Forgetting unwanted memories in sleep

This project will examine the role of sleep in forgetting. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is characterised by uncontrollable and distressing thoughts about prior events. Importantly, recent research has suggested that sleep helps us to forget unwanted memories and, in doing so, maintain emotional wellbeing. Understanding how the brain forgets during sleep is therefore crucial if we are to improve treatments and preventative strategies for traumatic memory disorders.

You will combine a range of neuroimaging techniques, such as fMRI, EEG or MEG, to gain new insights into the neural mechanisms through which sleep eradicates unwanted memories of the past. Your studies will draw on innovative approaches for manipulating memory processing in sleep, such as targeted memory reactivation and closed-loop auditory stimulation, to test new theoretical perspectives on sleep’s role in forgetting and emotion regulation. The project will be primarily carried out in healthy young adults, with later phases involving patients with PTSD.

You will be based at the University of York’s Department of Psychology, which houses a state-of-the-art, three-bedroom sleep laboratory, and York Neuroimaging Centre. You will benefit from the Department of Psychology’s vibrant Early Career Researcher’s community, as well as the broader expertise of colleagues within the Institute of Mental Health Research and York Biomedical Research Institute.

FUNDING

You may apply for funding through the Department of Psychology’s PhD Studentship competition. Departmental studentships cover home fees and provide a stipend of about for three years starting in September 2025.

APPLICATIONS DEADLINE

The deadline for departmental studentship applications is in early January 2025. However, to qualify for a departmental studentship, you must have already received an offer of study from your PhD supervisor. Please contact the project lead as early as possible to discuss your suitability (see HOW TO APPLY)

HOW TO APPLY

In the first instance, please email scott.cairney@york.ac.uk with a copy of your CV and a short statement (~200 words) about your motivation for applying for this PhD project. Formal applications can be made to the course PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging. Please note that your application must include a 2-3-page research proposal, so it is essential that you have discussed this with the project lead before applying. Shortlisted applicants will be invited to interview and, if successful, offered a place of study (permitting an application for a departmental studentship).