Keynote Speakers
 |
Judith S. Beck How One RCT Sparked a Global CBT Movement |
Aaron Beck and colleagues created a paradigm shift in the field of mental health. This keynote will describe the major factors involved in the paradigm shift and how CBT is positioned within the broader history of clinical science, how it is methodologically in alignment with modern science and institutions, how its research, practice, and training have evolved to the present day, and what the future may look like. I will answer these questions: What was psychotherapy like before CBT and how did Aaron Beck transition away from psychoanalysis to develop Cognitive Therapy? How did clinical science influence Dr. Beck’s work and how was the early practice of CBT different from other psychotherapies? What was the significance of the first randomized controlled trial using Cognitive Therapy? What forces have converged to support evidence-based practice? What was the role of research in the development and refinement of CBT? How did training spread worldwide? How has CBT treatment evolved over the years? What is Recovery-Oriented Cognitive Therapy and why is it important? What might the future hold for CBT? |
|
 |
Richard Bryant, Ph.D., DSc Advancing Global Mental Health for All |
Most people in the world with a mental disorder do not receive treatment. Although this occurs frequently in high-income countries, it is even more prevalent in the Global South. This is attributable to a lack of mental health resources in many disadvantaged settings. This has led to the emergency of task-shifting approaches in which trained lay providers deliver evidence-based interventions based on cognitive behavioral principles. This review will outline recent trends implemented to fill the global treatment gap by using primarily transdiagnostic approaches. A series of interventions have been developed and evaluated by the World Health Organization for both adults and adolescents. The review will also outline how this field has developed from efficacy trials to implementation in real-world settings. Despite the gains made in global mental health in the past decade, there are also significant challenges. This review will highlight key limitations of current interventions, including a paucity of knowledge of the change mechanisms underpinning the programs, limitations in research designs, lack of cost-effectiveness evidence, and the issue of addressing the many people with persistent and complex disorders resulting from humanitarian crises, war, and persecution. The effort to advance global mental health research and also implement its findings will also be discussed in the context of shifts in geopolitical support for such programs, and the challenge for mental health researchers and policy makers to function in changing political climates.
|
|
 |
Kenneth Carswell, PhD Psychological Interventions for Global Use: Experience-based Reflections, Key Lessons and Future Directions
|
Globally, more than a billion people live with a mental health condition, with the majority unable to access evidence-based care. Psychological interventions, including digitally delivered interventions, supported by trained and supervised non-specialists, are recommended by The World Health Organization (WHO) for a number of mental health conditions and have the potential to help reduce the substantial treatment gap. Over the past decade, WHO has contributed to this field through the development and testing of a number of open-access, evidence-based psychological interventions, which have now been implemented and scaled in countries. Drawing on this body of work and country examples, this talk will reflect on key challenges, successes and lessons arising from the experience of developing and scaling psychological interventions. It will consider critical features of intervention design and development, as well as factors that may be important for successful implementation. The talk aims to offer practical and actionable considerations for clinicians, implementers and researchers involved in the development, adaptation or delivery of mental health interventions, particularly in low-resource and conflict-affected settings, and to highlight potential future directions for research and development. |
|
 |
Dixon Chibanda M.D., MPH, Ph.D. The Friendship Bench: Reaching A Million People-Lessons Learnt |
| The Friendship Bench is a brief (low intensity) psychological intervention delivered by trained community grandmothers in Zimbabwe and beyond. It is based on basic principles of CBT. Dixon Chibanda will share how the program has expanded in Zimbabwe and beyond through its’ scale strategy The Friendship Bench in a Box- a DIY toolkit that has enabled the program to reach over a million people and has seen replications in the global north. | |
 |
Younghee Choi, PhD, M.D. How can we integrate Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Schema Therapy, and Mindfulness Psychotherapy to train our Clients as Self-healers? |
As a Fellow of the ABCT (Academy of Cognitive Behavior Therapy) and ISST (International Society of Schema Therapy)- certified Schema therapist, and a Vipassana Meditator, the presenter aimed to develop Transdiagnostic Integrated CBT, the presenter started from the cognitive model based on Aaron Beck’s cognitive theory and tried assimilating different theories and techniques among the existing evidence-based psychotherapies. With traditional CBT, several thousand of my patients learned how to solve their own problems as the self-therapist, but still, many patients do not respond well to Traditional CBT, and we call them treatment-resistant cases, which usually have co-morbid problems, primarily personality disorders. Studies about personality disorders showed that unique schemas were developed from childhood experiences and emotional temperaments. The contents of these schemas (core beliefs) produce automatic thoughts in specific situations, and these automatic thoughts did not respond well to traditional CBT. That was why schema-focused therapy was developed, mainly by Jeffrey Young. With Schema Therapy, the presenter could help more patients with Personality Disorders who did not respond well to traditional CBT. Even with the powerful effectiveness of schema therapy, the presenter still needed something more to help patients suffering from unchangeable problems. Naturally, the presenter found a “third wave” of CBT, including ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) and MBCT (Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy), which expanded the concepts to other disorders and/or added novel components and mindfulness exercises. The presenter owed a great deal to Jon Kabat-Zinn for learning mindfulness meditation. Through this lecture, the presenter will introduce the CASH (Change and Acceptance Self-Healing) program, which integrates CBT, schema therapy, and mindfulness approaches, and demonstrates that it not only improves various mental symptoms but also brings about changes in thinking and beliefs. At the heart of the entire group format, therapy at Mettaa Institute includes 9 weeks of the CASH program. After patients complete group CBT, they are re-evaluated, and much-improved patients who have acquired various therapeutic skills would stop therapy. Patients who require additional treatment would participate in individual sessions of Integrated CBT, which would last one to three years. For the past 30 years, I have worked with my patients, students, colleagues, and supervisors. When I encountered obstacles, those were challenging problems that I needed to find solutions. The core philosophy of the CASH program is to strive to change what we can, accept what we cannot change, and focus on living well, regardless of our efforts. |
|
 |
David M. Clark, DPhil Realising the mass public benefit of evidence-based psychological therapies: politics, measurement-based care, and economics |
Effective psychological therapies have been developed for most mental health problems. The public prefers psychotherapy to medication. However, most people cannot access effective psychological therapy. This talk outlines the history and development of the English NHS Talking Therapies for Anxiety and Depression (formerly known as “IAPT”) program, as well as its international derivatives. The program has made cognitive-behaviour therapies and other psychological treatments for anxiety disorders and depression much more widely available. The talk covers the clinical model, the therapist training, the crucial role of measurement-based care, digital innovation, and the combined economic & clinical arguments that have been used to secure increased funding. Currently, over 670,000 people receive a course of treatment each year. Outcome data is available for 98% of treated patients. Approximately half fully recover and around 7 in every 10-show significant improvement. Benefits of therapy are widespread. As well as improving patient’s mental health, Talking Therapies reduce other physical healthcare costs & adverse events, as well as helping grow national economies in the countries where it has been implemented. |
|
 |
Kirsty A. Clark, Ph.D., MPH Advancing Research on Suicide Risk and Prevention in LGBTQ+ Youth and Young Adults: Challenges and Future Directions |
LGBTQ+ youth and young adults face substantially higher rates of suicidal thoughts and behaviors as compared to their non-LGBTQ+ peers, yet less is known about why they have heightened risk and what can be done to prevent it. In this keynote, Dr. Kirsty A. Clark will summarize current epidemiological trends in LGBTQ+ youth suicide and present theory-driven research informed by minority stress theory, the interpersonal theory of suicide, narrative possibilities, and social safety frameworks to explain these disparities. Drawing on both qualitative and quantitative evidence from her team’s work, she will identify key risk and protective factors for suicide in LGBTQ+ youth and young adults. Dr. Clark will also discuss how these findings can guide the development and adaptation of targeted interventions. Finally, drawing on her experiences working in Tennessee, USA, she will reflect on the ethical, safety, and practical considerations of conducting LGBTQ+ youth suicide research in a politicized era. |
|
 |
Michelle G. Craske, Ph.D., AO Targeting threat and reward processes for the treatment of depression and anxiety: from the laboratory to community-based application |
