Developmental psychologist Anne Miers of Leiden University is involved in a large-scale research project investigating the efficacy of interventions regarding social skills, resilience and insecurity. The project is funded by a grant from The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research - Health…

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?

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

Empathic or anxious mistakes? A neurocognitive investigation of the development of social performance monitoring in youth growing up in stressful versus non-stressful environments

Individuals suffering from social anxiety disorder (SAD) consistently avoid eye contact. However, in a non-clinical population, gaze avoidance in socially anxious individuals depends on social situations, Jiemiao Chen saw in a series of experiments, for which she used wearable eye-trackers. On 25 April…

A research into for whom, when and why the Cool Little Kids intervention works.

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

Our team consists of the following members.

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…

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

Negative perceptions of ambiguous social cues, social performance and physical arousal in socially anxious youth

Peer-mentored cognitive behavioral therapy for adolescents with mild intellectual disability and anxiety disorder

Developmental considerations in the design and delivery of cognitive-behavioural therapy for adolescent school refusal

Can a newly developed, app-based, personalized maintenance program enhance the effectiveness of the exposure-based one-session-treatment for children with a specific phobia?

The ‘Leer te Durven!’ program (Learn to Dare) is a preventive training program for children with mild anxiety symptoms (Simon & Bögels, 2014). The program has been developed for children between the ages of 8 and 12 who feel or behave anxiously, avoid situations, are afraid of doing things wrong, appear…

PhD defence

Only one in five young people with emotional health problems such as an anxiety disorder receives appropriate professional help. GPs often fail to properly recognise the signals in children and young people, according to psychologist Semiha Aydin. How can we improve this? PhD defence 23 February.

Social evaluative fears during adolescence

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

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

“Endophenotypes of Social Anxiety Disorder: Can we detect them and are they useful in clinical practice”

Each month, we publish an article showcasing how social science research and education contribute to solving societal challenges. Researchers, lecturers, students, and societal partners work together to make knowledge accessible and to make a difference. Through open science and engaged education, we…

The Developmental and Educational Psychology unit nominated Jiemiao Chen's paper

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

What is the effectiveness of two school-based skills-training programs in promoting mental health?

From basic science to real-world interventions

This focus area adresses the mental well-being of people of all ages, from infants to the elderly. The emphasis lies on understanding, preventing, and treating mental health problems in a variety of contexts, such as the family, school, and work environment. We carry leading research and education programmes…

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

Our world may seem unpredictable and uncertain, especially when others are involved. When interacting with others, we cannot know for sure what they may be thinking or planning to do, but we do a good job guessing. This may not be so easy for everyone…

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

PhD defence

‘Equal opportunities for diverse young people’ receives a Starting Incentive of the Natonal Science Agenda of 2,5 million euros. In this project research is conducted on the processes and mechanisms in the changing environments in which young people grow up that contribute to equal - or unequal - opportunities.…

In this episode, we talk with Leonie Vreeke and Nina Komrij about the Cool Little Kids research project. CLK explores the effectiveness of training parents of anxiety prone toddlers to prevent their children from developing anxiety on a later age. Want to learn more about their research and discover…

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…

People suffer from anxiety wait on average twelve years before seeking professional help. That’s a pity and it’s unnecessary, says development psychologist Leonie Vreeke. She is therefore developing prevention programmes where parents learn to react in a helpful way to anxious behaviour on the part…

People appear to release their feelings of anxiety more quickly when the vagus nerve in the brain is stimulated with a device in the ear. In his doctoral research at Clinical Psychology, Andreas Burger examined new possibilities for treating symptoms of anxiety. PhD defence on 15 May.

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?

Anke Klein and her team have devised a fun and useful app to help anxious children. In the app, children can upload a video of themselves showing, for example, something that went well for them and share their success with parents, granny or grandad. Developmental psychologist Klein talks about the…