A short, group-based mindfulness training for pregnant women and their partners reduces the chance of a medically unnecessary caesarean birth by 50% and doubles the chance of a natural birth. This is the conclusion ...

The Dutch Research Council (NWO) has awarded Vidi grants worth €800,000 each to 13 experienced researchers from the UvA and the Amsterdam UMC, location AMC. The grants will enable them to develop their own innovative ...

The Dutch AI Coalition (NL AIC) has awarded the NL AIC Label to the AI, Media & Democracy Lab, a collaboration between the UvA, HvA, CWI, media partners, social partners and the municipality of Amsterdam. The Label ...

The Amsterdam municipal council has approved the UvA’s plans for the renovation of the University Quarter. Over the next ten years, the UvA will be restoring and preserving its monumental buildings on and around the ...

AI can often process more information than humans, but that doesn’t extend to our ability to reason by analogy. This form of reasoning is considered the greatest strength of human intelligence. While humans can think ...

In February, AUAS and UvA were hit by a serious cyber-attack. Both institutions successfully repelled the attack, and were able to declare the situation ‘under control’ on 10 March. In order to learn from this event, ...

The Volkswagen Stiftung awards 1.5 million euro to project that studies how the COVID-19 pandemic affects Eurosceptic attitudes, solidarity with fellow Europeans and the electoral performance of Eurosceptic parties.

Political science student Dikran Kassabian has been appointed as student assessor of the University of Amsterdam by the Executive Board. Kassabian is the successor of Rijk van Beek and will start on September 1st for ...

Frank Huysmans has been reappointed as professor by special appointment of Information Society, with special regard to the transformation of public libraries. The chair is endowed by National Library of the ...

The European Commission recognises the relevance of the fight against disinformation and has therefore allocated two million euros to the Flemish-Dutch EDMO project. Within this project, a multidisciplinary hub will ...

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, many parents suddenly had to support their children with schoolwork on a daily basis. This was not always easy. How do you effectively provide instruction and keep your child focused? ...

The University of Amsterdam has been given the go-ahead for the new Bachelor's programme in Computational Social Science. In this programme, students will learn to develop sustainable digital interventions that ...

Huub Dijstelbloem, professor of Philosophy of Science, Technology and Politics, will be the new scientific director of the UvA's Institute for Advanced Study (IAS). His appointment will take effect on 1 September and ...

Our senses process a massive amount of information, yet the world around us seems quite straightforward. Selective attention and expectations play an important role in this. ‘What we see every day and every moment is ...

Prof. Dr. Maria Kaika of the University of Amsterdam wins the tenth annual European Award for Excellence in Teaching in the Social Sciences and Humanities. 'The breadth and depth of Maria Kaika’s work as a teacher, ...

The UvA has started a new tradition: the annual Medallion Day. On this day each year, the UvA will award Honorary Medallions to individuals who have made a special contribution to the university. At the first ...

AI can make people think differently about their work, causing them to question how skilled they still are and feel uncertain about the future of their job. Will your job soon be taken over by a robot? Such ...

In Brussels, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) lobby hard on issues that are already on the political agenda, while companies lobby on issues they would like to see added to the agenda. ‘And ultimately, influence ...

Waking up remains a strange sensation. Just one moment ago the world didn't exist for you and then, in a split second, it was there with all the smells, sounds, movements and visual sensations. For centuries ...

What will car mechanics do once everyone is driving an electric vehicle? And how are watchmakers doing now that people mostly wear smartwatches? Social developments are changing the demand for labour. Sociologist ...

Through its Green Deal the EU seeks a transition towards sustainable agriculture. This includes measures to reduce the risk and use of pesticides by 50% by 2030. Public support for these measures is crucial, but has ...

Never before has the international network of global business been mapped out in such detail as it has been by researchers from the University of Amsterdam over the past 7 years. Their network analysis of 200 million ...

As online users we are increasingly exposed to chatbots as one form of AI-enabled media technologies. Stand-alone chatbots are often used for product or service recommendations, for example when online shopping or ...

A record number of people across the world have been displaced from their homes. Only a small number find refuge in Europe via safe and legal pathways. The categorisation of refugees plays an important role in this ...

