Head of Laboratory: The Numerical Neurocognitive and Affect Lab
Prof. Orly Rubinsten is a cognitive neuropsychologist whose work explores how thinking, emotion, and physiological processes jointly shape learning. Her research centers on mathematics and numerical cognition, with a broader focus on learning and performance in STEM* domains.
Her research program examines both the mechanisms that enable successful learning, including cognitive effort, metacognitive monitoring, attentional control, and emotional resilience. She also studies the factors that interfere with learning, with a focus on anxiety and individual differences in emotion regulation. A major theme of her work is understanding how emotional states and regulatory strategies influence engagement, motivation, and persistence when learners encounter demanding mathematical and STEM* challenges.
Prof. Rubinsten’s laboratory investigates emotion regulation processes, including strategies such as cognitive reappraisal and suppression, and their impact on performance and perseverance. She is particularly interested in how math anxiety develops, how it alters the allocation of attention and cognitive resources during problem solving.
Methodologically, her research combines behavioral measures (e.g., accuracy and response times) with advanced psychophysiological tools, including eye-tracking, pupillometry, and event-related potentials (ERP), allowing fine-grained analysis of the temporal dynamics of cognitive effort, arousal, and stress during learning.
By integrating perspectives from psychology, neuroscience, and education, Prof. Rubinsten aims to advance theoretical models of cognition-emotion interactions, while also translating scientific insights into evidence-based educational practices and policies that promote resilience, persistence, and equity in mathematics and STEM* education.
*STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics