Professor Neil McNaughton is a longstanding Professor of Neuroscience at the University of Otago in New Zealand. His research focuses on the neurobiology of temporal-frontal lobe interactions in state and trait anxiety. He takes a multidisciplinary approach to his work that links the psychology and physiology of emotion and memory.

His extensive career dates back to the 1980s when he was a key figure in developing the University of Otago’s undergraduate neuroscience program. His decades of teaching at undergraduate and graduate levels have been crucial to developing generations of scientists.

Professor McNaughton’s research has been published in over one hundred research papers, thirty book chapters, and The Neuropsychology of Anxiety, co-authored with Jeffrey A. Gray.

One of the founders of the Australasian Winter Conference on Brain Research, Professor McNaughton, has assessed grant applications for organizations such as NHMRC Australia and the National University of Singapore. In addition, he has reviewed academic papers for nearly 50 journals.