Marc Malmdorf Andersen
@ndersen.bsky.social
Cognitive scientist, associate professor at Aarhus University.
Predictive Processing, Emotion, Play, Recreational Fear, Cognitive Development.
Predictive Processing, Emotion, Play, Recreational Fear, Cognitive Development.
Pinned
🧟♂️🚨 Publication alert! 🚨🧟♀️
Holy moly, I'm thrilled to announce our new paper in Emotion! We explored how recreational fear, physiological synchrony, and social closeness interact in a high-intensity haunted house setting. 1/5 🧵
Link: psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?d...
Holy moly, I'm thrilled to announce our new paper in Emotion! We explored how recreational fear, physiological synchrony, and social closeness interact in a high-intensity haunted house setting. 1/5 🧵
Link: psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?d...
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
Not only many adults, but the vast majority of children too, from infancy through the teenage years, enjoy “recreational fear”—activities that are both scary and fun—new Danish study finds, with the nature and context of the activities evolving with age:
buff.ly/AAfh2mt
buff.ly/AAfh2mt
November 5, 2025 at 6:36 AM
Not only many adults, but the vast majority of children too, from infancy through the teenage years, enjoy “recreational fear”—activities that are both scary and fun—new Danish study finds, with the nature and context of the activities evolving with age:
buff.ly/AAfh2mt
buff.ly/AAfh2mt
Come join the wonderful CogSci dep at Aarhus Uni, Denmark! Fantastic students, wonderful colleagues, and great work/life balance! We are looking for applicants with teaching experience in the field of computational modelling of cognitive and/or social processes.
international.au.dk/about/profil...
international.au.dk/about/profil...
Assistant Professor, Associate Professor or Full Professor of Cognitive Science - Vacancy at Aarhus University
Vacancy at School of Communication and Culture - Linguistics, Cognitive Science and Semiotics, Dept. of, Aarhus University
international.au.dk
November 27, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Come join the wonderful CogSci dep at Aarhus Uni, Denmark! Fantastic students, wonderful colleagues, and great work/life balance! We are looking for applicants with teaching experience in the field of computational modelling of cognitive and/or social processes.
international.au.dk/about/profil...
international.au.dk/about/profil...
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
Come join the workshop on Recreational Fear at @aiasdk.bsky.social, @au.dk!
🎃👻 When Fear Is Fun 2025 🎃👻
Our 5th annual workshop on recreational fear is happening in Aarhus on Dec 12!
Free participation, registration required.
🔗 Speakers + program: cc.au.dk/en/recreatio...
🔗 Register: event.au.dk/events/when-...
Our 5th annual workshop on recreational fear is happening in Aarhus on Dec 12!
Free participation, registration required.
🔗 Speakers + program: cc.au.dk/en/recreatio...
🔗 Register: event.au.dk/events/when-...
November 21, 2025 at 8:27 AM
Come join the workshop on Recreational Fear at @aiasdk.bsky.social, @au.dk!
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
** Recruiting a postdoc ** We are looking for a postdoc to work on emotion, mental health, and interoception, based in London at @ucl.ac.uk in my lab (Clinical and Affective Neuroscience). Part of a large Wellcome Grant (co-led with the brilliant @camillanord.bsky.social)
November 24, 2025 at 12:22 PM
** Recruiting a postdoc ** We are looking for a postdoc to work on emotion, mental health, and interoception, based in London at @ucl.ac.uk in my lab (Clinical and Affective Neuroscience). Part of a large Wellcome Grant (co-led with the brilliant @camillanord.bsky.social)
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
🎃👻 When Fear Is Fun 2025 🎃👻
Our 5th annual workshop on recreational fear is happening in Aarhus on Dec 12!
Free participation, registration required.
🔗 Speakers + program: cc.au.dk/en/recreatio...
🔗 Register: event.au.dk/events/when-...
Our 5th annual workshop on recreational fear is happening in Aarhus on Dec 12!
Free participation, registration required.
🔗 Speakers + program: cc.au.dk/en/recreatio...
🔗 Register: event.au.dk/events/when-...
November 21, 2025 at 8:01 AM
🎃👻 When Fear Is Fun 2025 🎃👻
Our 5th annual workshop on recreational fear is happening in Aarhus on Dec 12!
Free participation, registration required.
🔗 Speakers + program: cc.au.dk/en/recreatio...
🔗 Register: event.au.dk/events/when-...
Our 5th annual workshop on recreational fear is happening in Aarhus on Dec 12!
Free participation, registration required.
🔗 Speakers + program: cc.au.dk/en/recreatio...
🔗 Register: event.au.dk/events/when-...
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
In need of horror-based scholarship? I re-FEAR you to the workshop below....
