Professor Paul Downing
Professor in Psychology / Associate Pro Vice-Chancellor

Contact info
Department of Psychology
Adeilad Brigantia
Penrallt Road
Gwynedd LL57 2AS
United Kingdom
Tel: +44 (0) 1248 382159
Fax: +44 (0) 1248 382599
Email: p.downing@bangor.ac.uk
Web: https://sites.google.com/view/downinglab/home
- Published
A Causal Role for the Extrastriate Body Area in Detecting People in Real-World Scenes
van Koningsbruggen, M. G., Peelen, M. V. & Downing, P. E., 17 Apr 2013, In: Journal of Neuroscience. 33, 16, p. 7003-7010Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
A Critical Role for the Hippocampus and Perirhinal Cortex in Perceptual Learning of Scenes and Faces: Complementary Findings from Amnesia and fMRI
Mundy, M. E., Downing, P. E., Dwyer, D. M., Honey, R. C. & Graham, K. S., 19 Jun 2013, In: Journal of Neuroscience. 33, 25, p. 10490-10502Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
A comparison of volume-based and surface-based multi-voxel pattern analysis.
Oosterhof, N. N., Wiestler, T., Downing, P. E. & Diedrichsen, J., 15 May 2011, In: Neuroimage. 56, 2, p. 593-600Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
A compensatory network for voluntary eye movements following a Frontal Eye Field lesion: an fMRI case study.
Van Koningsbruggen, M. G., Peelen, M. V., Downing, P. E. & Rafal, R. D., 1 Jan 2006.Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper
- Published
A cortical area selective for visual processing of the human body.
Downing, P. E., Jiang, Y., Shuman, M. & Kanwisher, N., 28 Sept 2001, In: Science. 293, 5539, p. 2470-2473Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
A cortical area specialized for visual processing of the human body.
Downing, P. E., Downing, P. & Kanwisher, N., 1 Jan 2001.Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper
- Published
A cortical area specialized for visual processing of the human body.
Downing, P. E., Downing, P. & Kanwisher, N., 1 Jan 2001.Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper
- Published
Action Understanding
Lingnau, A. & Downing, P., 9 May 2024, Cambridge Elements : Elements in Perception. Cambridge University Press, 76 p. (Elements in Perception).Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter › peer-review
- Published
An Exploration of Face Selectivity in Human Inferior Frontal Cortex.
Chan, A. W., Peelen, M. V. & Downing, P. E., 1 Jan 2006.Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper
- Published
An event-related potential component sensitive to images of the human body
Thierry, G., Pegna, A. J., Dodds, C., Roberts, M., Basan, S. & Downing, P., 15 Aug 2006, In: Neuroimage. 32, 2, p. 871-879Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Animate and inanimate objects in human visual cortex: Evidence for task-independent category effects.
Wiggett, A. J., Pritchard, I. C. & Downing, P. E., 1 Dec 2009, In: Neuropsychologia. 47, 14, p. 3111-3117Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- E-pub ahead of print
Are there cortical somatotopic motor maps outside of the human precentral gyrus?
Mitev, D., Koldewyn, K. & Downing, P., 3 Dec 2024, (E-pub ahead of print) In: Journal of Neurophysiology.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Asymmetric visual representation of sex from facial appearance
Gandolfo, M. & Downing, P., Apr 2023, In: Psychonomic Bulletin and Review. 30, 2, p. 585-595 11 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Asymmetric visual representation of sex from human body shape
Gandolfo, M. & Downing, P., Dec 2020, In: Cognition. 205, 104436.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Automatic imitation remains unaffected under cognitive load
Ramsey, R., Darda, K. M. & Downing, P., May 2019, In: Journal of Experimental Psychology - Human Perception and Performance. 45, 5, p. 601-615Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Bodies capture attention when nothing is expected.
Bray, D. M., Downing, P. E., Bray, D., Rogers, J. & Childs, C., 1 Aug 2004, In: Cognition. 93, 1, p. B27-B38Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Body selectivity in occipitotemporal cortex: Causal evidence
Downing, P. E. & Peelen, M. V., 1 Jun 2015, In: Neuropsychologia. 83, p. 138-148Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Bold latency in FFA and EBA depends on object category.
Peelen, M. & Downing, P. E., 1 Jan 2005.Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper
- E-pub ahead of print
Boosting forward connectivity between primary visual and body selective cortex reduces interference between sex and emotion judgements of bodies
Gandolfo, M., D'Argenio, G., Downing, P. & Urgesi, C., 15 Apr 2025, In: Neuroimage. 310, p. 121102Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Brain Correlates of Experience-Dependent Changes in Stimulus Discrimination Based on the Amount and Schedule of Exposure
Mundy, M. E., Downing, P. E., Honey, R. C., Singh, K. D., Graham, K. S. & Dwyer, D. M., 26 Jun 2014, In: PLoS ONE. 9, 6Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Category selectivity in human visual cortex: beyond visual object recognition
Peelen, M. V. & Downing, P., Oct 2017, In: Neuropsychologia. 105, p. 177-183Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Causal Evidence for Expression of Perceptual Expectations in Category-Selective Extrastriate Regions
Gandolfo, M. & Downing, P., 5 Aug 2019, In: Current Biology. 29, 15, p. 2496-2500Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Characterizing the discriminability of visual categorical information in strongly connected voxels
Walbrin, J., Downing, P., Sotero, F. D. & Almeida, J., 12 Mar 2024, In: Neuropsychologia. 195, 108815.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Competition in Visual Working Memory for Control of Search.
Downing, P. E. & Dodds, C. M., 1 Jan 2003.Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper
- Published
Competition in visual working memory for control of search.
