NEUROSCIENCE
OF ADDICTION
LAB
OUR LAB
Welcome to the website of the Neuroscience of Addiction (NofA) lab. The NofA lab is embedded within the Center for Substance use and Addiction Research (CESAR) of the department of Department of Psychology, Education and Child Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands. As a team, we study how the brain in interaction with the environment shape trajectories of substance use and addiction.
ABOUT
Why do some lose control over drug use, while others do not? We are intrigued by the fine line between addiction risk and resilience. To this end, we study the processes underlying trajectories of drug use, from onset to treatment outcome. The NofA lab was founded at the University of Amsterdam in 2017 and transitioned to the Erasmus University in 2021. We use an interdisciplinary approach to learn how social and cultural processes shapes the neurobiology underlying addiction. This requires us to develop new methods, perform lab studies using neuroimaging techniques and field studies where we take our science to the city.
WHAT WE DO
In our lab, we focus on investigating why some people lose control over drug use, while others do not. We investigate the effect of aging on various drug use (Research: Aging Matters) and the highs and lows of cannabis for brain health (Research: Blowing Minds). In those studies, we examine both the brain’s inside, with neuroimaging techniques, and outside, by exploring the social and cultural aspects.
Emese Kroon and Lauren Kuhns are now doctors!
In January 2024, Emese Kroon and Lauren Kuhns successfully defended their dissertations at the Agnietenkapel in Amsterdam. Their dissertations,…
Sammie Back publishes an article about laughing gas
Sammie Back completed her bachelor internship with us some time ago. During this period, she delved into literature on…
Visiting PhD Candidate Inês starts in July
In July 2023, PhD candidate Inês Macedo joined the NofA lab for a rotation program of 5 months. Inês…