Threat and reward reactivity are fundamental processes that become dysregulated in the context of vulnerability to, or expression of, anxiety and depression. I will present our latest findings regarding neural, behavioral and subjective features of threat and reward reactivity that correlate with and predict fears, anxiety, depression and anhedonia. I will then present our latest evidence for optimizing exposure therapy using an inhibitory retrieval model, its effectiveness relative to an habituation model, and mechanistic and moderator data. Next, I will present our series of investigations of Positive Affect Treatment that specifically targets reward mechanisms, its effectiveness as well as mechanistic data. I will conclude with discussion of community-based applications of these interventions through our STAND (Screening, Tracking and Treating Anxiety and Depression) model of care in college student samples. |
|
 |
Toshi A. Furukawa, M.D., Ph.D. Personalized & Optimized Therapies (POTs) using the Resilience Training App for subthreshold depression in the community: the RESiLIENT trial (n=5361) |
In 1984, a report by the US National Institute of Mental Health concluded that preventing depression was impossible. However, research over the past 30 years has shown that depression prevention is, in fact, achievable. Despite this progress, health losses due to common mental disorders have continued to rise, and depression remains the leading cause of disability related to mental health worldwide. Simply put, we have failed in our professional mission to provide people with the mental health support they deserve. A shift in this trajectory now seems finally within reach, driven by the widespread adoption of internet technologies and rapid advancements in artificial intelligence (AI). Over the past decade, we have been developing a smartphone CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy) app called the Resilience Training App ®. We recently completed the largest individually randomized trial to date, aimed at treating subthreshold depression and promoting mental well-being in the general population (total n=5361). The app delivers five CBT-based skills: behavioral activation, cognitive restructuring, problem-solving, assertiveness training, and behavior therapy for insomnia. These skills, both individually and in combination, demonstrated varying levels of efficacy in reducing depression symptoms, with effect sizes ranging from -0.67 (95% CI: -0.81 to -0.53) to -0.16 (95% CI: -0.30 to -0.02). The interventions also showed differential effects on anxiety, insomnia, and mental well-being. These benefits were sustained for at least 50 weeks. Building on these findings, we developed the AI-based Personalized & Optimized Therapy (POT) algorithm to match interventions with individuals’ characteristics. When individuals received their POT, the overall effect size for the population increased by 35% compared to the conventional approach of providing everyone with the group average best intervention. Scaling up the implementation of this app and its POT algorithm is both timely and crucial in the global fight against depression. |
|
 |
Professor Gillian Haddock, MClinPsychol, Ph.D. Cognitive-behavioural approaches for working with complexity in people with psychosis |
Psychosis and schizophrenia are huge global issues and present significant challenges for individual, carers and services. Cognitive-behavioural approaches for people with psychosis are well established, with a large evidence base attesting to their effectiveness and guidelines advocating their implementation in services. However, these approaches have not been well evaluated and developed for people with additional complexities such severe and distressing psychotic symptoms, suicidality, substance use, anger and violence. The impact of these complexities on the individual and their families and friends is immense, and results in substantial and long-lasting distress to many aspects of life. This paper will describe a programme of work which has focused on the development of treatments which directly target those factors which underpin such complexities. The paper will report on several trials evaluating the approaches as applied across a number of settings. Some of the theoretical underpinnings and implications with be discussed and key issues relating to implementation of such approaches with service users and staff will be discussed. |
|
 |
Steven C. Hayes, Ph.D. One Size Fits None: Why an Idionomic Revolution is Necessary for Our Field |
Intervention science and practice faces a progressivity crisis: stagnant effect sizes, failed syndromal strategies, and a disconnect between science and practice. Despite decades of RCTs and proliferating protocols, personalization remains elusive, with practitioners lacking guidance for tailoring interventions to particular people. This talk shows that such stagnation stems from violations of ergodic assumptions in normative statistics. It is rooted in the dark history of biostatistics which falsely assumed for racist and antisemitic reasons that ensemble statistics are applicable to particular people (or couples or families or organizations). Almost always they are not. This plenary proposes idionomics: a dynamic, particularized science leveraging longitudinal data, AI, and evolutionary principles to model intraindividual processes first, then seeking nomothetic generalizations that enhance idiographic understanding. Empirical examples will illustrate how idionomics uncovers functional subgroups masked by aggregates, enabling a science of personalization. Idionomics revives functional analysis, aligns with precision medicine, empowers global practitioners beyond WEIRD biases and shifts attention from traditional evidence-based practice to practice-based evidence. If we are to create a more progressive science the future of our discipline demands a shift from ergodic illusions to a personalized and precision-based intervention science based on idionomic analysis. |
