OUR PEOPLE
Academic Credentials
- Ph.D., Psychology, University of Texas, Austin, 2022
- M.A., Film, The University of Kent, 2016
- B.A., Cinema Studies, New York University, 2015
Professional Honors
- Clarke Burnham Travel Grant, University of Texas at Austin (2019)
- Lloyd Jeffress Fellowship, University of Texas at Austin (2018)
- Professional Development Award, University of Texas at Austin (2018)
- Center for Perceptual Systems Training Grant, NIH T32 EY21462-6 (2017-2018)
- School of Arts Postgraduate International Student Scholarship, University of Kent (2015)
- Student & Early Career Award, British Society of Aesthetics (2015)
- Tom Hopkins Award for Departmental Service, New York University (2015)
- Founders’ Day Award for Outstanding Scholarship, New York University (2015)
- Tisch Scholarship for Transfer Students, New York University (2013)
Dr. Jake Whritner is a vision scientist with expertise in perception and human behavior. His work focuses on the capabilities of the human visual system, especially when it comes to processing motion and depth information.
Dr. Whritner has substantial training in experimental design, data analysis, and writing for a wide range of audiences. His background studying visual perception enables him to analyze human factors in many situations such as motor vehicle accidents and product design.
Dr. Whritner earned his Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Texas at Austin, where he used human psychophysics to study 3D motion perception. His dissertation work tested the contribution of various cues to depth and motion that the human visual system relies on to interact with the dynamic 3D world. In a one related project, Dr. Whritner created a virtual reality environment to test how participants' ability to track a moving target depends on both monocular and binocular cues.
In addition to his scientific expertise, Dr. Whritner also has a background in the humanities. During his B.A. and M.A. in film studies, he focused on how filmmakers guide and hold viewer attention, setting the stage for his interest in how the human visual system prioritizes information relevant to a given task.