🎃👻 When Fear Is Fun 2025 🎃👻
Our 5th annual workshop on recreational fear is happening in Aarhus on Dec 12!
Free participation, registration required.
🔗 Speakers + program: cc.au.dk/en/recreatio...
🔗 Register: event.au.dk/events/when-...
Our 5th annual workshop on recreational fear is happening in Aarhus on Dec 12!
Free participation, registration required.
🔗 Speakers + program: cc.au.dk/en/recreatio...
🔗 Register: event.au.dk/events/when-...
November 21, 2025 at 1:55 PM
In need of horror-based scholarship? I re-FEAR you to the workshop below....
🎃👻 When Fear Is Fun 2025 🎃👻
Our 5th annual workshop on recreational fear is happening in Aarhus on Dec 12!
Free participation, registration required.
🔗 Speakers + program: cc.au.dk/en/recreatio...
🔗 Register: event.au.dk/events/when-...
Our 5th annual workshop on recreational fear is happening in Aarhus on Dec 12!
Free participation, registration required.
🔗 Speakers + program: cc.au.dk/en/recreatio...
🔗 Register: event.au.dk/events/when-...
November 21, 2025 at 8:01 AM
🎃👻 When Fear Is Fun 2025 🎃👻
Our 5th annual workshop on recreational fear is happening in Aarhus on Dec 12!
Free participation, registration required.
🔗 Speakers + program: cc.au.dk/en/recreatio...
🔗 Register: event.au.dk/events/when-...
Our 5th annual workshop on recreational fear is happening in Aarhus on Dec 12!
Free participation, registration required.
🔗 Speakers + program: cc.au.dk/en/recreatio...
🔗 Register: event.au.dk/events/when-...
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
Everything is a distraction from this.
‘Change course now’: humanity has missed 1.5C climate target, says UN head
Exclusive: ‘Devastating consequences’ now inevitable but emissions cuts still vital, says António Guterres in sole interview before Cop30
www.theguardian.com
October 28, 2025 at 12:11 AM
Everything is a distraction from this.
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
Happy to share that our BBS target article has been accepted: “Core Perception”: Re-imagining Precocious Reasoning as Sophisticated Perceiving
With Alon Hafri, @veroniqueizard.bsky.social, @chazfirestone.bsky.social & Brent Strickland
Read it here: doi.org/10.1017/S014...
A short thread [1/5]👇
With Alon Hafri, @veroniqueizard.bsky.social, @chazfirestone.bsky.social & Brent Strickland
Read it here: doi.org/10.1017/S014...
A short thread [1/5]👇
October 9, 2025 at 3:51 PM
Happy to share that our BBS target article has been accepted: “Core Perception”: Re-imagining Precocious Reasoning as Sophisticated Perceiving
With Alon Hafri, @veroniqueizard.bsky.social, @chazfirestone.bsky.social & Brent Strickland
Read it here: doi.org/10.1017/S014...
A short thread [1/5]👇
With Alon Hafri, @veroniqueizard.bsky.social, @chazfirestone.bsky.social & Brent Strickland
Read it here: doi.org/10.1017/S014...
A short thread [1/5]👇
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
somehow I missed this!
Dopamine represents a domain-general teaching signal:
www.science.org/doi/full/10....
Dopamine represents a domain-general teaching signal:
www.science.org/doi/full/10....
Striatal dopamine signals errors in prediction across different informational domains
Dopamine reflects prediction errors not only about reward but also about valueless stimuli, challenging many current theories.
www.science.org
September 16, 2025 at 7:44 PM
somehow I missed this!
Dopamine represents a domain-general teaching signal:
www.science.org/doi/full/10....
Dopamine represents a domain-general teaching signal:
www.science.org/doi/full/10....
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
Academia.edu is changing its Terms and Conditions, and they're so outrageous (AI training; signing over ownership to them etc) I closed my account today.
A thread with some practical tips if you want to delete your account (5 steps):
A thread with some practical tips if you want to delete your account (5 steps):
September 20, 2025 at 1:44 PM
Academia.edu is changing its Terms and Conditions, and they're so outrageous (AI training; signing over ownership to them etc) I closed my account today.
A thread with some practical tips if you want to delete your account (5 steps):
A thread with some practical tips if you want to delete your account (5 steps):
Danish Media covers our recent study (article in danish):
videnskab.dk/kultur-samfu...
videnskab.dk/kultur-samfu...
September 9, 2025 at 10:28 AM
Danish Media covers our recent study (article in danish):
videnskab.dk/kultur-samfu...
videnskab.dk/kultur-samfu...