|
 |
Anita Jansen, Ph.D. Beyond Diagnosis: Clinical Insights from Symptom Networks |
Imagine being able to deliver a truly personalized treatment, in which you intervene directly and precisely in the processes that maintain your patient’s problems. With such a well-targeted intervention, the patient recovers rapidly. Notably, no DSM diagnosis was required in advance. Naturally, you conducted a thorough intake, and the patient engaged in ecological momentary assessments (EMAs) throughout the day, capturing fluctuations in behavior, cognitions, and emotions. Drawing on the EMA data and network analyses, you constructed an individualized network of behaviors, feelings, thoughts, symptoms, and contextual factors. This data-driven temporal network revealed, with striking clarity, the causal interconnections among different elements of the system. Only then did treatment begin-because you knew precisely where to intervene. Perhaps this scenario sounds a bit idealized. Treatment without a DSM diagnosis? Collecting and analyzing large volumes of empirical data before the first session? Quick, decisive, and effective interventions? In reality, most patients are neither simple nor easy to treat; their problems are complex, and comorbidity is often the rule rather than the exception. Yet it is precisely for these complex cases that network interventions hold the greatest promise. Over a decade ago, a group of psychologists in Amsterdam introduced the network approach to mental disorders. This perspective offers a fundamentally new way of understanding psychopathology-what many experts have described as a genuine paradigm shift. In brief, the network approach posits that a mental disorder is not the underlying cause of symptoms, but rather the emergent result of symptoms interacting and reinforcing one another. Developments in this field are progressing at remarkable speed. What do we currently know about personalized symptom networks? And to what extent is it feasible-and meaningful-to implement network-informed interventions in mental health care? In this keynote, I will review recent advances and consider the (many) challenges that lie ahead. |
|
 |
John F. Kelly, Ph.D., ABPP Amplifying and Extending the Framework of Treatment |
Since the initial declaration of a “war on drugs” 50 years ago, much has been learned regarding the taxonomy, etiology, pharmacology, epidemiology, neurobiology, typology, and phenomenology of addiction that has shifted public policies and public opinion on addiction away from incarceration toward treatment and public health. More recently there has been a further focus on interventions that combine acute care stabilization and short-term intervention toward models of assertive clinical-community linkage and long-term recovery management that promise to enhance rates of stable remission. This talk will review these paradigmatic shifts occurring during the past 50 years with a focus on how the public health and addiction treatment infrastructure is changing to enhance rates of remission as well as accelerate the time to stable remission. |
|
 |
Silvia Helena Koller, Ed.D. Ecological Engagement: A methodological approach to work with at-risk populations |
Ecological Engagement: A Methodological Approach to Work with At-Risk Populations presents an integrative framework for studying and supporting individuals and communities exposed to adversity. Grounded in ecological systems theory and enriched by Global South perspectives, the presentation highlights methodological strategies that move beyond individual-level explanations to capture the multilayered interactions between personal, familial, community, and societal factors. Special attention is given to participatory and context-sensitive approaches that respect cultural diversity and address structural inequalities. Drawing on case studies from the Global South, the paper illustrates how ecological engagement can enhance both research validity and the practical impact of interventions. By advancing methodological innovation and ethical reflexivity, this contribution seeks to strengthen cross-cultural dialogue and promote resilience and social justice among at-risk populations worldwide. |
|
 |
Sonja Lyubomirsky, Ph.D. The Science of Happiness: Experimentally Increasing Wellbeing Through Gratitude, Kindness, and Conversation Interventions |
Happiness not only feels good; it IS good. Happy people are relatively more creative, productive, and helpful; have more stable marriages and higher incomes:, and boast stronger immune systems. Furthermore, it appears that feeling socially connected is the key to happiness. Fortunately, experiments have shown that people can intentionally increase their happiness and connectedness. In this presentation, Sonja Lyubomirsky will describe both classic and brand new research revealing when and why such practices as expressing gratitude, doing acts of kindness, and engaging in more social interactions work “best.” Specifically, she will describe the critical factors that bolster the likelihood of success – for example, how to determine the right “dosage” or “type” of gratitude or kindness and how to find the right fit between the happiness activities and our personality, goals, and culture. Finally, she will propose several ways by which engaging in presumably happiness-increasing activities may backfire. |
