Fumiko Hoeft

Professor

Campus Dean and Chief Administrative Officer of UConn Waterbury

Psychological Sciences

Additional Appointments

For questions related to the UConn Waterbury campus, please email Taylor Hunt, executive assistant to the campus director.

  • Campus Director, UConn Waterbury
  • Professor (by courtesy), Departments of Computer Science and Engineering, Educational Psychology, Mathematics, Neuroscience, Pediatrics, and Psychiatry

Education

  • MD, Keio University School of Medicine (1995)
  • Ph.D., Nueroscience/Nuerophysiology, Keio University School of Medicine (2003)

Research Interests

For questions related to Dr. Hoeft’s research, please email brainLENS@Uconn.edu.

Dr. Hoeft is a neurophysiologist, as well as a systems and developmental cognitive neuroscientist with theoretical interests in the neurobiological mechanisms underlying individual differences in brain maturational processes, acquisition of skills such as literacy and how they interact. Her other areas of interest include:

  • Brain Development
  • Neuroimaging
  • Individual differences
  • Literacy acquisition
  • Dyslexia

She is also the lab director of the Laboratory for Learning Engineering and Neural Systems (brainLENS), a collaboration between researchers at UConn and the University of California, San Francisco.

Teaching

Neuroimaging, neuromodulation techniques, grant writing and science outreach

Publications

Representative

Haft S, Hoeft F. A meta-analytic review of the consequences of stigma and stereotype threat for individuals with specific learning disabilities. Feb xx, 2021. doi: 10.31234/osf.io/bt7ew.

Feng L, Hancock R, Watson C, Bogley R, Miller Z, Gorno-Tempini ML, Briggs-Gowan MJ, Hoeft F. A Development of an Abbreviated Adult Reading History Questionnaire (ARHQ-Brief) Using a Machine Learning Approach. September 17, 2020. doi: 10.31234/osf.io/8u5fe

Sturm VE, Roy ARK, Datta S, Wang C, Sible IJ, Holley SR, Watson C, Palser ER,Morris NA, Battistella G, Rah E, Meyer M, Pakvasa M, Mandelli ML, Deleon J, Hoeft F, Caverzasi E, Miller ZA, Shapiro KA, Hendren R, Miller BL, Gorno-Tempini ML. Enhanced visceromotor emotional reactivity in dyslexia and its relation to salience network connectivity. Cortex 2020, ISSN 0010-9452. doi: 1016/j.cortex.2020.10.022

Vandermosten M, Schevenels K, Economou M, Hoeft F. The influence of intergenerational transfer of white matter tracts on early reading development (under review in Scientific Reports). October 9, 2020. doi: 10.1101/2020.10.09.333096

Li H, Kepinska O, Caballero JN, Zekelman L, Marks RA, Uchikoshi Y, Kovelman I, Hoeft F.Decoding the role of the cerebellum in the early stages of reading acquisition. May 31, 2020.doi: 10.31234/osf.io/4pn98 Cortex (accepted)

ia Z**, Wang C**, Vandermosten M, Hancock R, Hoeft F. Advanced paternal age (APA) effects on offspring academic ability: The role of thalamic maturation links APA and reading. May 22, 2020. doi: 10.1101/2020.05.20.105759

Molfese PJ, Glen D, Mesite L, Cox RW, Hoeft F, Frost SJ, Mencl WE, Pugh K, Bandettini PA. The Haskins Pediatric Atlas: An MRI-Based Pediatric Template and Atlas. Pediatr Radiol 2020 Nov 19. doi: 10.1007/s00247-020-04875-y Epub ahead of print. PMID: 33211184

Haas BW, Hoeft F, Omura K. The role of culture on the link between worldviews on nature and psychological health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Pers Individ Dif 2021 Feb 15;170:110336. doi: 10.1016/j.paid.2020.110336. Epub 2020 Oct 10. PMID: 33071412; PMCID: PMC7547372

Hennessey EP, Kepinska O, Haft SL, Chan M, Sunshine I, Jones C, Hancock R, Hoeft F.Hair cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone concentrations: Associations with executive function in early childhood. Biol Psychol 2020 Sep;155:107946. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2020.107946. Epub 2020 Aug 14. PMID: 32805299; PMCID: PMC7530148

