Research
Research on sexual offending has focused on behavioral and clinical phenomena to describe the etiology of sexual offending, which has resulted in an incomplete view of the underlying mechanisms. My aim is to use insights from cognitive neuroscience to identify biocognitive factors that underlie sexual offending. Gaining an understanding of these factors and how they relate to individual differences has the potential to open new avenues for diagnosis and treatment.
During my PhD project, I studied reinforcement learning and affective processing in child molesters, as well as related cognitive processes, such as sensitivity to (social) reward.
Supervisors:
Dr. Inti Brazil
Dr. Kris Goethals (University of Antwerp, Belgium)
Dr. Bernard Sabbe (University of Antwerp, Belgium)
Biography
I obtained a masters degree in clinical psychology in 2002 (University of Gent, Belgium), followed by a masters degree in forensic psychology in 2003 (University of Melbourne, Australia). From 2004 to 2014, I worked with sexual offenders as a clinical psychologist and therapist. In 2014, I obtained a personal grant to conduct research for my dissertation, which I defended on 3 November 2021.
Research on sexual offending has focused on behavioral and clinical phenomena to describe the etiology of sexual offending, which has resulted in an incomplete view of the underlying mechanisms. My aim is to use insights from cognitive neuroscience to identify biocognitive factors that underlie sexual offending. Gaining an understanding of these factors and how they relate to individual differences has the potential to open new avenues for diagnosis and treatment.
During my PhD project, I studied reinforcement learning and affective processing in child molesters, as well as related cognitive processes, such as sensitivity to (social) reward.
Supervisors:
Dr. Inti Brazil
Dr. Kris Goethals (University of Antwerp, Belgium)
Dr. Bernard Sabbe (University of Antwerp, Belgium)
Biography
I obtained a masters degree in clinical psychology in 2002 (University of Gent, Belgium), followed by a masters degree in forensic psychology in 2003 (University of Melbourne, Australia). From 2004 to 2014, I worked with sexual offenders as a clinical psychologist and therapist. In 2014, I obtained a personal grant to conduct research for my dissertation, which I defended on 3 November 2021.
