Research/art/teacher profile of a person
Name and surname:
doc. Mgr. Jakub Rajčáni, PhD.
Document type:
Research/art/teacher profile of a person
The name of the university:
Comenius University Bratislava
The seat of the university:
Šafárikovo námestie 6, 818 06 Bratislava

I. - Basic information

I.1 - Surname
Rajčáni
I.2 - Name
Jakub
I.3 - Degrees
doc. Mgr., PhD.
I.4 - Year of birth
1990
I.5 - Name of the workplace
Faculty of Arts, Comenius University in Bratislava, Department of psychology
I.6 - Address of the workplace
Gondova 2, 81102, Bratislava 1
I.7 - Position
Associate professor
I.8 - E-mail address
jakub.rajcani@uniba.sk
I.9 - Hyperlink to the entry of a person in the Register of university staff
https://www.portalvs.sk/regzam/detail/29925?mode=full&do=filterForm-submit&name=Jakub&surname=Raj%C4%8D%C3%A1ni&sort=surname&employment_state=yes&filter=Vyh%C4%BEada%C5%A5
I.10 - Name of the study field in which a person works at the university
Psychology
I.11 - ORCID iD
0000-0001-6407-9916

II. - Higher education and further qualification growth

II.1 - First degree of higher education
II.a - Name of the university or institution
Faculty of Arts, Comenius University in Bratislava
II.b - Year
2012
II.c - Study field and programme
psychology/psychology
II.2 - Second degree of higher education
II.a - Name of the university or institution
Faculty of Arts, Comenius University in Bratislava
II.b - Year
2014
II.c - Study field and programme
psychology/psychology
II.3 - Third degree of higher education
II.a - Name of the university or institution
Faculty of Arts, Comenius University in Bratislava
II.b - Year
2018
II.c - Study field and programme
psychology/clinical psychology
II.4 - Associate professor
II.a - Name of the university or institution
Comenius University in Bratislava
II.b - Year
2025
II.c - Study field and programme
Psychology
II.5 - Professor
II.6 - Doctor of Science (DrSc.)

III. - Current and previous employment

III.a - Occupation-position III.b - Institution III.c - Duration
Associate professor Department of psychology, Faculty of Arts, Comenius University in Bratislava 2/2025 - present
Assistant professor Department of psychology, Faculty of Arts, Comenius University in Bratislava 9/2018 - 1/2025
Expert - psychologist Psychological counseling center of Comenius University in Bratislava 10/2021 - present

IV. - Development of pedagogical, professional, language, digital and other skills

IV.a - Activity description, course name, other IV.b - Name of the institution IV.c - Year
5-year training in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy International CBT institute Odyssea. Velký Týnec-Vsisko, Czech Republic 2023
Effective teaching for internationalization. A professional development course (kurz) Staff and Educational Development Association (SEDA); Faculty of Arts, Comenius University, Bratislava, SR 2022
Academic writing for publication (kurz) Faculty of Arts, Comenius University, Bratislava, SR 2021
Theory and Practice of Bayesian Hypothesis Testing: An Online JASP Workshop (kurz) JASP team, Department of Psychological Methods, University of Amsterdam 2021
Meta-Analysis Concepts and Applications Biostat, Inc. Statistics.com 2023
ISST Certified Training in Individual Schema Therapy First Institute of Schema Therapy of the Czech Republic and Slovakia 2025

V. - Overview of activities within the teaching career at the university

V.1 - Overview of the profile courses taught in the current academic year according to study programmes
V.2 - Overview of the responsibility for the delivery, development and quality assurance of the study programme or its part at the university in the current academic year
V.3 - Overview of the responsibility for the development and quality of the field of habilitation procedure and inaugural procedure in the current academic year
V.4 - Overview of supervised final theses
V.4.1 - Number of currently supervised theses
V.4.a - Bachelor's (first degree)
3
V.4.b - Diploma (second degree)
2
V.4.c - Dissertation (third degree)
2
V.4.2 - Number of defended theses
V.4.a - Bachelor's (first degree)
18
V.4.b - Diploma (second degree)
14
V.4.c - Dissertation (third degree)
0
V.5 - Overview of other courses taught in the current academic year according to study programmes
V.5.a - Name of the course V.5.b - Study programme V.5.c - Degree V.5.d - Field of study
General psychology 1 psychology I. psychology
Statistics in psychology 1 psychology I. psychology
Statistics in psychology 2 psychology I. psychology
Biopsychology psychology I. psychology
Basics of social, affective, cognitive and behavioral neuroscience psychology II. psychology
Introduction into CBT psychology II. psychology
Bachelor seminar psychology I. psychology
Diploma seminar psychology II. psychology

