Neurocognitive processes supporting flexible voluntary action (A02)

• Subject Area: General, Cognitive and Mathematical Psychology ; Human Cognitive and Systems Neuroscience
• Term: from 2012 to 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 178833530

Human volitional action is not exclusively determined by current environmental stimuli or fixed habits, but rests on the ability to adapt behavior flexibly to changing goals, instructions, and rules. Project A02 uses functional brain imaging and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to gain a deeper understanding of the brain mechanisms mediating (i) the learning and implementation of novel behavioral rules during goal-directed action, (ii) the functional reorganization of brain networks during the habitualization of behavior, and (iii) the ability to override habitual responses when they conflict with goal-directed behavior.

• DFG Programme: Collaborative Research Centres
• Subproject of: SFB 940: Volition and Cognitive Control: Mechanisms, Modulators and Dysfunctions
• Applicant Institution: Technische Universität Dresden
• Project Heads: Professor Dr. Hannes Ruge; Dr. Uta Wolfensteller