Since Oct. 2019
Postdoc position, Department of Cognitive Psychology, Prof. Dr. Christian Frings, University of Trier

Oct. 2019
PhD,  University of Trier
Title of the dissertation: "When the (irrelevant) location matters: An investigation in the processing of vision and touch."
Grade: summa cum laude.
Supervisors: Prof. Dr. Christian Frings, University of Trier & Prof Charles Spence, PhD, University of Oxford

May 2018 - Aug. 2018
Academic visitor, Crossmodal Research Laboratory, Prof. Charles Spence, PhD, University of Oxford

Oct. 2016 - Oct. 2019
PhD student, Department of Cognitive Psychology, University of Trier
Supervisors: Prof. Dr. Christian Frings, University of Trier & Prof Charles Spence, PhD, University of Oxford

Feb. 2016 - Apr. 2016
Internship, Department of Educational Psychology, Prof. Dr. Michael Schneider, University of Trier

Oct. 2014 - Sep. 2016
Master of Science in Psychology, University of Trier
Supervisors of Master’s Thesis: Prof. Dr. Christian Frings & Dr. Birte Moeller, University of Trier

Mar. 2014 - Apr. 2014
Internship, Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR), Institute of Flight Guidance, Braunschweig

Jan. 2013 - Sep. 2016
Research Assistant, Department of General Psychology I, Prof. Dr. Christian Frings, University of Trier

Oct. 2012 - Mar. 2013
Internship, Department of General Psychology I, Dr. Nadine Nett, University of Trier

Oct. 2011 - Feb. 2015
Bachelor of Science in Psychology, University of Trier
Supervisors of Bachelor’s Thesis: Prof. Dr. Christian Frings & Dr. Frank Mast, University of Trier

• Object localization
• Perceptual biases of dynamic object
• Multisensory perception
• Multisensory selection

Journal articles (peer reviewed)

2022 / in press

Merz, S. (in press). Motion perception investigated in- and outside of the laboratory: Comparable performances for the Representational Momentum and Representational Gravity phenomena. Experimental Psychology.

Merz, S., Soballa, P., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (in press). The speed prior account: A new theory to explain multiple phenomena regarding dynamic information. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General.

Meyerhoff, H.S., Gehrer, N. A., Merz, S., & Frings, C. (in press). The Beep-Speed Illusion: Non-Spatial Tones Increase Perceived Speed of Visual Objects in a Forced-Choice Paradigm. Cognition.

***Schneider, M., Merz, S., Stricker, J., De Smedt, B., Torbeyns, J., Verschaffel, L., & Luwel, K. (in press). The Importance of Replicating Meta-Analyses: Commentary on “Conceptual replication and extension of the relation between the number line estimation task and mathematical competence across seven studies”. Journal of Numerical Cognition. ***Non peer-reviewed commentary.

2020 / 2021

Laub, R., Merz, S., Dröschel, H.,  & Frings, C. (2021). The level of representation of irrelevant stimuli – Distractor-response binding within and between the senses. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 83, 2256-2266. 10.3758/s13414-021-02249-6. Open Access

Merz, S., Frings, C., Spence, C (2021). Tactile temporal offset cues reduce visual representational momentum. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 83, 2113-2122.10.3758/s13414-021-02285-2. Open Access

Merz, S., Frings, C., Spence, C (2021). When irrelevant information helps: Extending the Eriksen-flanker task into a multisensory world. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 83, 776-789. 10.3758/s13414-020-02066-3. Open Access

Jensen, A., Merz, S., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2020). Interference of irrelevant information in multisensory selection depends on attentional set. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 82, 1176--1195. 10.3758/s13414-019-01848-8.

Jensen, A., Merz, S., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2020). Perception it is: Processing level in multisensory selection. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 82, 1391-1406. 10.3758/s13414-019-01830-4 .

