“By studying how and why people make choices, we can ‘nudge’ (or push them gently) into healthier and more sustainable behaviour.”
Research focus: successful self-regulation, decision-making processes
Marleen Gillebaart is Associate Professor in the Department of Social, Health and Organisational Psychology at Utrecht University. After her PhD in social psychology in Amsterdam, she did a postdoc in London and then moved to Utrecht to study self-control. Her research focuses on unraveling the secret of successful self-regulation. She is particularly interested in how people achieve long-term goals, despite the obstacles and temptations they encounter in doing so.
She is involved in the Self-Regulation Lab , which investigates various aspects of this self-regulation and self-monitoring. The lab also investigates the psychological foundations of nudges, factors that help people make their intended choices. Marleen Gillebaart uses experimental, cross-sectional and interventional research combined with self-reporting, behavioural and experiential samples. She currently supervises a number of PhD students in the Regio Deal Foodvalley project, a research and impact project aimed at a healthy and sustainable food environment.
In addition to her research work, Marleen Gillebaart teaches Health Psychology at Bachelor's and (research) Master's level. She has also been a member of the Utrecht Young Academy since 2019, a meeting place for young and talented scientists.
Areas of interest:
- Successful self-regulation
- Self-control
- Nudging
- Health Psychology
- Healthier food choices
- Food environment