Why enroll in the master program “Social Psychology and its Applications” in Groningen?
What motivates pro-environmental behaviour? Why do people like to go running with a device that gives personalized feedback, such as EVY? Why does the “Zwarte Piet”-controversy arouse such emotional reactions? How can art performances change relations within the audience? When and why do people protest against the gas extractions in the province of Groningen? How do thoughts about “what might have been” affect our current behavioural choices? These are just a few of the questions that you could study in the Master program “Social Psychology and it’s Applications” in Groningen. Interested? Watch the videos below to get an impression of the program.
A general overview of the master program in “Social psychology and its applications” offered by the University of Groningen:
The master program “Social psychology and its applications” has three specialization tracks. Below you’ll find a short introduction to each of these specializations.
The Health Psychology specialization track, explained by Prof. Dr. Arie Dijkstra:
The Environmental Psychology specialization track, explained by Prof. Dr. Linda Steg:
The Behavior in a Social World specialization track, explained by Prof. Dr. Tom Postmes:
Dr. Namkje Koudenburg is currently working as an Associate Professor in Social Psychology. She is broadly interested in group dynamics and communication, and specifically on the question how everyday communications may work to catalyze polarization and social change. She obtained her PhD (cum laude) in 2014 at the University of Groningen, working together with Tom Postmes and Ernestine H. Gordijn. In this research, she focused on the role of conversational flow and silences in the emergence and regulation of social relationships. She received early career awards from the European Association of Social Psychology (EASP) and the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) and several dissertation awards, among others by the Society of Experimental Social Psychology (SESP). In 2017, Dr. Koudenburg received a VENI-grant for her research project on the role of communication in social change. For more information, please visit her website.
Selected Publications
Van Mourik Broekman, A., Koudenburg,N., Gordijn, E.H., Krans, K., & Postmes, T. (2019). The Impact of Art: Exploring the social-psychological pathways that connect audiences to live performances. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 116(6), 942-965. doi: 10.1037/pspi0000159
Koudenburg, N., Greijdanus, H. J. E., & Scheepers, D. T. (2018). The Polarizing Effects of Group Discussion in a Negative Normative Context: Integrating Societal, Group and Individual level factors. Special section on Understanding rapid societal change: Emerging perspectives and methods, British Journal of Social Psychology, 58(1). doi: 10.1111/bjso.12282
Koudenburg, N., Gordijn, E.H., & Postmes, T. (2017). Beyond Content of Conversation: The Role of Conversational Form in the Emergence and Regulation of Social Structure. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 21(1), 50-71.
Koudenburg, N. (2018). Regulating Shared Reality with Micro-Dynamics in the Form of Conversation. Current Opinion in Psychology, 23, 47-51. Doi: 1016/j.copsyc.2017.12.002
Koudenburg, N., Postmes, T, & Gordijn, E.H. (2013). Conversational Flow Promotes Solidarity. PLoS ONE 8(11): e78363. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0078363.
