Nils Schuhmacher

About

My name is Nils Schuhmacher. I have been researching early childhood education and development for over 10 years. I am particularly interested in the origins of social skills such as compassion, helpfulness and cooperation, and the role of parents, professionals and social conditions in the development of these and other skills.

Development in the early years of life is crucial because it lays a central foundation for the rest of life and triggers cascading effects that affect later social adjustment, educational success and mental health into adulthood.

My research with children and families is accompanied by a strong interest in statistics, programming and technological innovation. I use novel methods, such as app-based experience sampling, and innovative statistical modelling techniques for data analysis.

Developmental promotion must have a sound scientific basis (evidence-based interventions). For this reason, I set high standards for the scientific quality of my work: this includes a broad and complementary methodological approach in order to incorporate the different strengths of the respective methods in a targeted manner. In addition, I consistently implement the principles of open science in my work, e.g. through pre-registration, open data, open materials or open access publications. In this way, I aim to share my ideas, make them reproducible and inspire others.

My education is interdisciplinary: I studied Applied Systems Science at the University of Osnabrück and the University of Groningen (NL), specializing in computer science, mathematics and psychology (diploma). After my first professional stations in Osnabrück and Trier, I completed my PhD in Psychology at the University of Münster in 2015 (Dr. rer. nat.). After starting my post-doc phase in Münster, I accepted a management position at the pädquis Foundation in Berlin to work at the interface of science, practice and policy and to further develop the promotion of children and the quality of educational processes in daycare centers. Since 2023 I am a Senior Research Associate at the University of Münster and lead a multi-method DFG project (project no.: 454245029) to investigate the developmental relevance of observational learning for prosocial development in early childhood. I live with my family in Osnabrück, Germany, and I experience developmental psychology very vividly in my everyday life.

CV

Academic Career & Education

Senior Research Associate and Project Manager, 01/2023-today,
Institute of Psychology, University of Münster
Department Head “Monitoring and Quality Development”, 05/2022-12/2022,
pädquis Foundation bR, Berlin
Postdoctoral Researcher, 11/2015-04/2022,
Institute of Psychology, University of Münster
PhD in Psychology (Dr. rer. nat.), 2015,
Institute of Psychology, University of Münster
Supervisor: Joscha Kärtner, Examiner: Manfred Holodynski, Paul van Geert
Diploma (Master) in Applied System Sciene (Dipl. Syswiss.), 2009,
University of Osnabrück, University of Groningen (NL)

Research Grants

Research grant for the project “Imitation of early prosocial behavior” by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) - project number 454245029
Funding for conference organization by the DGPs and the University of Münster
Funding for conference travel by the DAAD, the University of Osnabrück, the University of Chemnitz and the Forum Scientiarum of the University of Tübingen sponsored by the Udo Keller Foundation

Teaching

Teaching at the University of Münster at the Institute of Psychology in the Bachelor’s degree program in Psychology; a total of approx. 20 lectures, seminars and empirical research internships in the field of developmental psychology
Supervision of theses (BSc, MSc) and doctorates; approx. 50 completed theses to date

Reviewer

British Journal of Developmental Psychology
Child Development
Cognitive Development
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)
Developmental Psychology
Early Human Development
European Journal of Developmental Psychology
Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung
Frontiers in Psychology
Infancy
International Journal of Behavioral Development
Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology
Journal of Artifical Societies and Social Simulation
Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology
Journal of Experimental Child Psychology
Social Development
Swiss Journal of Psychology

Research

Educational and learning processes in early and middle childhood: The role of instructional and observational learning
Prosociality and cooperation in toddlers and preschoolers (helping behavior, comforting, sharing and joint problem solving)
Early social-cognitive development
Moral development at pre-school and primary school age
Socio-cultural influences on child development: The importance of family, friends and institutions
Development & culture: Cultural influences on child development
The importance of parental personality traits for parenting and child development
Dynamic Systems Theory, Agent-based Modeling & State-Space-Grids
Longitudinal studies and cross-lagged panel design studies
Online studies and app-based experience sampling with children and families
Intergroup relationships in children and adolescents
Mental health and well-being of families during the corona crisis

