Sara Garofalo

I am a Psychometrician with a specific expertise in the analysis of neuropsysiological measures.

I am particularly interested in the use of advanced inferential statistical models (e.g. bayesian inference, informative hypothesis, estimation, computational modelling, metanalysis) that can empower hypothesis testing, within the current debate about open science, the replicability crisis, and the diffusion of best practices.

My main field of research concerns the neural basis of reinforcement learning, particularly how our brains respond to external cues that, once associated with rewards and punishments, can influence our daily choices in adaptive and maladaptive (e.g., compulsion, addiction) ways.

As a science communicator, I write books, articles, and create videos for many national and international media. I also organize and participate to public meetings with citizens mainly focused on the psychological mechanisms behind (apparently) irrational choices and on the way in which media develop a relationship with our brain.

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