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
Does the culture you grow up in shape the way you see the world? In a new Psych Review paper, @chazfirestone.bsky.social & I tackle this centuries-old question using the Müller-Lyer illusion as a case study. Come think through one of history's mysteries with us🧵(1/13):
January 25, 2025 at 10:05 PM
Does the culture you grow up in shape the way you see the world? In a new Psych Review paper, @chazfirestone.bsky.social & I tackle this centuries-old question using the Müller-Lyer illusion as a case study. Come think through one of history's mysteries with us🧵(1/13):
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
PsyArXiv is seeking new moderators to help combat an increase in AI submissions! If you've ever posted a preprint to PsyArXiv, please consider joining. Minimum commitment 1h/month, there's a training session this Monday @ 1pm ET. More info here: forms.gle/9LB1rEtxHAeZ... #PsychSciSky
Expression of Interest in Serving as a PsyArXiv Moderator
As you might have heard, PsyArXiv is having some issues with an increase in low-quality submissions, ranging from AI generated manuscripts to inflate citation metrics, incoherent or nonsensical docume...
forms.gle
August 15, 2025 at 5:31 PM
PsyArXiv is seeking new moderators to help combat an increase in AI submissions! If you've ever posted a preprint to PsyArXiv, please consider joining. Minimum commitment 1h/month, there's a training session this Monday @ 1pm ET. More info here: forms.gle/9LB1rEtxHAeZ... #PsychSciSky
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
On the left is a rabbit. On the right is an elephant. But guess what: They’re the *same image*, rotated 90°!
In @currentbiology.bsky.social, @chazfirestone.bsky.social & I show how these images—known as “visual anagrams”—can help solve a longstanding problem in cognitive science. bit.ly/45BVnCZ
In @currentbiology.bsky.social, @chazfirestone.bsky.social & I show how these images—known as “visual anagrams”—can help solve a longstanding problem in cognitive science. bit.ly/45BVnCZ
August 19, 2025 at 4:32 PM
On the left is a rabbit. On the right is an elephant. But guess what: They’re the *same image*, rotated 90°!
In @currentbiology.bsky.social, @chazfirestone.bsky.social & I show how these images—known as “visual anagrams”—can help solve a longstanding problem in cognitive science. bit.ly/45BVnCZ
In @currentbiology.bsky.social, @chazfirestone.bsky.social & I show how these images—known as “visual anagrams”—can help solve a longstanding problem in cognitive science. bit.ly/45BVnCZ
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
AI slop and the destruction of knowledge irisvanrooijcogsci.com/2025/08/12/a...
AI slop and the destruction of knowledge
This week I was looking for info on what cognitive scientists mean when they speak of ‘domain-general’ cognition. I was curious, because the nuances are relevant for something I am researching at t…
irisvanrooijcogsci.com
August 12, 2025 at 10:12 PM
AI slop and the destruction of knowledge irisvanrooijcogsci.com/2025/08/12/a...
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
🧟♂️🚨 Publication alert! 🚨🧟♀️
Holy moly, I'm thrilled to announce our new paper in Emotion! We explored how recreational fear, physiological synchrony, and social closeness interact in a high-intensity haunted house setting. 1/5 🧵
Link: psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?d...
Holy moly, I'm thrilled to announce our new paper in Emotion! We explored how recreational fear, physiological synchrony, and social closeness interact in a high-intensity haunted house setting. 1/5 🧵
Link: psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?d...
August 8, 2025 at 9:25 AM
🧟♂️🚨 Publication alert! 🚨🧟♀️
Holy moly, I'm thrilled to announce our new paper in Emotion! We explored how recreational fear, physiological synchrony, and social closeness interact in a high-intensity haunted house setting. 1/5 🧵
Link: psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?d...
Holy moly, I'm thrilled to announce our new paper in Emotion! We explored how recreational fear, physiological synchrony, and social closeness interact in a high-intensity haunted house setting. 1/5 🧵
Link: psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?d...
🧟♂️🚨 Publication alert! 🚨🧟♀️
Holy moly, I'm thrilled to announce our new paper in Emotion! We explored how recreational fear, physiological synchrony, and social closeness interact in a high-intensity haunted house setting. 1/5 🧵
Link: psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?d...
Holy moly, I'm thrilled to announce our new paper in Emotion! We explored how recreational fear, physiological synchrony, and social closeness interact in a high-intensity haunted house setting. 1/5 🧵
Link: psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?d...
August 8, 2025 at 9:25 AM
🧟♂️🚨 Publication alert! 🚨🧟♀️
Holy moly, I'm thrilled to announce our new paper in Emotion! We explored how recreational fear, physiological synchrony, and social closeness interact in a high-intensity haunted house setting. 1/5 🧵
Link: psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?d...
Holy moly, I'm thrilled to announce our new paper in Emotion! We explored how recreational fear, physiological synchrony, and social closeness interact in a high-intensity haunted house setting. 1/5 🧵
Link: psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?d...
