Ashley S. Safford
Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study, George Mason University
4400 University Drive, MS# 2A1, Fairfax, VA 22030
H: (703) 542-8970 / C: (315)345-5690
ahamlin2@gmu.edu / askye37@gmail.com
EDUCATION
Ph.D., Neuroscience, July 2012, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA
Advisor: James C. Thompson, Ph.D.
Dissertation Title: The role of attention in biological motion perception: A biased-competition
perspective.
B.S., Psychology; B.A., Biological Sciences, May 2005, The State University of New York, University at
Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
Graduated Summa cum Laude
PUBLICATIONS
Thompson, J.C., Dziura, S., Baccus, W., Safford, A. Increasing eccentricity reduces the contribution of
form to the perception of biological motion. Journal of Vision. Under Review.
Buzzell, G., Chubb, L., Safford, A., Thompson, J., & McDonald, C. Speed of Human Biological Form
and Motion Processing. Manuscript in preparation.
Safford, A., Siembieda, K.A., & Thompson, J.C. Object-based attentional modulation of effective
connectivity in biological motion perception. Manuscript in preparation.
Krueger, F., Safford, A., & Grafman, J. Gender differences in cortical network connectivity during the
Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test. Manuscript in preparation.
Shucard, JL., Lee, WH., Safford, A., Shucard, DW. (2011) The Relationship Between Processing Speed
and Working Memory Demand in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: Evidence from a Visual N-Back Task.
Neuropsychology. 25(1): 45-52.
Safford, A., Hussey, E., Parasuraman, R., & Thompson, J.C. (2010) Object-Based Attentional
Modulation of Biological Motion Processing: Spatiotemporal Dynamics Using Functional Magnetic
Resonance Imaging and Electroencephalography. Journal of Neuroscience. 30(27):9064-9073.
Hussey, E. & Safford, A. (2009) Perception of Facial Expression in Somatosensory Cortex Supports
Simulationist Models. Journal of Neuroscience. 29(2):301-302.
CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS
Safford, A., Siembieda, K.A., & Thompson, J.C. (2012). Object-based attentional modulation of
effective connectivity in biological motion perception. Cognitive Neuroscience Society, Chicago, IL.
Safford, A., Siembieda, K.A., & Thompson, J.C. (2011). Dynamic Causal Modeling of the attentional
modulation of neural responses to biological motion. Society for Neuroscience, Washington, DC.
Siembieda, K.A., Safford, A., & Thompson, J.C. (2011). Spatial configuration influences attentional
modulation of biological motion perception when stimuli are close together. Society for Neuroscience,
Washington, DC.
Chubb, L., Safford, A., Thompson, J. & McDonald, C. (2011). An Electrophysiological Correlate of
Rapid Attentional Capture by Biological Motion. Cognitive Neuroscience Society, Montreal, Canada.
Safford, A., Hussey, E., Parasuraman, R., & Thompson, J.C. (2010). Object-based attentional
modulation of biological motion processing: Spatiotemporal dynamics using fMRI and EEG.
Organization for Human Brain Mapping, Barcelona, Spain.
Safford, A., Hussey, E, Parasuraman, R., & Thompson, J.C. (2009). Selective attention to superimposed
biological and tool motion: a combined fMRI and ERP study. Vision Sciences Society, Naples, FL.
Hussey, E., Safford, A., Parasuraman, R., Thompson, J.C. (2009). Coding of Goal, Perspective, and
Kinematics in Action Observation. Vision Sciences Society, Naples, FL.
Hamlin, A.S., Thompson, J.C. (2008). A Repetition Suppression Study of the Visual Processing of Gait
and Configuration from Biological Motion. Organization for Human Brain Mapping, Melbourne,
Australia.
Shucard, D.W., Tekok-Kilic, A., Hamlin, A.S., & Shucard, J.L. (2007). Event-Related Potentials can
reflect frontal activation associated with increased task difficulty. Poster presented at Society for
Neuroscience Conference, San Diego, CA.
Hamlin, A.S., Shucard, J.L., Tekok-Kilic, A., & Shucard, D.W. (2007). Increased Activation of the
Frontal P3 During Encoding is Associated with Poorer Working Memory Performance in Middle Aged
Adults. Poster presented at Society for Psychophysiological Research Conference, Savannah, GA.
Shiels, K., Shucard, D., Posner, M., Tekok-Kilic, A., Hamlin, A., & Shucard, J. (2006). Lateralization
of the P3 Response During Stages of Verbal and Spatial Working Memory. Society for
Psychophysiological Research Conference, Vancouver, British Colombia.
PROFESSIONAL AND RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
Graduate Research Assistant: George Mason University, Perception Action Neuroscience Group,
Fairfax, VA (8/2007 – Present)
• Design and implementation of psychophysiological and neuroimaging (fMRI & EEG)
experiments to investigate the Role of attention in visual processing of human body movements.
• Training and supervision of research assistants.
• All aspects of participant recruitment, scheduling, data collection and analysis.
• Preparation of manuscripts for presentation and/or publication.
Research Coordinator: University at Buffalo, Division of Cognitive and Behavioral Neurosciences,
Departments of Neurology and Psychology, Buffalo NY (3/2006 – 8/2007)
• All aspects of recruitment, scheduling data collection and analysis for Cognitive Function in
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus study, funded by the National Institutes of Health.
•
Experimental set up and implementation of Electrophysiological experiments using 256 channel
Electrical Geodesics Incorporated equipment with E-Prime and NetStation software.
Undergraduate Research Assistant: University at Buffalo, Division of Cognitive and Behavioral
Neurosciences, Departments of Neurology and Psychology, Buffalo NY (6/2004 – 6/2005)
Undergraduate Research Assistant: University at Buffalo, Psychophysiology Laboratory, Department of
Psychology, Buffalo NY (9/2003 – 9/2004)
TEACHING AND MENTORING EXPERIENCE
Instructor – Brain and Behavior I, Psychology 375
Fall 2011, Department of Psychology, George Mason University
Mentoring of Undergraduate Research Assistants
Olga Mozgova, Lyana Mahmoudi, Kristine Siembieda
2007 – Present, George Mason University
HONORS AND AWARDS
CENTEC Scholar, George Mason University
Fellowship to NIMH Summer Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience at UC-Santa Barbara (2009)
Presidential Scholars Award, George Mason University
COMPUTER AND TECHNICAL SKILLS
Statistics and Data Analysis Packages: FSL, Freesurfer, SPM, MATLAB, SPSS, EMSE
Level IV training on Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study Siemens Allegra 3T MRI scanner
• Certification to independently operate MRI scanner.
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS
Organization for Human Brain Mapping (OHBM)
Society for Neuroscience (SfN)
Vision Sciences Society (VSS)
Cognitive Neurosciences Society (CNS)
ACADEMIC AND SERVICE ACTIVITIES
Co-leader: Cognitive Neuroscience Journal Club, George Mason University
Member: fMRI Methods Journal Club, George Mason University
Member: Perception and Action Neuroscience Group, George Mason University