Prof. Dr. med. Michael Falkenstein

Academic background

• 2007 appointment as professor at the University of Dortmund
• since April 2002: Editor-in-chief of the "Journal of Psychophysiology"
• since 2000 head of the research group "Ageing and CNS alterations" at IfADo
• 1996 habilitation thesis in psychology at the faculty of psychology at the University of Bochum
• since 1986 research associate at the IfADo (Institut für Arbeitsphysiologie an der Universität Dortmund), Dept. of Sensory and Neurophysiology (Director: Prof. C.R. Cavonius, Ph.D.)
• 1985 diploma thesis in psychology
• 1983 MD thesis: "Auditory evoked brain stem potentials (BAEP) to clicks and frequency-modulated stimuli" (highest grade); Award of the University Prize
• 1981-85 study of psychology (Universities of Osnabrück, Düsseldorf and Bochum)
• 1978-85 research associate at the Institute of Neurophysiology at the University of Bochum (Director: Prof. Dr. Dr. D. Trincker)
• 1978 state exam in medicine and approbation as physician
• 1977 diploma thesis in electrical engineering in the field of psychoacoustics
• 1971-78 studies of medicine (Universities of Bochum and Essen)
• 1967-77 studies of electrical engineering and mathematics at the University of Bochum

Research interests

• cognitive psychophysiology, in particular executive processes: action monitoring and error processing; inhibition, attention, preparation
• changes of cognitive processes due to ageing, age-related diseases (PD, HD, dementia), and due to CNS alterations, e. g. by fatigue

Current research

research group "Aging and CNS alterations"

• central mechanisms of preparation, inhibition, response monitoring and evaluation, attentional control
• analysis of long-term changes of central nervous processes due to age and age-related diseases (e. g. Parkinson's and Huntington's disease)
• analysis of short-term changes of central nervous processes due to time pressure, effort and fatigue
• analysis of intermediate changes of central nervous processes due to learning
• driving ability of elderly and people with CNS diseases
• design of assistant systems for elderly and impaired drivers

Ombudsmann