Dr. Annemiek Harder

Biography

Annemiek Harder holds a special appointment as a professor at Erasmus University Rotterdam in the Horizon chair for ‘Evidence-based youth care education’ within the Clinical Child Family Studies section of the Erasmus School of Social and Behavioral Sciences. Her research primarily focuses on the quality and effectiveness of treatment for young people facing serious emotional, behavioral, and family issues. In 2024, she obtained the NWO VIDI grant for the EMPaThY project, aimed at examining empathy mechanisms in youth care to personalize their treatment. Harder has developed and evaluated the Up2U treatment program, which utilizes Motivational Interviewing to enhance the professional-mentor relationships in youth care. She has co-edited a book titled ‘Out-of-home care youth: Keys to success in treatment education', which provides insights for the treatment of young people placed in care. With a PhD obtained cum laude from the University of Groningen, her work has influenced committees overseeing research in areas like sexual abuse within residential care. Currently, she is involved in multiple significant research projects focusing on trauma-sensitive education and quality decision-making in child protection. Annemiek is also a board member of international associations related to forensic child and adolescent care and is recognized for her contributions to qualitative and quantitative research methods within this domain.

Research Interests

Experience