EDUCATION
| Ph.D. | Psychology | University of Barcelona (Spain) |
| M.S. | Cognitive Science and Language | University of Barcelona (Spain) |
| B.S. | Psychology | University of Barcelona (Spain) |
AREAS OF EXPERTISE
Math Cognition
Math Anxiety
Math Attitudes
fMRI
ERPs
INTERESTS
Cognitive Neuroscience
Educational Neuroscience
Learning
Development
CURRENT RESEARCH AND GRANT PROJECTS
InfoI’m accepting Ph.D. students for the Fall 2023.
If you are interested in joining the Brain, Learning, and Education (BLE) Lab, please contact me.
- Brain, Learning and Education (BLE) Lab: Principal investigator
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Behavioral and neuroscience methods (ERPs, fMRI) to understand individual differences in math skill and to identify the neurocognitive mechanisms predicting longitudinal gains in arithmetic skill over time
Studying the roles of both cognitive and emotional factors (math anxiety; math attitudes) in explaining or mediating these effects
HIGHLIGHTED PUBLICATIONS
Suårez Pellicioni, M., Prado, J. & Booth, J.R. (2022). Neurocognitive mechanisms underlying multiplication and subtraction performance in adults and skill development in children: a scoping review. Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences, 48, 101228. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cobeha.2022.101228.
SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M., & Booth, J. R. (2022). Temporal cortex activation explains childrenâs improvement in math attitudes. Child Development, 1-18. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13749
âSuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M., Demir-Lira, O.E., Booth, J. (2021). Neurocognitive mechanisms explaining the role of math attitudes in predicting childrenâs improvement in multiplication skill. Cognitive, Affective, and Behavioral Neuroscience, 21, 917-935. DOI: 10.3758/s13415-021-00906-9
Suårez Pellicioni, M., Soylu, F., Booth, J. (2021). Gray matter volume in left intraparietal sulcus predicts longitudinal gains in subtraction skill in elementary school. NeuroImage, 235,118021,https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118021.
SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M., Berteletti, I., & Booth, J.R. (2020). Early engagement of quantity mechanisms for solving large subtractions predicts longitudinal improvement in fluency in children. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 14, 163.Â
SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M., Fuchs, L., & Booth, J.R. (2019). Tempo-frontal cortex activation during phonological processing predicts gains in arithmetic facts in young children. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, 40, 100735.Â
SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M., Lytle, M., Younger, J., & Booth, J.R. (2019). Data Descriptor: A longitudinal neuroimaging dataset on arithmetic processing in 8- to 16-year old children. Scientific Data, 6: 190040.Â
Suårez Pellicioni, M., Prado, J. & Booth, J.R. (2018). Lack of improvement in multiplication is associated with reverting from verbal retrieval to numerical operations. NeuroImage, 183, 859-871.
Suårez Pellicioni, M. & Booth, J.R. (2018). Fluency in symbolic arithmetic refines the approximate number system in parietal cortex. Human Brain Mapping, 39: 3956-3971.
Demir-Lira, Ă.E., SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M., Binzak, J.V. & Booth, J.R. (2018). Attitudes Towards Math is Differentially Related to the Neural Basis of Multiplication Depending on Math Skill. Learning Disability Quarterly.
NĂșñez-Peña, M.I., Tubau, E. & SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M. (2017). Post-error response inhibition in high math-anxious individuals: Evidence from a multi-digit addition task. Acta Psychologica, 177, 17-22.Â
NĂșñez-Peña, M.I. & SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M. (2015). Processing of multi-digit additions in high math-anxious individuals: Psychophysiological evidence. Frontiers in Psychology, 6 (1268).
SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M., NĂșñez-Peña, M.I. & ColomĂ©, A. (2015). Math anxiety: A review of its cognitive consequences, psychophysiological correlates, and brain bases. Cognitive, Affective and Behavioral Neuroscience, 16(1), 3-22.
SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M., NĂșñez-Peña, M.I. & ColomĂ©, A. (2015). Attentional bias in high math-anxious individuals: Evidence from an emotional Stroop task. Frontiers in Psychology, 6 (1577).
NĂșñez-Peña, M.I., Bono, R. & SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M. (2015). Feedback on studentsâ performance: A possible way of reducing the negative effect of math anxiety in higher education. International Journal of Educational Research, 70, 80-87.
NĂșñez-Peña, M.I. & SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M. (2014). Less precise representation of numerical magnitude in high math-anxious individuals: An ERP study of the size and distance effects. Biological Psychology, 103, 176-183.
SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M., NĂșñez-Peña, M.I. & ColomĂ©, A. (2014). Reactive recruitment of attentional control in math anxiety: an ERP study of the numeric conflict monitoring and adaptation. PLoS ONE, 9(6): e99579.
SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M., NĂșñez-Peña, M.I. & ColomĂ©, A. (2013). Abnormal error monitoring in math-anxious individuals: evidence from error-related brain potentials. PLoS ONE, 8(11), e81143.
SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M., NĂșñez-Peña, M.I. & ColomĂ©, A. (2013). Mathematical anxiety effects on simple arithmetic processing efficiency: An Event-related potential study. Biological Psychology, 94, 517-526.Â
NĂșñez-Peña, M.I., Guilera, G. & SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M. (2013). The Single-Item Math Anxiety scale (SIMA): An alternative way of measuring mathematical anxiety. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 32(4), 306-317.
NĂșñez-Peña, M.I., SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M. & Bono, R. (2013). Effects of math anxiety on student success in higher education.  International Journal of Educational Research, 58, 36-43.
NĂșñez-Peña, M.I., SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M., Guilera, G. & MercadĂ©-Carranza, C. (2013). A Spanish version of the short Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale (sMARS). Learning and Individual Differences, 24, 204-206.
NĂșñez-Peña, M.I. & SuĂĄrez Pellicioni, M. (2012). Processing false solutions in additions: differences between high- and lower-skilled arithmetic problem-solvers. Experimental Brain Research, 218(4), 655-663.Â
Press Releases
Vanderbilt University
Neuroscience News
COURSES TAUGHT
Graduate
| Course ID | Course Title | Semester Offered |
|---|---|---|
| Topics in Educational Neuroscience: Numerical cognition | Fall | |
| Readings in Educational Psychology | Fall and Spring | |
| BEP 670 | Research Methods and Trends in Educational Neuroscience | Spring |
| BEP 500 | Advanced Educational Psychology | Fall |
| BEP 500-910-920 | Advanced Educational Psychology | Summer |
BIOGRAPHY
Macarena SuĂĄrez Pellicioni is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Educational Studies in Psychology, Research Methodology, and Counseling at the University of Alabama. She is a core faculty member in the Educational Neuroscience concentration. She obtained her Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Barcelona, where she used event-related potentials (ERPs) to study the electrophysiological correlates of math anxiety in adults. She then continued her training as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Texas at Austin (2015-2017) and at Vanderbilt University (2017-2019) working with Dr. James Booth on a project aiming to identify the neurocognitive mechanisms explaining longitudinal improvement in math in children using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI).
She joined the University of Alabama in January 2020 as an Assistant Professor, where she has continued this research line, focusing more on identifying the brain correlates of affective factors (math attitudes), their role in explaining math achievement, and their interaction with cognitive and social variables. Dr. SuĂĄrez Pellicioni teaches a range of undergraduate and graduate courses including Advanced Educational Psychology, Numerical Cognition, Methods & Trends in Educational Neuroscience, or Readings in Educational Psychology.