Jochen Ditterich

Jochen-Ditterich headshot

Position Title
Professor

  • Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior
Bio

Research Interests

Our lab is interested in neural mechanisms underlying higher-order brain functions linking perception and action, especially decision-making. We are addressing the question how the brain processes sensory information and combines it with other information in order to select what action to take next and when to take that action. These mechanisms have mainly been studied from a psychological point of view, whereas neurophysiologists have largely concentrated on lower-level mechanisms. We are bridging this gap by utilizing both behavioral and neurophysiological methods and by using mathematical models for exploring potential neural mechanisms. The goal of our research is to provide a solid foundation for understanding human choice behavior, the neural implementation of decision mechanisms, as well as problems with decision-making in neurological and psychiatric disorders.

In addition, our lab is also active in the area of neuroengineering, developing new technology that allows neuroscientists to address questions or test hypotheses that are difficult or impossible to investigate with currently available techniques.

Graduate Program Affiliations

Education and Degree(s)
  • 1995 Diploma in Electrical Engineering, Technical University of Munich, Germany
  • 2000 Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, Technical University of Munich, Germany
Publications
  • Thakur VN, Basso MA, Ditterich J, Knowlton BJ (2021) Implicit and explicit learning of Bayesian priors differently impacts bias during perceptual decision-making. Scientific Reports 11:16932
  • Rodriguez Rivero C, Ditterich J (2021) A user-friendly algorithm for adaptive closed-loop phase-locked stimulation. Journal of Neuroscience Methods 347:108965
  • McLean CS, Ouyang B, Ditterich J (2020) Second guessing in perceptual decision-making. Journal of Neuroscience 40:5078-5089
  • Stine GM, Zylberberg A, Ditterich J, Shadlen MN (2020) Differentiating between integration and non-integration strategies in perceptual decision making. Elife 9:e55365
  • Moxon K, Saez I, Ditterich J (2019) Mind Over Matter: Cognitive Neuroengineering. Cerebrum. Published online 2019 Jun 5

Tags