dr. M.E. Pieterse (Marcel)

Associate Professor
BMS-HIB-PHT
Capitool 15 146
m.e.pieterse@utwente.nl
+31534896066
Business card

I am associate professor at the section Psychology Health & Technology (PHT). Since March 2025, I am appointed as the section chair.

After my graduation in Health Sciences in Maastricht (masters degree in Health Promotion), I did my PhD research at the University of Twente. This research involved the design, testing, and implementation of a brief smoking cessation intervention (‘MIS’) by general practitioners. Currently, this intervention has reached full institutionalization in Dutch primary care.

Following my PhD research I stepped out of the academic world and worked for several years at a consultancy firm (HHM) and the National Institute of Health Promotion and Disease Prevention (NIGZ). In 2002 I returned to the University of Twente as assistant professor, first at the department of Marketing communication & Consumer Psychology, and from 2005 at the department of Psychology, Health & Technology. Currently, I am appointed as associate professor in Health Psychology.

My research focuses on addictive behaviors, including tobacco, alcohol, and gaming. In past and current research projects we have developed, and evaluated eHealth interventions for addicton treatment. The most recent line of work on this topic aims at cognitive biases, and techniques to modify these biases with technology-based techniques (CBM). In addition to addictive behaviors, we also adapt these CBM techniques to treat other health issues, like severe fatigue in chronic patients.
More fundamental research is focused on determinants of (addictive) behaviors, including a PhD project on telemonitoring of both physiological and psychological predictors of relapse (and craving) in alcohol addicts during treatment.

A second research line aims at the impact of the physical environment on recovery of patients.

My teaching includes the following modules and courses:

Health Psychology & Applied Technology (B2-Psy)
From Idea to Prototype; From Prototype to Society (Minor Modules)
Design of Persuasive Health Technology (M-Psy)
Health Promotion (M-Psy)
Advanced Research Methods (M-Psy)
B- and M-theses (Psy)

Current Expertise

  • Addiction treatment & prevention (smoking cessation, alcohol abuse prevention, gaming addiction)
  • Design and Implementation of health promoting interventions in public health
  • Healing environments in health care settings
  • Implicit processes in health behavior
  • Cognitive Bias Modification interventions
  • Design & research methodology for eHealth

Expertise

  • Psychology

    • Treatment
    • Smoking
    • Alcohol
    • Wellbeing
    • Alcohol Abuse
    • Cognitive Bias Modification
    • Research

  • Nursing and Health Professions

    • Patient

Organisations

Publications

2025

Towards vitality: A longitudinal pilot study with a cognitive bias modification e-health intervention (VitalMe) to reduce fatigue in patients with chronic kidney disease (2025)Health Psychology and Behavioral Medicine, 13(1). Article 2575779 (E-pub ahead of print/First online). Geerts, J. A., Bode, C., Salemink, E., Laverman, G. D., Waanders, F., Oosterom, N., ten Klooster, P. M. & Pieterse, M. E.https://doi.org/10.1080/21642850.2025.2575779Towards vitality: A cognitive bias modification training to foster vitality and reduce fatigue in patients with breast cancer and chronic kidney disease (2025)[Thesis › PhD Thesis - Research UT, graduation UT]. University of Twente. Geerts, J. A.https://doi.org/10.3990/1.9789036568548Virtual reality and smartphone utilisation for the examination and enhancement of working memory load for visual and auditory dual tasking (2025)Memory, 33(8), 936-951. Theunissen, T. P. M., Pieterse, M. E., De Cort, K., Matthijssen, S. J. M. A. & Schruers, K. R. J.https://doi.org/10.1080/09658211.2025.2538713Preventive cognitive bias modification training (IVY) targeting fatigue in people with breast cancer: Pilot study investigating user experience and potential effects (2025)Journal of Psychosocial Oncology Research and Practice, 7(3). Article e181. Geerts, J. A., Bode, C., Sniehotta, F. F., Siemerink, E. J. M. & Pieterse, M. E.https://doi.org/10.1097/OR9.0000000000000181Web Based Cognitive Bias Modification for Alcohol Addiction: From controlled trial to real-world application (2025)[Thesis › PhD Thesis - Research external, graduation UT]. University of Twente. Laurens, M. C.https://doi.org/10.3990/1.9789036568340