Haft SL, Caballero JN, Tanaka T, Zekelman L, Cutting LE, Uchikoshi Y, Hoeft F. Direct and indirect contributions of executive function and word decoding to reading comprehension in kindergarten Learn Individ Differ 2019 Dec;76. pii: 101783. doi: 10.1016/j.lindif.2019.101783. Epub 2019 Oct 31. PMID: 32189956 PMCID: PMC7079702

Marks RA, Kovelman I, Kepinska O, Oliver M, Xia Z, Haft SL, Zekelman L, Duong P, Uchikoshi Y, Hancock R, Hoeft F. Spoken language proficiency predicts print-speech convergence in beginning readers Neuroimage 2019 Nov 1;201:116021. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.116021. Epub 2019 Jul 13. PMID: 31310862 PMCID: PMC6765418

Haft SL, Kepinska O, Caballero JN, Hoeft F. Attentional fluctuations, cognitive flexibility, and bilingualism in kindergarteners. Behav Sci (Basel) 2019 May 24;9(5):pii:E58. doi: 10.3390/bs9050058. PMID: 31137651 PMCID: PMC6562579

Haft SL, Chen T, Leblanc C, Tencza F, Hoeft F. Impact of mentoring on socio-emotional and mental health outcomes of youth with learning disabilities and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. Child and Adolescent Mental Health 2019 Apr 21; NIHMSID: NIHMS1020130. doi: 10.1111/camh.12331

Haft SL, Duong PH, Ho TC, Hendren RL, Hoeft F. Anxiety and attentional bias in children with specific learning disorders. J Abnorm Child Psychol 2019 Mar;47(3):487-497. doi: 10.1007/s10802-018-0458-y. PMID: 30043123 PMCID: PMC6639079

Kearns D, Hancock R, Hoeft F, Pugh KR, Frost S. The neurobiology of dyslexia. Teaching Exceptional Children 2019 Jan 11; 51(3):175-188.

Del Tufo SN, Frost SJ, Hoeft F, Cutting LE, Molfese PJ, Mason GF, Rothman DL, Fulbright RK, Pugh KR. Neurochemistry predicts convergence of written and spoken language: A proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy study of cross-modal language integration. Front Psychol 2018 Sep 04;9:1507. PMID: 30233445 PMCID: PMC6131664

Haft SL, Duong PH, Ho TC, Hendren RL, Hoeft F. Anxiety and attentional bias in children with specific learning disorders. J Abnorm Child Psychol 2019 Mar;47(3):487-497. doi: 10.1007/s10802-018-0458-y. PMID: 30043123 PMCID: in progress

Patael S, Farris EA, Black JM, Hancock R, Gabrieli JDE, Cutting L, Hoeft F. Brain basis of cognitive resilience: Prefrontal cortex predicts better reading comprehension in relation to decoding. PLoS ONE 2018 Jun 14;13(6):e0198791. PMID: 29902208. PMCID: PMC6002103

Malins JG, Pugh KR, Buis B, Frost SJ, Hoeft F, Landi N, Mencl WE, Kurian A, Staples R, Molfese PJ, Sevcik R, Morris R. Individual differences in reading skill are related to trial-by-trial neural activation variability in the reading network. J Neurosci 2018;38(12):2981-2989. PMID: 29440534. PMCID: PMC5864150 [Available on 2018-09-21] Evaluated: F1000 Neuroscience

Hancock R, Pugh KR, Hoeft F. The neural noise hypothesis of developmental dyslexia. Trends Cogn Sci (TiCS) 2017;21(6):434-448. PMID: 28400089; PMCID: PMC548955

Hancock R, Pugh KR, Hoeft F. Neural Noise Hypothesis of Developmental Dyslexia: (Trends in Cognitive Sciences 21, 434-448, 2017). Trends Cogn Sci (TiCS)2017;21(11):909. PMID: 28869186. PMCID: PMC5724971

