LECTURES IN PSYCHPLOGICAL SCIENCE
INHOUDSOPGAVE
lesson 1: living with uncertainty – why the unknown hurts more than we think ...................................................... 4
how we define uncertainty ........................................................................................................................................ 4
uncertainty and psycholgical problems .................................................................................................................. 6
chronis illness ................................................................................................................................................................ 7
managing uncertainty ............................................................................................................................................... 7
workplace uncertainty ............................................................................................................................................... 8
studying uncertainty ................................................................................................................................................... 9
lesson 2: happiness comes in waves ......................................................................................................................... 10
conflict ........................................................................................................................................................................ 10
Intervention – check-in ......................................................................................................................................... 11
conflict as multi-level phenomenon ....................................................................................................................... 11
conflict, stress, anger and personality ................................................................................................................ 12
self-deception ........................................................................................................................................................ 13
diagnosing conflict – the 7-I model ........................................................................................................................ 13
cultural differences ................................................................................................................................................... 14
promote peacemaking............................................................................................................................................ 14
lesson 3: invalid post-selection inference – why should we care? ........................................................................ 16
data analysis .............................................................................................................................................................. 16
data analysis in the textbook ............................................................................................................................... 16
data analysis in practice ...................................................................................................................................... 17
the consequences of invalid post-selection inference ........................................................................................ 17
simulation study ..................................................................................................................................................... 18
consequences ....................................................................................................................................................... 19
RECAP ..................................................................................................................................................................... 19
solutions ...................................................................................................................................................................... 19
data splitting .......................................................................................................................................................... 19
more difficult solutions ........................................................................................................................................... 20
lesson 4: psychology and art – close encounters of a strange kind, or a match made in heaven? ................. 21
ideas ........................................................................................................................................................................... 21
2 large projectes/research programs ..................................................................................................................... 21
ERC: focus on empirical and computational aesthetics .................................................................................. 21
palettes: focus on empirical studies on art perception and appreciation .................................................... 26
conclusion .................................................................................................................................................................. 32
1
,lesson 5: behavioral adaptation (with a focus on pain) .......................................................................................... 34
introduction ................................................................................................................................................................ 34
habituation................................................................................................................................................................. 34
sensitization ................................................................................................................................................................ 34
where does the term sensitization come from? ................................................................................................ 36
behavioral and neural sensitization ........................................................................................................................ 37
translational research ............................................................................................................................................... 38
in vitro (dish) ........................................................................................................................................................... 39
in vivo (rat) .............................................................................................................................................................. 40
in humans: a completely different story ............................................................................................................. 40
is pain sensitization context-dependent? .............................................................................................................. 40
conclusion: take-home messages .......................................................................................................................... 41
