Biography

Ceyda Kiyak is a PhD candidate in the School of Psychology. For her PhD projects, she collaborates with the Virtual Reality Lab at the Behavioral Science Institute of Radboud University in the Netherlands.

Prior to UEA, she completed an MRes in Computer Sciences at Bournemouth University in England (2022) and an MSc in Experimental Psychology at the University of Milan-Bicocca in Italy (2021). She holds a BSc (Hons) in Psychology from Izmir University of Economics in Turkiye, which she completed at Maynooth University in Ireland (2010).

Before academia, she worked as a Psychologist specialising in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) at the Turkish Ministry of Health (2010-2020) and is now a Full Member of the British Psychological Society.

Her enthusiasm for research and academia was reignited during her time as an Academic Visitor at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at King’s College London, where she independently secured a grant from the Turkish Ministry of Health in 2017.

Research

Ceyda Kiyak has an interdisciplinary background in Psychology, Neuroscience, and Computer Sciences (Persuasive and Assistive Technologies). She is interested in integrating technology (particularly VR and AI) into psychology practice for the treatment and prevention of mental health problems.

Her PhD research examines how cognitive biases contribute to the experience of loneliness, using virtual reality as an experimental tool to create ecologically valid, yet controlled, environments by simulating social interactions for behavioral assessments.

Research interests: Loneliness, interpersonal relationships, digital psychology, Virtual Reality (VR) therapies, Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions in mental health, smartphone applications and serious video games for chronic physical and mental health conditions, human-computer interaction, and persuasive and assistive technologies in mental health.

Academic values: Having studied and worked in five different countries (Turkiye, Ireland, Italy, the UK, and the Netherlands), she has developed a deep appreciation for diverse international perspectives and remains strongly committed to academic freedom and intersectionality. She is a strong advocate for autonomy in science.

When she is not writing her PhD thesis, she enjoys playing board games, engaging in deep existential conversations with friends, getting lost in the hidden streets of Norwich, cycling through nature, exploring new cultures through travel, and practicing belly dancing. Having been raised by the Aegean coast in Izmir, she feels especially at peace and most at home by the Norfolk seaside.