Summary
After being awarded a Diploma in Psychology by the University of Trier in Germany in 2003, he moved to the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig, Germany, where he wrote his doctoral thesis on how gesture and language interact in the brain.
After completing this dissertation, he joined the Synaesthesia Group at the University of Sussex to work on a project on mirror-touch synaesthesia.
Dr Holle joined the University of Hull as a lecturer in psychology in 2012 and was promoted to senior lecturer in 2015 and reader in 2019.
Book Chapter
Journal Article
Attentional bias in psoriasis: The role of processing time and emotional valence
Etty, S., George, D. N., van Laarhoven, A., Kleyn, C. E., Walton, S., & Holle, H. (online). Attentional bias in psoriasis: The role of processing time and emotional valence. British Journal of Health Psychology, https://doi.org/10.1111/bjhp.12712
No preconscious attentional bias towards itch in healthy individuals
Becker, J. M., Holle, H., van Ryckeghem, D. M., Van Damme, S., Crombez, G., Veldhuijzen, D. S., Evers, A. W., Rippe, R. C., & van Laarhoven, A. I. (2022). No preconscious attentional bias towards itch in healthy individuals. PLoS ONE, 17(9), Article e0273581. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0273581
Can contagious itch be affected by positive and negative suggestions?
Meeuwis, S. H., Skvortsova, A., van Laarhoven, A. I. M., Holle, H., & Evers, A. W. (in press). Can contagious itch be affected by positive and negative suggestions?. Experimental Dermatology, https://doi.org/10.1111/exd.14663
Human but not robotic gaze facilitates action prediction
Tidoni, E., Holle, H., Scandola, M., Schindler, I., Hill, L., & Cross, E. S. (2022). Human but not robotic gaze facilitates action prediction. iScience, 25(6), Article 104462. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2022.104462
Research interests
Dr Holle is an experimental psychologist with expertise in both behavioural as well as neuroscience methods. While earlier work was focused on the relationship of gesture and language, he has more recently taken a more applied approach in his research. Through his studies on the sensation of itch he has become aware of the considerable unmet disease burden in skin conditions like eczema and psoriasis. Over the last few years he has initiated a research programme that addresses this unmet need. With the support of funding from the British Skin Foundation, the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), the Psoriasis Association and most recently the National Eczema Association, he studied the psychological factors of resilience and vulnerability in these patient populations. Based on a better understanding of these factors, the longer-term aim is to develop effective cognitive trainings for patients via the internet that can be rolled out at scale at minimal cost.
Lead investigator
Project
Funder
Grant
Started
Status
Project
Understanding and reducing psychosocial burden of eczema: An attentional bias approach
Funder
National Eczema Association
Grant
£71,942.00
Started
1 March 2024
Status
Ongoing
Project
The role of inhibitory and excitatory motor processes in planned scratch responses
Funder
Experimental Psychology Society
Grant
£3,500.00
Started
1 September 2020
Status
Complete
Project
A multisensory approach to itch
Funder
British Skin Foundation
Grant
£81,000.00
Started
1 September 2015
Status
Complete
Project
An attentional bias approach to understanding and reducing the psychosocial burden of psoriasis
Funder
Psoriasis Association
Grant
£85,500.00
Started
1 January 2019
Status
Complete
Postgraduate supervision
Dr Holle is always very interested to hear from students, based at Hull or elsewhere, who are keen to get involved in research relating to itch perception, touch or gesture.
He usually has a number of ongoing projects that require data collection. This research experience would suit students who are considering applying for PhD funding and wish to develop their research skills / publication record.
Completed PhDs
- Olivia Jones (Primary Supervisor). 2013 - 2017. Exploring the Process of Itch and its Dimensionality: Investigations Using Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation. Funded by the University of Hull.
- Wanying Zhao (Primary Supervisor). 2014 - 2017. Exploring the role of inferior frontal and posterior temporal cortices in gesture-speech integration. Funded by the Chinese Science Council and the Hull-China Partnership.
- Sarah Etty (Primary Supervisor). 2019 - 2022. An attentional bias approach to Psoriasis. Funded by the Psoriasis Association.
- Erin Minton-Branfoot (Primary Supervisor. 2020 - 2024. Gestures as a stepping stone into rapid second language acquisition. Funded by the ESRC.
Current PhD supervisions
- Beth Richards (Second Supervisor)
- Keryn Siddle (Second Supervisor)