Shu-Chen Li

Shu-Chen Li obtained her Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma, USA (1994) and completed her postdoctoral training at the McGill University in Montréal, Canada (1995), prior to her 17-year research career at the Max Planck Institute (MPI) for Human Development in Berlin, Germany. After being a senior research scientist and the principal investigator of the Neuromodulation of Lifespan Cognition Project at the MPI, she took up a full professorship as the chair of Lifespan Developmental Neuroscience in the Department of Psychology at TU Dresden (Technische Universität Dresden) in September 2012. Since 2019 she serves in the team of speakers of the Excellence Cluster CeTI.

Her research utilizes an integrated array of conceptual tools and empirical paradigms, ranging from neurocomputational studies for theory development over genetically informed behavioral, EEG, and brain imaging studies to investigate developmental and individual differences in brain-behavior relations across the lifespan. A specific focus is the interactions between neuromodulatory and contextual influences (e.g., stress or reward) on cognitive and motivational development across the lifespan.

• Neuromodulation of Perception, Cognition, and Motivation
• Behavioral and Brain Plasticity across the Lifespan
• Neuroeconomics and Lifespan Development
• Computational Neuroscience of Lifespan Development
• Stress and Lifespan Development
• Biocultural Co-construction of Lifespan Development

• Human-Technology Interaction and Plasticity across the Lifespan

Friederike, T., Dobroskok, A., Backhaus, M., Li, S.-C., Grittner, U., Antonenko, D., Agnes, F. (in press). Cognitive training and brain stimulation in prodromal Alzheimer’s disease (AD-Stim) - Study Protocol for a Double Blind Randomized Controlled Phase IIb (Monocenter) Trial. Alzheimer’s Research & Therapy.

Baeuchl, C., Kroemer, N., Pooseh, S., Petzold, J., ..., Thurm, F., Li, S.-C., Smolka, M. N. (2020). Reward modulates the association between sensory noise and brain activity during perceptual decision-making. Neuropsychologia, 149, 107675. doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2020.107675

Chiao, J. Y., Li, S.-C., Turner, T., & Lee-Tauler, S. Y. (2020). Cultural neuroscience and the research domain criteria: Implications for global mental health. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 116, 109-119. doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2020.06.005

Dix, A. & Li, S.-C. (2020). Incentive motivation improves numerosity discrimination: Insights from pupillometry combined with drift-diffusion modelling. Scientific Reports 10:2068, 1-11. doi:10.1038/s41598-020-59415-3

Ilg, L., Kirschbaum, C., Li, S.-C., Wimberger, P., Nitsche, K., Rosenlöcher, F., & Alexander, N. (2020). No association of antenatal synthetic glucocorticoid exposure and hair steroid levels in children and adolescents. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 105(1), dgz064. doi:10.1210/clinem/dgz064

Koch, C., Li, S.-C., Polk, T., & Schuck, N. W. (2020). Effects of aging on encoding walking directon in the human brain. Neuropsychologia, 141, 10379. doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2020.107379

Thurm, F., Li, S.-C., & Hämmerer, D. (2020). Maturation- and aging-related differences in electrophysiological correlates of error detection and error awareness. Neuropsychologia, 143, 1-10. doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2020.107476

Zink, N., Kang, K. Y. L., Li, S.-C., & Beste, C. (2020). Anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (atDCS) enhances the efficiency of functional brain network communication during auditory attentional control. Journal of Neurophysiology, 124(1), 207-217. doi:10.1152/jn.00074.2020

Antonenko, D., Thams, F., Uhrich, J., Dix, A., Thurm, F., Li, S.-C., ... & Flöel, A. (2019). Effects of a multi-session cognitive training combined with brain stimulation (TrainStim) on age-associated cognitive decline – study protocol for a randomized controlled Phase IIb (monocenter) trial. Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience, 11, Article 200, 1-12. doi:10.3389/fnagi.2019.00200

Adelhoefer, N., Gohil, K., Passow, S., Beste, C. & Li, S.-C. (2019). Lateral prefrontal anodal transcranial direct current stimulation augments resolution of auditory perceptual-attentional conflicts. NeuroImage, 199, 217-227.

