How do animals choose their partners? The answer is simple: it’s all about quality. While humans tend to wear clothes that happen to be in fashion, animals do nothing without a reason. Behind beautiful plumage or a deafening roar is only one message: I am in great shape. The evolutionary courtship displays…

The more opportunities a child has to learn and develop, the stronger his or her future position in society. Leiden University investigates how the brain picks up information, and how learning processes can be influenced positively.

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When combined and used by specific people located in time and place, words can express something more than, different from, or even the opposite of their dictionary meanings.

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An experimental approach to organic palaeolithic technology

Central elements in the research activities of all programme group members are: attachment, sensitive caregiving, and prevention and intervention.

In the Psychology Lab on Wheels, we conduct innovative research together with citizens. We drive our mobile lab to people all over the country helping to bridge the gap between science and society.

Promotores: Prof.dr. J.N. Kok, Prof.dr. C.A. Mandemakers, Co-Promotor: G. Bloothooft

The unit Health, Medical and Neuropsychology offers eduction and conducts research on related fields of Health, Medical and Neuropsychology.

Annemarie van Stee defended her thesis on 21 June 2017.

A key challenge in neuroscience is understanding how neurons in hundreds of interconnected brain regions integrate sensory inputs with previous expectations to initiate movements and make decisions.

In this provocative study, Shumon T. Hussain engages with the long-standing issue of French-Anglophone research conflicts in Palaeolithic archaeology.

Accurately recognising others’ emotions is a fundamental social skill, relevant for navigating the social world from early childhood. Children’s ability to do represents a milestone in their socioemotional development and is associated with a number of important psychosocial outcomes. Many individual…

Children with autism spectrum disorder experience serious challenges in social functioning, which threatens their development in many areas of functioning.

How can we implement the technique of pharmacological resting-state fMRI to improve the diagnosis of dementia?

For the first time, a group of international and interdisciplinary researchers led by Karline Janmaat and her former MSc Student Chirag Chittar, have tested the several hypotheses on music simultaneously in a modern foraging society during their daily search for tubers – their staple food. They found…

The research of the unit is aimed at the development of models to explain and describe the influences in social systems. Social influences are studied in three ways: from the perspective of group dynamics, from an individual-cognitive perspective, and from an economic and consumer psychological pers…

This interdisciplinary research project explores several adaptive machine learning methods which can give insight into the interaction between human and machine. The ultimate goal is open and natural communication between humans and AI that should result in mutual trust, cooperation and coordination…

This paper aims to understand the most common underlying problems causing strategic surprise in the context of the European Union.

The Cognitive Psychology Unit is organized as follows:

Robotics, using social mechanisms like hormonal modulation, may accelerate our understanding of core sociality principles. By looking at social robotics through an evolutionary lens, we propose this field as a promising framework to investigate the fundamental bricks of sociality from an evolutionary…

From basic science to real-world interventions

Developmental and Educational psychology is concerned with the developmental course and dynamics of cognition, self-regulation, and emotional competence, and the implications for educational and clinical practice.

Carl Li defended his thesis on 30 June 2015

Cognitive processes of learning with a focus on reading comprehension and the development of mathematical skills.

Why do some children confront social challenges with confidence, whereas others experience difficulties? What is the role of child temperament and child emotional dispositions? What is the role of parenting? This project aims to shed light on the mechanisms explaining shyness and confidence in response…

Animal Sciences’ contributions to the Biodiversity & Evolution research theme include evo-devo research, the evolution of cognitive and behavioural traits, and the evolutionary mechanisms of stress adaptation. This research involves both indoor and outdoor studies.

Study information

Unconstrained day-to-day activities are difficult to quantify and how the corresponding movements shape the brain remain unclear. Here, we recorded all touchscreen smartphone interactions at a sub-second precision and show that the unconstrained day-to-day behavior captured on the phone reflects in…

This minor focuses on the cognitive processes that influence the interaction between the brain and the mind.

In May 2023, COI researchers collaborated to publish a special issue on the Legitimacy of Institutions for Conflict Resolution with the Utrecht Law Review.

LAPP student Heidi Kaarto and project leader Esther Kentin published an article on the right to regulate in relation to an EU ban on microplastics in a special issue on plastic regulation of Review of European, Comparative & International Environmental Law.

From the end of 2026, drone flights could be tested out of visual range in a special zone above the North Sea. Assistant Professor Benjamyn I. Scott commentys in regional newspaper ‘Leidsch Dagblad’: 'Safety remains paramount in aviation.'

The starting point for this research project is the notion that the human brain is susceptible to all kinds of fallacies and biases that affect our perceptions and influence our reasoning outside of our conscious awareness. Indeed, most people think they are merely observing facts and that they process…

Conference, Spring workshop

For the cyber specialization within the master program Crisis and Security Management, the Institute of Security and Global Affairs (ISGA) seeks to provide two online courses (SPOCs) to ensure that all students will be on the same page when it comes to prior knowledge of the technicalities of cyber…

Psychologist Lorenza Colzato is the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Cognitive Enhancement, a new interdisciplinary psychology publication. The journal will contribute to a higher understanding of research aimed at enhancing human performance and creative potential.

What exactly do psychedelics do in our brains? To investigate this, NWO has awarded a Vidi grant to Michiel van Elk. The Leiden cognitive psychologist talks about his proposal for serious research into a widespread social phenomenon. 'People describe experiences under the influence of psychedelics that…

A special beginning of this unique faculty year 2020 - 2021: on Wednesday 2 September, the opening of the faculty year took place online from the renovated Arsenaal building. The opening started with a round table with nine special guests and was followed by a quiz and the presenting of the Faculty…

When Professor of Tax Law Jan Vleggeert delivered his inaugural lecture in Leiden University’s Academy Building on 30 October 2020, only 30 people were allowed to attend due to coronavirus measures. On 10 June 2022, Vleggeert was therefore given the opportunity to deliver a lecture to a much larger…

What are the often invisible cognitive consequences of multiple sclerosis? Maureen van Dam mapped these out during her doctoral research. 'People usually notice the physical symptoms, but the cognitive symptoms deserve at least as much attention.'

The Institute of Psychology is responsible for innovative and interdisciplinary research and education within psychology and related disciplines.

Can dynamic testing provide us with insight in children’s potential for learning?