Publications

Chapters

Schuhmacher, N. & Kärtner, J. (2020). Soziale Entwicklung. In J. Roos & S. Roux (Hrsg.). Handbuch Kindertageseinrichtungen. Wissenschaftliche Erkenntnisse für die Praxis. Köln: Carl Link.
Schuhmacher, N. & Ballato, L. (2012). A Dynamic Systems Model of Friendship Interactions and Risk Behaviors During Adolescence. In L. Ballato (Ed.), If I Like You I Wanna Be Like You – The Use of Dynamic Systems Modelling in the Understanding of Friendship Interactions and Risk Behaviors During Adolescence. (pp. 65-90). Ridderkerk: Ridderprint.
Ballato, L., & Schuhmacher, N. (2012). A Description of a Mathematical Model of Friendship Interactions and Risk Behaviors During Adolescence. In L. Ballato (Ed.), If I Like You I Wanna Be Like You – The Use of Dynamic Systems Modelling in the Understanding of Friendship Interactions and Risk Behaviors During Adolescence. (pp. 39-64). Ridderkerk: Ridderprint.

Articles

Schuhmacher, N., Rack, N., Beckmann, L. & Kärtner, J. (2023). Is helping always the preferred decision? Preschool- and elementary school-aged children’s helping decisions in complex social situations. Frontiers in Developmental Psychology. 1:1278034. https://doi.org/10.3389/fdpys.2023.1278034
Schuhmacher, N. (2023). Opportunities for 1-year-olds to observe prosocial models at home and how they contribute to early development of helping behavior [Registered report – In principle Acceptance at Stage 1]. Infant Behavior & Development.
Schuhmacher, N., & Kärtner, J. (2023). Imitation of early helping behavior [Registered report – In principle Acceptance at Stage 1]. Infancy.
Stengelin, R., Bohn, M., Sanchez-Amaro, A., Haun, D. B., Thiele, M., Daum, M. M., … & Schuhmacher, N. (2023). Responsible Research is also concerned with generalizability: Recognizing efforts to reflect upon and increase generalizability in hiring and promotion decisions in psychology. Meta-Psychology. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/ykh9x
Wefers, H., Schuhmacher, N., Chacón, L. H., & Kärtner, J. (2022). Universality without uniformity–infants’ reactions to unresponsive partners in urban Germany and rural Ecuador. Memory & Cognition, 1-17. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13421-022-01318-x
Toppe, T., Stengelin, R., Schmidt, L. S., Amini, N., & Schuhmacher, N. (2021). Stress and coping strategies among parents and their children in response to Covid-19 lockdowns. Frontiers in Psychology. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.645266
Kärtner, J., Giner-Torréns, M., & Schuhmacher, N. (2020). Parental structuring during shared chores and the development of helping across the second year. Social Development. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/sode.12490
Kärtner, J., Schuhmacher, N., & Giner-Torréns, M. (2020). Culture and early socio-cognitive development. In Progress in brain research (Vol. 258). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.pbr.2020.06.011
Mavridis, P., Kärtner, J., Cavalente, L. I. C., Resende, B., Schuhmacher, N., & Köster, M. (2020). The development of context-sensitive attention in urban and rural brazil. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 1623. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01623
Schuhmacher, N. &, Kärtner, J. (2019). Preschoolers prefer in-group to out-group members, but equally condemn their immoral acts. Social Development. https://doi.org/10.1111/sode.12380
Schuhmacher, N., Köster, M., & Kärtner, J. (2019). Modeling prosocial behavior increases helping in 16-month-olds. Child Development, 90, 1789-1801. https://dx.doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13054
Schuhmacher, N., Collard, J., & Kärtner, J. (2017). The differential role of parenting, peers, and temperament for explaining interindividual differences in 18-months-olds’ comforting and helping. Infant Behavior and Development, 46, 124-134. http://dx.doi.org/ 10.1016/j.infbeh.2017.01.002
Schuhmacher, N. (2015). Social and Individual Influences on Prosocial and Collaborative Behavior in the Toddler Years: the Role of Parenting, Peers, Social Cognitions, and Temperament (Doctoral dissertation, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster).
Schuhmacher, N., & Kärtner, J. (2015). The role of peers and siblings in toddlers’ developing understanding of incompatible desires. Social Development, 25, 435-452. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/sode.12144
Schuhmacher, N., & Kärtner, J. (2015). Explaining interindividual differences in toddlers’ collaboration with unfamiliar peers: Individual, dyadic, and social factors. Frontiers in Psychology, 6:493. http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00493
Köster, M., Schuhmacher, N., & Kärtner, J. (2015). A cultural perspective on prosocial development. Human Ethology Bulletin, 30(1), 71-82. http://media.anthro.univie.ac.at/ishe_journal/index.php/heb/article/view/152
Kärtner, J., & Schuhmacher, N. (2014). Folk models of human behavior and socio-cognitive development. ISSBD Bulletin, 66(2), 6-8. http://www.issbd.org/resources/files/JBD_Bulletin_November2014.pdf
Kärtner, J., Schuhmacher, N., & Collard, J. (2014). Socio-cognitive influences on the domain-specificity of prosocial behavior in the second year. Infant Behavior and Development, 37(4), 665-675. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.infbeh.2014.08.004
Schuhmacher, N., Ballato, L., & van Geert, P. (2014). Using an agent-based model to simulate the development of risk behaviors during adolescence. Journal of Artifical Societies and Social Simulation, 17(3), 1. http://dx.doi.org/10.18564/jasss.2485

