German Psychology Award 2021 for Cornelia Betsch

The Professional Association of German Psychologists (BDP), the Federal Chamber of Psychotherapists (BPtK), the German Society of Psychology (DGPs) and the Leibniz Institute of Psychology (ZPID) are thus honouring "the outstanding achievements of Professor Cornelia Betsch in the field of health communication in general and her contribution to the management of the Corona pandemic in particular", says Professor Michael Bosnjak, Director of the ZPID, which is responsible for organising this year's award.

Since the beginning of the Corona pandemic, the psychologist and her team have regularly asked the population about their knowledge of the virus, their risk perception, protective behaviour and trust in political decisions. The results of the so-called "Covid-19 Snapshot Monitoring" – COSMO for short – have generated widespread public interest. "Cornelia Betsch, was and is a sought-after expert. She has thus brought great public attention to psychology. And even before the Corona pandemic, she had already made a name for herself, especially through her research on vaccination," the award citation continues.

Cornelia Betsch: "This prize is a special honour – also for my entire working group, which has achieved great things throughout the entire pandemic. I am pleased that the prize once again focuses attention on the fact that most crises require a change in our behaviour – that we as psychologists should be at the forefront here, asking the right questions and providing politicians, the media and the public with insights into how we can understand and then change behaviour."