Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Rico Fischer

Past: PI A3 VCF

Contact information

Ernst-Moritz-Arndt-Universität Greifswald
Domstraße 11
17489 Greifswald

Phone: +49 3834 420 3754
E-Mail:

Research Statement

How is cognitive control flexibly adjusted to adapt behavior to changing situational demands? What are the determinants for top-down regulation vs. context-sensitive bottom-up priming of cognitive control? I am interested in the underlying cognitive mechanisms of anticipatory action control, conflict-triggered adjustments of cognitive control and the simultaneous coordination of multiple tasks as well as in the interaction of cognitive control mechanisms with mood states, stress and day-time optima.

Scientific Education

2013	Habilitation (venia legendi „Psychology“), Technische Universität Dresden
2006	Dr. rer. nat. (Psychology), Humboldt-University Berlin, supervisor: Prof. Dr. Torsten Schubert
2001	Diploma: Psychology, Humboldt-University Berlin, supervisor: PD Dr. Herbert Hagendorf

Professional Experience

Since 01/2006	Assistant Professor, Department of General Psychology, TU Dresden, Germany
04/2005 – 12/2005	Research fellow, Cognitive and Psychophysiology Lab, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand (Jeff Miller, PhD)
09/2001 – 12/2004	Research scientist, Department of Theoretical and Experimental Psychology, Humboldt-University Berlin, Germany (Prof. Dr. Peter Frensch, Dr. Torsten Schubert)

Other Scientific Activities, Honors, Awards

2011	Teaching Award, Technische Universitaet Dresden, Dresden, Germany
2010	Three year research grant of the German Research Foundation (DFG, FI 1624/2-1): "The functionality of alerting signals in response activation"
2009	Teaching Award for the course "Mechanisms of action control" (SS 2009), TU Dresden, Germany
2008/2009	DFG Travel grants (á 1200 Euro)
2008	Teaching Award: "best lecture" (WS 2007/08), Department of Psychology, TU Dresden, Germany
2006	Psychologia Universalis: Awarded publication of the dissertation: "Parallel memory retrieval in dual-task situations?" Pabst Science Publishers, Lengerich, Germany
2005	G.A. Lienert Stiftung research grant for a six months research project at the lab of Jeff Miller, PhD, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
2001	Best master thesis (Diplomarbeit) of the year; title: "Attentional control and negative priming"; Advisor: Herbert Hagendorf, PhD
Since 2008	Departmental services: Mid career representative

Selected Publications

Fischer, R., Gottschalk, C., & Dreisbach, G. (2014). Context-sensitive adjustment of cognitive control in dual-task performance. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 40(2), 399-416.

Fischer, R. & Zwosta, K. (2014). Der Einfluss von Stimmung auf Multitasking-Performanz [The Influence of Mood States on Multitasking Performance]. In C. Bermeitinger & D. Eckert (Eds.), Paradigmen der Kognitiven Psychologie: Stimmung I [Paradigms in Cognitive Psychology: Mood I] (Pp. 173-199). Berlin: Uni-Edition.

Fischer, R., Plessow, F., & Kiesel, A. (2012). The effects of alerting signals in action control: Activation of S-R associations or inhibition of executive control processes? Psychological Research. DOI 10.1007/s00426-011-0350-7

Dreisbach, G., & Fischer, R. (2012). Conflicts as aversive signals. Brain & Cognition, doi:10.1016/j.bandc.2011.12.003

Fischer, R., Plessow, F., Kunde, W., & Kiesel, A. (2010). Trial-to-trial modulations of the Simon effect in conditions of attentional limitations: Evidence from dual-tasks. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 36, 1576-1594.

Fischer, R., Dreisbach, G., & Goschke, T. (2008). Context-sensitive adjustments of cognitive control: Conflict-adaptation effects are modulated by processing demands of the ongoing task. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory and Cognition, 34(3), 712-718.

Fischer, R., Miller, J., & Schubert, T. (2007). Evidence for parallel semantic memory retrieval in dual-tasks. Memory & Cognition, 35, 1685-1695.

www.tu-dresden.de/psych/fischer