Merz, S./Jensen, A., Burau, C., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2020). Higer-order cognition does not affect multisensory distractor processing. Multisensory Research, 34, 351-364. (shared first authorship). 10.1163/22134808-bja10013.

Merz, S., Meyerhoff, H.S., Frings, C., & Spence, C. (2020). Representational Momentum in vision and touch: Visual motion information biases tactile spatial localization. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 82, 2618-2629. 10.3758/s13414-020-01989-1. Open Access

2018 /2019

Frings, C., Merz, S., & Hommel, B. (2019).The impact of stimulus uncertainty on attentional control. Cognition,183, 208-212. 10.1016/j.cognition.2018.10.017.

Jensen, A., Merz, S., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2019). Overt spatial attention modulates multisensory selection. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 45(2), 174-188. 10.1037/xhp0000595.

Merz, S., Deller, J., Meyerhoff, H.S., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2019). The contradictory influence of velocity: Representational momentum in the tactile modality. Journal of Neurophysiology. 121, 2358-2363. 10.1152/jn.00128.2019. Open Access

Merz, S., Jensen, A., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2019). Multisensory distractor processing is modulated by spatial attention. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 45, 1375-1388. 10.1037/xhp0000678 .

Merz, S., Meyerhoff, H.S., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2019). Implied tactile motion: Localizing dynamic stimulations on the skin. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 81 (3), 794-808. 10.3758/s13414-018-01645-9.

Meyerhoff, H.S., Merz, S., & Frings, C. (2018). Tactile stimulation disambiguates the perception of visual motion paths. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. 10.3758/s13423-018-1467-0.

Schneider, M., Merz, S., Stricker, J., De Smedt, B., Torbeyns, J., Verschaffel, L., & Luwel, K. (2018). Associations of number line estimation with mathematical competence: A meta-analysis. Child Development, 89(5), 1467-1484. 10.1111/cdev.13068.

2017

Schneider, M., Beeres, K., Coban, L., Merz, S., Schmidt, S., Stricker, J., & De Smedt, B. (2017). Associations of non‐symbolic and symbolic numerical magnitude processing with mathematical competence: a meta‐analysis. Developmental science, 20, e12372. 10.1111/desc.12372.

Invited talks

Merz, S.(2021). The speed prior account: Investigating the mechanism underlying the localization of moving stimuli. Invited, virtual talk at the department of Biopsychologie und Kognitive Neurowissenschaften (Prof. Dr. Heed), June 14th, Bielefeld.

Merz, S. (2018). Implied tactile motion: localizing dynamic stimulations on the skin. Invited talk at the Tactile Perception Laboratory (Daniel Goldreich), Jun 19th, Hamilton, Canada.

Talks / Posters

Merz, S., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2022, March 21-23). The influence of experimental context on representational momentum. [Talk]. 64th Tagung experimentell arbeitender Psycholog*innen (TeaP),  virtual Meeting hosted inCologne, Germany.

Soballa, P., Schöpper, L.-M., Frings, C., & Merz, S. (2022, March 21-23). Effects of spatial influences on inhibition of return in online studies [Talk]. 64rd Tagung experimentell arbeitender Psycholog*innen (TeaP), virtual Meeting hosted in Cologne, Germany.

Merz, S., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2021, November 4-7). Eliminating Representational Momentum - The influence of stimulus context on representational momentum. [Talk]. 62nd Annual Meeting of the Psychonomic Society (Psychonomics), virtual Meeting.

Merz, S., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2021, October 8-10). The influence of stimulus context on representational momentum. [Talk]. 53rd Herbsttreffen experimentelle Kognitionspsychologie (HexKop), Würzburg, Germany.

Merz, S., Soballa, P., Frings, C., & Spence, C.(2021, March 14-16). The speed prior account: Explaining localization biases of moving stimuli with prior speed expectations. [Poster]. 63rd. Tagung experimentell arbeitender Psycholog*innen (TeaP), Ulm, Germany. [Online conference].