VI. - Overview of the research/artistic/other outputs

VI.1 - Overview of the research/artistic/other outputs and the corresponding citations
VI.1.1 - Number of the research/artistic/other outputs
VI.1.a - Overall
70
VI.1.b - Over the last six years
30
VI.1.2 - Number of the research/artistic/other outputs registered in the Web of Science or Scopus databases
VI.1.a - Overall
23
VI.1.b - Over the last six years
14
VI.1.3 - Number of citations corresponding to the research/artistic/other outputs
VI.1.a - Overall
117
VI.1.b - Over the last six years
104
VI.1.4 - Number of citations registered in the Web of Science or Scopus databases
VI.1.a - Overall
91
VI.1.b - Over the last six years
83
VI.1.5 - Number of invited lectures at the international, national level
VI.1.a - Overall
0
VI.1.b - Over the last six years
0
VI.2 - The most significant research/artistic/other outputs
1

V3 - Štánerová, E., Zelenayová, V., & Rajčáni, J. (2025). Mindfulness-based interventions for cancer patients in standard treatment: A meta-analysis of effects on depression, anxiety, and quality of life. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 112312. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychores.2025.112312

2

V1 - Rajčáni, J. (2023) Stres: teória a výskum v biopsychológii. Bratislava: Univerzita Komenského v Bratislave. https://stella.uniba.sk/texty/FIF_JR_biopsychologia.pdf

3

V3 - Hamza, J., Vytykačová, S., Janšáková, K., & Rajčáni, J. (2024). Cognitive reappraisal and acceptance following acute stress. Stress and Health, 40(5), e3469. https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.3469

4

ADC - Rajcani, J., Vytykacova, S., Solarikova, P., Brezina, I. (2021). Stress and hair cortisol concentrations in nurses during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 129, 105245. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2021.105245

5

ADC - Smyth, N., Flynn, M., Rajcani, J., Hucklebridge, M. F., Thorn, L., Wood, C., Golding, J., Evans, P., & Clow, A. (2019). Attenuated cortisol reactivity to psychosocial stress is associated with greater visual dependency in postural control. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 104, 185-190. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2019.02.028

VI.3 - The most significant research/artistic/other outputs over the last six years
1

V3 - Štánerová, E., Zelenayová, V., & Rajčáni, J. (2025). Mindfulness-based interventions for cancer patients in standard treatment: A meta-analysis of effects on depression, anxiety, and quality of life. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 112312. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychores.2025.112312

2

V1 - Rajcani, J. (2023) Stres: teória a výskum v biopsychológii. Bratislava: Univerzita Komenského v Bratislave. https://stella.uniba.sk/texty/FIF_JR_biopsychologia.pdf

3

V3 - Hamza, J., Vytykačová, S., Janšáková, K., & Rajčáni, J. (2024). Cognitive reappraisal and acceptance following acute stress. Stress and Health, 40(5), e3469. https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.3469

4

ADC - Rajcani, J., Vytykacova, S., Solarikova, P., & Brezina, I. (2021). A follow-up to the study: Stress and hair cortisol concentrations in nurses during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 133, 105434. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2021.105434 

5

ADC - Rajcani, J., Vytykacova, S., Solarikova, P., Brezina, I. (2021). Stress and hair cortisol concentrations in nurses during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 129, 105245. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2021.105245

VI.4 - The most significant citations corresponding to the research/artistic/other outputs
1

Citation of the publication: ADC - Rajcani, J., Vytykacova, S., Solarikova, P., Brezina, I. (2021). Stress and hair cortisol concentrations in nurses during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 129, 105245. 

2022 [1/20] / GBR - Marcil, Marie-Joele, Cyr, Samuel, Marin, Marie -France, Rosa, Camille, Tardif, Jean-Claude, Guay, Stéphane, Guertin, Marie-Claude, Genest, Christine. Hair cortisol change at COVID-19 pandemic onset predicts burnout among health personnel [elektronický dokument]. DOI 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2021.105645 In: Psychoneuroendocrinology: an international journal. Oxford: Elsevier. Pergamon Press, 2022, č. 138, s. 1-9 [tlačená forma] [online]. ISSN 0306-4530. ISSN (online) 1873-3360. - SCO ; WOS CC, 9 - 9

2

Citation of the publication: ADC - Rajcani, J., Vytykacova, S., Solarikova, P., Brezina, I. (2021). Stress and hair cortisol concentrations in nurses during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 129, 105245. 