2024

A protocol for a feasibility study of Cognitive Bias Modification training (IVY) countering fatigue in people with breast cancer (2024)Pilot and Feasibility Studies, 10(1). Article 151. Geerts, J. A., Siemerink, E. J. M., Sniehotta, F. F., Loman, L. J. M., Bode, C. & Pieterse, M. E.https://doi.org/10.1186/s40814-024-01571-8Comparing the Effectiveness of the Blended Delivery Mode With the Face-to-Face Delivery Mode of Smoking Cessation Treatment: Noninferiority Randomized Controlled Trial (2024)Journal of medical internet research, 26(1). Article e47040. Siemer, L., Pieterse, M. E., Ben Allouch, S., Postel, M. G. & Brusse-Keizer, M. G. J.https://doi.org/10.2196/47040

2023

Augmenting outpatient alcohol treatment as usual with online approach bias modification training: A double-blind randomized controlled trial (2023)Addictive behaviors, 142. Article 107630. Laurens, M. C., Postel, M. G., Brusse-Keizer, M., Pieterse, M. E., Ben Allouch, S., Bohlmeijer, E. T. & Salemink, E.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2023.107630Cognitive Bias Modification Training Targeting Fatigue in Patients With Kidney Disease: Usability Study (2023)[Working paper › Preprint]. JMIR Publications. Geerts, J. A., Pieterse, M. E., Laverman, G. D., Waanders, F., Oosterom, N., Slegten, J. T., Salemink, E. & Bode, C.https://doi.org/10.2196/preprints.43636Cognitive Bias Modification Training Targeting Fatigue in Patients With Kidney Disease: Usability Study (2023)JMIR Formative Research, 7. Article e43636. Geerts, J., Pieterse, M., Laverman, G., Waanders, F., Oosterom, N., Slegten, J., Salemink, E. & Bode, C.https://doi.org/10.2196/43636

Other contributions

Research

Tobacco control

  • From intermediate outcomes to physical endpoints of behavioral change: modeling cognitive parameters for cost-effectiveness analyses in health promotion. ZonMw: start 2010. PhD: R. Prenger.
  • A randomised controlled trial with 2-year follow-up in COPD patients comparing a smoking reduction program with a placebo self-help intervention, on reduction followed by sustained cessation (REDUQ trial). Astma Fonds: start april 2009. PhD: P. Hagens
  • Evaluation of the effectiveness of an intensive SmokeStopTherapy in an outpatient clinic setting for patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary disease. Astma Fonds: completed in 2006. PhD: L. Christenhusz

Determinants of addictive behaviors

  • My research in this topic focuses on social-cognitive and implicit determinants of alcohol abuse and other addictive (and compulsive) behaviors (xtc, cannabis, gambling, gaming), especially within adolescents and young adults.

Relevant grants on this topic include:

  • Happy Fris: Draagvlak voor alcoholbeleid onder Twentse ouders en hun kinderen. Gemeente Enschede; completed 2010.
  • Gezonde Slagkracht: de rol van jongerenwerkers in het detecteren en doorverwijzen van jongeren met problematisch middelengebruik. ZonMW; completed 2013.
  • Understanding problematic game behavior: Prevalence and the role of social cognitive determinants. Institute Behavioral Research; completed 2012. PhD: M.C. Haagsma.

Healing Environments

  • Healing environments: reducing anxiety and pain in patients undergoing CT surgery. ERASMUS; start jan 2011.
  • Designing healing environments: the effects of physical environmental stimuli in healthcare settings on the health and well-being of patients. College Bouw Ziekenhuis Voorzieningen; completed 2008. PhD: K. Dijkstra.

Mental Health in Low SES populations

  • Improving mental health by enhancing resilience and flourishing. Trimbos Institute; start 2012. PhD: M. Schotanus-Dijkstra.

Research profiles

Address

University of Twente

Capitool 15 (building no. 78), room 146
Capitool 15
7521 PL Enschede
Netherlands

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Organisations

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