lesson 6: Sensory (hyper)sensitivity – insights from clinical and general populations ......................................... 42
sensory sensitivity after acquired injury: advancing assessment and unravelling underlying mechanisms (dr.
Hella Thielen) .............................................................................................................................................................. 42
What is sensory hypersensitivity after acquired brain injury? ........................................................................... 42
why does sensory hypersensitivity after acquired brain injury occur? ............................................................ 42
individual differences in sensory sensitivity in the general population (dr. Sofie Weyn)................................... 44
sensory processing sensitivity framework ............................................................................................................ 44
sensory sensitivity and interoceptive awareness (study 1) ............................................................................... 45
sensory processing sensitivity and overstimulation in daily life (study 2) ......................................................... 46
sensory and multisensory hypersensitivity (Dr. Torta) ............................................................................................. 48
chronic pain ........................................................................................................................................................... 48
what causes sensory hypersensitivity in pain? ................................................................................................... 50
is there a causal link between increased nociceptive and non-nociceptive responses? .......................... 53
take home messages ............................................................................................................................................ 57
lesson 7: from the fearful rat to the anxious patient: animal models of psychopathology in action ................. 58
trip down memory lane ............................................................................................................................................ 58
take-home messages ............................................................................................................................................... 58
modeling aspects of disorders................................................................................................................................. 58
how? ....................................................................................................................................................................... 58
why? ........................................................................................................................................................................ 61
2 take home messages (same as before) ............................................................................................................. 66
lessen 8: the crucial role of domain-specific skills in early childhood education ............................................... 67
introduction ................................................................................................................................................................ 67
domain-specific skills ................................................................................................................................................. 67
symbolic numerical magnitude processing ........................................................................................................... 67
big longitudinal study ............................................................................................................................................... 68
sex differences? ..................................................................................................................................................... 70
heterogeneity? ...................................................................................................................................................... 70
excellence?............................................................................................................................................................ 71
other skills at preschool? ....................................................................................................................................... 72
the impact of schooling? ..................................................................................................................................... 72
2
, optimal ways to support domain-specific skills in early childhood education .............................................. 73
take home messages ............................................................................................................................................... 75
lesson 9: minority inclusion in diverse societies ........................................................................................................ 76
introduction ................................................................................................................................................................ 76
intergroup harmony .................................................................................................................................................. 76
how do minority experiences of pos and neg intergroup contact inform their inclusion in intergroup
settings and societies? .......................................................................................................................................... 77
take-aways so far .................................................................................................................................................. 79
the role of (school) diversity approaches and climates ................................................................................... 79
support for social change towards equality – minority inclusion ........................................................................ 80
how does pos and neg contact with majority group members jointly inform minority support for social
change toward equality? .................................................................................................................................... 81
take-aways ............................................................................................................................................................. 83
concluding note: role of the wider intergroup context ....................................................................................... 83
lesson 10: becoming, being and remaining hopeful: pedagogy of hope in/for the 21 st century ...................... 85
contemporary discussions about pedagogies of hope ....................................................................................... 85
Lea Dasberg, the 80’s and hope and our pedagogical duty ............................................................................ 86
