Varsha Singh | Humanities & Social Sciences

Varsha Singh

Varsha Singh
Professor
Psychology
CV Summary: 

My research is aimed at understanding cognitive and affective processes in decision making. (pl. see researchgate for research interests, and on-going projects: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Varsha-Singh-21) .

Apply for PhD position: Pl. check SIRe, and UQIDAR for updates on PhD positions.

Possible Masters Project (1 year): (a) IIT Delhi & IIIT Delhi MFIRP project titled, 'Emotional Modulation of Visuo-spatial Attention: Brain Structure and Behavioral Correlates of Anxiety'.

Major part of my work is cross-disciplinary, on-going research in the clinical domain (a) neural basis of decision making and episodic memory in MTL epilepsy (collaboration with Neuroscience, AIIMS) (b) cognitive and affective impairment in spinal cord injury (with Indian Spinal Cord Injury) (c) Decision making in anxiety disorder (Psychiatry, AIIMS) (d)sleep loss and cognitive impairment, specifically decision making deficits.

In collaboration with Centre for Economic Studies and Planning (CESP, JNU), I investigate how emotions affect deception, information-sharing, creativity, and outcomes of labor market including sex differences in salary, productivity. Here's a new paper: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214804321001257?via%...

In collaboration with the engineering departments, the focus is on improving psychophysiological measures of respiratory control (Electrical Engineering), motor control and movement analysis (Computer Science), with an emerging interest in analyzing affect in text.

When not busy running experiments, I spend time understanding how science, scientific research grows across different fields mainly math, sciences, engineering (scientometrics).

PhD applicants are requested to mail me a copy of their CV, highlighting their research experience, with a note on how their skills/experience might fit well with the on-going research.

Contact Information

Office: 402F, Block II (Electrical Engineering Building)
CBS Lab: MS615, Humanities & Social Science, IIT Delhi
Email: vsingh@iitd.ac.in ; vsingh.iit@gmail.com

Research Areas

Specific: Cognition, Affect, and Decision Making, Episodic Memory, Sex-Differences, Mood Disorder
Broad: Brain-behavior, Mind-Body Problems

Note: A quick glance at my profile on researchgate, google scholar, and publons might tell you a bit more of my research interests.

Academic Background

BA (Psychology), Fergusson College, Pune
MA (Clinical Psychology), University of Pune
PhD, Humanities & Social Science, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay

Employment History

2019: Associate Professor, Humanities & Social Sciences, IIT Delhi
2013: Assistant Professor, Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Delhi
2012: Research Scientist, Department of Management, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore
2011: Assistant Professor, Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Kozhikode, Kerala
2009: Research Associate, Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Bangalore
2006: Research Assistant, IR Consultancy Center, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay
2003: Research Assistant, Psychophysiology Laboratory, Stanford University, USA
2000: Clinical Psychologist, Mental Health Care Center, Pune.

Publications

Singh, V. (2016). Sex-differences, Handedness, and Lateralization in the Iowa Gambling Task . Frontiers in Psychology, 7: 708, doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00708

Singh, V. (2013). A potential role of reward and punishment in the facilitation of the emotion-cognition dichotomy in the Iowa Gambling Task. Frontiers in Psychology. 4:944. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00944.

Singh, V. (2013). Dual conception of risk in the Iowa Gambling Task: Effects of sleep deprivation and time delay. Frontiers in Decision Neuroscience. 4:628. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00628.

Singh, V. & Khan, A. (2012). Decision making in the reward and punishment variants of the Iowa Gambling Task: Evidence of “Foresight” or “Framing”? Frontiers in Decision Neuroscience. 6:107. doi: 10.3389/fnins.2012.00107.

Kalliath, P., Kalliath, T., & Singh, V. (2011). When work intersects family: A qualitative exploration of the experiences of dual earner couples in India. South Asian Journal of Management, 18(1):37-59.

Singh, V., Kalliath, T., & Kalliath, P. (2010). Dual-income marital dyads and discrepant economic and personal information: An exploratory investigation. Psychological Studies, 55(3): 263-269.

Singh, V. & Khan, A. (2009). Heterogeneity in choices on Iowa Gambling Task: A preference for high infrequent-higher magnitude punishment. Mind & Society: Cognitive Studies in Economics and Social Science, 8(1):43-57.

Singh, V. (2005). Depressive realism: Exploring realism and rationality. Indian Journal of Clinical Psychology, 32, (1): 25-30.

Singh, V. & Khan, A. (2008). Affect, judgment and endowment-contrast theory, Journal of Indian Health Psychology, 3(1):19-26.

Bhattarcharya, T., Singh, V., Kaur, R. & Neeti (2006). Judgment of subjective well-being: Influence of personality and affect. Psychological Studies, 51, (2-3): 132-138.