2022 [1/20] / USA - Raymond, Catherine, Provencher, Jessie, Bilodeau-Houle, Alexe, Leclerc, Julie, Marin, Marie -France. A longitudinal investigation of psychological distress in children during COVID-19 : the role of socio-emotional vulnerability [elektronický dokument]. DOI 10.1080/20008198.2021.2021048 In: European journal of psychotraumatology. Philadelphia: Taylor & Francis Group, 2022, Roč. 13, č. 1, s. 1-13 [tlačená forma] [online]. ISSN 2000-8198. ISSN (online) 2000-8066. - SCO ; WOS CC, 13 - 13

3

Citation of the publication: ADC - Rajcani, J., Vytykacova, S., Solarikova, P., Brezina, I. (2021). Stress and hair cortisol concentrations in nurses during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 129, 105245. 

2022 [1/20] / GBR - Feneberg, Anja C., Forbes, Paul A.G., Piperno, Giulio. Diurnal dynamics of stress and mood during COVID-19 lockdown [elektronický dokument]: a large multinational ecological momentary assessment study. DOI 10.1098/rspb.2021.2480 In: Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological sciences. Londýn: Royal Society, 2022, Roč. 289, č. 1975, s. 1-10 [tlačená forma] [online]. ISSN 0962-8452. ISSN (online) 1471-2954. - SCO ; WOS CC, 9 - 10

4

Citation of the publication: ADC - Janšáková, K., Belica, I., Rajčániová, E., Rajčáni, J., Kyselicová, K., Celušáková, H., ... & Ostatníková, D. (2021). The acute effect of psychosocial stress on the level of oxidative stress in children. International Journal of Psychophysiology, 161, 86-90.

2021 [1/12] / NLD - Kim, Eunkyoung, Zhao, Zhiling, Rzasa, John Robertson, Glassman, Matthew, Bentley, William E., Chen, Shuo, Kelly, Deanna L., Payne, Gregory F. Association of acute psychosocial stress with oxidative stress: Evidence from serum analysis [elektronický dokument]. DOI 10.1016/j.redox.2021.102138 In: Redox Biology: An official Journal of the Society for Redox Biology and Medicine and the Society for Free Radical Research-Europe. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 2021, Roč. 47, art. no. 102138 [online]. ISSN (online) 2213-2317. - SCO ; WOS CC

5

Citation of the publication: ADN - Rajcani, J., Solarikova, P., Turonova, D., Brezina, I., & Rajcáni, J. (2016). Heart rate variability in psychosocial stress: Comparison between laboratory and real-life setting. Activitas Nervosa Superior Rediviva, 58(3), 77-82.

2020 [1/20] / USA - Baethge, Anja, Vahle-Hinz, Tim, Rigotti, Thomas. Coworker Support and Its Relationship to Allostasis During a Workday [elektronický dokument]: A Diary Study on Trajectories of Heart Rate Variability During Work. DOI 10.1037/apl0000445 In: Journal of applied psychology. Washington: American Psychological Association, 2020, Roč. 105, č. 5, s. 506-526 [tlačená forma] [online]. ISSN 0021-9010. ISSN (online) 1939-1854. - SSCI ; WOS CC, 506 - 526

VI.5 - Participation in conducting (leading) the most important research projects or art projects over the last six years
1

"Measurement of lifetime stress exposure by the method STRAIN." VEGA 1/0545/25 (2025-current). Principal Investigator.

Stress and coping are very important objects to study in today's society. However, in the scientific psychological study of stress, there is a problem of missing tools for reliable measurement. Most available questionnaires focus only on some aspects of stress, for example, either objective stressors or subjective perceptions, either current state or long-term life history. STRAIN is an online clinical interview that monitors stressors throughout a person's entire lifespan. The goal of this project is the validation of the Slovak version of STRAIN and the creation of a database containing, data on life stress as well as neuroendocrine indicators (e.g. the acute stress response of the hormone cortisol, the daily rhythm of cortisol in saliva, or its levels in hair samples over the past months) Based on these data and other measured variables, we can statistically model the trajectories of life stress and through them predict neuroendocrine changes as well as somatic and psychopathological symptoms.

2

"Cognitive regulation of emotions and its psychophysiological and neuroendocrine correlates." VEGA 1/0217/22 (2022-2024). Principal Investigator.

Effective cognitive regulation of emotions is crucial in coping with everyday stressors. While some regulatory strategies, like cognitive reappraisal or acceptance, reduce negative emotional responses, other strategies, such as reactive suppression or avoidance, may reinforce or maintain negative emotions. As research on emotional regulation often relies on self-report, this project emphasizes measurable psychophysiological indicators of emotional arousal such as event-related potentials, skin conductance response, heart rate response, or pupillary response, as well as neuroendocrine variables like salivary cortisol and alpha-amylase. Through two laboratory experiments, we will compare the effectiveness of the mentioned emotion regulation strategies during the administration of emotionally charged images and during exposure to a laboratory stressor. We are interested in the impact of the regulatory strategy on the intensity of experienced emotions, as well as psychophysiological and neuroendocrine changes.