Merz, S., Soballa, P., Frings, C., & Spence, C.(2020, November 19-22). Localizing implied motion in touch: The interplay between the Fröhlich, onset-repulsion and representational momentum effect. [Poster].  61st Annual Meeting of the Psychonomic Society (Psychonomics). [Online conference].

Merz, S., Deller, J., Meyerhoff, H. S., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2019, 25-28). Tactile Representational Momentum: the contradictory influence of velocity. [Talk]. 8th Doktorand*innenworkshop der Allgemeinen Psychologie (A-Dok), Mannheim, Germany.

Jensen, A., Merz, S., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2019, April 15-17). Processing level of distractor interference in multisensory selection. [Talk]. 61th Tagung experimentell arbeitender Psycholog*inen (TeaP), London, United Kingdom.

Jensen, A., Merz, S., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2018, June 14-17). Overt spatial attention modulates multisensory selection. [Poster]. IMRF (International Multisensory Research Forum), Annual Meeting, Toronto, Canada.

Jensen, A., Merz, S., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2018, 1July 2-15). Processing single features in multisensory selection. [Talk]. 7th Doktorand*innenworkshop der Allgemeinen Psychologie (A-Dok), Mainz, Germany.

Merz, S., Meyerhoff, H. S., Spence, C., & Frings, C.(2018, June 14-17). Implied tactile motion: Localizing dynamic stimulations on the skin. [Poster]. 19th Annual International Multisensory Research Forum (IMRF), Toronto, Canada

Merz, S., Meyerhoff, H. S., Spence, C., & Frings, C.(2018, March 12-14). Implied tactile motion: Localizing dynamic stimulations on the skin. [Talk]. 60th Tagung experimentell arbeitender Psycholog*innen (TeaP), Marburg, Germany

Jensen, A., Merz, S., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2018, March 12-14). It’s just a matter of focus: distractor processing in a multisensory flanker task is modulated by gaze. [Talk]. 60th Tagung experimentell arbeitender Psycholog*innen (TeaP), Marburg, Germany.

Merz, S., Meyerhoff, H. S., Spence, C., & Frings, C.(2017). Dynamic objects in the tactile modality: An investigation of systematic mislocalizations. Talk at the 50th Herbsttreffen experimentelle Kognitionspsychologie (HexKoP), November 3rd-5th, Ulm, Germany.

Jensen, A., Merz, S., Spence, C., & Frings, C. (2017). It’s just a matter of focus: distractor processing in a multisensory flanker task is modulated by gaze. Talk at the 50th Herbsttreffen experimentelle Kognitionspsychologie (HexKop), Nov 3rd-5th, Ulm, Germany.

Frings, C., Merz, S., & Hommel, B. (2017). Context modulates feature weighting. Talk at the 59th Tagung experimentell arbeitender Psychologen (TeaP), March 27th-29th, Dresden, Germany.

Merz, S., Meyerhoff, H. S., Spence, C., & Frings, C.(2017). Tactile localization is modulated by implied motion. Talk at the 59th Tagung experimentell arbeitender Psychologen (TeaP), March 27th-29th, Dresden, Germany.

Meyerhoff, H. S., Merz, S., & Frings, C.(2017). Tactile stimulation disambiguates the perception of visual motion paths. Talk at the 59th Tagung experimentell arbeitender Psychologen (TeaP), March 27th-29th, Dresden, Germany.

Merz, S., Frings, C., & Mast, F. (2015). The construction plan for top-down sets: The task environment modulates contingent capture. Poster at the 57th Conference of Experimental Psychologist, March 08 - 11, 2015. Hildesheim, Germany.

Merz, S., Nett, N., Hennrichs, J., May, L., Partetzke, T., & Wachtmeister, W. (2013). Social vibration! Rhythm as the base of the Social Simon Effect. Poster at the 55th Conference of Experimental Psychologist, March 24 - 27, 2013. Vienna, Austria.