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Data protection

1. Name and address of the responsible controller

The responsible controller as defined in the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other national data protection laws of the EU member states as well as other data protection-related provisions is:

Dr. Nils Schuhmacher, Osnabrück, Deutschland

E-Mail: mailbox@nils-schuhmacher.de

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We collect and use the personal data of our users insofar as necessary for operating a functional website and delivering our content and services, and to the extent to which the law permits.

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Duration of storage of personal data

We reserve the right to retain the data subject’s personal data for as long as the purpose of such storage exists. If processing is permitted on the basis of the subject’s consent, his/her personal data is only stored until the data subject withdraws his/her consent, except in cases where processing is governed by a different legal basis.

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The data subject has the right to obtain from the controller without undue delay the rectification of inaccurate personal data concerning him or her. The data subject also has the right to obtain from the controller the erasure of personal data concerning him or her without undue delay as soon as the purpose of storage is no longer necessary. In cases where data processing is performed on the basis of consent, the right to erasure exists if the data subject withdraws his/her consent and no other legal grounds exist for processing the data.

Personal data must be erased if the data subject objects to the processing in accordance with Art. 21 (1) GDPR and there are no overriding legitimate grounds for the processing, or if the personal data has been unlawfully processed, or if the personal data must be erased in order to comply with a legal requirement mandated by an EU or member state law, to which we are subject.

The right to erasure as put forth in the cases stated above does not apply, however, if it would prevent compliance with a legal obligation which requires processing by European Union or member state law, to which we are subject or if extended storage is necessary for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims.

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Scope of data processing

For every access query to our website, the server pf our web space provider 1 blu automatically collects data and information from the querying computer system.

The following data is collected in this process:

information on the browser type and version
the user’s operating system
the user’s Internet service provider
the user’s IP address
the date and time of the query
websites from which the user’s system was directed to our website
websites which the user’s system accesses via our website

This data is compiled in log files and saved on our web space provider’s server. No further personal data is stored together with the log file data.

This data is transmitted to 1blu AG, Stromstraße 1-5, 10555 Berlin, Germany, https://www.1blu.de/ , as the data processor. 1blu may transfer the collected data to third parties if this is required by law or if third parties process this data on behalf of 1blu (subcontractors).

Legal basis for processing

The legal basis for temporarily processing data and log files is provided in Art. 6 (1 f) GDPR.

Purpose of processing

The temporary storage of the IP address on our server is necessary for granting the user’s system access to our website. For this purpose, the user’s IP address must remain stored on our server for the duration of the session.

Data storage in log files is required to ensure the functionality of the website. Furthermore, the data enables us to optimise the website and guarantee the security of our IT systems. Data analysis for marketing-related purposes is not performed in this context.

These purposes correspond to the legitimate interests of data processing as indicated in Art. 6 (1 f) GDPR.

Duration of storage of personal data

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On our website, users can personally contact the University via email by using the email address provided for such purposes. In this case, the email together with the user’s personal data is saved on our server. The user’s personal data is not shared with third parties in this context. The data is exclusively used for purposes of establishing and maintaining contact with the user.

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The legal basis for processing the user’s personal data, acquired as a result of the user sending an email, is provided in accordance with Art. 6 (1 f) GDPR.

Purpose of processing

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Duration of storage of personal data

All personal data sent to us via email is deleted as soon as the respective dialogue with the user is concluded. The dialogue is deemed concluded when circumstances indicate that the issue in question has been clarified to the satisfaction of all parties.