Julia Christensen

Dr. Julia Christensen is a Senior Research Fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. She holds a PhD in Psychology from the University of the Balearic Islands (2014), alongside professional dance training and advanced degrees in neuroscience and clinical psychology. Her research focuses on the intersection of dance, neuroscience, and empirical aesthetics, exploring topics such as emotional responses to movement, cultural influences on creativity, and the neurobiological basis of aesthetic experiences.

Key areas of investigation include the psychological and neural mechanisms underlying dance perception, the role of interoceptive accuracy in dancers, and the application of empirical methods to study art and emotion. Her work bridges disciplines like cognitive science, anthropology, and computer science, as seen in collaborations like the Dance Your Emotion project.

Awarded the Evens Science Prize (2016) and the Newton International Postdoctoral Fellowship (2015), her contributions include over 40 peer-reviewed articles and edited volumes. Notable publications address aesthetic appeal in dance, enculturation screening tools, and neurolegal concepts of volition. She also engages in popular science writing, such as Tanzen ist die beste Medizin, emphasizing dance’s cognitive and health benefits.

Her academic roles include teaching at institutions like the Open University of Catalonia and postdoctoral research at University College London. Current projects involve developing computational frameworks for emotion datasets (EMOKINE) and validating cross-cultural research tools in aesthetics.