Hancock R, Richlan F, Hoeft F. Possible roles for frontostriatal circuits in reading disorder. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2017;72:243-260. PMID: 27826071; PMCID: PMC5189679

Ho TC, Sanders SJ, Gotlib IH, Hoeft F. Intergenerational Neuroimaging of Human Brain Circuitry. Trends Neuroscience (TiNS). 2016;39(10):644-648. PMID: 27623194; PMCID: PMC5067069

Hancock R, Gabrieli JDE, Hoeft F. Shared temporoparietal dysfunction in dyslexia and typical readers with discrepantly high IQ. Trends Neurosci Educ 2016;5(4):173-177.PMID: 28439565; PMCID: PMC5400289

Haft SL, Myers CA, Hoeft F. Socio-emotional and cognitive resilience in children with reading disabilities. Curr Opin Behav Sci 2016;10:133-141. PMID:27747263; PMCID: PMC5058360

Vandermosten M, Hoeft F, Norton ES. Integrating MRI brain imaging studies of pre-reading children with current theories of developmental dyslexia: A review and quantitative meta-analysis. Curr Opin Behav Sci 2016;10:155-161. PMID: 27458603; PMCID: PMC4957935

Yamagata B, Black JM, Gimenez P, Mimura M, Yang TT, Reiss AL, Hoeft F. Sex-specific intergenerational transmission patterns in the human corticolimbic system. J Neurosci2016;36(4):1254-60. PMID: 26818513; PMCID: PMC4728726. Press release: UCSF; Covered by: Scientific American

Rueckl JG, Paz-Alonso PM, Molfese PJ, Kuod W-J, Bick A, Frost SJ, Hancock R, Wu DH, Mencl WE, Duñabeitia JA, Lee J-R, Oliver M, Zevin JD, Hoeft F, Carreiras M, Tzeng OJ-L, Pugh KR, Frost R. A universal brain signature of proficient reading: Evidence from four contrasting languages. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A (PNAS) 2015 Dec 15;112(50):15510-5.doi: 10.1073/pnas.1509321112. Epub 2015 Nov 30. PMID: 26621710; PMCID: PMC4687557

Myers CA, Vandermosten M, Farris EA, Hancock R, Gimenez P, Black JM, Casto B, Drahos M, Tumber M, Hendren RL, Hulme C, Hoeft F. White matter morphometric changes uniquely predict children’s reading acquisition. Psychol Sci 2014 Oct;25(10):1870-83. doi: 10.1177/0956797614544511. Epub 2014 Sep 11. PMID: 25212581; PMCID: PMC4326021 Press release: UCSF; Podcast: UCSF, NIH

Pugh KR, Frost SJ, Rothman DL, Hoeft F, Del Tufo SN, Mason GF, Molfese PJ, Mencl WE, Grigorenko EL, Landi N, Preston JL, Jacobsen L, Seidenberg MS, Fulbright RK. Glutamate and choline levels predict individual differences in reading ability in emergent readers. J Neurosci 2014 Mar 12;34(11):4082-9. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.3907-13.2014. PMID: 24623786; PMCID: PMC3951703 Press release: Yale, NICHD

Hong DS, Hoeft F, Marzelli MJ, Lepage JF, Roeltgen D, Ross J, Reiss AL. Influence of the X-chromosome on neuroanatomy: evidence from Turner and Klinefelter syndromes. J Neurosci 2014 Mar 5;34(10):3509-16. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.2790-13.2014. PMID: 24599451; PMCID: PMC3942570

Kesler SR, Wefel JS, Hosseini SM, Cheung M, Watson CL, Hoeft F. Default mode network connectivity distinguishes chemotherapy-treated breast cancer survivors from controls. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A (PNAS) 2013 Jul 9;110(28):11600-5. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1214551110. Epub 2013 Jun 24. PMID: 23798392; PMCID: PMC3710809

Hoeft F, Gabrieli JD, Whitfield-Gabrieli S, Haas BW, Bammer R, Menon V, Spiegel D. Functional brain basis of hypnotizability. JAMA Psychiatry 2012 Oct;69(10):1064-72. doi: 10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2011.2190. Erratum in: JAMA Psychiatry 2013 Jan;70(1):97. PMID: 23026956; PMCID: PMC4365296. Press release: NICHD, Stanford; Author ITV in: Arch Gen Psychiatry

