Radboud University Nijmegen praised for cognitive science institute
14 Feb 2008
The Nijmegen Institute for Cognition & Information (NICI), affiliated with Radboud University Nijmegen, has been praised by an international review body led by Kathryn Bock, Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Illinois, USA.
The review committee concluded that the research quality in all five research divisions at NICI was ‘very good’ or ‘excellent’. A proud Harold Bekkering, director on NICI’s governing council, said: ‘The committee’s view was that we rank among the international top’. A special distinction went to the research division for Action, Intention and Motor Control, which gained the maximum score of 5 for all four assessment criteria: quality, productivity, relevance and vitality. The research division shares its number one place in psychology in the Netherlands – which generally enjoys a high standing internationally – with a research group at Maastricht University.
Neurocognitive processes
The Action, Intention and Motor Control division conducts research into the neurocognitive processes that underlie the planning and execution of goal-directed movements. The group has investigated areas such as reaching and grasping movements, coordinating goal-directed movements in groups, and the effects of neural damage to motor control areas on other cognitive tasks such as planning and observation. The studies are conducted at the state-of-the-art movement labs of NICI, the neuro-imaging facilities at the FC Donders Centre and the Baby Research Centre at Radboud University.
Nijmegen Institute for Cognition & Information
The Nijmegen Institute for Cognition & Information examines the psychological and neurobiological principles behind human information processing, with an emphasis on psycholinguistics, perception and motor control. The aim is to discover the underlying mechanisms of language, observation, memory and motor control. NICI publishes around 200 scientific articles and produces about 15 PhD graduates a year. Its scientific director is Professor Harold Bekkering.