conclusion .................................................................................................................................................................. 88
3
,LESSON 1: LIVING WITH UNCERTAINTY – WHY THE UNKNOWN HURTS MORE THAN WE THINK
HOW WE DEFINE UNCERTAINTY
Uncertainty can function as a stressor → no stable predictor (more stressful than knowing something very
stressful will happen)
How to define uncertainty?
- Uncertainty is a natural part of life that impacts how we make decisions and experience discomfort
- It is the inability to determine the meaning of illness-related events, occurring when the decision
maker is unable to assign definite value to objects or events, or is unable to predict outcomes
accurately (Mishel, 1988)
- It’s not simply the lack of information (in psychology)
Uncertainty as a psychological stressor:
- Important to know why it’s such a stressor
- Multiple outcomes are possible → brain
generates multiple predictions
o The loop can’t be closed (meerdere
opties open en weten niet welke
klopt)
- Uncertainty can activate our stress system
- Chronic: more often or higher intensity,
environment … → increases the risk of
developing psychological problems
Intolerance of uncertainty (IU):
- What it is?
o Dispositional difficulty tolerating ‘not knowing’
o Aversive emotional response to missing information (Carleton, 2016)
- What is not (can be related, but not the same)?
o Anxiety sensitivity
o Need for closure
o Ambiguity tolerance
Not that you don’t like uncertainty, but the difficulty to cope with it (arousal …)
Cognitive mechanisms:
- Can be functional mechanisms, but in the long way, they can contribute to
bad outcomes
- Example: shortness of breath in COPD
o In every action they take (even simple tasks)
o It fluctuates from day to day, but also within a single day
o The significance of the symptom is unclear
- Worry: central to IU, managing uncertainty, cognitive avoidance
o Keeps the person in a specific, analytical state
o More shortness of breath than usual when walking to the supermarket →
instead of taking a quick rest, the brain may immediately start worrying → what if … (one
question generates another)
o Less confidence in coping due to worry
- Catastrophizing: worst-case scenario, focus on the most neg option
o Overestimating the neg outcome
4
, o Exaggerating, impossible to resolve the problem
- Threat monitoring: something is wrong this time, scanning for all neg threats
o Strong focus on all symptoms we feel
o Behavioral inhibition as part of it
o Searching online for information, overplanning …
- Uncertainty can also influence the biological aspects
Emotional consequences:
1. Amplifies neg affect (NA)
a. More anxiety and fear (uncertainty felt as imminent threat)
b. More anger/irritability (uncertainty as an unfair obstacle)
c. More sadness/demoralization (pessimistic certainty)
2. Dampens pos affect (PA)
a. Less excitement and joy, even in potentially pos contexts
b. Less reward anticipation (especially in depression)
c. Difficulty savoring pos moments
3. Increases emotional dysregulation over time
a. Self-regulatory fatigue → chronic stress, burnout (uses a lot of energy and cognitive
resources)
b. More rumination and suppression
c. Greater vulnerability to avoidance and withdrawal
Behavioral consequences (what shapes a person’s behavior) → people with high levels of IU:
1. Avoidance: avoiding situations with uncertain outcomes
2. Safety behaviors: checking, reassurance-seeking, overplanning (intended to create a sense of
safety, but often a false sense)
a. Information seeking: excessive research (including digital checking) → reduces uncertainty in
the moment, but teaches the brain that you can only handle this if you check
b. Procrastination and perfectionism: delaying action to avoid uncertainty
3. Control behavior: over-functioning to prevent mistakes (subtle approach, micromanaging)
These behaviors reduce distress short-term, but maintain anxiety long-term (transdiagnostic)
Often people who develop hypochondria
Psychological correlates:
- IU is linked to altered anticipation and salience processing
o More anterior insula and amygdala activation during uncertain anticipation (fMRI)
o Less prefrontal recruitment (dlPFC/vlPFC): weaker top-down regulation
o ACC involvement: altered conflict monitoring
- Outcomes in the lab (meer gestructureerd, dus opletten met outcomes):
o Startle: often higher during unpredictable threat
o Corrugator: more neg valence during anticipation
o Skin conductance response (SCR): less consistent in
instructed uncertainty tasks
Brain studies often give a clearer image: anticipation of the
uncertain outcomes
o Triggers limbic system
o EF in PFC
o More uncertain, less responsible reactions
5
, Definition and types
Expected uncertainty (aleatory): predictable variability, known and stable (ex: gambling)
Unexpected uncertainty: sudden change, broken expectations (ex bad and unexpected news)
Epistemic uncertainty: lack of knowledge (potentially learnable)
Perceptual uncertainty: ambiguous sensory input (symptom or sensation)
Volatility: rules change frequently over time, changing environment (mostly in chronic illnesses with
fluctuations)
Deep uncertainty: probabilities unknown
Shallow uncertainty: quantifiable risk
Objective uncertainty: outcome not yet determined, about the future (ex soccer match)
Subjective uncertainty: the outcome already exists, but you don’t know it yet (ex health quiz)
UNCERTAINTY AND PSYCHOLGICAL PROBLEMS
The example of GAD (generalized anxiety disorder) → somebody with
chronic worry
1. Message from manager asking of you can come in tomorrow to talk
2. Triggers a threat response, many possible outcomes → what if …
3. Coping (worrying in loops, assurance, checking their work, no
longer focusing on other matters …) → worrying feels useful
4. Relief the next day: new possibility
Cycle: their brain learns that worry brings relief
Creates a vicious cycle
Uncertainty in personality disorders (PD):
- In PDs, uncertainty is often experienced as a threat to …
o Self-coherence (identity): the self is stable, if weak: uncertainty becomes a threat for the self
o Attachment-security (relationships): will this person stay with me or not? Even low levels can
trigger strong reactions (ex a different kind of message than usual)
o Control (rules, order, predictability): over-checking everything, amplifier = uncertainty
- Leads to emotion dysregulation, impulsivity, rigid coping and interpersonal conflict
- IU may act as a transdiagnostic amplifier of NA and threat interpretation (evidence is emerging,
mainly indirect pathways)
How uncertainty may look across PD presentations:
- Borderline PD
o Uncertainty about the self + relationships
o Rapid shifts in goals/values + fear of abandonment
o Impulsivity/self-harm as fast relief from uncertainty distress (with high costs)
- Obsessive-compulsive PD
o Uncertainty managed via control
o Perfectionism, overplanning, rigidity
o Difficulty delegation, intolerance of mistakes
- Avoidant PD
o Uncertainty about evaluation
o Avoidance of social/achievement situations
o Safety behaviors: rehearsing, reassurance, withdrawal
- Paranoid traits
o Ambiguity interpreted as hostile intent
o Threat certainty replaces uncertainty (“I know they’re against me”)
