How do individuals make decisions? What determines the quality of group decisions? When and why do people cooperate with others? How does intergroup competition evolve?

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?

Do general practitioners recognize children with or at risk of problematic anxiety and is there a pattern that might help differentiate those with and without anxiety disorders in general practice?

Effects of age and social anxiety

When you apply for admission, you’ll be asked to submit several documents.

This GUTS Special Issue focuses on the dynamic relationship between neurobiological development and social experiences in shaping young people's engagement and contributions to society. It explores how young individuals grow up in an increasingly complex world and how various factors – such as family…

Unravelling Mindreading Skills through Storytelling and Narratives

When you apply for admission, you’ll be asked to submit several documents.

Are you curious about how health, behaviour and our living environment are connected? At Leiden University, you’ll explore how people grow up, age and live together in a changing world. From mental health to sustainable cities, from lifestyle to healthcare policy: you’ll learn to understand societal…

Are you curious about how health, behaviour and our living environment are connected? At Leiden University, you’ll explore how people grow up, age and live together in a changing world. From mental health to sustainable cities, from lifestyle to healthcare policy: you’ll learn to understand societal…

Social evaluative fears during adolescence

The individual in the EU: The application of insights from social psychology to improve the legitimacy and conflict-solving capability of the EU

With this thesis the PhD-candidate aims to enrich the body of evidence concerning the relation between stress and health, and the mediating role of (un)conscious perseverative cognitions, which is captured in the extended perseverative cognition hypothesis.

The aim of 'Intergroup helping' is to provide an overview of psychological research on intergroup helping, such as between countries or organisations, or in case of international crises. Co-editor Esther van Leeuwen has been an assistant professor at Leiden University in Social and Organisational psychology.…

For a Union closer to its citizens: social psychological insights into EU-level redistribution and perceived legitimacy.

Every day, we make numerous decisions, from choosing what to eat to how we interpret the world around us. Traditionally, researchers have assumed that a key part of our decision-making process, namely the decision criterion, stays stable over time. However, increasing evidence suggests that instead…

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

Deepfakes are videos that have been manipulated to replace one person’s likeness with that of another. They can be difficult to distinguish from authentic videos. In our study, we found that people who score high on conspiracy thinking and people who use social media more are better at distinguishing…

Current social norms are unsustainable, making behavior change crucial for addressing the climate crisis. Social norms can shift rapidly after tipping points, but these are often only recognised in hindsight. To promote change, we need better predictive power, i.e. ability to detect early warning signs…

Researchers have been working for centuries in mapping the human brain. But in the year 2017 some brain structures remain still not well mapped, especially those located at the brainstem. In this paper, we quantified the test–retest reliability of imaging the brainstem nucleus locus coeruleus in vivo…

Drawing is one of the most unique human behaviours. Like language, drawing is a mode of communication and a cognitive tool that from an early age allows us to interact with others. Is the early development of drawing skill influenced by the social environment? If so, how?

Within the FSW, we have put together a core team with contacts in the individual Institutes and at the Faculty level.

Within the FSW, we have put together a core team with contacts in the individual Institutes and at the Faculty level.

My ERC Starting Grant, funded with €1.5 million for 5 years as part of the Horizon 2020 research and innovation program, is focused on building the early warning system WARN-D to reliably forecast depression in young adults before it occurs. Why depression, and why prediction?

The research question is that unconscious perseverative cognition (UPC) is responsible for a considerable part of cardiovascular (CV) activity that occurs even in the absence of threats and other stressors that one may encounter in one’s daily life.

How do psychology, culture, politics, and upbringing influence our lives in a rapidly changing world? What is the role of education and development, and how do cultural differences shape our society? In the minor "Introduction to Social Sciences: Human Behavior in a Changing World" (30 EC), you will…

Get to know us through our online and in-person event for prospective students!

Imagine that you have a chronic skin condition, characterized by red patches of itchy, scaly skin. You regularly notice people staring at your skin and sense their reluctance to shake your hand. Or imagine that you have Parkinson's Disease, causing your hands to tremble and making it difficult for you…

Efficiently responding to others’ emotions has great survival value, especially for social species, such as primates, who establish close, long-term bonds with group members. The closest living relatives to humans are the chimpanzee and the bonobo. Studying these species, and comparing them on the exact…

Here we provide information on the ways through which the Institute of Psychology aims to foster responsible scholarship practices: conducting research with integrity, and meeting the needs for better quality and efficiency in psychological science.

Along with your application, you will need to submit a variety of documents, including your transcript of results. Your previous education determines which menu in the online application portal of Leiden University (uSis) you have to use. Every student who wants to apply for a programme at Leiden University…

The specialisation involves general courses, track-specific courses, electives, research internship and your thesis

Behind the scenes, many different people are involved in the projects within the Brave Little Ones research group. See below for an overview of the research team.

Our mission is to recognise and treat stress and anxiety in children as early as possible, by connecting scientific research, clinical practice and education.

The major aim is to determine the psychophysiological responses to stress and stress-management interventions and to examine the role of stress and stress-related psychophysiological mechanisms (e.g., cognitions, behaviors, and physiological stress responses) in both healthy and medical populations.

SAILS likes to occasionally organise workshops about topics that relate to our programme. On this page you can find more information about previous workshops.

This project is aimed at 1) elucidating the role of attention in itch and pain, including orientation, and attentional disengagement (i.e., directing attention away) from itch and pain; and 2) modifiability of these attentional processes.

Social science research helps us understand human behaviour and social structures. These are determined by various factors, which makes the research complex and increases the likelihood of drawing the wrong conclusions. The choice of research method and analysis is therefore extremely important. It…

The master's specialisation Methodology and Statistics in Psychology includes courses, a thesis and an internship. Teaching takes place in the form of seminars and small-group lectures and practicals, and is assessed primarily by written coursework and reports of empirical projects carried out individually…

Als jazz-zangeres maakte alumnus Vivienne Aerts internationaal furore. Als docent gebruikt ze haar studie Psychologie om musici beter om te laten gaan met stress. Met chocoladekunst steunt ze Congolese vrouwen. Wat drijft haar?

Do you have any questions about the pre-master's programme? Please contact us!

The objective of this project is to fundamentally improve our understanding of the ways in which science progresses. Empirical studies have used bibliographic metadata to provide relevant insights, but these studies have failed to tell us how science progresses. Supported by computational advances and…