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Psychology
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Facilities and Equipment

Staff and students benefit from access to a wide range of cutting edge facilities and laboratories which allow us to understand the mind and behaviour through both high precision experimental methods, and ecologically valid controlled environments. 

If you are interested in collaborative projects involving any of our facilities or equipment, please contact the Director of Research, Professor Dan Smith.

fMRI 

We have state-of-the-art equipment for structural and functional MRI studies, including a 3T Whole Body MRI System with integrated eye tracking and pupillometry for cutting edge functional imaging and perception studies. We also have a full sized mock scanner for piloting and participant preparation. (See further details on the DCI page.)  

Outside organisations are welcome to make use of our facility for approved research or clinical purposes, at favourable commercial rates. 

Other research equipment 

  • Wet and dry EEG, including a specialist lab with 2 wet EEG booths, control ‘room’ and washing facilities. 
  • Transcranial magnetic and electrical stimulation 
  • A wide range of eye trackers, including desk- and head-mounted, and screen-mounted systems suitable for use with adults and children. 
  • Biopac and Mindware psychophysical suites, two with integrated virtual reality. 
  • Molecular psychology suite for genetic and hormonal analyses 

Specialist testing spaces 

  • Four virtual reality suites; two with full body/room motion capture and one with integrated eye tracking 
  • Two anechoic rooms for auditory perception research 
  • Developmental lab with observation room and dedicated family waiting room 
  • The Rowantree bar lab for research on alcohol consumption behaviours 
  • Mock ‘living room’ for ecologically valid research into television viewing 

Technical support 

Our in-house technicians can also build and program testing equipment and programmes to order. In the past this has included full-body sized reaction time systems (based on the Batak game), wearable kinematic devices to assess participant motion while correcting for body size, and virtual environments with live avatar tracking for adults and children.  

As well as in-house resources, we have collaborations with many external companies and groups - everything from bonobo sanctuaries, to the North East Autism Society, Vicon Movement Systems, and NHS.