6
INHOUDSOPGAVE
lesson 1: living with uncertainty – why the unknown hurts more than we think ...................................................... 4
how we define uncertainty ........................................................................................................................................ 4
uncertainty and psycholgical problems .................................................................................................................. 6
chronis illness ................................................................................................................................................................ 7
managing uncertainty ............................................................................................................................................... 7
workplace uncertainty ............................................................................................................................................... 8
studying uncertainty ................................................................................................................................................... 9
lesson 2: happiness comes in waves ......................................................................................................................... 10
conflict ........................................................................................................................................................................ 10
Intervention – check-in ......................................................................................................................................... 11
conflict as multi-level phenomenon ....................................................................................................................... 11
conflict, stress, anger and personality ................................................................................................................ 12
self-deception ........................................................................................................................................................ 13
diagnosing conflict – the 7-I model ........................................................................................................................ 13
cultural differences ................................................................................................................................................... 14
promote peacemaking............................................................................................................................................ 14
lesson 3: invalid post-selection inference – why should we care? ........................................................................ 16
data analysis .............................................................................................................................................................. 16
data analysis in the textbook ............................................................................................................................... 16
data analysis in practice ...................................................................................................................................... 17
the consequences of invalid post-selection inference ........................................................................................ 17
simulation study ..................................................................................................................................................... 18
consequences ....................................................................................................................................................... 19
RECAP ..................................................................................................................................................................... 19
solutions ...................................................................................................................................................................... 19
data splitting .......................................................................................................................................................... 19
more difficult solutions ........................................................................................................................................... 20
lesson 4: psychology and art – close encounters of a strange kind, or a match made in heaven? ................. 21
ideas ........................................................................................................................................................................... 21
2 large projectes/research programs ..................................................................................................................... 21
ERC: focus on empirical and computational aesthetics .................................................................................. 21
palettes: focus on empirical studies on art perception and appreciation .................................................... 26
conclusion .................................................................................................................................................................. 32
1
,lesson 5: behavioral adaptation (with a focus on pain) .......................................................................................... 34
introduction ................................................................................................................................................................ 34
habituation................................................................................................................................................................. 34
sensitization ................................................................................................................................................................ 34
where does the term sensitization come from? ................................................................................................ 36
behavioral and neural sensitization ........................................................................................................................ 37
translational research ............................................................................................................................................... 38
in vitro (dish) ........................................................................................................................................................... 39
in vivo (rat) .............................................................................................................................................................. 40
in humans: a completely different story ............................................................................................................. 40
is pain sensitization context-dependent? .............................................................................................................. 40
conclusion: take-home messages .......................................................................................................................... 41
