What is the role of stress and stress-related hormones in emotion regulation?

In a longitudinal study, Eichengreen and colleagues explored how the certain aspects of emotional intelligence impact the development of adolescents’ mental health, thus identifying potential warning signs and targets for intervention programs. Despite a higher risk for mental health issues and lesser…

Can SMILE, our multi-component intervention, which combines cognitive-behavioural therapy for insomnia, mindfulness, stress, and lifestyle components, improve sleep quality? Can it also improve mood and quality of life and prevent depression and anxiety in the long term?

Stress, burnout, depression – these conditions pervade all levels of our society. Children and students suffer from constant pressure to achieve; at the international level, tensions lead to short-sighted actions; and, at the personal level, stress affects our health and social environment. How do our…

Bernet Elzinga (Clinical Psychology) is one of the seven scientists from the Leiden University who has received a Vici grant of 1.5 million euros from NWO. Vici is one of the largest grants for individual scientists in the Netherlands. The funding will enable her to do research for the next five years…

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PhD defence

Imagine getting a notification on your mobile phone with your personal code for impending mental health problems or even depression: yellow, orange, or red. Science fiction? Not for scientist Eiko Fried. 'There is a real chance we can prevent some mental health problems before they occur.' Want to participate…

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…

The research master's specialisation Developmental Psychology consists of five main parts: the general courses, the specialisation-specific courses, the elective courses, a research internship and a thesis.

Learning about circadian rhythms can help students to improve their sleep and overall well-being

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 aim of our research program is to better understand the aetiology and course of mood, anxiety and trauma and stressor-related disorders and to test and improve treatments for these disorders.

When psychologists repeated a hundred studies in 2015, their results differed in two-thirds of the studies. ‘Research into research is not a luxury but a necessity,’ says Professor of Methodology and Statistics of Psychological Research Mark de Rooij. ‘My aim is to improve psychological research, to think…

Depression and anxiety disorders among youth are causing major problems worldwide. The mechanisms involved are still unknown, however. Moji Aghajani – Assistant Professor at the Institute of Education and Child Studies - aims to provide new insights with his research

During adolescence, mood disorder onset peaks. Mood variability is associated with negative mental health outcomes, so understanding biological factors that might be associated with mood variability, such as sleep and structural brain development, could elucidate the mechanisms underlying mood and anxiety…

Toward optimal measurement and greater understanding of youth cognition in school refusal and cognitive behavioural therapy outcome

Welcome to the Social Anxiety and Specific Phobia (SASP) Research Group!

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Understanding individual differences in self-regulation in boys with ODD/CD on the level of brain, cognition and behavior

Which educational and child welfare interventions offer optimal opportunities for positive development to children with severe behavioral and emotional disorders.

Why do children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have difficulties with acquiring emotion regulation skills; and how is this related to their social impairments and comorbid psychopathology?

Supervisor: Indira Nederpelt

When and how does social anxiety develop? How can it go astray in some adolescents? How can we help troubled young people to attend school regularly and return to a normal developmental pathway?

Also in 2024, our colleagues from the Institute of Psychology were visible in the media in various ways. Check out their appearances in Dutch media, from NRC to the Podcast psychologist.

A step-by-step approach to building confidence in anxiety-prone young children.

How to come to valid risk stratification of alcohol use disorder?

Can epigenetic changes explain associations between early life stress and health outcomes?

Can excessive worrying be reduced via stimulation of the vagus nerve?

The Second Chance project aims to promote recovery and re-integration of entrepreneurs who have recently undergone bankruptcy.

Leiden researchers are helping develop safe COVID-19 vaccines.

How was FDR's image constructed—by himself and others—as such a powerful icon in American memory?

Can positive peer feedback break the cycle of negative self-relevant cognitive processes and reduce self-reported anxiety in early adolescents?

A master's degree in Psychology at Leiden University combines theoretical knowledge with academic and professional skills, making you an attractive candidate for many employers. However, there are far more graduates than vacancies, especially in mental health care, and competition is therefore fierc…

The key question addressed in this family study is whether the psychophysiological and neurocognitive abnormalities often reported in SAD patients are heritable and can thus be found in family members of SAD patients as well. Determination of heritability of these deficiencies is essential for endophenotyping.…

It may seem as though adolescents do as they please, but they are more sensitive to their parents’ opinions than they would appear. The adolescent brain reacts strongly to parental criticism or praise. These are the results of a study by an interdisciplinary research group of psychologists and neuroscientists…

Research into depression in children, Leiden alumni in the Dutch House of Representatives and an exceptional achievement by one of our students: what do this topics have in common? They are among our most read stories of 2021.

In this year in review we show you various projects we're very proud of. Driven by our values at the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences.

The Institute of Psychology is committed to play a prominent role in teaching and research at the national and international level.

Are disturbances to the brain, such as Alzheimer's or autism, linked to specific defects in the underlying communication networks in the brain? If this is the case, subtle changes in the networks can act as a marker for brain disturbances. Neuroscientist Serge Rombouts will be investigating this, together…

As of 1 August, Anika Bexkens has been appointed Professor of Evidence-Based Clinical Practice for Child and Adolescent Mental Health. Her research focuses on the optimal application of scientific knowledge in practice. ‘Scientists and practitioners often speak past each other.’

Psychologist Daphne Tona is one of the first to investigate a small nucleus in the brain stem 'in vivo' in living volunteers. That nucleus is involved in cognitive function and neurological and psychiatric disorders. With this research Tona is further mapping the brain. PhD defence on September 10.

Although open science reforms have contributed to a more rigorous and robust psychological science, there is still much to improve. In Association for Psychological Science (APS), Eiko Fried points out two norms that open science reforms may have overlooked so far: communalism and universalism. 'Incorporating…

‘Een goed gesprek begint met iemand écht zien.’ (A good conversation starts with truly seeing someone). That text is written on a plaque that was screwed onto a IK Z1E J3 (I see you) bench on the Wijnhaven Rooftop Garden on Monday morning. The bench acts as a symbol to create room for discussions about…

In the future, physicians may be able to identify dementia much earlier than they can today because a computer algorithm will be able to predict from brain scans how our memory is going to develop.

What workflow of non-destructive techniques provides accurate, valuable data to improve our understanding of Caribbean archaeological landscapes? How were Amerindian settlements configured?

Psychology teacher of the year is Evelien Broekhof. The Master Thesis Awards are for Yanna Naeije and Arian Memarpouri. Mirjam Wever wins the PhD Paper Prize; Jip Aarts wins the PhD Wild Card: Academic Citizenship. Congratulations!