Yvonne A.W. de Kort

Yvonne de Kort is a Full Professor and Chair of Environmental Psychology of Human-Technology Interaction in the department of Industrial Engineering and Innovation Sciences at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e). As an environmental psychologist Yvonne is fascinated by the complex interplay of physical, digital and virtual contexts on human behavior and experience. The core of Yvonne’s expertise is in the effects of light on human functioning and how interactive, intelligent lighting solutions can add value to public, professional and care environments.  

Her research brings together insights from lighting technology, perception studies, social and environmental psychology, biology and neuroscience. Uniquely, in addition to controlled studies in laboratories, a growing part of the research of her group takes place in so-called living labs, where the aim is to test the effects of interventions and interactive installations in real-life situations. Research topics include Topics include effects of lighting on people's health and wellbeing and restorative effects of mediated environments, and working  at the intersection of spaces, technology, and social interaction. 

Yvonne de Kort obtained her PhD in Environmental Psychology from TU/e. In 2009, she was a visiting scholar at Michigan State University, USA. From 2006 to 2012, she was co-director of  the Game Experience Lab at  TU/e, where scholars work together to better understand the captivating experience of digital games. She is the program manager of the Sound Lighting research line of TU/e’s Intelligent Lighting Institute and topic owner of Light for Health and Wellbeing in the Philips-TU/e flagship program on lighting. 

Yvonne has secured funding for scientific research and is and has been involved in a substantial number of commercial and nationally funded projects, among which a recent NWO strategic research project within the Top sector Creative Industries, and a ZonMW Off-Road project in the health sector, as well as multiple European projects under the sixth and seventh framework and the Eurostars program.