Bologna, Italy, 9-10 May 2008.

F. Cardini, G. Giovagnoli, A. Serino, E. Ladavas. I feel what I see, if the other is similar to me. Enacting intersubjectivity. Paving the way for a dialogue between cognitive science, social cognition and neuroscience. Lugano, Switzerland, 13-14 February 2009.

F. Cardini, A. Serino, G. Galati, E. Làdavas, M. Costantini. Neural modulation of viewing one’s own face being touched: a fMRI study. ABIM (Alpine Brain Imaging Meeting), Champery, 11-16 January 2009.

F. Cardini, A. Serino, G. Galati, E. Làdavas, M. Costantini. Neural modulation of viewing one’s own face being touched: a fMRI study. EWCN (European Workshop on Cognitive Neuropsychology), Bressanone, Italy, 25-30 January 2009.

T. Marzi, F. Cardini, M.P. Viggiano. When memory meets beauty: insights from event-related brain potentials. Neuropsicologia, Neuroscienze Cognitive e Neuroplasticità: prospettive della ricerca di base e Applicata,Florence, 21-22 September 2007.

C. Brancati, F. Cardini, M.P. Viggiano. The role of frontal cortex in implicit visual identification: an ERP study. CAOS, Rovereto, 19-22 April 2007.

C. Brancati, F. Cardini, S. Righi, M.P. Viggiano. Meccanismi impliciti nel processo di riconoscimento visivo di stimoli complessi: correlati elettrofisiologici. SIPF, Pisa, 1-3 December 2006.

C. Brancati, F. Cardini, T. Marzi, M.P. Viggiano. Effetti dell’età e della categoria sull’elaborazione sensoriale e cognitiva di stimoli complessi. AIP, Rovereto, 13-15 September 2006.

F. Cardini, T. Marzi, M.P. Viggiano. Different face encoding strategies and recognition memory: electrophysiological correlates. Neuropsicologia, Neuroscienze Cognitive e Neuroplasticità: prospettive della ricerca di base e Applicata,Florence, 21-22 September 2007.