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
Happy to share "The Dynamics of Caregiver Unpredictability Shape Moment-to-Moment Infant Looking During Dyadic Interaction," out now in Child Development thanks to a large team of people I worked on this with! srcd.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdfdirec...
<em>Child Development</em> | SRCD Journal | Wiley Online Library
Cognitive development is associated with how predictable caregivers are, but the mechanisms driving this are unclear. One possibility is caregiver predictability initially shapes how infants gather i...
srcd.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
August 6, 2025 at 3:08 PM
Happy to share "The Dynamics of Caregiver Unpredictability Shape Moment-to-Moment Infant Looking During Dyadic Interaction," out now in Child Development thanks to a large team of people I worked on this with! srcd.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdfdirec...
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
This was such a fun conversation about childhood, play, and agency across cultures. Thanks for having @sheinalew.bsky.social & I on the show!
New episode!! 🎙️📣
A chat w/ @sheinalew.bsky.social & @dorsaamir.bsky.social about childhood across cultures.
Humans everywhere go through childhood—a time of learning, growth, and play. But this universal stage of life can look very different in different places.
Listen: disi.org/varieties-of...
A chat w/ @sheinalew.bsky.social & @dorsaamir.bsky.social about childhood across cultures.
Humans everywhere go through childhood—a time of learning, growth, and play. But this universal stage of life can look very different in different places.
Listen: disi.org/varieties-of...
July 19, 2025 at 1:50 PM
This was such a fun conversation about childhood, play, and agency across cultures. Thanks for having @sheinalew.bsky.social & I on the show!
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
🚨 Kids LOVE fear?!🚨
Our new study led by Mihaela Taranu from the Recreational Fear Lab uncovers something surprising:
Children across all ages actively seek out scary experiences - for fun!
📄 doi.org/10.1007/s105...
[1/🧵]
Our new study led by Mihaela Taranu from the Recreational Fear Lab uncovers something surprising:
Children across all ages actively seek out scary experiences - for fun!
📄 doi.org/10.1007/s105...
[1/🧵]
Recreational Fear Across Childhood. A Cross-Sectional Study of Scary Activities that Children Enjoy - Child Psychiatry & Human Development
This study investigated the prevalence of children’s engagement in recreational fear activities — i.e., playful engagement with scary stimuli where both fear and enjoyment are experienced. A detailed ...
doi.org
June 16, 2025 at 11:51 AM
🚨 Kids LOVE fear?!🚨
Our new study led by Mihaela Taranu from the Recreational Fear Lab uncovers something surprising:
Children across all ages actively seek out scary experiences - for fun!
📄 doi.org/10.1007/s105...
[1/🧵]
Our new study led by Mihaela Taranu from the Recreational Fear Lab uncovers something surprising:
Children across all ages actively seek out scary experiences - for fun!
📄 doi.org/10.1007/s105...
[1/🧵]
🚨 Kids LOVE fear?!🚨
Our new study led by Mihaela Taranu from the Recreational Fear Lab uncovers something surprising:
Children across all ages actively seek out scary experiences - for fun!
📄 doi.org/10.1007/s105...
[1/🧵]
Our new study led by Mihaela Taranu from the Recreational Fear Lab uncovers something surprising:
Children across all ages actively seek out scary experiences - for fun!
📄 doi.org/10.1007/s105...
[1/🧵]
Recreational Fear Across Childhood. A Cross-Sectional Study of Scary Activities that Children Enjoy - Child Psychiatry & Human Development
This study investigated the prevalence of children’s engagement in recreational fear activities — i.e., playful engagement with scary stimuli where both fear and enjoyment are experienced. A detailed ...
doi.org
June 16, 2025 at 11:51 AM
🚨 Kids LOVE fear?!🚨
Our new study led by Mihaela Taranu from the Recreational Fear Lab uncovers something surprising:
Children across all ages actively seek out scary experiences - for fun!
📄 doi.org/10.1007/s105...
[1/🧵]
Our new study led by Mihaela Taranu from the Recreational Fear Lab uncovers something surprising:
Children across all ages actively seek out scary experiences - for fun!
📄 doi.org/10.1007/s105...
[1/🧵]
Reposted by Marc Malmdorf Andersen
Our daily lives are packed w complex behaviours: reading a novel & piecing together the plot; negotiating decisions w family... How do we build mathematical models of the underlying cognitive mechanisms? Our new preprint osf.io/d2v54_v1 argues for a community approach A 🧵 1/
May 9, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Our daily lives are packed w complex behaviours: reading a novel & piecing together the plot; negotiating decisions w family... How do we build mathematical models of the underlying cognitive mechanisms? Our new preprint osf.io/d2v54_v1 argues for a community approach A 🧵 1/