Baeuchl, C., Chen, H.-Y., Su, Y.-S., Hämmerer, D., Klados, M. A., & Li, S.-C. (2019). Interactive effects of dopamine transporter genotype and aging on resting-state functional networks. PLOS ONE 14(5): e0215849.

Dahl, M., Ilg, L., Li, S.-C., Passow, S., & Werkle-Bergner, M. (2019). Diminished pre-stimulus alpha-lateralization suggests compromised self-initiated attentional control of auditory processing in old age. NeuroImage, 197, 412-424.

Hilliard, D., Passow, S., Thurm, F., Schuck, N. W., Garthe, A., Kempermann, G., & Li, S.-C. (2019). Noisy galvanic vestibular stimulation modulates spatial memory in young health adults. Scientific Report, 9: 9310.

Ilg, L., Kirschbaum, C., Li, S.-C., Rosenlöcher, F., Miller, R., & Alexander, N. (2019). Persistent effects of antenatal synthetic glucocorticoids on endocrine stress reactivity from childhood to adolescence. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 104(3), 827-834. doi:10.1210/jc.2018-01566

Li, S.-C., Dilcher, R., & Muenchau, A. (2019). Developmental trajectories of sensorimotor and cogniive control in Gilles de la Tourette Syndrome. Zeitschrift für Neuropsychologie, 30, 231-237. doi:10.1024/1016-264X/a000271

Reiter, A. M. F., Suzuki, S., O'Doherty, J. P., Li, S.-C., & Eppinger, B. (2019). Risk contagion by peers affects learning and decision-making in adolescents. Journal of experimental psychology: General. doi:10.1037/xge0000512

Adelhöfer, N., Gohil, K., Passow, S. Roessner, V., Li, S-C., & Beste, C. (2018). The system-neurophysiological basis for how methylphenidate modulates perceptual-attentional conflicts during auditory processing. Human Brain Mapping, 39, 5050-5061

Beste, C., Adelhöfer, N., Gohil, K., Passow, S., Rößner, V., Li, S.-C. (2018). Dopamine modulates the efficiency of sensory evidence accumulation during perception decision making. The International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology. 21(7), 649–655.

Buritica, J. M. R., Heekeren, H. R., Li, S.-C., & Eppinger, B. (2018). Developmental differences in the neural dynamics of observational learning. Neuropsychologia, 119, 12-23.

Ilg, L., Klados, M., Alexander, N., Kirschbaum, C., & Li, S.-C. (2018). Long-term impacts of prenatal synthetic glucocorticoids exposure on functional brain correlates of cognitive monitoring in adolescence. Scientific reports, 8(1), 7715. doi:10.1038/s41598-018-26067-3

Schuck, N. W., Petok, J. R., Meeter, M., Schjeide, B. M. M., Schröder, J., Bertram, L., ... & Li, S.-C. (2018). Aging and a genetic KIBRA polymorphism interactively affect feedback-and observation-based probabilistic classification learning. Neurobiology of aging, 61, 36-43.

Thurm, F., Zink, N., & Li, S.-C. (2018). Comparing effects of reward anticipation on working memory in younger and older adults. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, Article 231, 1-16.

Wittkuhn, L., Eppinger, B., Bartsch, L. M., Thurm, F., Korb, F. M., & Li, S.-C. (2018). Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation over dorsolateral prefrontal cortex modulates value-based learning during sequential decision-making. NeuroImage, 167, 384-395.

Eppinger, B., Heekeren, H. R., & Li, S.-C. (2017). Age differences in the neural mechanisms of intertemporal choice under subjective decision conflict. Cerebral Cortex.

