GICUNED combines constructivist assessment, mathematical modelling and software development to study personal meanings, psychological change and healthy habits.
Current project · Previous projects · Research areas
2025–2028 · Current
Technological development and mathematical modelling of the system for anticipating psychological change
The project brings together constructivist assessment, mathematical modelling and computer tools to investigate how people anticipate the consequences of change within their personal meaning systems. PsychLab is one of its research infrastructures.
Reference: PID2024-157970NB-C21
Principal investigator: Luis Ángel Saúl Gutiérrez
Period: 1 September 2025–31 August 2028
Funding: €37,500
Funder: Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI)
Call: Knowledge Generation Projects 2024
Our research connects personal meaning systems with assessment, modelling, health and clinical training. Questions below describe research directions; they do not imply demonstrated outcomes.
01
We study how people construct their identity and relationships, and how their systems of personal meanings are organised.
Methods and approaches: Repertory Grid Technique, content analysis and indices of cognitive differentiation and integration.
Research questions: Which meanings does the grid capture, and how does it represent individual, relational and collective aspects of identity?
02
We explore the dynamics of meaning systems and the possible consequences of introducing changes. This area connects PSYCHANGE with the PsychLab laboratory.
Methods and approaches: Fuzzy Cognitive Maps, network theory, mathematical modelling and scenario comparison.
Research questions: Which conditions facilitate change, and which conflicts or anticipated consequences may hinder it?
03 · Development initiative
An initiative developing simulated clinical interviews with virtual patients. Its proposed research direction focuses on interview practice, exploration of meanings and case formulation.
Methods and approaches: Simulated scenarios, interview analysis and design of assessment and feedback criteria.
Research questions: Proposed questions: do virtual patients maintain coherent meanings? Which competencies can be trained? How can learning and transfer be assessed?
04
We explore digital tools and assistants to support the collection, organisation and analysis of psychological information, with human supervision and verification against the data.
Methods and approaches: Software development, response analysis and assessment of result consistency.
Research questions: How can these tools support assessment while preserving each person’s particular meanings?
05
We investigate psychological variables, barriers and personal conflicts associated with adopting and maintaining healthy habits. This area brings together the MAPFRE, COVID-19 and international cooperation projects.
Methods and approaches: Constructivist assessment, longitudinal follow-up and web-based interventions.
Research questions: What helps people maintain change, and how can support be adapted to their meaning systems?
06
We study representations of personal meanings to understand cases and explore their evolution during therapy.
Methods and approaches: Cognitive maps, repeated assessments and analysis of change dynamics.
Research questions: How do these representations contribute to a shared understanding of the case and to monitoring the process?
Virtual laboratory for exploring personal meanings, representing cognitive structures and experimenting with mathematical scenarios of change.
Clinical interview simulation with virtual patients. A development initiative with research questions about coherence, feedback and competency learning.
Research direction: clinical training and assessment.
An initiative for working with the Repertory Grid Technique from Personal Construct Psychology, bringing together software, training and research.
Projects with execution periods ending between 2022 and 2023. Their detailed pages remain available for consultation.
Improving strategies for adopting healthy habits through personalised identification of psychological barriers using open-source software.
Period: 1 January–31 December 2023
Reference / call: Ayudas Ignacio H. de Larramendi 2022
Funder: Fundación MAPFRE
Amount: €30,000
Study of the effects of lockdown and the state of alarm on the adoption and maintenance of healthy habits.
Period: 1 January 2022–30 September 2023
Reference / call: 2021-103-UNED-PROY
Funder: Banco Santander–UNED
Amount: €7,250
International project promoting healthy practices with five universities in Spain, Portugal, Mexico and Chile.
Period: 1 January 2022–31 December 2023
Reference / call: 2022-COO-0004
Funder: UNED · Europa+
Amount: €4,000
International evaluation of web-based interventions for healthy habits in Spain, Mexico, Chile and Portugal.
Period: 1 October 2021–31 December 2023
Reference / call: 2021-097-UNED-PROY
Funder: UNED · Cooperación Universitaria y ODS
Amount: €5,000
Identification of psychological variables and cognitive conflicts related to the adoption and maintenance of healthy habits.
Period: 1 October 2020–30 September 2022
Reference / call: 2020-085-UNED-PROY
Funder: UNED–Banco Santander · Cooperación Universitaria y ODS
Amount: €9,600