|
 |
Lata McGinn, Ph.D. The Future of Global CBT: Reflections, Achievements, and the Road Ahead |
The global mental health crisis continues to disproportionately affect young people, with rising rates of anxiety, depression, and suicide worldwide. The treatment gap remains particularly wide, highlighting the urgent need for innovative, evidence-based solutions that are both scalable and culturally responsive. This keynote reflects on the extraordinary progress made in advancing evidence-based practice worldwide while charting a vision for the future of Cognitive and Behavioural Therapies (CBT). Together, we have strengthened global collaborations, expanded access through partnerships with the WHO, regional stakeholders, and governments, and fostered growth across six continents, including building towards a CBT Association of Africa. At the same time, the global burden of mental health remains high, particularly among youth, underscoring the urgency of scaling effective, equitable, and culturally adaptable interventions. This keynote will share lessons from task shifting initiatives across the globe as models of scalable prevention and early intervention. Looking ahead, the keynote will share priorities for the next decade-accessibility, pluralism, digital innovation, and youth mental health-as we collectively work to ensure that CBT is accessible to all communities worldwide. |
|
 |
Christine A. Padesky, Ph.D. These Once Innovative Ideas Now Need to be Radically Applied |
Many CBT therapists, researchers and instructors today would describe themselves as client-centered, collaborative and strengths-based. Padesky argues that we can elevate our effectiveness by applying these practices radically instead of perfunctorily. For example, when we practice strengths-based CBT more radically it transforms everything: the issues we discuss, the goals we ask our clients to set, and the methods we use to encourage clients to use their strengths for life transformation. Client-centered collaboration, when radically applied, considers with genuine interest: Socratic dialogues that lead to unexpected places, client-generated conceptualizations that contradict accepted paradigms, and novel interventions that resonate with client cultures. Padesky has been modelling radically client-centered, radically collaborative and radically strengths-based CBT for nearly 50 years in her therapy, world-wide teaching, and video clinical demonstrations. Most of her therapy innovations resulted from her application of one or more of these three approaches. Many were considered radical at first. Examples of her innovations include: the 7-Column Thought Record (Padesky, 1983), Assertive Defense of the Self as a treatment for social anxiety (Padesky, 1997), Strengths-Based CBT: A 4-step model to build resilience (Padesky, & Mooney, 2012), collaborative case conceptualization (Padesky, 2020), her 4-Stage model of Socratic Dialogue (Padesky & Kennerley, 2023), Mind Over Mood (Greenberger & Padesky, 1995; 2016) and the 5-Part Model (Padesky & Mooney, 1990) which, when introduced in 1986 was the first CBT model to highlight the role of environment. Padesky illustrates how radically applying client-centered, collaborative, and strengths-based CBT can improve our effectiveness. Considering these approaches more radically also offers a rich tapestry of topics for untapped areas of research that can create opportunities for generations to come. |
|
 |
Ronald Rapee How far have we really come in the Treatment of Paediatric Anxiety: An Overview of Successes and Failures |
Anxiety disorders affect 10-15% of children and adolescents and there are some indications that prevalence may be increasing across generations. These disorders are important for two primary reasons: first, they are associated with significant life impairment across family, relationships, and achievements; and second, most lifetime anxiety disorders have their origins during the child or adolescent developmental periods. Therefore, successful intervention during these stages can reduce serious developmental impairment and can potentially prevent a lifetime of cascading impacts. Across the past 50+ years, research into the management of paediatric anxiety disorders and the development of new treatments have exploded, from a small handful of studies in the 1970’s and 1980’s to many 10’s of studies every year currently. But has this explosion of research really led us to be able to fully help the anxious young person? In this address I will start with a short walk down memory lane about the evolution of evidence into the management of paediatric anxiety, culminating in a summary of our current success. I will then explore a series of “big buts” – a wide range of limitations to our current evidence base that might make us pause in our self-congratulations. Of course it’s always nice to finish a talk on a positive note – we’ll have to see whether I can manage that. |
|
 |
Marta B. Rondon, M.D.. M.Sc., IDFAPA Impact Of Intimate Partner Violence and Sexual Violence Against Women in the Perinatal Period |
