Iliana Samara

Dr. Iliana Samara is a Lecturer at Leiden University's Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Department of Psychology. Her research focuses on the psychology of attraction, social cognition, and how attention and perception influence social interactions and romantic bond formation.

• Specializes in psychophysiology and sexual arousal in social contexts
• Active in science communication projects (awarded grants in 2023)
• Research themes include social decision making and interpersonal coordination
• Contributor to public outreach through Leiden's Psychology Lab on Wheels

Her work examines facial attractiveness, personality signaling in dating contexts, and attentional biases toward potential partners, with recent investigations into how personality type declarations on dating platforms affect match quality. She has been featured in media discussions about rapid attraction judgments and social interaction dynamics.