How is the development of physiological responses to social evaluation in adolescence affected by other normative developments, such as pubertal, socio-cognitive and psychosocial development? Are social anxiety and public speaking anxiety associated with characteristic patterns of stress responses…

Our team consists of the following members.

How effective is eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy in targeting epilepsy-related anxiety?

From basic science to real-world interventions

1. Social anxiety and factors determining school success in children. 2. Brain development in relation to cognitive, social and emotional development in adolescence

Effectiveness of an early intervention program for anxiety-prone toddlers in the Netherlands

Members of our research team give different types of presentations and lectures.

... which build on self-regulation and stress-regulation theories and considers the modification of cognitions as a mediator of therapeutic change.

The idea that socially anxious people avoid eye contact because they are not interested in other people needs to be changed. They take their information from other physical sources, such as people's hands. This is the finding of Leiden psychologist Mariska Kret whose research has been published in…

The main aim of my Ph.D. thesis is to further explore the value of using early developing zebrafish larvae (up to 5 dpf) as a model to study anxiety-like behaviour and their pharmacological modulation with drugs.

The main focus of our research programme is on adolescence, a key transitional period in human development. The programme puts emphasis on combined experimental behavioural and neural analysis of normative transitions and deviations in adolescent development.

On 22 January, Annemarie Madani-Abbing will defend her dissertation 'Art therapy and anxiety' regarding her research into the effectiveness of anthroposophic art therapy in treating anxiety in women. We asked her about her research and what it was like to combine a job outside academia with studying…

Electronic versions of our publications can be obtained by sending an e-mail to Esther van den Bos: bosejvanden@fsw.leidenuniv.nl

Our team is involved in the translation and adaptation of several questionnaires, for research purposes. Information about each questionnaire is listed below.

Janna Marie Bas-Hoogendam is a neuroscientist at the Institute of Psychology and conducts research on the brains of families suffering from social anxiety disorder. Janna Marie's research has caught attention that led to media appearances.

Questionnaires or concentration tasks can be used to screen for anxiety, but so too can EEG recordings – at least indirectly. The frequent mind wandering of anxious people can also be seen on MRI scans. These are just some of the findings of clinical neuropsychologist Dana van Son. PhD defence on 24…

Jiemiao Chen is running a study on eye-contact with a virtual audience. The study involves introducing oneself to the audience while wearing eye-tracking glasses and filling out some questionnaires. Participation is possible until mid-June.

‘What a relief,’ was psychologist Mariska Kret’s reaction to the news of her Vidi grant from the national science financier NWO. The grant makes it possible for her to carry out new research into emotions and trust in patients with a social anxiety disorder and patients with autism.

Which intervention technique is more effective in reducing public speaking anxiety in children aged 9 – 12 years, exposure or restructuring cognitions?

Building cultures of legality: lawmaking and anxiety in the office of the Governor General.

The Institute of Psychology is responsible for innovative and interdisciplinary research and education within psychology and related disciplines.

Some children and adolescents find it hard to attend school because of anxiety and/or depression, a problem which is often referred to as school refusal. The main research question is how we can best help these young people reduce their emotional distress and increase their school attendance in order…

Are the types of school non-attendance which have been evidenced in typically developing youth also found among children and adolescents with an intellectual disability (ID)? If so, which types are most prevalent and thus in greatest need of attention, and what factors (child, family, school/environmental)…

How does stress influence cognitive performance? What is the role of selective attention to threatening information in this effect? Could we prevent stress-induced decline of cognitive performance with pharmacological interventions? Could we use resting state theta/beta ratio as a biomarker for cognitive…

What is the relation between the experience and the act of exclusion?

Lecture

The consequences of social tendencies for the legislation and institutions in the fields of social security, the labor market policy and pension reform are examined in this multdisciplinary research program..

How does having limited access to the social world affect Deaf or Hard of Hearing (DHH) children’s emotional development? And in turn, how do impairments in emotional functioning affect social development and the development of psychopathology?

The better teaching is for pupils and students, the more solid the basis will be that we give them for their future careers. This type of teaching requires strong instructors and insight into the best ways in which pupils can be supported, and research at Leiden University is making a contribution in…

Good education is the basis for a fair and sustainable society. To maintain a high level of education, teachers, pupils, lecturers and students need new resources. One of the ways that Leiden University supports them in this is by conducting academic research, largely together with practicing teaching…

Does a universal psychoeducational course about stress in adolescents: I) lead to an increase in knowledge of stress?, II) affect the frequency with which stressors are experienced and the overall stress level?, III) create interest in a tier 2 level follow-up training?, and IV) appeal to students in…

The Institute of Psychology is responsible for innovative and interdisciplinary research and education within psychology and related disciplines. It focuses primarily on three broad areas: health and wellbeing, development and learning, and social, cognitive and economic decision-making. Its research…

This thesis, conducted in the framework of ERC Starting grant project BABYLON (PI: Caroline Waerzeggers), presents an investigation into Babylonian society, focusing on the city of Borsippa during Neo-Babylonian and early Persian rule (c. 620-484 BCE).

Our research regularly receives attention in the (Dutch) popular media. Here is an overview.

... examines how different motives stemming from people’s interdependencies and social identities influence decision making in social contexts.

The more opportunities a child has to learn and develop, the stronger his or her future position in society. Leiden University investigates how the brain picks up information, and how learning processes can be influenced positively.

Is EEG theta\beta ratio predictive towards the negative effects of stress on cognitive performance in individuals suffering from performance anxiety? Can we improve resilience to performance anxiety by using a theta\beta ratio neurofeedback intervention?

The curriculum of the master's specialisation School Psychology is in total 60 EC and can be completed within one year. The programme offers a variety of courses and a supervised master's thesis.

The studies outlined in this volume explore how connectedness continues to change Africa and how Africa continues to shape the social life of connections.

A neurobiological perspective on individual differences in social competence

The master's specialisation School Psychology consists of three main parts: the mandatory courses, the thesis and the internship/extra electives.

During eye contact, people tend to mirror the pupil size of the person they are conversing with. This social mechanism is related to the trust an individual has in the person they are talking to, according to research by psychologists at Leiden University. Publication in PNAS.

Do you have to be able to say everything on Twitter and Facebook? Is Instagram morally obliged to remove photos from attacks? Should we allow the terrorist group to recruit new members on the internet?