Let’s introduce the team!
In our ‘Meet the team’ posts you will learn more about the NOFA lab members. Always wanted to know more about our projects, research interests, background, or hobbies? Keep reading!
What is your name? Emese Kroon
Can you tell something about yourself? I was born in the Netherlands and grew up in a relatively small village close to Amsterdam. I completed a bachelors degree in psychobiology and afterwards completed the research master psychology, both at the University of Amsterdam. During my bachelor and master I studied a variety of topics from cell biology to evolutionary psychology, but got more and more interested in addiction research. Although the research I did for the past years mostly centers around this one topic, I still prefer combining different types of research methods. That is also why I’m really glad the NOFA lab gives me the opportunity to combine neuroimaging techniques with classic measures of human behaviour and cognition.
What is your role at the NOFA lab? I’m a second year PhD student working on the Joint Study. A super interesting and extensive study in which we, in collaboration with the University of Texas Dallas (UTD), look into the effects of Cannabis Use Disorder (CUD) on the brain and how cultural difference shape the effects of cannabis on our brain and behaviour.
What is your main research interest/topic? In my PhD project I focus on the effects of heavy cannabis use and CUD on the brain and behaviour. What makes that some heavy users cannabis users develop an addiction while others do not? I’m particularly interested in the role of cognitive control and the importance of context in the effects of cognitive control. Cognitive control is often found to be impaired in individuals suffering from substance use disorders, but the context specificity of this impairment is unclear.
Is there anything else we should know about you? Where to start! A little summary: my favourite colour is blue, I like penguins, I’m not a fan of biking in Dutch weather, I play korfbal (a very very Dutch sport), and live in Amsterdam.