School of Psychology and Psychotherapy

Chair of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy II

Mindfulness means directing one’s attention to experiences in the here and now in an open and non-judgemental way. This principle has its origins in Eastern meditation, but has recently been used increasingly in the field of psychotherapy. One example is ‘Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy’ for patients with depression: mindfulness exercises help them to break free from negative, ruminative states of mind. Research carried out by the department focuses on the effectiveness of ‘Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy’, the factors contributing to the effectiveness of mindfulness, and the issue of side effects associated with mindfulness-based approaches.

In this area, we investigate the interaction between physical and emotional processes in mental disorders.

Basic research has already demonstrated in a large number of studies that certain movements or postures influence emotional processes. We are now focusing on the significance of motor aspects for mental disorders.
We have investigated the gait patterns of patients with depression and examined how changes in gait patterns affect depressive processes and the movement behaviour of people with depression in everyday life. The aim of the research is to explore the potential for influencing mental disorders by altering movement and postural patterns.

In an initial study, we were also able to demonstrate the effects of qigong movements on memory function in patients with depression. Qigong is a Chinese system that combines exercises for the body, breathing and the mind. An upward-directed, opening Qi Gong movement – which contrasts with the slumped movement pattern typical of people with depression – led to a normalisation of impaired memory processes, whilst a downward-directed, closing movement had no such effect.

A study on this topic was published in 2018: Michalak, J., Chatinyan, A., Chourib, H. & Teismann, T. (2018). The impact of upward vs. downward movement patterns on memory characteristics of depressed individuals. Psychopathology, 51, 326–334. doi: 10.1159/000492788.

Building on this, Body, Breath & Mind (BBM) was developed. BBM is an online self-help programme for people suffering from negative and depressive moods.

Ensuring equal access to the health care system for people with and without disabilities is a key aspect of inclusion. The issue of establishing inclusive structures and treatment approaches in the field of mental health for people with disabilities presents a particular challenge. Mental health conditions, in particular, contribute to further impairing the participation of people with disabilities in social life. The Chair’s research specialisation centres on the question of how mental health can be promoted among people with disabilities and how the treatment of mental health conditions can be improved.

Various projects are currently underway in this area:

• Development of German-language versions of internationally used diagnostic instruments (e.g. DM-ID-2)
• Meta-analyses on the effectiveness of psychotherapy for people with disabilities
  
  > Graser, J., Göken, J., Lyons, N., Ostermann, T., & Michalak, J. (2022). Cognitive-behavioural therapy for adults with intellectual disabilities: A meta-analysis. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 29(3), 227–242. doi:10.1037/cps0000077
  
  > Hardt, B., Graser, J., Heidenreich, T. & Michalak, J. (2024). A systematic review and meta-analysis of psychological interventions for people with hearing or visual impairment: Research gaps and a call to action. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice.
   
• Barriers to accessing psychotherapy for people with disabilities and how to overcome them
• Development of training programmes for psychotherapists