Reiter, A., Eppinger, B., Kanske, P. & Li, S.-C. (2017). The aging of the social mind: differential effects on components of social understanding. Scientific Reports, 7, 11046, 1- 8.

Stankevich, Y., Thurm, F.  Evens, R., Fauser, M., Riedel, O. Storch, A., Li, S.-C. & Lueken, U. (2017).  Dysphoria, dopaminergic medication and spatial memory in Parkinson’s disease. Neuropsychoiatry, 7(3), 281-289.

FitzGerald, T.H.B., Hämmerer, D., Friston, K. J., Li, S.-C. & Dolan, R. J. (2017). Sequential inference as a mode of cognition and its correlations in fronto-parietal and hippocampal brain regions. PLOS Computational Biology.

Eppinger, B., Walter, M. & Li, S.-C. (2017). Electrophysiological correlates reflect the integration of model-based and model-free decision information. Cognitive, Affective & Behavioral Neuroscience. [Epub ahead DOI 10.3758/s13415-016-0487-3]

Passow, S., Thurm, F. & Li, S.-C. (2017). Activating developmental reserve capacity via cognitive training or non-invasive brain stimulation: potentials for promoting fronto-parietal and hippocampal-striatal network functions in old age. Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience, 9, Article 33.

Nassar, M. R., Bruckner, R., Gold, J. I., Heekeren, H. R., Li, S.-C., & Eppinger, B. (2016). Knowing what you don’t know: Age-related deficits in representing uncertainty. Nature Communications, vol. 7, 11609, 1-13.

Thurm, F., Schuck, N. W., Fauser, M., Doeller, C. F., Stankevich, Y., Evens, R., Riedel, O., Storch, A., Lueken, U., & Li, S.-C. (2016). Dopamine modulation of spatial memory in Parkinson’s disease. Neurobiology of Aging, 38, 93-103. doi: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2015.10.019

Schuck, N. W., Doeller, C. F., Polk, T. A., Lindenberger, U. & Li, S.-C. (2015). Human aging alters the neurocomputation and representation of space. NeuroImage, 117(15), 141-150. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2015.05.031

Garrett, D. D., Nagel, I. E., Preuschhof, C., Burzynska, A. Z., Marchner, J., Wiegert, S., Jungehülsing, G., Nyberg, L., Villringer, A., Li, S.-C., Heekeren, H. R., Bäckman, L. & Lindenberger, U. (2015). Amphetamine modulates brain signal variability and working memory in younger and older adults. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA, 112(24), 7593-7598. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1504090112

Buritica, J. M. R., Eppinger, B., Schuck, N. W., Heekeren, H. R. & Li, S.-C. (2015). Electrophysiological correlates of observational learning in children. Developmental Science, 1-11. doi: 10.1111/desc.12317

Eppinger, B., Heekeren, H. R. & Li, S.-C. (2015). Aging-related prefrontal impairments implicate deficient prediction of future reward in older adults. Neurobiology of Aging, 36(8), 2380–2390. doi:10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2015.04.010

Liu, T., Li, S.-C., Papenberg, Schröder, J., Roehr, J. T., Nietfeld, W., Lindenberger, U. & Bertram, L. (2014). No association between CTNNBL1 and episodic memory performance. Translational Psychiatry, 4, e454. doi:10.1038/tp.2014.93

Li, S.-C. & Rieckmann, A. (2014). Neuromodulation and aging: implications of aging neuronal gain control on cognition. Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 29, 148-158. doi:10.1016/j.conb.2014.07.009

Papenberg, G., Bäckman, L., Nagel, I. E., Wilfried, N., Schröder, J., Bertram, L., Heekeren, H. R., Lindenberger, U., & Li, S.-C. (2014). COMT polymorphism and memory dedifferentiation in old age. Psychology and Aging, 29(2), 374-383. doi:10.1037/a0033225

