Brain function and dysfunction over the lifespan

This research profile area brings together the cognitive and the biomedical neurosciences in a unique multidisciplinary setting, studying brain function and dysfunction in the developing brain, the adult brain and the ageing brain. The underlying belief is that anyone wanting to know why something in the brain goes wrong first has to know what normal brains look like and how they function. We study subjects ranging from language processing to cognitive robotics, and from migraine to psychiatric disorders and neuro-pharmacology.

News on brain function and dysfunction

Shy parent, shy child?
16 January 2018

Previous research has shown that extreme shyness is hereditary, but because shyness is such a broad concept it is difficult to identify specific genes...
The adolescent brain makes learning easier
20 December 2017

The brains of adolescents react more responsively to receiving rewards. This can lead to risky behaviour, but, according to Leiden University research...
Weightless in the name of science
11 December 2017

Laura Nijkamp’s biggest dream came true recently: she took a parabolic flight and was weightless for a moment. The BrainFly student team, which includ...
They're going on a parabolic flight - and you can go too!
10 August 2017

Always wanted to find out what zero gravity is like? Now's your chance! In December 2017 a Dutch student team will be conducting experiments during a ...
Veni award for psychologist Barbara Braams
01 August 2017

Developmental psychologist Barbara Braams has been awarded with a Veni funding for her research about risk behaviour in young people. This award offer...
Rebecca Schaefer on 'Learning with music can change brain structure'
10 July 2017

Using musical cues to learn a physical task significantly develops an important part of the brain, according to a new study co-authored by Leiden psyc...
A different take on differences between men’s and women’s brains
27 June 2017

There is greater variety in the size of men’s brains than of women’s. This could help explain why some psychiatric disorders such as ADHD and autism a...
Spinoza Prize for ‘puberty professor’ Eveline Crone
16 June 2017

Eveline Crone, Professor of Neurocognitive Developmental Psychology, has been awarded the NWO Spinoza Prize for her high-profile research on adolescen...
How harmful is alcohol for the adolescent brain?
11 May 2017

Under 18, no alcohol. In spite of this slogan, adolescents still have access to alcohol. But how harmful is that one beer for the adolescent brain? R...
The importance of relating to others: why we only learn to understand other people after the age of four
24 March 2017

When we are around four years old we suddenly start to understand that other people think and that their view of the world is often different from our...

Brain function and dysfunction