Meet the Team
We are investigating the Phenomenon of Anauralia at the University of Auckland in Auckland, New Zealand
Anthony Lambert
Tony studied at the universities of Sheffield (BSc) and Leicester (PhD), as well as working as a research assistant in Durham (UK) before moving to Auckland in 1988. He is interested in a wide range of topics in cognitive psychology and cognitive neuroscience, including visual attention, memory, human-computer interaction, handedness, the split-brain, optic ataxia and consciousness. Currently he is fascinated by sensory imagery, and in particular by the psychological implications of varying experiences of auditory imagery. When not at work, Tony enjoys sailing a Farr 6000, walking and playing the keyboard very badly. He is also the proud owner of an 8” Classical Cassegrain Reflector, but struggles to find enough time to set it up and contemplate the heavens.
Suzanne Purdy
Suzanne (Te Rarawa, Ngāi Takoto) completed her MSc at University of Auckland, then trained as a clinical audiologist at the University of Melbourne in 1981. She worked as a clinical audiologist for six years but was lured back into hearing-related research. She then completed a PhD at the University of Iowa before starting her academic career in 1990. Her many hearing-related interests include sensory neuroscience, auditory processing, clinical audiology and equity in hearing health services. Due to the close link with audiology, she is very curious about auditory imagery as part of the rich tapestry of human auditory experiences.
Reece Roberts
Reece is a cognitive neuroscientist primarily interested in understanding how the brain remembers and imagines events, with a particular focus on employing neuroimaging methods such as fMRI and EEG to uncover the functional role of different brain regions in these processes. He also has an interest in creative cognition, and its relationship to our ability to imagine possible future events. Finally, Reece is part of a large multi-disciplinary team (the Dementia Prevention Research Clinic) that seeks to understand the progression of Alzheimer’s disease in a New Zealand cohort.
Samuel Mehr
Samuel Mehr joined the University of Auckland in 2022 as a as a Senior Lecturer and Rutherford Discovery Fellow in the School of Psychology. He splits his time between New Zealand and New Haven, where he is Associate Professor Adjunct at the Child Study Center, Yale University. He directs The Music Lab, an international research group working on auditory perception; the psychology of music, speech, and sound; and gamified citizen science. His work draws on ideas and tools from cognitive and developmental psychology, data science, and evolutionary anthropology, to ask: Why do we hear what we hear?
Zoé Schelp
Zoé is a PhD student in psychology and cognitive neuroscience at the University of Auckland investigating anauralia. Her research is focusing on the effects of anauralia on verbal and non-verbal working memory. Outside of studies and teaching, she loves playing violin and guitar, reading, sewing, cooking/baking and winter sports.
Gage Quigley-Tump
Gage is a PhD student in psychology and cognitive neuroscience at the University of Auckland investigating anauralia. His research focuses on the physiological measurements of anauralia and auditory imagery. He enjoys playing guitar and listening to heavy metal.
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Olivia Johnson
Olivia is a Masters student in Psychology at the University of Auckland investigating anauralia. Her research focuses on exploring the relationship between anauralia and aphantasia and their impact on emotional autobiographical memory. In her spare time she enjoys playing soccer, baking and engaging in a good book.
Want to know more about what we investigate exactly?
Have a look here