
Current Students & Research Topics

The following PhD, Master (MSc), and Bachelor (BSc) students are currently working with Dr Vrticka as part of the Social Neuroscience of Human Attachment Lab (SoNeAt Lab) – sometimes (co-)supervised by other PIs:
Name / Programme | Study Level | In Affiliation With | Topic |
---|---|---|---|
Laura Brady & Emily Sigston | PhD – Trainee Clinical Psychologists | Professional Doctorate Clinical Psychology (D Clin Psych), University of Essex (Dr Antonella Trotta) | Links between narrative measures of attachment in parents and their 5-6 year-old children |
Anil Karabulut![]() | PhD (2021-present) website | IMT School for Advanced Studies Lucca, Italy (Prof. Luca Cecchetti) | Social neuroscience of human attachment & caregiving, particularly brain structure in parents |
Dorukhan Açil![]() | PhD (2020-present) website | University of Leipzig (Dr. Lars White) and the International Max Planck Research School on Neuroscience of Communication: Function, Structure, and Plasticity (IMPRS) | Functional brain correlates of social exclusion in relation to attachment in parents |
Mathilde Gallistl![]() | PhD (2019-present) website | University of Leipzig and the International Max Planck Research School on Neuroscience of Communication: Function, Structure, and Plasticity (IMPRS; Prof. Dr. Veronika Engert) | Attachment and bio-behavioural synchrony in romantic couples |
Charlotte Schulz![]() | PhD (2017-present) website | University of Leipzig (Dr. Lars White) and the International Max Planck Research School on Neuroscience of Communication: Function, Structure, and Plasticity (IMPRS) | Brain anatomy and functional brain correlates of social exclusion in relation to childhood trauma & attachment |
Several PGT/R students | Year 4 MSc Dissertation Projects – PS900 / PS934 / PS944 (from 2021) | Department of Psychology, University of Essex | Various topics within the scope of SoNeAt Lab’s research focus |
Several UG students | Year 3 BSc Dissertation Projects – PS300 (from 2020) | Department of Psychology, University of Essex | Various topics within the scope of SoNeAt Lab’s research focus |