Clinical psychology is a discipline concerned with the application of psychological science to the assessment and treatment of mental disorders.

Why does social anxiety increase in adolescence and how does it grow out of control in some adolescents?

This is an Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility project of the Faculty of Social and Behavoriural Sciences with Macquarie University in Australia.

There is a link in adolescents between brain connections and impulsiveness. Leiden researchers have discovered that these connections also predict which adolescents will make more impulsive choices two years further on.

Many primary school children suffer from anxiety and their numbers are increasing. Psychologists from the Knowledge Center Anxiety & Stress (KAS) are developing and researching preventive training.

The brains of adolescents react more strongly to receiving rewards. This can lead to risky behaviour, but research in Leiden has shown that it also has a positive purpose: it makes learning easier. The publication of an article on the research findings led to a lot of media attention.

What causes depression in a child and how can they get over it? Leiden Professor of Psychology Bernet Elzinga and behavioural scientist Carine Kielstra recently hosted a webinar on the subject of depression in teenagers. The level of interest was overwhelming.

What happens in young people's brains when they win money for someone else? Psychologist Elisabeth Schreuders has shown that the brain responds differently according to the type of friendship and that the response is strongest with stable relationships later in adolescence. PhD defence on 6 March.

Eveline Crone wrote a new edition of

As young people’s friendships improve, their mental resilience also increases. This is according to research conducted by Anne-Laura van Harmelen, Professor of Brain, Safety and Resilience at Leiden University.

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

During adolescence, some young people have stable best-friend relationships, while others change best friends frequently. Developmental psychologist Lisa Schreuders has studied the brains of young adolescents: ‘It seems that friendships in your early years can have consequences for your friendships…

What impact does growing up in a musical environment or during the COVID-19 pandemic have on the brain development of teenagers? This was the focus of psychologist Lina van Drunen’s PhD research, which studied hundreds of twins. Her findings reveal that practising music slows brain development, presenting…

How adolescents perceive parenting is related to their mood. Differences between the perspectives of parents and adolescents are also of importance for adolescents’ mood. That is what research by Loes Janssen and her Leiden University colleagues in Clinical Psychology shows. Open Access publication…

Mapping the neural mechanisms underlying social motivations of adolescents and adults

Behavioral and neural mechanisms underlying risky decision-making in adolescents

Behavioral and neural mechanisms underlying self-concept development in relation to educational decision-making in adolescence

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By choosing Leiden University, you’ll be choosing to broaden your personal and academic horizons. You’ll be in excellent company too because you’ll be part of an inspiring community of students, lecturers and professors from all over the world. Founded in 1575, ours is the oldest university in the N…

How can parents avoid passing on stress and mental health problems to their children? Professor of Stress-Related Psychopathology Bernet Elzinga develops simple interventions to help both parents and young people. For her research, she has been awarded the Spinoza Prize, the highest academic honour…

With a starting grant of the European Research Council (ERC) for promising young researchers, Eiko Fried aims to develop a personalised early warning system, that will reliably forecast depression before it occurs. Fried (Clinical Psychology) talks about this WARN-D, promising to radically transform…

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…

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

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?

The roles of shame, guilt and social access in adolescent aggression

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

Social evaluative fears during adolescence

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?

The COVID-19 pandemic and associated measures during the first lockdown in the Netherlands in March 2020 caused major changes in daily life. Parents worked from home and children followed school online. Therefore, the families were forced to spend more time together. This is particularly difficult for…

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…

How do digital technologies affect adolescent mental health and resilience? How do we foster a secure online environment? How should we deal with increasing rates of online crimes among adolescents? During the mini-symposium ‘The effect of the online world on adolescents’, presented by the interdisciplinary…