Singh, V. (2018). Comparing Research Productivity of Returnee-PhDs in Science, Engineering, and the Social Sciences. Scietometrics, doi: 10.1007/s11192-018-2706-x

Conferences

Singh, V., Vanchipurackal, I., & Chawla, A. (2020). Cognitive sex differences in risk taking: Implications for male over-representation in road accidents. 46th National Annual Conference of Indian Association of Clinical Psychologists (NACIACP), Feb 21 – 23, 2020, Panjab University, Chandigarh.

Singh, V., Thakral, S., Singh, K., Jain, S., & Garg, R. (2019). Mind and body in balance: Assessing yoga to demystify its effects on cognitive performance. Sixth Annual Conference on Cognitive Science (ACCS), Dec 10 – 12, 2019). Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, BITS-Pilani, Goa.

Singh, V. & Mitra, S. (2019). Baseline autonomic nervous system (HF – HRV) and emotions in spinal cord injury. Neuron to Behavior, 37th Annual Meeting of Indian Academy of Neurosciences (IAN), Nov 19 – 21, 2019, AIIMS, Delhi.

Singh, V. & Suraj K., (2019). Is a picture worth a thousand words for everyone? Testing modality and sex-specificity in valence asymmetry hypothesis. Neuron to Behavior, 37th Annual Meeting of Indian Academy of Neurosciences (IAN 2019), Nov 19 – 21, 2019, AIIMS, Delhi.

Singh, V. & Aikat, R. (2019). Kinesthetic imagery and visual feedback. 3rd National Conference on Recent Advances in Cognition and Health (NCRACH-2019), BHU, India.

Singh, V. & Shambhovi, M. (2019). Does autonomic nervous system impairment influence coping in spinal cord injured patients? 3rd National Conference on Recent Advances in Cognition and Health (NCRACH-2019), BHU, India.

Singh, V. & Chakravarty, S. (2015). Tracking the determinants of admission, performance and placements in Indian management education. Annual Conference of the Emerging Markets, Jan 20 – 25, Dubai, UAE.

Singh, V. & Mutreja, V. (2019). How does learning of mindfulness (posture and breath focus) alter cognitive task learning? 3rd National Conference on Recent Advances in Cognition and Health (NCRACH-2019), BHU, India.

Singh, V. (2014). Laterality in the Iowa Gambling Task: Sensitivity to rewards – punishment altering regulatory control? Annual Conference on Cognitive Science March 3 – 5, 2014, India International Center, Delhi.

Singh, V. & Mitra, S. (2018). Relationship between heart rate variability and depression in Spinal Cord Injury: A two-year longitudinal study. 36th Annual Meeting of Indian Academy of Neurosciences (IAN), Theme: Translational Research in Improving Mental Health, Oct 29 – 31, 2018, BHU, India.

Singh, V. (2013). Decision Neuroscience: Role of the Iowa Gambling Task. Annual conference of Indian Academy of Neuroscience (IAN), Oct 25 – 27, University of Allahabad, India.

Singh, V.& Khan, A. (2011). Reward-punishment sensitivity in Iowa Gambling Task: Tale of two variants.International conference on Decision Making, Centre of Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences, Dec 9 - 12, University of Allahabad, Allahabad, India.

Singh, V. (2007). Behavioral decision making and self-reported measures of individual differences. International conference on ‘Cognition & Emotion in Economic Decision Making’, University of Trento, Italy.

Singh, V. (2006). Affect-aided decision making and self-rated recall of episodic memory. International conference on ‘Models of Brain & Mind: Psychical, Computational & Psychological Approaches’, Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, Kolkata, India.

Singh, V. (2017). Do Losses Loom Larger Over Our Moral Compass? Effect of Anxiety, Impulsivity, and Frame on Deception. 7th Annual International Symposium of Decision Neuroscience (ISDN), June 2 – 3, Stanford University, CA, USA.
Singh, V. (2016). Exploring sex, and cultural differences in decision making. 31st International Congress of Psychology, July 24 - 29, Yokohama, Japan.

Dayanithi, D. & Singh, V. (2015). Accentuated Loss Aversion in PGA Tournaments: Does Company Matter? Annual MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference, Feb 27 – 28, Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, Massachusetts, USA.

Projects

1. Small Grant Research Projects (50,000), IIM Kozhikode (completed)
2. Planning Unit Grant (10 lakh), IIT Delhi (completed)
3. Faculty Interdisciplinary Research Project (FIRP:10 lakh), IIT Delhi (completed)
4. 1-2-3-4 Discover and Learn Project (co-PI) (5 lakh) IIT Delhi (on-going)
5. Multi-institute Faculty Interdisciplinary Grant (MFIRP: 20 lakhs), AIIMS-IIT Delhi (completed)
6. Mercedes-Benz Daimler (co-PI with ME) (completed)
7. Health and awareness (Bill & Melinda Gates: co-PI with DMS) (completed)
8. DST Cognitive Sciences Research Initiative Cognitive sex differences (on-going)
9. Cognitive-affective alteration in Spinal Cord Injury (5 yr Grand Challenge ) coPI ME, CSE (on-going)

Teaching Areas

Cognitive Psychology, Decision Making

Courses

Website