Through the Accelerate Programme, the UvA Data Science Centre has awarded funding for four proposals at the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences. This is to enhance research within the newly established Social ...

In Western nations spirituality, more than religiosity, may be the ‘enemy’ of science acceptance. That is one of the conclusions of an investigation of science skepticism in 24 countries. The study shows how levels ...

A major international study on political polarization found that people across the world often exaggerate political differences and negative feelings of opposing political groups. Explaining the true feelings of the ...

UvA researchers Eddie Brummelman, Dimitri van den Meerssche, Fabiola Müller and Loes Pouwels have all been awarded KNAW Early Career Partnerships. They will each be given the opportunity to organise an ...

It is no secret that Chinese President Xi Jinping harbours high international ambitions. What was not yet known, however, is the role the Chinese Communist Party plays in this, specifically its International ...

The coronavirus pandemic is having a significant impact on young people’s mental health. Youth care researcher Levi van Dam suggest with international colleagues that mentors chosen by young people themselves from ...

To combat global warming, we have to stop using fossil fuels. This will have a major impact on both investors in related industries who will have to write off trillions of dollars and developing countries that had ...

Early identification through screening is a crucial element in reducing the burden of cancer. But many people don’t participate in the mass screening offered and recommended by the Dutch state. How do people arrive ...

A teacher can experience a lot of joy through contact with students, but can also feel frustration when students show disruptive behaviours. Education scientist Janneke de Ruiter studied the emotional interactions ...

When we think of autism, we tend to think of children. Yet autism does not simply disappear as you get older. Researchers in the autism lab at the University of Amsterdam are investigating the relationship between ...

The degree of stress and study pressure among students is high and has been steadily increasing in recent weeks. Stress and work pressure among employees are fairly stable over time, but also high. This is evident ...

On 6 April, students, PhDs, lecturers and professors from higher education will be demonstrating against underfunding. ‘I am fully convinced of the need for this action, because we can’t go on like this any longer,’ ...

For many people, environmental knowledge and awareness does not necessarily translate into pro-environmental action. Even those with a strong desire to act in a more environmentally friendly way find themselves ...

The emergency repair work on the Grimburgwal quay wall, which collapsed on 1 September 2020, is now complete. Clean-up work has been carried out, an emergency structure with sheet piling has been erected and the quay ...

Overweight has been a major social problem for some time already, and the coronavirus pandemic has only served to exacerbate it. In order to successfully combat youth overweight, adolescents are calling for bold and ...

A knowledge and investment consortium made up of a large group of Dutch universities and a venture capitalist has been awarded an €8 million grant to accelerate the application and marketing of innovations in the ...

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is more than just a set of technologies. AI will fundamentally affect citizens and transform societies, in both desirable and undesirable ways. The Faculty of Social & Behavioural ...

Professor Claes de Vreese has been appointed university professor of Artificial Intelligence and Society by the Executive Board of the UvA. This appointment takes the number of university professors in the field of ...

The political science department at the University of Amsterdam was recently assessed on the quality of their research by an international committee. The department received a maximum score of 'excellent' on all ...

Emotions are usually very contagious, especially when expressed by people you like. If someone looks happy, for instance, you become happy too. But when politicians are involved, the dynamic is slightly different. It ...

Social psychological factors that explain science scepticism with regard to climate change and vaccinations also provide insights into mistrust surrounding COVID-19, according to social psychologists Bastiaan Rutjens ...

Anyone exploring a new city uses digital platforms. We decide where we want to drink coffee with Yelp, we find our way with Google Maps and a place to sleep with Airbnb. But while these platforms help us with this, ...

The rise of populism has been accompanied by explanations as to why people feel drawn to it. An international study across 15 European countries, carried out by researchers at the University of Amsterdam and funded ...

Do classical gender stereotypes affect the way we view politicians and does this affect election results? ‘Not much’, concludes researcher Daphne van der Pas. ‘Once men and women become politically active, then other ...

This year the University of Amsterdam (UvA) has once again been ranked best in the world for Communication Science & Media in the QS World University rankings by subject. This is the fourth year in a row that UvA ...

Dr G.H.P. (Peer) van der Helm (1957) has been named professor by special appointment of Education and Care for Pupils with Cognitive Disabilities and Behavioural Problems in Special Education, at the University of ...