Hosseini SM, Hoeft F, Kesler SR. GAT: a graph-theoretical analysis toolbox for analyzing between-group differences in large-scale structural and functional brain networks. PLoS One 2012;7(7):e40709. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0040709. Epub 2012 Jul 13. PMID: 22808240; PMCID: PMC3396592

**Tanaka H, **Black JM, Hulme C, Stanley LM, Kesler SR, Whitfield-Gabrieli S, Reiss AL, Gabrieli JD, Hoeft F. The brain basis of the phonological deficit in dyslexia is independent of IQ. Psychol Sci 2011 Nov;22(11):1442-51. doi: 10.1177/0956797611419521. Epub 2011 Oct 17. PMID: 22006060. PMCID: PMC4380286 Press release: NICHD, Psychol Sci, Stanford & MIT **Shared 1st

Bryant DM, Hoeft F, Lai S, Lackey J, Roeltgen D, Ross J, Reiss AL. Neuroanatomical phenotype of Klinefelter syndrome in childhood: a voxel-based morphometry study. J Neurosci 2011 May 4;31(18):6654-60. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5899-10.2011. PMID: 21543594; PMCID: PMC3148194

Hoeft F, McCandliss BD, Black JM, Gantman A, Zakerani N, Hulme C, Lyytinen H, Whitfield-Gabrieli S, Glover GH, Reiss AL, Gabrieli JD. Neural systems predicting long-term outcome in dyslexia. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A (PNAS) 2011 Jan 4;108(1):361-6. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1008950108. Epub 2010 Dec 20. PMID: 21173250; PMCID: PMC3017159 Press release: NICHD, Stanford, MIT, & Vanderbilt; Covered by: Science

Hoeft F, Walter E, Lightbody AA, Hazlett HC, Chang C, Piven J, Reiss AL. Neuroanatomical differences in toddler boys with fragile x syndrome and idiopathic autism. JAMA Psychiatry 2011 Mar;68(3):295-305. doi: 10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2010.153. Epub 2010 Nov 1. PMID: 21041609. PMCID: PMC4369209 Comment in: Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2011 Mar;68(3):230-1

Hoeft F, Carter JC, Lightbody AA, Cody Hazlett H, Piven J, Reiss AL. Region-specific alterations in brain development in one- to three-year-old boys with fragile X syndrome. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A (PNAS) 2010 May 18;107(20):9335-9. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1002762107. Epub 2010 May 3. PMID: 20439717; PMCID: PMC2889103.

Etkin A, Prater KE, Hoeft F, Menon V, Schatzberg AF. Failure of anterior cingulate activation and connectivity with the amygdala during implicit regulation of emotional processing in generalized anxiety disorder. Am J Psychiatry 2010 May;167(5):545-54. doi: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2009.09070931. Epub 2010 Feb 1. PMID: 20123913. PMCID: PMC4367202 Comment in: Am J Psychiatry. 2010 May;167(5):489-92

Bray S, Chang C, Hoeft F. Applications of multivariate pattern classification analyses in developmental neuroimaging of healthy and clinical populations. Front Hum Neurosci2009 Oct 23;3:32. doi: 10.3389/neuro.09.032.2009. eCollection 2009. PMID: 19893761; PMCID: PMC2773173

Haas BW, Mills D, Yam A, Hoeft F, Bellugi U, Reiss A. Genetic influences on sociability: heightened amygdala reactivity and event-related responses to positive social stimuli in Williams syndrome. J Neurosci 2009 Jan 28;29(4):1132-9. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5324-08.2009. PMID: 19176822; PMCID: PMC2754840.

Hoeft F, Lightbody AA, Hazlett HC, Patnaik S, Piven J, Reiss AL. Morphometric spatial patterns differentiating boys with fragile X syndrome, typically developing boys, and developmentally delayed boys aged 1 to 3 years. JAMA Psychiatry 2008 Sep;65(9):1087-97. doi: 10.1001/archpsyc.65.9.1087. PMID: 18762595; PMCID: PMC2864400.

