The aim of our research program is to better understand the etiology and course of mood, anxiety and stress-related disorders, such as depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). We investigate both the transdiagnostic mechanisms underlying these disorders and work on improving the treatments…

Is the current existing legal framework on compulsory and voluntary care - for vulnerable young adults (between the ages of 18 to 23) - in need of revision? And if so, what kind of amendments would be advisable?

This research examines the social, political, and cultural forces that structure people’s responses towards accented speech, and further uses the accent as a focal point to theorize the interrelation between language and body.

What are the circadian disturbances underlying depression vulnerability? How are they related to mood, cognition and sleep ?

Although exposure therapy is the gold-standard treatment of posttraumatic stress-disorder (PTSD), only half of the patients adequately benefit from it. Based on recent insights into the mechanisms of extinction, this project examines strategies and techniques to improve exposure treatment outcome in…

Research in the group Clinical Neurodevelopmental Sciences is focused on understanding and influencing developmental mechanisms in children and adolescents.

Does a universal psychoeducational course about stress in adolescents: I) lead to an increase in knowledge of stress?, II) affect the frequency with which stressors are experienced and the overall stress level?, III) create interest in a tier 2 level follow-up training?, and IV) appeal to students in…

To make the right clinical decisions or develop effective diagnostic tests and treatments, it is important to understand the underlying mechanisms of a condition or behavior.

In the Leadership Lab (5 EC) you tackle a topical problem presented by one of our partner organisations and develop important leadership skills in practice.

A hot topic in educational sciences is whether and how reading medium (paper vs. screen) affects reading comprehension. Especially in the media – but also in schools – their appears to be a preference for texts presented on paper: Paper texts are thought to induce a more intensive reading strategy,…

The precise psychobiological mechanisms leading to chronic physiological stress responses have not been sufficiently explained, although stress is a major risk factor for disease and early death. A problem for conventional stress theory is that most of these responses seem to occur in situations without…

Leiden University regularly welcomes members of the Royal Family to attend opening ceremonies, lectures, presentations and unveilings of works of art.

Collaboration is right at the heart of our work within the theme Health and well-being in a healthy society.

If a new method has been developed to recognize and treat a (neuro-)psychological disorder or related behavioral factors, it cannot yet be used directly in clinical practice. First, the method should be evaluated, preferably in randomized controlled trials.

Improving health, enhancing well-being and reducing health disparities across society.

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.

Welcome to the Graduate School of the Faculty of Humanities.

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…

The more we learn about a (neuro-)psychological or physical disorder and the related behavioral factors, the better we can not only identify them, but also treat them. It is therefore important that recent insights about (neuro-)psychological problems and related behavioral factors are incorporated…

How have British, Dutch, and German security services dealt with political violence and terrorism since the late 1960s; to what extent did they consider these new phenomena as a task and how have they developed activities in order to counter these security threats?

In a podcast episode of 'New Books in History' Claire Weeda talks about her book 'Ethnicity in Medieval Europe 950-1250: Medicine, Power and Religion'.

CML has its very own PhD committee!

How do we process language and speech? How do we integrate information at different levels – intonation, sentence structure, meaning, tone, words, sounds - and how does information at one level interact with information at another level?

On Friday 28 November, Leiden University celebrated its broad pallet of research and education at a unique anniversary event. We took collaboration between fields of science, and between researchers and society, one step further.

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…

Lecture

This website showcases Leiden University’s contribution to the SSH Sector Plans.

Van Vark defended her dissertation 'Separation and immersion: the changing role of the armed forces in Northwestern liberal democracies’ on 17 October 2025. The doctoral research was supervised by Maartje van der Woude and Erwin Muller.

Some offenders are given short prison sentences. They tend to be people who are generally not faring well before they go to prison; they may have difficulty finding a job for instance. A short spell in prison can make them even more vulnerable. Attention therefore needs to be paid to continual supervision…

We are all aware of the importance of a healthy lifestyle. However, at the same time we also experience many difficulties when we are trying to change our behavior to become more healthy. For example, more often than not our good intentions to exercise more or to eat fewer unhealthy snacks fail miserably…

As we are working very hard to make our University more green, it is of upmost importance that you join us in our battle and start increasing the local biodiversity from your own house! Every bit will help, it is beneficial for you own mental health and most importantly it is fun! We have created this…

Neuroimaging research has greatly advanced our insights on how the brain is organized. Now is the time for the next step: Imagine what would be possible when we cannot only map brain-functioning, but use neuroimaging to voluntarily regulate brain-activity!

Meet the people of the Resilience Center

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

The aim of this project is to investigate the (cost)effectiveness of two innovative forms of trauma-focused therapy for patients with childhood abuse related PTSD. The ultimate goal is to improve quality of care and contribute to treatment innovation for this severely ill target population.

Leiden University and LUMC benefit from unique knowledge gained from research and teaching about healthy lifestyles. We want to bring this knowledge together into one place, and we want to share it even more effectively than we do now.

Optimization, mechanisms of action and predictors of the outcome of light therapy in depression: A multicenter randomized trial

Social anxiety disorder is one of the most common disorders in children and young people. Social anxiety is characterized by excessive fear and avoidance of social situations. The primary fear in children with social anxiety is that they will be negatively judged by others. To date, the most frequently…

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

Southern Crossings: Indian activists and the Afro-Asian movement in the early Cold War era

An important aspect of the promotion and safeguarding of good practices at the Institute of Psychology is to make sure that employees are being facilitated and guided by offering information about and resources for training. On this page, an overview of various mandatory and recommended training is…

Research of the Methodology & Statstics unit of the Institute of Psychology at Leiden University.

Music can affect how we feel, think, and behave. But how do we learn about the specifics of people's responses to music so that we can apply this to health and well-being? By looking at characteristics of the music, as well as the differences between listeners, we hope to better understand as well as…

On May 17th, Arthur Crucq succesfully defended his doctoral thesis and graduated. The Leiden University Centre for Linguistics congratulates Arthur on this great result.

The starting point of Hermans' research is how both children's physical play and dance improvisation by professionals can be considered somatic practices where sense-making manifests itself in and between bodies, and through movement.

Cognitive enhancement reflects the use of any (legitimate) means such as for example food supplements to reach one’s personal best.