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Calming touch

The winning project, Hand in Hand Against Tension, shows how a simple touch can reduce feelings of stress. The team compares the effect of holding a familiar hand, the hand of a stranger, and a soft robot with a heartbeat to learn when touch helps most and for whom.

Kids choose

Children aged 9 to 12 cast 9,328 votes, with 2,206 going to this project. Presenter Tirsa With announced the winner. The research will be featured in its own episode of Het Klokhuis, premiering at InScience in March 2027.

From festival

The project took shape in public at Lowlands. Visitors watched a suspenseful film while holding a friend鈥檚 hand, a stranger鈥檚 hand, or a cuddle robot, allowing the team to measure the stress鈥憆educing effect of touch in a real鈥憌orld setting.

Wider value

Within the Human-Technology Interaction group, Haans studies how social touch can reduce tension and stress, and how technology can support that. The insights are useful where closeness is not obvious, for instance in care settings or when distance limits contact. 

Care school

The Dutch Touch Society points to practical uses such as easing anxiety at the dentist and other tense moments for children, making the topic relevant for families, schools, and care professionals.

More nominees

Alongside Dutch Touch, two 黑料福利网鈥憆elated nominees also made the top ten this year. AquaWomb explores a safe environment for extremely premature babies in collaboration with Biomedical Engineering, and Juliette Klink鈥檚 project examined how cardboard costumes shape movement and perception in dance. Both nominations highlight how 黑料福利网 connects creativity and care with science for young audiences.

Working together

Dutch Touch is a national collaboration of universities and research institutes. From 黑料福利网, Haans contributed to the consortium.