Das Department Psychologie stellt sich vor

Our student employee Joelle Kramer has been accepted into the Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes. The Studienstiftung is the largest and oldest organization for the promotion of gifted students in Germany and supports students with outstanding achievements and social commitment. In addition to financial support, it offers a diverse programme of ideal support, including interdisciplinary academies, seminars, language courses and international exchange opportunities that foster professional and personal development. We warmly congratulate Joelle on her acceptance and wish her every success!

Further information on the Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes can be found here

On January 20, 2026, from 3 to 6 p.m., the workshop “How Psychological Research Works” took place as part of the Siegen Talent Network. Participants gained practical insights into key methods of psychological research and successfully replicated the primacy-recency effect. The workshop was conducted by Kai Horstmann and supported in its preparation by students Joana Lang and Joelle Kramer.

Further information on the TALENTNETZ SiWi can be found here

In the latest episode of the university podcast "Spark!" (issue 16), Prof. Dr. Simon Forstmeier is our guest. The conversation focuses on the question of how people can remain mentally healthy in old age - and why this topic is of great importance for society as a whole. Prof. Forstmeier provides insights into his research and shows how psychological findings can help people deal with life crises, stress and memories. An episode worth listening to for anyone interested in mental health and current research.

Kai Horstmann was awarded 3rd place in the "Professor of the Year 2025" competition by the UNICUM Foundation in the natural sciences/medicine category. The award recognizes professors who support their students far beyond the classroom.
Kai Horstmann is committed to ensuring that students can develop their potential regardless of their personal or social background. Through individual mentoring and application training, he strengthens students in the development of their professional and personal skills and makes it possible to experience how theory and practice interact through lectures and insights into his day-to-day research.

Anabel Büchner has been awarded the prestigious "Heritage Dissertation Research Award" by the Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP). The award recognizes promising doctoral projects in personality and social psychology and highlights the scientific significance and quality of her research project. The award also provides financial support in the amount of USD 2000, which Anabel Büchner will use for her ongoing PACE study. The study records the behavior and experience of students in Germany, the USA and Canada in everyday life over several weeks using the experience sampling method. The aim of the study is to investigate how often people have several stable behavioral tendencies, between which they switch in everyday life, and to gain a better understanding of people with such personality traits.

Information about the award

In July, Karla Fliedner took part in the conference of the International Society for the Study of Individual Differences (ISSID) in Vienna. As part of the symposium "How life experiences can influence personality differences and development (or vice versa)", she gave a presentation on the connection between self-reported and externally reported perceptions of formative life events.

Here you can find more information about the conference