Dr. Sonja Kälin

Sonja Kälin, PhD
Senior Research Assistant (Prof. Karin Hediger, PhD)
T +41 41 229 59 20 • Room 1.B08 • sonja.kaelin@unilu.ch
CV
Sonja Kälin studied psychology at the University of Bern (BSc 2014, MSc 2017), specialising in developmental psychology and neuropsychology. She completed her PhD at the same institution in 2022 with distinction (summa cum laude). In her dissertation, she investigated the relationships between executive functions, temperament, and metacognition, highlighting the central role of inhibition and monitoring.
Before pursuing psychology, she earned a primary school teaching diploma and gained extensive practical experience as a primary school teacher.
Following her PhD, she held several research and teaching positions, including a postdoctoral position at the Faculty of Health Sciences and Medicine at the University of Lucerne. There, her work focused on the psychological and socioeconomic consequences of childhood cancer, while further strengthening her methodological expertise, particularly in qualitative research methods. In addition, she served as a lecturer at the Lucerne University of Teacher Education, where she taught in the field of socio-emotional development, and taught developmental psychology at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts.
Since 2025, she has been a senior research and teaching associate (Oberassistentin) at the Faculty of Behavioural Sciences and Psychology at the University of Lucerne in the field of child and adolescent psychology. Her research focuses on socio-emotional development in childhood and the role of parental behavior in these developmental processes. She is particularly interested in everyday dynamics of parent–child interactions and their situational context. Another focus of her work is intervention research in the field of animal-assisted therapy for children and adolescents.
Publications
- Ospelt, M. I., Holmer, P., Michel, G., Kälin, S., & Roser, K. (2026). Insurance, legal, and financial hardships of childhood and adolescent cancer survivors - a systematic review. Journal of Cancer Survivorship, 20, 1055–1080. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17341841
- Kälin, S., Bänziger, J., Mader, L. A., Harju, E., Michel, G., & Roser, K. (2025). Health-related quality of life in parents of long-term childhood cancer survivors: a report from the Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study - Parents. Quality of Life Research, 34, 1079–1090. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17954328
- Ospelt, M. I., Kälin, S., Roser, K., & Michel, G. (2025). Parental employment adjustment during and after childhood cancer treatment — a report from the Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study‑Parents. Supportive Care in Cancer, 33, 556 ff. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15747615
- Kälin, S. (2024). Linking persistence and executive functions with later academic achievement. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 442–449. https://doi.org/10.1177/01650254241265596
- Kälin, S., Peter, F., Raguindin, P. F., Rueegg, C., Bergsträsser, E., von der Weid, N., … Rüegg, C. (2024). Longitudinal changes of psychological distress among childhood cancer survivors: The Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study. Pediatric Blood & Cancer. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.12605222
- Kälin, S. (2024). Task persistence through a dynamic lens: Understanding temporal-behavioral dynamics in kindergarten children. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appdev.2024.101642
- Roser, K., Michel, G., Kälin, S., & Ospelt, M. I. (6 December 2025). The insurance, legal, and financial situation of parents of childhood and adolescent cancer survivors: a systematic review (PsyArXiv). https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17952650
- Kälin, S., Ospelt, M. I., Roser, K., & Michel, G. (24 September 2025). Satisfaction with follow-up consultations among Swiss childhood cancer survivors: a prospective cohort study. Authorea. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20409949
- Kälin, S. (2025). Parenting Behavior in Relation to Children’s Socio-Emotional Skills: A Latent Profile Analysis. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/26n9d_v1
- Roser, K., Kälin, S., & Michel, G. (29 October 2024). Health-related quality of life in parents of long-term childhood cancer survivors: a report from the Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study - Parents. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17952307
Achievements
- The long shadow of childhood cancer: a qualitative study on insurance, legal, and financial hardships faced by childhood cancer survivors. Poster, Congress of the International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP), Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP), Amsterdam, 2025
