Puck Rouffaer wins the Volkskrant-IISG thesis prize
Puck Rouffaer has won the Volkskrant-IISG thesis prize with her master's thesis on psychiatrist Coen van Emde Boas. Leiden University student Nina Witteman made it into the top 3 with her thesis on the history of malaria.
Rouffaer analysed articles and meeting minutes written by psychiatrist and professor Van Emde Boas to see how the views of the Netherlands' first professor of sexology changed in an increasingly progressive world. In the 1930s, Van Emde Boas was one of the first to view homosexuality not as a sin, but as having a psychological cause.
About the prize
The de Volkskrant-IISG thesis prize is intended for students who have written a master's thesis at a Dutch university in the field of history or with a clear historical theme (national or international). In its assessment, the jury considers whether the theses are clearly innovative. The winner receives 1,500 euros and has an interview in de Volkskrant.