Prototypical for our research policy in clinical developmental research, is focusing on the development of psychopathology and developmental pathways imbedded in Cognitive Theory and Affect Regulation Theories. Our two central domains where we tested the assumptions of both theories are: development (and treatment) of childhood obesity/eating problems and adolescents’ depression. For example, we studied emotional eating in youngsters with obesity and, we studied temperamental and cognitive vulnerabilities in adolescents with depressive symptoms within a diathesis-stress perspective on psychopathology. The research in our department is directed at the synergy between fundamental and applied research and is targeted at normal and clinical populations of varying ages. Interestingly, our research applies various research methods such as multiple informant self-report questionnaires, psychophysiology, longitudinal designs, RCT’s, experiments, and qualitative research.
We aimed to further expand our network via study visits, memberships, international congress presentations on symposia, review work for journals and publications in peer-reviewed journals: see the CV for the publications of the professors with >150 publications in international peer-reviewed journals with good impact scores and, thanks to the collaboration with students who finished already successful there Phd: Decaluwé, V. (2003), Timbremont, B. (2004), Soetens, B. (2006), Van Vlierberghe, L. (2008), Moens, E. (2008), Bosmans, G. (2009) Goossens, L. (2009), De Mey, W. (2010), Boone, L. (2011), Brennings, K. (2011), Verbeken, S. (2012), Van Durme, K. (2016), Van De Walle, K. (2016).
Since 2000 more than 15 research projects were successfully finished. Currently, the research is guided by three professors (Caroline Braet, Ellen Moens, and Lien Goossens), conducted with the help of two post docs (Sandra Verbeken and Leentje Vervoort).
We were surrounded by five Phd students on obesity and eating disorder related issues: Annelies Matton, Laura Vandeweghe, Taaike Debeuf, Eva Van Malderen, Tiffany Naets and five Phd students on depression, its origins in attachment, and its relation with affect regulation: Laura Wante, Eva Vandevivere, Henk Weymeis, Brenda Volkaert and Marie-Lotte Van Beveren.
In this team, direct funding from Ghent University pays for the OPERA project (GOA) and one PhD-student (BOF). One project is funded by IWT’s SBO program (REWARD, http://www.rewardstudy.be), and one by FWO Rode Neuzen (BOOSTCAMP, https://www.kindenadolescent.be) and one by FWO TBM (WELCOME). An overview of the projects can be found on https://www.ace-lab.be.
Overview of the research domain from the clinical developmental research group
A slideshow presented on 2015-05-22 about the research domain can be found here.