lesson 6: Sensory (hyper)sensitivity – insights from clinical and general populations ......................................... 42
sensory sensitivity after acquired injury: advancing assessment and unravelling underlying mechanisms (dr.
Hella Thielen) .............................................................................................................................................................. 42
What is sensory hypersensitivity after acquired brain injury? ........................................................................... 42
why does sensory hypersensitivity after acquired brain injury occur? ............................................................ 42
individual differences in sensory sensitivity in the general population (dr. Sofie Weyn)................................... 44
sensory processing sensitivity framework ............................................................................................................ 44
sensory sensitivity and interoceptive awareness (study 1) ............................................................................... 45
sensory processing sensitivity and overstimulation in daily life (study 2) ......................................................... 46
sensory and multisensory hypersensitivity (Dr. Torta) ............................................................................................. 48
chronic pain ........................................................................................................................................................... 48
what causes sensory hypersensitivity in pain? ................................................................................................... 50
is there a causal link between increased nociceptive and non-nociceptive responses? .......................... 53
take home messages ............................................................................................................................................ 57
lesson 7: from the fearful rat to the anxious patient: animal models of psychopathology in action ................. 58
trip down memory lane ............................................................................................................................................ 58
take-home messages ............................................................................................................................................... 58
modeling aspects of disorders................................................................................................................................. 58
how? ....................................................................................................................................................................... 58
why? ........................................................................................................................................................................ 61
2 take home messages (same as before) ............................................................................................................. 66
lessen 8: the crucial role of domain-specific skills in early childhood education ............................................... 67
introduction ................................................................................................................................................................ 67
domain-specific skills ................................................................................................................................................. 67
symbolic numerical magnitude processing ........................................................................................................... 67
big longitudinal study ............................................................................................................................................... 68
sex differences? ..................................................................................................................................................... 70
heterogeneity? ...................................................................................................................................................... 70
excellence?............................................................................................................................................................ 71
other skills at preschool? ....................................................................................................................................... 72
the impact of schooling? ..................................................................................................................................... 72
2
, optimal ways to support domain-specific skills in early childhood education .............................................. 73
take home messages ............................................................................................................................................... 75
lesson 9: minority inclusion in diverse societies ........................................................................................................ 76
introduction ................................................................................................................................................................ 76
intergroup harmony .................................................................................................................................................. 76
how do minority experiences of pos and neg intergroup contact inform their inclusion in intergroup
settings and societies? .......................................................................................................................................... 77
take-aways so far .................................................................................................................................................. 79
the role of (school) diversity approaches and climates ................................................................................... 79
support for social change towards equality – minority inclusion ........................................................................ 80
how does pos and neg contact with majority group members jointly inform minority support for social
change toward equality? .................................................................................................................................... 81
take-aways ............................................................................................................................................................. 83
concluding note: role of the wider intergroup context ....................................................................................... 83
lesson 10: becoming, being and remaining hopeful: pedagogy of hope in/for the 21 st century ...................... 85
contemporary discussions about pedagogies of hope ....................................................................................... 85
Lea Dasberg, the 80’s and hope and our pedagogical duty ............................................................................ 86
