Laura Steenbergen investigates how experiences with mental health issues can (and do) form a source of knowledge and expertise, and how this relates to psychological research and education. She also conducts research on the microbiota-gut-brain axis and its influence on mental processes and experiences. Since October 2025 she works as Assistant Professor on the sectorplan theme 'Mental Illness'.

More information about Laura Steenbergen

Laura Steenbergen investigates how experiences with mental health issues can (and do) form a source of knowledge and expertise, and how this relates to psychological research and education. She also conducts research on the microbiota-gut-brain axis and its influence on mental processes and experiences. Since October 2025 she works as Assistant Professor on the sectorplan theme 'Mental Illness'.

Profile

Laura is broadly interested in well-being and research regarding vulnerability, prevention, and recovery in relation to mental health. She is passionate about openness and exploring the unexpected; she enjoys bringing together seemingly disparate disciplines to contribute to science, education, and public knowledge. In addition to her research, Laura teaches and supervises bachelor's and master's students in (Clinical) Psychology, and (until 2024) the post-master program for Clinical Psychologists (RINO). She also enjoys interacting with a wide audience through (public) lectures and media, and regularly serves as a sounding board on topics such as (scientific) integrity and social safety.

Research

Laura investigates the position and potential of experiential knowledge; knowledge that someone has acquired through their own, personal, or close experiences, particularly with intense or life-altering situations. For example: how do the personal and close experiences (with mental health issues) of students  play a role in the Psychology program? Her central question is: How do our experiences relate to professional and scientific knowledge in relation to mental well-being?
Laura also conducts research on the microbiota-gut-brain axis and its influence on mental processes and experiences. For example, she investigates whether, and possibly how, the composition of the gut microbiota (i.e., gut flora), and interventions such as probiotics and antibiotics, influence how people feel and behave. To this end, she also investigates the involvement of the vagus nerve in experiencing emotions and making decisions.

Career

Laura studied Psychology at Leiden University, where she also obtained her PhD in Cognitive Psychology (specifically: Cognitive Enhancement) in 2016. Her research focused on the influence of brain stimulation and nutritional supplements on (social) cognitive skills. After completing her PhD, she received an Amsterdam Brain and Cognition Talent Grant, which allowed her to further deepen her research on the microbiota-gut-brain axis, the mechanisms that shape this axis, and its implications for mental well-being. In 2018, she moved to Ohio State University to investigate the influence of the vagus nerve on the microbiota-gut-brain axis, and in 2019, she worked as a visiting researcher at the Oxford Centre for Emotion and Affective Neuroscience, researching the influence of probiotics and antibiotics on cognitive and affective processing. Simultaneously, Laura started as an assistant professor in Clinical Psychology at Leiden University, where she continues this research. In line with a personal quest for the meaning of experiences with mental health in the context of her work as a researcher and teacher, Laura is now conducting scientific research into the position and potential of experiential knowledge.

In 2024, Laura published an update regarding her dissertation, retracting two chapters and raising an issue of concern for another. Her statement, in which she writes, among other things, that she hopes to demonstrate that correcting misconduct is possible and contributes to sustainable science, can be read here.
She has received various (popular) scientific grants, awards, and nominations for her work. In 2018, for example, she received an NWO Veni grant ("Mind the Microbes!") and the Young Scientist Award from the European Society for Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience.

Grants and Prizes

• 2019: Leids Universiteits Fonds Gratama-Stichting project grant ("The microbiota-gut-brain axis in preventing stress-related disorders: antibiotics, cytokine activity, and cognitive reactivity to emotion").
• 2018: Nederlandse organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek Veni beurs ("Mind the Microbes! Toward an understanding of the human microbiota-gut-brain axis and its potential for promoting mental health").
• 2018: Young Investigator Award, European Society for Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience (ESCAN).
• 2017: Nederlandse organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek ZonMw Enabling Technologies Hotels Public-Private Hotel grant ("Understanding gut feelings: Metabolomics insight in the effects of probiotics on cognitive functioning and mental well-being")
• 2017: Koninklijke Nederlandse Academie van Wetenschappen van der Gaag beurs (on behalf of a work visit to Ohio State University)
• 2017: Amsterdam Brain and Cognition Talent Grant ("Understanding gut feelings: Probiotics and Cognition)