Globally around 28% of women suffer from intimate partner violence (IPV). The rate of IPV during the perinatal period varies between 1.2 and 27.6%. The consequences are very serious, including the risk of death due to pre eclampsia or hemorrhage. The fetal outcomes include intrauterine growth restriction, preterm birth and being small for gestational age. For the woman, IPVp results in depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder when it involves sexual violence or death threats. The consequences of violence experienced during childhood or adolescence on perinatal mental health need to be considered: there is evidence from several studies (including the PROMIS cohortin Lima that it increases the likelihood of depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation and post traumatic disorders during pregnancy. Hair cortisol concentration studies show that stress in the pregnant woman is linked with preterm labor and our follow up of the children of mothers that have a history of trauma or IPVp display externalizing and internalizing behaviors. |
|
 |
Jessica L. Schleider, Ph.D. Single-Session Interventions as a Mental Health Moonshot |
The discrepancy between need and access to mental health support is incontestable. Due to provider shortages, high treatment costs, and myriad structural barriers, up to 80% of youth and 50% of adults with mental health needs go without services each year. Status-quo mental health systems will never meet population-level needs for support, creating a need for a “Mental Health Moonshot” for sustainable, scalable models of support. Single-session interventions (SSIs) are well-positioned to rapidly increase access to evidence-based supports at precise moments of need, both within and beyond formal healthcare systems. SSIs mitigate key treatment access-barriers: many are self-guided (requiring no therapist) or deliverable by non-professionals; web-based (completable from any location); and 5 to 60 minutes in length, eliminating premature treatment dropout. SSIs are also effective. To date, >400 randomized trials have shown their capacity to reduce mental health problems and increase uptake of further treatment, with sustained positive impacts up to nine months later. This presentation will overview recent scientific and clinical advances in developing and evaluating evidence-based SSIs for youth and adults, along with our research team’s multi-sector efforts to disseminate effective SSIs within and outside of traditional healthcare systems. |
|
 |
Roz Shafran Ph.D., FMedSci All Together Now: Integrating Mental and Physical Health in Young People |
Many patients who seek treatment for mental health difficulties also live with long-term physical health conditions. Yet mental and physical health care are still often delivered in silos, leading to fragmented support, poorer outcomes, and higher healthcare costs. This presentation will draw on research evidence from a large multi-centre randomised controlled trial of modular CBT for young people with epilepsy. Findings from this trial highlight how tailored psychological interventions can be delivered effectively alongside medical care to improve outcomes. It will also describe award-winning service innovations, including the development of ‘drop-in’ psychological services in paediatric hospitals providing ‘low intensity’ CBT delivered by paraprofessionals. These models demonstrate how embedding CBT within routine physical healthcare can provide affordable, timely, flexible support to children and families, reduce barriers to access, and increase access for those in need. In addition, the presentation will discuss national initiatives that are advancing integrated care. These programmes illustrate how closer collaboration between mental and physical health services can enhance recovery, reduce unnecessary healthcare utilisation, and expand access to evidence-based therapy at scale . Together, these examples will show the promise of integrated CBT approaches in transforming the way we deliver care for young people with physical health conditions and enabling the provision of health for all through affirming, equitable and sustainable CBT. The presentation will conclude by considering the practical challenges of implementation – including workforce training, role protection, and digital delivery – alongside creative possibilities for advancing the integration of mental and physical healthcare in the future. |
|
 |
Professor Louise Sharpe B.A. (Hons), MClinPsych, Ph.D. Treating anxiety in the context of physical illness: The importance of safety behaviours and fears of disease progression |