conclusion .................................................................................................................................................................. 88
3
,LESSON 1: LIVING WITH UNCERTAINTY – WHY THE UNKNOWN HURTS MORE THAN WE THINK
HOW WE DEFINE UNCERTAINTY
Uncertainty can function as a stressor → no stable predictor (more stressful than knowing something very
stressful will happen)
How to define uncertainty?
- Uncertainty is a natural part of life that impacts how we make decisions and experience discomfort
- It is the inability to determine the meaning of illness-related events, occurring when the decision
maker is unable to assign definite value to objects or events, or is unable to predict outcomes
accurately (Mishel, 1988)
- It’s not simply the lack of information (in psychology)
Uncertainty as a psychological stressor:
- Important to know why it’s such a stressor
- Multiple outcomes are possible → brain
generates multiple predictions
o The loop can’t be closed (meerdere
opties open en weten niet welke
klopt)
- Uncertainty can activate our stress system
- Chronic: more often or higher intensity,
environment … → increases the risk of
developing psychological problems
Intolerance of uncertainty (IU):
- What it is?
o Dispositional difficulty tolerating ‘not knowing’
o Aversive emotional response to missing information (Carleton, 2016)
- What is not (can be related, but not the same)?
o Anxiety sensitivity
o Need for closure
o Ambiguity tolerance
Not that you don’t like uncertainty, but the difficulty to cope with it (arousal …)
Cognitive mechanisms:
- Can be functional mechanisms, but in the long way, they can contribute to
bad outcomes
- Example: shortness of breath in COPD
o In every action they take (even simple tasks)
o It fluctuates from day to day, but also within a single day
o The significance of the symptom is unclear
- Worry: central to IU, managing uncertainty, cognitive avoidance
o Keeps the person in a specific, analytical state
o More shortness of breath than usual when walking to the supermarket →
instead of taking a quick rest, the brain may immediately start worrying → what if … (one
question generates another)
o Less confidence in coping due to worry
- Catastrophizing: worst-case scenario, focus on the most neg option
o Overestimating the neg outcome
4
, o Exaggerating, impossible to resolve the problem
- Threat monitoring: something is wrong this time, scanning for all neg threats
o Strong focus on all symptoms we feel
o Behavioral inhibition as part of it
o Searching online for information, overplanning …
- Uncertainty can also influence the biological aspects
Emotional consequences:
1. Amplifies neg affect (NA)
a. More anxiety and fear (uncertainty felt as imminent threat)
b. More anger/irritability (uncertainty as an unfair obstacle)
c. More sadness/demoralization (pessimistic certainty)
2. Dampens pos affect (PA)
a. Less excitement and joy, even in potentially pos contexts
b. Less reward anticipation (especially in depression)
c. Difficulty savoring pos moments
3. Increases emotional dysregulation over time
a. Self-regulatory fatigue → chronic stress, burnout (uses a lot of energy and cognitive
resources)
b. More rumination and suppression
c. Greater vulnerability to avoidance and withdrawal
Behavioral consequences (what shapes a person’s behavior) → people with high levels of IU:
1. Avoidance: avoiding situations with uncertain outcomes
2. Safety behaviors: checking, reassurance-seeking, overplanning (intended to create a sense of
safety, but often a false sense)
a. Information seeking: excessive research (including digital checking) → reduces uncertainty in
the moment, but teaches the brain that you can only handle this if you check
b. Procrastination and perfectionism: delaying action to avoid uncertainty
3. Control behavior: over-functioning to prevent mistakes (subtle approach, micromanaging)
These behaviors reduce distress short-term, but maintain anxiety long-term (transdiagnostic)
Often people who develop hypochondria
Psychological correlates:
- IU is linked to altered anticipation and salience processing
o More anterior insula and amygdala activation during uncertain anticipation (fMRI)
o Less prefrontal recruitment (dlPFC/vlPFC): weaker top-down regulation
o ACC involvement: altered conflict monitoring
- Outcomes in the lab (meer gestructureerd, dus opletten met outcomes):
o Startle: often higher during unpredictable threat
o Corrugator: more neg valence during anticipation
o Skin conductance response (SCR): less consistent in
instructed uncertainty tasks
Brain studies often give a clearer image: anticipation of the
uncertain outcomes
o Triggers limbic system
o EF in PFC
o More uncertain, less responsible reactions
5
, Definition and types
Expected uncertainty (aleatory): predictable variability, known and stable (ex: gambling)
Unexpected uncertainty: sudden change, broken expectations (ex bad and unexpected news)
Epistemic uncertainty: lack of knowledge (potentially learnable)
Perceptual uncertainty: ambiguous sensory input (symptom or sensation)
Volatility: rules change frequently over time, changing environment (mostly in chronic illnesses with
fluctuations)
Deep uncertainty: probabilities unknown
Shallow uncertainty: quantifiable risk
Objective uncertainty: outcome not yet determined, about the future (ex soccer match)
Subjective uncertainty: the outcome already exists, but you don’t know it yet (ex health quiz)
UNCERTAINTY AND PSYCHOLGICAL PROBLEMS
The example of GAD (generalized anxiety disorder) → somebody with
chronic worry
1. Message from manager asking of you can come in tomorrow to talk
2. Triggers a threat response, many possible outcomes → what if …
3. Coping (worrying in loops, assurance, checking their work, no
longer focusing on other matters …) → worrying feels useful
4. Relief the next day: new possibility
Cycle: their brain learns that worry brings relief
Creates a vicious cycle
Uncertainty in personality disorders (PD):
- In PDs, uncertainty is often experienced as a threat to …
o Self-coherence (identity): the self is stable, if weak: uncertainty becomes a threat for the self
o Attachment-security (relationships): will this person stay with me or not? Even low levels can
trigger strong reactions (ex a different kind of message than usual)
o Control (rules, order, predictability): over-checking everything, amplifier = uncertainty
- Leads to emotion dysregulation, impulsivity, rigid coping and interpersonal conflict
- IU may act as a transdiagnostic amplifier of NA and threat interpretation (evidence is emerging,
mainly indirect pathways)
How uncertainty may look across PD presentations:
- Borderline PD
o Uncertainty about the self + relationships
o Rapid shifts in goals/values + fear of abandonment
o Impulsivity/self-harm as fast relief from uncertainty distress (with high costs)
- Obsessive-compulsive PD
o Uncertainty managed via control
o Perfectionism, overplanning, rigidity
o Difficulty delegation, intolerance of mistakes
- Avoidant PD
o Uncertainty about evaluation
o Avoidance of social/achievement situations
o Safety behaviors: rehearsing, reassurance, withdrawal
- Paranoid traits
o Ambiguity interpreted as hostile intent
o Threat certainty replaces uncertainty (“I know they’re against me”)
6
