Dr Nick Davis
Senior Lecturer
My profile
Biography
I am a psychologist and neuroscientist. My research uses electrical or magnetic stimulation to modify brain activity, as a way to understand how the brain controls our behaviour. I am particularly interested in the ethical limits of modifying behavour. For example, is it right to enhance brain activity when revising for an exam? I enjoy working with philosophers and legal scholars who are also interested in these questions.
When not in the lab or the office, I am a slow runner (PB 4:47) and a weak rock climber, and am regularly outsmarted by my two small daughters.
Academic and professional qualifications
I hold a BSc in Cognitive Science from the University of Sheffield, and later completed an MSc in Cognitive Science at the University of Birmingham. I stayed on in Birmingham to complete a PhD in Psychology an 2005.
Editorial Board membership
I am on the editorial board of The Cerebellum and of the Movement Science and Sport Psychology section of Frontiers in Psychology.
Research outputs
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Chapters in books
Davis, N.J. (2018) 'Efficient causation and neuroscientific explanations of criminal acts.' In Donnelly-Lazarov, B. (ed.) Neurolaw and responsibility for action: concepts, crimes and courts. Cambridge University Press, pp. 124-140.
Davis, N.J. (2018) 'Ethics of device-based treatments in pediatric neuropsychiatric disorders.' Neurotechnology and Brain Stimulation in Pediatric Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Disorders. pp. 55-81.
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Journal articles
Shi, X., Webb, L., Gary, P., Davis, N. 'Risk Factor Analysis of NPC Death in the UK.' The Lancet,
Hussain, M., Davis, N.J., Benn, Y. (2024) 'A single tDCS session can enhance numerical competence.' Neuropsychologia, 193
Davis, N.J. (2023) 'Invasiveness is Inevitable in Psychiatric Neurointerventions.' American Journal of Bioethics Neuroscience, 14(1) pp. 13-15.
Davis, N.J. (2021) 'Water-immersion finger-wrinkling improves grip efficiency in handling wet objects.' PLoS One, 16(7)
Davis, N.J. (2021) 'Quantifying the trajectory of gyrification changes in the aging brain (Commentary on Madan, 2021).' European Journal of Neuroscience, 53(11) pp. 3634-3636.
Davis, N.J. (2020) 'Variance in cortical depth across the brain surface: Implications for transcranial stimulation of the brain.' European Journal of Neuroscience, 53(4) pp. 996-1007.
Bestelmeyer, P., Davis, N., Poliva, O., Rafal, R. (2018) 'Neuromodulation of Right Auditory Cortex Selectively Increases Activation in Speech-Related Brain Areas in Brainstem Auditory Agnosia.' Cognitive and Behavioral Neurology, 31(3) pp. 151-155.
Davis, N.J. (2018) 'Questioning the Goldwater Rule: Commentary on Lilienfeld, Miller, and Lynam..' Perspectives on Psychological Science, 13(1) pp. 31-32.
Barratt, E., Spence, C., Davis, N.J. (2017) 'Sensory determinants of the autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR): understanding the triggers.' PeerJ, 5
Davis, N.J. (2017) 'Brain Stimulation for Cognitive Enhancement in the Older Person: State of the Art and Future Directions.' Journal of Cognitive Enhancement, 1(3) pp. 337-344.
Davis, N.J. (2017) 'A Taxonomy of Harms Inherent in Cognitive Enhancement.' Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 11
Davis, N.J. (2016) 'The regulation of consumer tDCS: engaging a community of creative self-experimenters.' Journal of Law and the Biosciences, 3(2) pp. 304-308.
Austin, A., Jiga-Boy, G.M., Rea, S., Newstead, S.A., Roderick, S., Davis, N.J., Clement, R.M., Boy, F. (2016) 'Prefrontal electrical stimulation in nondepressed reduces levels of reported negative affects from daily stressors.' Frontiers in Psychology, 7
Grimaldi, G., Argyropoulos, G.P., Bastian, A., Cortes, M., Davis, N.J., Edwards, D.J., Ferrucci, R., Fregni, F., Galea, J.M., Hamada, M., Manto, M., Miall, R.C., Morales-Quezada, L., Pope, P.A., Priori, A., Rothwell, J., Tomlinson, S.P., Celnik, P. (2016) 'Cerebellar Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (ctDCS): A Novel Approach to Understanding Cerebellar Function in Health and Disease.' Neuroscientist, 22(1) pp. 83-97.
Barratt, E.L., Davis, N.J. (2015) 'Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR): A flow-like mental state.' PeerJ, 2015(3)
Widdows, K.C., Davis, N.J. (2014) 'Ethical considerations in using brain stimulation to treat eating disorders.' Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, 8(OCT)
Tomlinson, S.P., Davis, N.J., Morgan, H.M., Bracewell, R.M. (2014) 'Cerebellar contributions to spatial memory.' Neuroscience Letters, 578pp. 182-186.
Penton, T., Thierry, G.L., Davis, N.J. (2014) 'Individual differences in attributional style but not in interoceptive sensitivity, predict subjective estimates of action intention.' Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 8(AUG)
Davis, N.J. (2014) 'Transcranial stimulation of the developing brain: A plea for extreme caution.' Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 8(AUG)
Goulden, N., Khusnulina, A., Davis, N.J., Bracewell, R.M., Bokde, A.L., McNulty, J.P., Mullins, P.G. (2014) 'The salience network is responsible for switching between the default mode network and the central executive network: Replication from DCM.' NeuroImage, 99pp. 180-190.
Morgan, H.M., Davis, N.J., Bracewell, R.M. (2014) 'Does transcranial direct current stimulation to prefrontal cortex affect mood and emotional memory retrieval in healthy individuals?.' PLoS ONE, 9(3)
Tomlinson, S.P., Davis, N.J., Morgan, H.M., Bracewell, R.M. (2014) 'Cerebellar contributions to verbal working memory.' Cerebellum, 13(3) pp. 354-361.
Davis, N.J., van Koningsbruggen, M.G. (2013) '"Non-invasive" brain stimulation is not non-invasive.' Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience, 7(DEC)
Davis, N.J., Gold, E., Pascual-Leone, A., Bracewell, R.M. (2013) 'Challenges of proper placebo control for non-invasive brain stimulation in clinical and experimental applications.' European Journal of Neuroscience, 38(7) pp. 2973-2977.
Davis, N.J. (2013) 'Neurodoping: Brain stimulation as a performance-enhancing measure.' Sports Medicine, 43(8) pp. 649-653.
Tomlinson, S.P., Davis, N.J., Bracewell, R.M. (2013) 'Brain stimulation studies of non-motor cerebellar function: A systematic review.' Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 37(5) pp. 766-789.
Davis, N.J., Tomlinson, S.P., Morgan, H.M. (2012) 'The role of beta-frequency neural oscillations in motor control.' Journal of Neuroscience, 32(2) pp. 403-404.
Tomlinson, S.P., Davis, N.J., Morgan, H.M., Bracewell, R.M. (2011) 'Hemispheric specialisation in haptic processing.' Neuropsychologia, 49(9) pp. 2703-2710.
Davis, N.J., Cui, S., Spence, C. (2008) 'The dynamics of reciprocal aiming with a steering wheel.' Experimental Brain Research, 188(1) pp. 141-146.
Davis, N.J. (2007) 'Memory and coordination in bimanual isometric finger force production.' Experimental Brain Research, 182(1) pp. 137-142.