Watson C, Hoeft F, Garrett AS, Hall SS, Reiss AL. Aberrant brain activation during gaze processing in boys with fragile X syndrome. JAMA Psychiatry 2008 Nov;65(11):1315-23. doi: 10.1001/archpsyc.65.11.1315. PMID: 18981343.

Hoeft F, Wu DA, Hernandez A, Glover GH, Shimojo S. Electronically switchable sham transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) system. PLoS One 2008 Apr 9;3(4):e1923. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0001923. PMID: 18398456; PMCID: PMC2271126

Hoeft F, Barnea-Goraly N, Haas BW, Golarai G, Ng D, Mills D, Korenberg J, Bellugi U, Galaburda A, Reiss AL. More is not always better: increased fractional anisotropy of superior longitudinal fasciculus associated with poor visuospatial abilities in Williams syndrome. J Neurosci 2007 Oct 31;27(44):11960-5. PMID: 17978036

Hoeft F, Meyler A, Hernandez A, Juel C, Taylor-Hill H, Martindale JL, McMillon G, Kolchugina G, Black JM, Faizi A, Deutsch GK, Siok WT, Reiss AL, Whitfield-Gabrieli S, Gabrieli JD. Functional and morphometric brain dissociation between dyslexia and reading ability. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A (PNAS) 2007 Mar 6;104(10):4234-9. Epub 2007 Feb 23. PMID: 17360506; PMCID: PMC1820738

Hoeft F, Hernandez A, McMillon G, Taylor-Hill H, Martindale JL, Meyler A, Keller TA, Siok WT, Deutsch GK, Just MA, Whitfield-Gabrieli S, Gabrieli JD. Neural basis of dyslexia: a comparison between dyslexic and nondyslexic children equated for reading ability. J Neurosci 2006 Oct 18;26(42):10700-8. PMID: 17050709 Evaluated: F1000 Biology.

deCharms RC, Maeda(Hoeft) F, Glover GH, Ludlow D, Pauly JM, Soneji, D.J., Gabrieli, J.D.E., and Mackey, S.C. Control over brain activation and pain learned by using real-time functional MRI. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA (PNAS) 2005; 102(51): 18626-18631.Evaluated: F1000 Biology. Coverage: Nature, Nat Rev Neurosci.

Maeda(Hoeft) F, Kanai R, Shimojo S. Changing pitch induced visual motion illusion. Curr Biol 2004; 14(23):R990-R991.

Maeda(Hoeft) F, Gangitano M, Thall M, Pascual-Leone A. Inter- and intra-individual variability of paired-pulse curves with transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Clin Neurophysiol 2002;113:376-382.

Maeda(Hoeft) F, Keenan J, Tormos JM, Topka H, Pascual-Leone A. Interindividual variability of the modulatory effect of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on cortico-spinal excitability. Exp Brain Res 2000; 133:425-30.

Maeda(Hoeft) F, Keenan J, Tormos JM, Topka H, Pascual-Leone A. Modulation of cortico-spinal excitability by repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation. Clin Neurophysiol 2000;111: 800-805.

Honors and Awards

  • International Dyslexia Association (IDA; 2014, 2022)
  • Learning & the Brain Foundation (2015)
  • University of California Office of the President (2016)
  • Int’l Mind Brain & Education Society (IMBES; 2018)
  • Society for Neuroscience (SfN; 2018)
  • Eye to Eye (2019)
  • UConn College of Liberal Arts & Sciences (2021)

Served on boards of:

  • National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD)
  • Bay Area Discovery Museum’s (BADM) Center for Childhood Creativity (CCC)
  • International Dyslexia Association (IDA)
Fumiko Hoeft
Contact Information
Emailfumiko.hoeft@uconn.edu
Phone650.245.7016
Mailing AddressUnit 1271
Office LocationBousfield 169; Phillips 142; Lab: BOUS 329
CampusStorrs
LinkBrain Imaging Research Center
Tags