Jon C. Horvitz

Professor

Researcher, Behavioral Neuroscience

Main Affiliation

Psychology

Areas of Expertise/Research

  • Basal Ganglia
  • Dopamine
  • Habit
  • Learning
  • Motivation
  • Reward

Building

North Academic Center

Office

7/217A

Phone

212-650-5744

Email

jhorvitz@ccny.cuny.edu

Jon Horvitz

Jon C. Horvitz

Profile

Our research and theoretical work is examining how reward experiences shape the activity of the basal ganglia, and how the basal ganglia helps us to choose our next action.

I have an undergrad Psychology textbook Principles of Behavioral Neuroscience, written with Barry Jacobs, coming out in June 2022. 

textbook cover

Education

BA: Haverford College, Neuropsychology

Ph.D. : University of California, Santa Barbara, Psychology.

Post doc:  Princeton University Program in Neurosciences

Courses

Brain, Mind, Experience, PSY254

Introduction to Cognitive Neuroscience, PSY371

Advanced Topics in the Neurochemistry of Learning, PSY31114

Publications

 

Recent work:

  • Horvitz, J. C., Jacobs, B.L. (2022) Principles of Behavioral Neuroscience, Cambridge University Press,

  • Stamos, J., Ma, S., Pawlak, A., Engelhard, N., Horvitz, J.C., West, M.O. (2022) Reward vs. motoric activations in NAc Core of rats during Pavlovian conditioning, European Journal of Neuroscience, 1-21, https://doi.org/10.1111/ejn.15680, 

  • Dobrovitsky, V., West, M.O., and Horvitz, J.C.  (2019 ) The role of the nucleus accumbens in learned approach behavior diminishes with training, European Journal of Neuroscience, 50: 3403-15, https://doi.org/10.1111/ejn.14523

  • Vega-Villar, M., Horvitz, J.C., Nicola, S.M., (2019 ) NMDA receptor-dependent plasticity in the nucleus accumbens connects reward-predictive cues to approach responses, Nature Communications, 10: 4429, doi: 10.1038/s41467-019-12387-z