The research master's specialisation Social and Organisational Psychology consists of five main parts: the general courses, the specialisation-specific courses, the elective courses, a research internship and a thesis.

This dossier is for all members of our academic community who want to contribute to an open dialogue and wish to find out more about the context of the Israel-Palestine conflict.

The prehistory of communication metaphors

Study of human cultures using computational approaches

It may seem as though adolescents do as they please, but they are more sensitive to their parents’ opinions than they would appear. The adolescent brain reacts strongly to parental criticism or praise. These are the results of a study by an interdisciplinary research group of psychologists and neuroscientists…

A team of researchers from Young Academy and the Huygens ING/NL Lab has brought a three-century-old fragrance to life based on a recipe by Constantijn Huygens. The fragrance makes the past more tangible and can help people experience history differently.

In this dissertation non-parametric Bayesian methods are used in the application of robotic vision.

The aim of this project is to study the influence of Longinus’s treatise ‘On the sublime’ on practice and theory of architecture and theatre in seventeenth-century Paris and Amsterdam.

The curriculum of the master's specialisation School Psychology is in total 60 EC and can be completed within one year. The programme offers a variety of courses and a supervised master's thesis.

Research into depression in children, Leiden alumni in the Dutch House of Representatives and an exceptional achievement by one of our students: what do this topics have in common? They are among our most read stories of 2021.

The research group Diplomacy and Global Affairs focuses on international diplomacy, international organisation, global, transnational, multi-level and comparative governance. Among key research topics are the European Union and the United Nations, EU current enlargement policy, rule of law in the EU,…

Read all the study choice tips and take the tests to get to know more about yourself. These tests can give you insight into your interests, competences, values and personality. That can help you make your study choice.

In this PhD-thesis several new and existing data science application are described that are particularly focused on applications for tax administrations.

For her research on social-emotional regulation in children Michelle Achterberg on Wednesday, May 25 2022 received the Dutch Association of Developmental Psychology (VNOP) Dissertation Prize. With her PhD research, she mapped out which mechanisms play a role in social emotion regulation in childhood.…

Between January 11th and 14th the Institute for Philosophy of Leiden hosted the second edition of the Beijing-Leiden Conference in Philosophy, devoted to the topic “Emotions in Comparative Perspective.”

Child maltreatment is a common problem in Vietnam. All forms of child maltreatment – emotional and physical – have a negative emotional effect on the child. In some cases, the child’s physical health and memory are also affected. These are the conclusions of PhD candidate Nhu Kieu Tran. Her PhD ceremony…

We explored the Universe using weak gravitational lensing, a phenomenon that occurs when light from distant galaxies is bent by the gravitational fields of closer cosmic objects, much like how a lens distorts light.

Classical statistical methods, such as p-values, are difficult for researchers to apply correctly. They for example do not allow drawing conclusions from a study early, or for extending a study with extra research groups that want to make their data available later.

Continuous optimization is never easy: the exact solution is always a luxury demand and the theory of it is not always analytical and elegant.

Being able to share your emotions is important for social development and for making friends; the same principle also applies in Sesame Street. The makers of the American Sesame Street programme have introduced a new character, Julia, in the hope of helping children and parents understand autism sufferers…

Two events on Music and the Brain will be held in Leiden later this month.

For people who are seriously ill, an empathetic doctor can make a world of difference. Psychologist Janine Westendorp examined helpful and harmful communication in the consulting room. ‘It’s very important to stress that you are always there supporting the person, even if there’s no cure.’

How do people vote? How rational are voting choices? How much do external factor weigh in? In this article social scientis provide some background.

Parents appear to be extremely sensitive to feedback they receive about their child. Just how sensitive depends on the (‘rose-tinted’) glasses through which they look at their child. All this can be seen in the brain. Neuroscientist Lisanne van Houtum and her Leiden colleagues published on this issue…

Dominique Moïsi, a professor at King’s College London, will be the first holder of the Owada chair. ‘In the present international context of polarisation and divisions within societies and amongst nations, any effort at bringing Asia and Europe closer to each other is truly important.’

Synchrony in heart rate, skin conductance and pupil diameter plays a big role in human social interactions, such as gaining trust or being attracted toward each other. This is what Eliska Prochazkova found in several lab and field experiments. PhD defence on 4 March 2021.

Psychology Lab on Wheels makes science accessible for everyone. On Monday 24 June, we will be back with our mobile lab at the Old Observatory near the Singelpark in Leiden. Join our research to learn to better recognise emotions with a Serious game and read more about participant Maxime and game developer…

One of the most crucial aspects of our behaviour is our motivation to explore novel environments and interact with new people. This became painfully clear during the COVID-19 lockdowns, when many people suffered from lack of new experiences and real-life social interactions. The relevance of novelty…

The purpose of this programme is to join knowledge and insights from linguistics, literary analysis, and rhetoric, for the purpose of developing a set of methods for the stylistic investigation of any type of text in Dutch.

What is the effectiveness of (booklet or online) self-help programmes for people with somatic stressors and depressive symptoms? What works best for whom? How to improve motivation and adherence?

All languages use melody in speech, primarily via rises and falls of the pitch of voice. Such pitch variation is pervasive, offering a wide spectrum of nuance to sentences – an additional layer of meaning. For example, saying “yes” with a rising pitch implies a question (rather than an affirmation).…

What is the role of memory in contemporary music?

Issue 1

How do inclusion and exclusion affect people?

Researchers at Leiden study group behaviour. One of their findings is that when people make sacrifices for another member of their group, it is probably instinctive. Insights of this kind enable us to better understand and influence the social processes in a neighbourhood or company.

This research projects wants to know what Muslims in the West do and mean by ‘Sharia’, and how the Western legal system responds to that. The focus is on Sharia as an informal practice by Muslims in the West, i.e. other than through state law or state courts.

The arts and science: for years, they were seen as opposite extremes. One calls on emotion and the other on reason. The Academy of Creative and Performing Arts (ACPA) proves that nothing could be further from the truth. ACPA is where the knowledge and expertise of Leiden University and the University…

In what way is constructivist logic able to account for both the role of the judging agent in inference and the universal claims of logical validity?

In the specialisation Occupational Health Psychology, part of the Master in Psychology, you will integrate knowledge of several disciplines in psychology, with a clear focus on workers and their work setting.

The Institute of Psychology is responsible for innovative and interdisciplinary research and education within psychology and related disciplines. It focuses primarily on four broad areas: Health and Wellbeing; Development and Learning; Socio-Cognitive-Affective Decision-making and Advanced Behavioural…

eLaw examines the role of law in the information society: how can law contribute to the proper functioning of information and communication technologies, and their use by citizens, businesses and governments?

Through our research, we work towards a fundamental understanding of the world and people around us. We use that knowledge to make the world a safe, healthy, sustainable, prosperous and just place.

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.

Conference

The specialisation Culture and Politics of the Master’s in International Relations at Leiden University encourages critical perspectives on complexities of culture as an inextricable part of global politics.