Mario Bonato

Research Interests
My research activity spans from visuo-spatial attention to numerical cognition, in both healthy and impaired cognitive architectures. During my Phd I mostly studied number-space interactions and fraction processing. Then, more recently, we devised a new, computer-based, method for the detection of visuo-spatial disorders following brain damage. This new approach is very sensitive and it might become the gold standard for the diagnosis of hemispatial neglect in the post-acute phase after a stroke. I am interested by several clinical aspects of neuropsychological disorders, mainly those related to the diagnosis and rehabilitation of cognitive impairments. I have been involved (as an experimenter) in a longitudinal study on mathematical training in first graders. I am also interested in applying experimental psychology/cognitive science in every day settings.
Given that the lab encompasses several nerds I prefer to adopt easy experimental approaches while leaving my colleagues free to adopt the complex research methods they seem to enjoy so much. Thus, for my research, I mainly resort to standard behavioral measures, lesion mapping in brain damaged-patients, and eye-tracking. If you share some interests with me and you are looking for a scientific partner, don’t hesitate to contact me.

Education
Ph.D., Cognitive Science, University of Padova (2007)
Laurea (M.Sc.), Experimental Psychology, University of Padova (2002)

Representative publications

• Bonato M., Zorzi M. & Umiltà C. (2012). When time is space: Evidence for a mental time line and for a common magnitude system. Neuroscience and Biobehavioural Reviews 36, 2257-2273.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2012.08.007

• Bonato M. (2012). Neglect and extinction depend greatly on task demands: a Review. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 6:195.

• Bonato M., Priftis, K., Marenzi, R., Umiltà, C. & Zorzi, M. (2012). Deficits of contralesional awareness: A case study on what paper-and-pencil tests neglect. Neuropsychology 26, 20-36.

• Bonato M., Sella, F., Berteletti, I. & Umiltà, C. (2012). Neuropsychology is nothing without control: A potential fallacy hidden in clinical studies. Cortex 48, 353-355.

• Bonato M., Priftis, K., Marenzi, R., Umiltà, C. & Zorzi, M. (2010). Increased attentional demands impair contralesional space awareness following stroke. Neuropsychologia 48, 3934-3940.

• Bonato M., Priftis, K., Marenzi, R., & Zorzi, (2009). Normal and impaired reflexive orienting of attention after central nonpredictive cues. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience 21, 745-759.

• Bonato M, Fabbri, S., Umiltà, C. & Zorzi, M. (2007). The mental representation of numerical fractions: Real or integer? Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human perception and Performance 33, 1410-1419.

Editorial activity

Ad-hoc reviewer for:

Biological Psychology, Cognition, Cortex, Experimental Brain Research, Experimental Psychology, Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, Journal of Cognitive Psychology, Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception & Performance, Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry, Journal of Neuropsychology, Neuropsychologia, Plos One, Psychological Research, Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, Giornale Italiano di Psicologia, Rivista Internazionale di Filosofia e Psicologia.

Links

• Personal Google Scholar webpage

• Associate guest editor for the journal “Frontiers in Human Neuroscience”