3

"Development of teaching statistical methods and open science practices in the social sciences. KEGA 079UK-4/2021, (2021-2023). Principal Investigator.

The aim of this project is therefore the dissemination of current statistical-methodological knowledge and principles of open science primarily (but not exclusively) among researchers and students of social sciences, through three interconnected activities: 1) Implementation of educational workshops; 2) Creating a website for the dissemination of information, including practical instructions, references, and space for wider discussion and the networking; 3) Creating comprehensive teaching materials in the field of statistics and quantitative methodology, which will reflect the principles of open science with the use of freely available software solutions.

4

"Therapeutic potential of stress-reducing intervention in complex cancer care." APVV-22-0231 (2022-current). Member of the research collective.

Chronic stress including early life stress induces accumulation of allostatic overload, chronic inflammation and alters immunity. It can participate on development and progression of cancer and influence the efficacy of cancer treatment. Therefore, stress-reducing interventions could be promising supportive treatment modalities in addition to conventional oncological treatment. The research project focuses on using the monitoring and modulation of vagus nerve that maintains homeostasis and exerts anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer effects. Its activity can be indexed via heart rate variability (HRV) and influenced by HRV biofeedback (HRV-BF) intervention. According to the neurovisceral integration model, HRV could be perceived as an index of regulation of emotion and its peripheral responses. It is also related to a large range of positive outcomes including cognitive function and overall health. The study will be divided into observational and intervention part. The observational part aims to test the link between life stress, emotional regulation, HRV and neuroendocrine and immune inflammatory markers in cancer patients. This will be performed by measurements in cancer patients and working with larger data from international databases. Based on data on experienced stress, HRV, daily cortisol profiles, and immune inflammatory markers, we aim to statistically predict cancer outcomes in patients. The intervention part aims to test the effect of HRV-BF supporting treatment on cancer outcomes (therapy response rate, tumor markers, survival) and quality of life by conducting a randomized controlled study (RCT). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first RCT with the ambition to test real life application of HRV-BF on cancer outcomes. Proposed observation and intervention studies should help to identify effective strategies to target stress-immune-cancer axis that could serve as new supportive treatment modalities in complex cancer management.

5

"Identification of psychological and somatic markers in relation to vulnerability to stress and analysis of the effectiveness of psychological interventions". APVV-17-0451 (2018-2022). Member of the research collective.

The project aims to create the most comprehensive model of vulnerability to stress, based on a broad analysis of all relevant psychological and somatic indicators of stress. It plans to identify maladaptive stress reactivity, which manifests itself in allostatic overload, in the form of hyper-reactivity or hypo-reactivity to stress stimuli. One of the goals is to find an optimal way to assess the cumulative risk score of allostatic overload, through the evaluation of biomarkers (cardiovascular, neuroendocrine, metabolic, inflammatory) and psychological parameters (emotional, personality, cognitive).

VII. - Overview of organizational experience related to higher education and research/artistic/other activities

VII.a - Activity, position VII.b - Name of the institution, board VII.c - Duration
Regular member International Society of Psychoneuroendocrinology (ISPNE) from 2018
Regular member Czech Association of Cognitive-behavioral Psychotherapy (CSKBT) from 2019
Associate member International Society of Schema Therapy Od 2025

VIII. - Overview of international mobilities and visits oriented on education and research/artistic/other activities in the given field of study

VIII.a - Name of the institution VIII.b - Address of the institution VIII.c - Duration (indicate the duration of stay) VIII.d - Mobility scheme, employment contract, other (describe)
University of Westminster 115 New Cavendish Street, London, United Kindgom. 17.4.2017 - 9.6.2017 National scholarship program

IX. - Other relevant facts

IX.a - If relevant, other activities related to higher education or research/artistic/other activities are mentioned

Active participation in the international scientific network "Reproducibility Network."

Review activities for international scientific journals (e.g. Psychoneuroendocrinology; Cognition & Emotion; Stress;

Proceedings of the Royal Society B; Stress and Health, etc.)

Section editor in the scientific journal Stress and Health (since 2023) https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/page/journal/15322998/homepage/editorialboard.html

Guest associate editorship for a research topic in journal Frontiers in psychology: Nature-based Social Prescriptions for Improving Health and Wellbeing (2021-2022)

Member of the VEGA comittee no. 11 for sciences about humans (psychology, pedagogy, sport sciences) since 2026.

Member of the scientific council of the Faculty of psychology, Paneuropean University since 2025.

Part of the advisory board of the HORIZON TIER-2 project.

Date of last update
2026-02-12