About

I joined the university of Derby as a Researcher in Psychology following postdoc positions in the Department of Psychology at the University of Essex, UK, and the Institute for Systems Neuroscience, University of Hamburg, Germany.  My role at Derby is to contribute to the growing research culture of the university by engaging in the exciting research already being conducted, and to pursue external funding to develop high impact and exciting research within the Psychological sciences. 

Research interests

My research lies at the intersection of cognitive neuroscience and embodiment. There is increasing evidence that our thinking and information processing are not solely driven by the brain in isolation, but are fundamentally shaped by the dynamic interaction between brain, body, and environment. My work explores how these elements come together to form what we experience as the 'mind.'

I use techniques such as electrical stimulation and Electroencephalography (EEG) to investigate how bodily states influence cognitive processes. In my early research, I demonstrated that even simple motor tasks—like maintaining a stable posture—can impact how we perceive and respond to information in our surroundings. More recently, I have focused on how subtle bodily cues, such as facial muscle activity, contribute to emotional understanding. For example, my findings show that these cues can help us interpret ambiguous facial expressions more accurately, and may even play a role in boosting mood.

Currently, I am exploring how movement—or even the mere imagination of movement—might support emotional regulation. This line of inquiry could help us better understand how the brain and body work together to manage emotions, and may open new avenues for mental health interventions grounded in embodied cognition.

Recent publications

Baker, J., Ngo, H-V., Efthimiou, TN., Elsenaar, A., Mehu, M., & Korb, S. (2025). Electrical stimulation of smiling muscles reduces visual processing load and enhances happiness perception in neutral faces. Communications Psychology 

Atkin, C., Howard, C. J., Baguley, T., Baker, J., & Guest, D. (2025). The relation between the capacities of imagination and visual memory in the short-term. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General 

Baker, J., Van Der Donck, S., Boets, B, & Korb, S. (2025). Increasing perceived happiness in neutral faces by posing a smile: an EEG frequency-tagging study. Emotion  

Baker, J., Efthimiou, T., Gartus, A., Elsenaar, A., Mehu, M., & Korb, S. (2024) Computer-controlled electrical stimulation of facial muscles by facial neuromuscular electrical stimulation (fNMES): Hardware and software solutions. Journal of Neuroscience Methods 

Baker, J., Efthimiou, T., Gartus, A., Elsenaar, A., Mehu, M., & Korb, S. (2024) Smiling and frowning induced by facial neuromuscular electrical stimulation (fNMES) modulate felt emotion and physiology. Emotion  

Baker, J., Efthimiou, T., Gartus, A., Elsenaar, A., Mehu, M., & Korb, S. (2024). Zygomaticus activation through facial neuromuscular electric stimulation (fNMES) induces happiness perception in ambiguous facial expressions and affects neural correlates of face processing. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience  

Mackenzie, A. K., Baker, J., Daly, R.C., & Howard, C. J. (2024). Peak Occipital Alpha Frequency Mediates the Relationship between Sporting Expertise and Multiple Object Tracking Performance. Brain and Behaviour  

Baker, J., Efthimiou, T., Scherer, R., Gartus, A., Elsenaar, A., Mehu, M., & Korb, S. (2023). Measurement of the N170 during facial neuromuscular electrical stimulation (fNMES), Journal of Neuroscience Methods  

Mitra, S., Boatman, C., & Baker, J. (2022). Age-related changes in the interference between cognitive task components and concurrent sensorimotor coordination, Brain Research  

Baker, J., Gamer, M., Rauh, J. & Brassen, S. (2022). Placebo induced expectations of mood enhancement generate a positivity effect in emotional processing, Scientific Reports  

Lenzoni, S., Baker, J., Sumich, A. L., & Mograbi, D. C. (2021). New insights into neural networks of error monitoring and clinical implications: a systematic review of ERP studies in neurological diseases. Reviews in the neurosciences

Premkumar, P., Alahakoon, P., Smith, M., Kumari, V., Babu, D., & Baker, J. (2021). Mild-to-moderate schizotypal traits relate to physiological arousal from social stress. Stress

Premkumar, P., Santo, M. G. E., Onwumere, O., Schürmann, M., Kumari, V., Blanco, S., Baker, J., Kuipers, E. (2019). Neural responses to criticism and praise vary with schizotypy and perceived emotional support. International Journal of Psychophysiology

Sumich, A., Anderson, J. D., Howard, C. J., Heym, N., Castro, A., Baker, J., & Belmonte, M. K. (2018). Reduction in lower-alpha power during Ganzfeld flicker stimulation is associated with the production of imagery and trait positive schizotypy. Neuropsychologia

Baker, J., Castro, A., Dunn, A. K., & Mitra, S. (2018). Asymmetric interference between cognitive task components and concurrent sensorimotor coordination. Journal of Neurophysiology

Qualifications

• BSc (Hons) Psychology - Nottingham Trent University
• MSc Cognitive Neuroscience & Neuroimaging - University of Nottingham
• PhD - Nottingham Trent University

Recent conferences

I have attended a number of international conferences over the last few years to present my work. These include "Redefining emotional expressions" in Sicily (2024), the "British Society for Cognitive Neuroscience: BACN" in London (2024), and the "International Society for Research on Emotion: ISRE" in Belfast (2024).

International experience

I spent 2 years as a postdoc within the Institute for Systems Neuroscience at the University of Hamburg in Germany. Here I conduced a series of studies on placebo effects in emotion perception. This included scanning 60 participants with fMRI.