Cognitive-behavioural treatments (CBT) for anxiety disorders are amongst the most successful applications of CBT, with a vast literature confirming efficacy with large effect sizes. However, when anxiety is treated in the context of a chronic physical illness, meta-analyses confirm that treatments are far less effective, typically with small effect sizes. This keynote will explore two potential mechanisms that are important in working with people with chronic physical illness and comorbid anxiety. First, the presentation of safety behaviours in people with chronic physical health problems will be explored. Clinicians must determine the difference between safety behaviours that exacerbate anxiety and safety precautions which keep patients safe from the impacts of their illness. A decision-making framework will be presented to differentiate safety behaviours and safety precautions. Second, the content of worries differs for people with anxiety in the context of chronic physical conditions. Specifically, an extremely common worry across populations of people with different chronic illnesses is the fear of their disease progressing. Our research shows that fears of progression are common amongst common chronic physical illnesses, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, rheumatological conditions, respiratory conditions and diabetes. This keynote will review evidence of the importance of fears of progression in anxious symptoms, theories of fear of progression and review the relevant treatment outcome literature. |
|
 |
J.D. Smith, Ph.D. Equitable Implementation of a Behavioral Parent Training Intervention in Community-Based Pediatrics |
A primary goal of implementation science (IS) is to promote access to evidence-based treatments; however, without careful attention to equity, IS may inadvertently reify inequities for the most vulnerable. This keynote will discuss methods and a case example for addressing and evaluating equitable implementation in the context of a program of research on the Family Check-Up® 4 Health (FCU4Health) behavioral parenting program. FCU4Health is an individually tailored preventive intervention for delivery in integrated and coordinated primary care settings. Data will be presented from a Type 2 effectiveness-implementation hybrid studies conducted with multiple primary care evaluated using the RE-AIM framework’s extension for health equity. Quantitative details about adoption and maintenance are supplemented with descriptions of implementation determinants, provided by partners at each site The results provide an exemplar of how the RE-AIM equity extension can be applied to assess the ability of EBTs to promote equitable implementation in routine care settings. |
|
 |
Eric Stice, Ph.D. Risk Factors that Predict Future Onset of Eating Disorders: Implications for Prevention |
An understanding of risk factors that predict future onset of eating disorders is vital for informing the design of optimally effective eating disorder prevention programs. This presentation will review recent findings on risk factors for eating disorders that address four important gaps in our knowledge. First, findings from research focused on identifying risk factors that predict future onset of each type of eating disorder, including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, and purging disorder will be reviewed, which suggest that the risk processes are somewhat distinct for the different eating disorders but has also identified a few transdiagnostic risk factors. Second, findings regarding the typical order of symptom emergence for each eating disorder type and the relation of prodromal symptoms to future onset of eating disorders will be reviewed, which provide evidence that attitudinal prodromal symptoms (e.g., overvaluation of weight/shape) and unhealthy compensatory weight control behaviors typically emerge before binge eating. Third, findings from research focused on identifying interactions between risk factors in the prediction of future onset of each eating disorder will be reviewed, which suggest that there may be qualitatively distinct risk pathways to onset of each eating disorder. Fourth, research on the temporal sequencing of risk factor emergence that provide support for a multivariate mediational model of binge eating/compensatory behavior eating disorders will be reviewed. The implications of these novel findings for how to design more effective eating disorder prevention programs for the various eating disorders will be highlighted and potentially useful directions for future research will be discussed. |
|
 |
Jianping Wang M.D., Ph.D. From Theory to Practice: Understanding Grief and Healing in Chinese Bereavement |
Within the Chinese cultural context, bereavement exhibits distinctive emotional, cognitive, behavioral, and social characteristics. For parents who have lost their child, grief not only brings profound pain but also destabilizes self-identity and disrupts life order; similar patterns are also observed among other bereaved groups. The grieving process is typically prolonged and complex, manifesting in cognitive distortions and attentional avoidance. Cultural beliefs-including filial piety, fate, and perceived stigma-further intensify feelings of responsibility and psychological burden, adding layers of complexity to grief. Family and social interactions play a dual role: spousal dynamics can serve as sources of support but also amplify distress, while connections with tongming ren (those who share the same loss) often provide genuine understanding and effective support through shared experience. Despite the challenges, some bereaved individuals gradually achieve recovery and even personal growth. Based on theoretical frameworks and empirical research, this presentation will illustrate the diverse trajectories of grief and recovery, explore the roles of cultural beliefs, cognitive processes, and social interactions in shaping bereavement experiences, and highlight the importance of developing culturally rooted interventions and support strategies to meet the needs of different bereaved populations. |
|