Social interactions are fundamental to maintaining a healthy life. Likewise, an individual's reputation, cooperation and social bonds play a crucial role in social interactions. Our lab investigates the interdependence and neural basis of these psychological processes.
The ultimate goal of the lab is to understand the behavioral and neural mechanisms responsible for the formation and maintenance of friendships through a multi-pronged approach.
Wong, Williams, Williams, Báez-Mendoza Raymundo Báez-Mendoza was interviewed about the role of immigration in science for NPR Radio (USA) (November 2024). https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2024/11/21/nx-s1-5187926/u-s-science-could-suffer-if-trump-limits-h-1b-visas-again.
Selected Publications
- 2022
S. W. Li, O. Zeliger, L. Strahs, R. Báez-Mendoza, L. M. Johnson, A. McDonald Wojciechowski, Z. M. Williams. A prefrontal mechanism linking social group dominance with competitive success. Nature 603 (7902), 661-666
- 2021
R. Báez-Mendoza, E. P. Mastrobattista, A. J. Wang, Z M. Williams. Social Agent Identity Cells in the Prefrontal Cortex of Interacting Groups of Primates. Science. 274 (6566), eabb4149
- 2021
M. Jamali, B. L. Grannan, E. Fedorenko, R. Saxe, R. Báez-Mendoza, Z. M. Williams Single-neuronal predictions of others’ beliefs in humans. Nature. 591 (7851), 610-614
- 2019
F Grabenhorst, R Báez-Mendoza, W Genest, G Deco, W Schultz. Primate amygdala neurons simulate decision processes of social partners. Cell. 177 (4), 1-13
- 2013
R. Báez-Mendoza, C. Harris, W. Schultz. Activity of striatal neurons reflects social action and own reward. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 110(41), 16634:16639
We are funded through an ERC Starting Grant, eanen Leibniz Cooperative Excellence Grant, the MacLean-Erkelenz-Stiftung and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.
Currently, we have one open position for a postdoc and regularly offer the possibility to do lab rotations or Master studies in the lab. More details can be found in our Jobs page.