Störmer, V., Eppinger, B., Li, S.-C. (2014). Reward speeds up and increases consistency of selective visual attention: a lifespan comparison. Cognitive, Affective, and Behavioral Neuroscience, 14(2), 659-671. doi:10.3758/s13415-014-0273-z

Papenberg, G., Li, S.-C., Nagel, I. E., Nietfeld, W., Schjeide, B.-M., Schröder, J., Bertram, L., Heekeren, H. R., Lindenberger, U., & Bäckman, L. (2014). Dopamine and glutamate receptor genes interactively influence episodic memory in old age. Neurobiology of Aging, 35(5), 1213.e3–1213.e8. doi:10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2013.11.014

Passow, S., Westerhausen, R., Hugdahl, K., Wartenburger, I., Heekeren, H. R., Lindenberger, U., & Li, S.-C. (2014). Electrophysiological correlates of adult age differences in attentional control of auditory processing. Cerebral Cortex, 24, 249-260. doi:10.1093/cercor/bhs306

Papenberg, G., Haemmerer, D., Müller, V., Lindenberger, U. & Li, S.-C. (2013). Lower theta inter-trial phase coherence during performance monitoring is related to higher reaction time variability: a lifespan study. NeuroImage, 83, 912-920. doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2013.07.032

Li, S.-C. (2013). Neuromodulation and developmental contextual influences on neural and cognitive plasticity across the lifespan. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 37(9), 2201-2208. doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2013.07.019

Schuck, N. W., Frensch, P. A., Schjeide, R.-M. M., Schröder, J., Bertram, L. & Li, S.-C. (2013). Effects of aging and dopamine genotypes on the emergence of explicit memory during sequence learning. Neuropsychologia, 51(13), 2757-2769. doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2013.09.009

Schuck, N. W., Doeller, C. F., Schjeide, B.-M., Scjröder, J., Frensch, P. A., Bertram, L., & Li, S.-C. (2013). Aging and KIBRA/WWC1 genotype affect spatial memory processes in a virtual navigation task. Hippocampus, 23(10), 919-930. doi:10.1002/hipo.22148

Li, S.-C., Passow, S., Nietfeld, W., Schröder, J., Bertram, L., Heekeren, H. R. & Lindenberger, U. (2013). Striatal dopamine modulates attentional control of auditory perception: DARPP-32 genotype effects on behavioral and cortical evoked potentials. Neuropsychologia, 51(8), 1649-1661. doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2013.04.005

Li, S.-C., Papenberg, G., Nagel, I. E., Preuschhof, C., Schröder, J. Nietfeld, W., Bertram, L., Heekeren, H. R. Ulman, L., & Bäckman, L. (2013). Aging magnifies the effects of dopamine transporter and receptor genes on backward serial memory. Neurobiology of Aging, 34(1), 358.e1–358.e10. doi:10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2012.08.001

Li, S.-C. (2013). Lifespan development of neuromodulation of adaptive control and motivation as an ontogenetic mechanism for developmental niche construction. Developmental Science, 16(2), 317-319. doi:10.1111/desc.12032

Eppinger, B., Hämmerer, D., & Li, S.-C. (2011). Neuromodulation of reward-based learning and decision making in human aging. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1235(1), 1-17. doi:10.1111/j.1749-6632.2011.06230.x

Li, S.-C., Lindenberger, U., Hommel, B., Aschersleben, G., Prinz, W., & Baltes, P. B. (2004). Transformations in the couplings among intellectual abilities and constituent cognitive processes across the life span. Psychological Science, 15(3), 155-163. doi: 10.1111/j.0956-7976.2004.01503003.x

Li, S.-C. (2003). Biocultural orchestration of developmental plasticity across levels: The interplay of biology and culture in shaping the mind and behavior across the lifespan. Psychological Bulletin, 129(2), 171-194. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.129.2.171

Li, S.-C., Lindenberger, U., & Sikström, S. (2001). Aging cognition: From neuromodulation to representation. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 5(11), 479-486. doi:10.1016/S1364-6613(00)01769-1