- The insurance, legal, and financial situation of parents of childhood and adolescent cancer survivors: a systematic review. Poster, Congress of the International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP), Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP), Amsterdam, 2025
- Parental Career Adaptations Throughout and Beyond Childhood Cancer Treatment in Switzerland - A report from the Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study-Parents. Lecture, 22nd American Psychosocial Oncology Society (APOS) Conference, American Psychosocial Oncology Society (APOS), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2025
- Insurance, legal, and financial hardships of childhood and adolescent cancer survivors - A systematic review. Poster, 22nd American Psychosocial Oncology Society (APOS) Conference, American Psychosocial Oncology Society (APOS), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2025
- Career evolution: Parental adaptations throughout and beyond childhood cancer treatment in Switzerland - A report from the Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study - Parents. Lecture, Research Symposium Health, HSLU Hochschule Luzern; University of Lucerne; XUND, Lucerne, 2025
- The long shadow of childhood cancer: insurance, legal and financial hardships faced by parents of childhood cancer survivors. Lecture, Research Symposium Health Lucerne, Universität Luzern, Luzern, 2025
- Selbstregulation in der Kindheit - gelingt sie von selbst? Lecture, 3. Schweizerischer Schulpsychologie-Kongress, Schweizerische Vereinigung für Kinder- und Jugendpsychologie, Biel, 2024
- Career evolution: Parental adaptations throughout and beyond childhood cancer treatment in Switzerland – A report from the Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study-Parents. Poster, 56th Congress of the International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP), International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP), Honolulu, Hawaii, 2024
- THE COSTS OF CHILDHOOD CANCER - Insurance, Legal, and Financial Hardships of Childhood and Adolescent Cancer Survivors – A Systematic Review. Poster, 56th Congress of the International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP), International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP), Honolulu, Hawaii, 2024
- Career evolution: Parental adaptations throughout and beyond childhood cancer treatment in Switzerland – A report from the Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study-Parents. Lecture, 56th Congress of the International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP), International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP), Honolulu, Hawaii, 2024
- Family burden among parents of children with cancer using multilevel latent profile analysis: A report from the Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study – Parents. Poster, International Symposium on Late Complications after Childhood Cancer (ISLCCC), ISLCCC, Lucerne, 2024
- Parents' career changes during and after childhood cancer treatment in Switzerland: A report from the Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study - Parents. Poster, International Symposium on Late Complications after Childhood Cancer (ISLCCC), ISLCCC, Lucerne, 2024
- Well-being in parents - Health-related quality of life in parents of long-term childhood cancer survivors: a report from the Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study-Parents. Poster, International Symposium on Late Complications after Childhood Cancer (ISLCCC) 2024, International Symposium on Late Complications after Childhood Cancer (ISLCCC), Lucerne, 2024
- Heterogeneity of family burden among parents of children with cancer. Lecture, 2nd Research Symposium Health Lucerne, University of Lucerne, Hochschule Luzern, Xund, Lucerne, 2024
- Health-related quality of life in parents of long-term childhood cancer survivors: a report from the Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study - Parents. Lecture, Research Symposium Health, HSLU Hochschule Luzern; University of Lucerne; XUND, Lucerne, 2024
- The long shadow of childhood cancer: Insurance, legal, and financial hardships - perspectives of parents, survivors, and experts in Switzerland. Lecture, 2nd Research Symposium Health Lucerne, University of Lucerne, Hochschule Luzern, Xund, Lucerne, 2024
- Insurance, Legal, and Financial Hardships of Childhood and Adolescent Cancer Survivors and their Parents – A Systematic Review. Lecture, 29th PanCare Meeting, PanCare network, Gent, 2023
- Variability in parents’ family burden during their child’s cancer. Lecture, IPOS 2023 World Congress, IPOS, Milano, 2023
- Differences in mothers’ and fathers’ perception of family burden due to their child’s cancer. Lecture, SPOG SSPHO Scientific Meeting 2023, SPOG SSPHO, Bern, 2023
- The Costs of Childhood Cancer: Insurance, Legal, and Financial Hardships of Childhood Cancer Survivors and their Parents - A Systematic Review. Poster, 24th IPOS World Congress of Psycho-Oncology, International Psycho-Oncolocy Society (IPOS), Mailand, 2023