Grants awarded for five innovative psychology research projects
Researchers from the Institute of Psychology have secured NWO Open Competition XS grants, each worth up to €50,000. One of the projects explores how making music together can enhance cooperation. Discover more about all five research projects.
Fleur Brouwer: Tuning in together: From music to prosocial behaviour through synchrony in body and mind
'Prosocial behaviour is a cornerstone of human society. Throughout human evolution, joint music making has been used to increase prosocial behaviour and connect with each other. Here, we investigate whether listening to music together promotes cooperation, and whether this results from music strengthening bodily synchrony, with the physiological states of listeners aligning. We will also assess if pleasurable responses during music listening contribute to this putative linkage. Increased cooperation induced by synchronous music listening has theoretical implications for understanding the function of music in evolutionary and current times, as well as practical implications for using music in social settings.'
Hanneke Hulst, Marit Ruitenberg en Ellen de Bruijn: Mind over Menopause: Unravelling cognitive challenges in women with multiple sclerosis in different phases of menopause
'In addition to the physical symptoms, 43-70% of people with multiple sclerosis (MS) also face cognitive challenges, such as slowed information processing speed and memory problems, which significantly affect daily life. Interestingly, similar cognitive issues can arise in healthy women during menopause. This raises a critical question: how can we distinguish between cognitive symptoms caused by MS and those resulting from the menopausal transition? This project seeks to bridge this research gap by exploring cognitive functioning across different stages of menopause in women with and without MS. Ultimately, this pioneering work could pave the way for new, targeted cognitive interventions.'
Angelo Romano: The effect of economic inequality on ingroup favoritism: An investigation across 20 societies
'In an increasingly interdependent world, ingroup favoritism - the tendency to cooperate more with ingroup members than outgroup members - may substantially impede the provision of public goods, such as environmental conservation or the creation of multi-national institutions. Prevailing theoretical insights derive from theories where cooperation leads to perfect equality. Crucially however, societies and interactions between groups around the globe are characterized by economic disparities and therefore we currently lack an understanding of how inequality affects ingroup favoritism. In this project, I will examine how economic inequality impacts national ingroup favoritism in cooperation across 20 societies around the globe.'
Annabel Losecaat Vermeer: The Hidden Costs of Low Social Status: How Stress Alters Information-Seeking Behavior
'Low social status is a well-known predictor of negative outcomes in health, education, and earnings, with stress playing a key role. Individuals with low social status often experience high stress, which may lead them to avoid negative information, even when it is crucial for making decisions and its outcomes. This research investigates how low social status and the stress it induces alter how and what information people seek—an important but underexplored aspect of decision-making. Understanding these processes could lead to targeted interventions that help people in low social status positions make better decisions and improve their overall well-being.'
Anne Urai en Philippa Johnson: Arousal as an Early Warning Signal: Detecting and Preventing Mind-Wandering in Real-Time
'As we make decisions about the world around us, our engagement fluctuates – for instance when we mind-wander. It is crucial to detect such disengagement without requiring self-report, and before disengagement occurs, to prevent its detrimental consequences on task performance. This project uses recent advances in computational neuroscience, using video-based pupillary and facial measures of arousal as early warning signals, to predict attentional disengagement before it occurs. We will then use these for real-time biofeedback, to prompt decision-makers into refocusing their attention. This could ultimately reduce decision errors in high-stakes situations such as medical decision-making, criminal judgment and traffic control.'