Downing, P. E. & Dodds, C. M., 1 Aug 2004, In: Visual Cognition. 11, 6, p. 689-703Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Controlling for interstimulus perceptual variance abolishes N170 face selectivity
Thierry, G., Martin, C. D., Downing, P. E. & Pegna, A. J., 4 Mar 2007, In: Nature Neuroscience. 10, 4, p. 505-511Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- E-pub ahead of print
Converging evidence that left extrastriate body area supports visual sensitivity to social interactions
Gandolfo, M., Abassi, E., Balgova, E., Papeo, L., Downing, P. & Koldewyn, K., 4 Jan 2024, (E-pub ahead of print) In: Current Biology. 34, 9 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Cortical Representation of Faces, Bodies and their Parts.
Downing, P. E. & Peelen, M., 1 Jan 2005.Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper
- Published
Dissecting the visual perception of body shape with the Garner selective attention paradigm
Johnstone, L. & Downing, P., Jul 2017, In: Visual Cognition. 25, 4-6, p. 507-523Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Dissociation of extrastriate body and biological-motion selective areas by manipulation of visual-motor congruency.
Kontaris, I., Wiggett, A. J. & Downing, P. E., 1 Dec 2009, In: Neuropsychologia. 47, 14, p. 3118-3124Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Division of labor between lateral and ventral extrastriate representations of faces, bodies, and objects
Taylor, J. C. & Downing, P. E., 1 Dec 2011, In: Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience. 23, 12, p. 4122-4137Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Domain specificity in visual cortex.
Downing, P. E., Chan, A. W., Peelen, M. V., Dodds, C. M. & Kanwisher, N., 1 Oct 2006, In: Cerebral Cortex. 16, 10, p. 1453-1461Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Effects of Viewpoint and Identity in Face- and Body-Selective Cortical Areas.
Downing, P. E., Chan, A. W. & Downing, P., 1 Jan 2004.Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper
- Published
Evidence for integrated visual face and body representations in the anterior temporal lobes
Harry, B. B., Umla-Runge, K., Lawrence, A. D., Graham, K. S. & Downing, P. E., Aug 2016, In: Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience. 28, 8, p. 1178-1193Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Evidencing a place for the hippocampus within the core scene processing network
Hodgetts, C., Shine, J., Lawrence, A., Downing, P. & Graham, K., Nov 2016, In: Human Brain Mapping. 37, p. 3779–3794Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Examining the value of body gestures in social reward contexts
Williams, E., Bilbao-Broch, L., Downing, P. & Cross, E., 15 Nov 2020, In: Neuroimage. 222, 117276.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Extracting social information from the visual image of bodies
Greven, I. M., Downing, P. E. & Ramsey, R., 1 Aug 2015, p. 34.Research output: Contribution to conference › Abstract › peer-review
- Published
FMRI-derived maps of discrimination utility for high-level vision.
Downing, P. E., Chan, A. & Dodds, C., 1 Jan 2003.Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper
- Published
Face perception: broken into parts.
Downing, P. E., 23 Oct 2007, In: Current Biology. 17, 20, p. R888-R889Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Faces and eyes in human lateral prefrontal cortex.
Chan, A. W. & Downing, P. E., 2 Jun 2011, In: Frontiers in Human Neuroscience. 5, 51, p. 1-10Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Facilitation of voluntary saccades by fMRI guided 1Hz rTMS of the frontal eye field.
Downing, P. E., Rafal, R., Lauder, J., Machado, L., Dodds, C. & Downing, P., 1 Jan 2002.Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper
- Published
Functional MRI analysis of body and body part representations in the extrastriate and fusiform body areas.
Taylor, J. C., Wiggett, A. J. & Downing, P. E., 1 Sept 2007, In: Journal of Neurophysiology. 98, 3, p. 1626-1633Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Functional Neuroimaging of Human Visual Recognition.
Downing, P. E., Kanwisher, N., Downing, P., Epstein, R., Kourtzi, Z., Cabeza, R. (Editor) & Kingstone, A. (Editor), 1 Jan 2001, Handbook of functional neuroimaging of cognition. 2001 ed. MIT Press, p. 109-152Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter
- Published
Functional characterisation of the extrastriate body area based on the N1 ERP component.
Taylor, J. C., Roberts, M. V., Downing, P. E. & Thierry, G., 1 Aug 2010, In: Brain and Cognition. 73, 3, p. 153-159Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Functional magnetic resonance imaging investigation of overlapping lateral occipitotemporal activations using multi-voxel pattern analysis.
Downing, P. E., Wiggett, A. J. & Peelen, M. V., 3 Jan 2007, In: Journal of Neuroscience. 27, 1, p. 226-233Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Human parahippocampal cortex supports spatial binding in visual working memory
Dundon, N., Katshu, M. Z. U., Harry, B., Roberts, D., Leek, C., Downing, P., Sapir, A., Roberts, C. & D-Avossa, G., 15 Sept 2017, In: Cerebral Cortex. 2017, p. 1-11Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Interactions between visual working memory and selective attention
Downing, P. E., 1 Nov 2000, In: Psychological Science. 11, 6, p. 467-473Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Is the N170 sensitive to the human face or to several intertwined perceptual and conceptual factors?
Thierry, G., Martin, C. D., Downing, P. E. & Pegna, A. J., 1 Jul 2007, In: Nature Neuroscience. 10, 7, p. 802-803Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Is the extrastriate body area involved in motor actions?
Peelen, M. V. & Downing, P. E., 1 Feb 2005, In: Nature Neuroscience. 8, 2, p. 125Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Published
Learning associations between action and perception: Effects of incompatible training on body part and spatial priming
Wiggett, A. J., Hudson, M., Tipper, S. P. & Downing, P. E., 1 Jun 2011, In: Brain and Cognition. 76, 1, p. 87-96Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review