Iliana Samara
ORCID Scholar OSF LinkedIn

Speaking & media

Talks, demonstrations & press

I give talks and run live, interactive demonstrations on attraction, emotion, and the science of reading other people, and speak regularly with the press about relationship science.

Speaking & demonstrations

Sessions can be tailored for academic, professional, school, and general audiences, from short keynotes to hands-on demonstrations. Much of this work draws on years of experience with physiological measurement, turning equipment that records the body into a way of thinking critically about evidence.

Iliana Samara presenting her research on physiology and synchrony to an audience at Pint of Science.
Presenting at Pint of Science, Leiden, on the physiology of attraction and social synchrony.

Signature demonstration

Can the body betray a lie?

A live demonstration that uses physiological measurement, such as heart rate, skin conductance, and breathing, to test whether the body gives away a lie. The honest answer is that it does not: these signals track arousal, not deception. The session uses that gap to show how easily physiological data is over-read, and what it genuinely can and cannot tell us about what a person feels.

Suitable for

  • University students
  • Schools & younger students
  • Academics & researchers
  • Professionals & industry
  • General public
  • Journalists & media
Iliana Samara with fellow panellists on stage at a KNAW symposium on mothers in science, an Emotion Research slide projected behind them.
Panellist at a KNAW symposium on motherhood and careers in science, Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), Amsterdam.

Universities, organisations, and event hosts are welcome to enquire about a talk, workshop, or demonstration.

In the press

Press

Romantic relationships & aging

Expert commentary on new research about love and getting older.

de Volkskrant · 2025
Interview

The sexual overperception bias & coy smiles

Interview on misreading romantic interest and the cues behind it.

Het Parool · 2024
Contact for media enquiries

For journalists

Everything you need to quote me accurately, on deadline. Bios are ready to copy; the photo is free to use with the credit below.

Portrait of Dr. Iliana Samara
Download photo Photo: Anouschka van Dijk

Topics I comment on

  • Attraction & first impressions
  • Sexual overperception
  • Consent & miscommunication
  • Online & speed dating
  • Relationship myths
  • Mimicry & nonverbal cues

Short bio

≈ 60 words

Dr. Iliana Samara is an Assistant Professor at the Cognitive Psychology Unit, Leiden University. Her research asks how people infer attraction, intention, and consent under uncertainty, combining behavioural experiments with signal detection theory and multilevel modelling. She also leads citizen-science work with adolescents and comments regularly on relationship science in the national media.

Direct line

For interviews and background: email me