Sensorimotor control and motor skill learning in healthy and neurologically impaired humans.
Richard Ivry, Professor
Psychology
Applications for Fall 2026 are closed for this project.
Research in our laboratory addresses how people learn new motor skills. We study this topic using behavioral and computational methods with healthy and neurologically impaired humans. The neurological studies examine the contribution of different brain structures, especially the cerebellum and basal ganglia, in motor learning to develop functional hypotheses regarding the coordination problems faced by patients with disorders such as Parkinson's disease. Current research projects include: 1) How do we learn from movement errors? 2) How do we learn rewarding actions? 3) What is the role of the cerebellum and basal ganglia in these processes?
Role: Duties: We are looking for a research assistant with various skills. Basic responsibilities will include conducting experiments with college students and examining various aspects of human performance. These experiments will serve as pilot studies for research with neurological patients. The apprentice may also be involved in experiments with healthy adults and clinical populations, which will include behavioral experiments as well as neuropsychological evaluations.
Qualifications: Qualifications: Minimum of an introductory course in relevant fields (cognitive science, neuroscience, psychology, computer science, data science, MCB, IB, bio-engineerings). Coding and computational skills are not required but are highly appreciated.
Day-to-day supervisor for this project: Elizabeth Cisneros, Matthias Will , Post-Doc
Hours: 9-11 hrs
Related website: http://ivrylab.berkeley.edu
Biological & Health Sciences Education, Cognition & Psychology