PhD student in Psychiatry with focus on the psychology and neurobiology of fear - Hiring in process/Finished, not possible to apply

The Department of Medical Sciences is a large clinical institution with more than 250 employees and over 300 additional coworkers connected via the Uppsala University Hospital. The Department of Medical Sciences has a broad research profile with strong research groups in a number of different areas. The research carried out at the department is performed in close connection with the clinical activities at the Uppsala University Hospital, which includes both basic studies on the causes of a variety of illnesses and the development and evaluation of improved diagnostics and new treatment methods. More information about the Department of Medical Sciences can be found at www.medsci.uu.se.

At the department, the Psychiatry Research Group studies the major psychiatric disorders based on a gene-environment interaction model where psychiatric conditions are considered to arise due to an interplay between biological, psychological and social risk factors.

Within Psychiatry, a subgroup headed by Associate Professor Andreas Frick investigates anxiety and fear from a psychological and neurobiological perspective. We combine brain imaging techniques with experimental psychology in the lab, through Internet and in naturalistic settings to gain a better understanding of normal fear and the development and maintenance of debilitating anxiety disorders. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and positron emission tomography (PET) are used for functional, molecular, and anatomical imaging of the brain during rest and while performing emotional and cognitive tasks.

Read more about our benefits and what it is like to work at Uppsala University.

Duties
The PhD student will be part of a project examining how fear extinction prediction errors are coded in the brain and contribute to fear acquisition and extinction, and how this may be altered in patients with anxiety disorders. Prediction error signals drive learning and are important components in fear extinction. This project concerns the role of prediction errors in fear extinction, their neural basis, and potential compromise in anxiety disorders. Simultaneous positron emission tomography (PET) of dopamine release and functional MRI (fMRI) will be used to delineate the neural basis of extinction prediction errors and uncover anxiety-related changes in these processes. The work will include design and implementation of experimental paradigms, data collection and analysis, and reporting of results. In addition, it will be possible to conduct and be part of other research projects together with other members of the research group and other national and international collaborators. The specifics of the project will be designed together with the candidate to fit their specific background and experience.

Requirements
A successful candidate must be eligible for the doctoral education, for example by a Master’s degree in Psychology, Medicine, Neuroscience, Biomedicine, Statistics, Computer Science or similar field; or completed 240 credits, for example of the Medicine program (Läkarprogrammet), including 60 credits on advanced level. Personal abilities such as independence, flexibility and tenaciousness together with ability to cooperate are of value. English proficiency is of importance.

Additional qualifications
Of merit are research experience using PET and/or fMRI and/or fear conditioning, research/clinical work with patients with anxiety disorders, a strong computational and/or statistical background, and practical research including human subjects.

Rules governing PhD students are set out in the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5, §§ 1-7 and in Uppsala University's rules and guidelines.

About the employment
The employment is a temporary position according to the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5 § 7. Scope of employment 100%. Starting date as agreed. Placement: Uppsala.

For further information about the position, please contact: Andreas Frick, andreas.frick@neuro.uu.se.

Please submit your application by 13 June 2022, UFV-PA 2022/2175.

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