Research

CHAMP Lab

The Child and Adolescent Mental Health and Participation (CHAMP) Lab is the research department of Child and Adolescent Clinical Psychology at the University of Jena. In our research, we focus on the onset of mental disorders – in childhood and adolescence – as well as the primary question of under which conditions subclinical symptoms develop into mental disorders and what factors maintain them (fundamental research).

A second core question concerns the investigation of mechanisms of psychotherapy (intervention research) to positively influence the long-term development of individual patients and improve treatment. Our research approach is experimental, multimodal, and multimethod, aimed at describing all levels of biopsychosocial etiology models. Methodologically, we work with both peripheral physiological parameters (e.g., heart rate, skin conductance, voice), hormonal factors (e.g., cortisol), self-report, and behavioral data (e.g., performance, interaction). Typically, studies involve significant others centrally.

Another area of ​​research is outpatient field research to promote the ecological validity of research findings and, thus, translation into application. In psychotherapy research, we investigate which factors previously considered dysfunctional can be changed through cognitive behavioral therapy.