Development and Evaluation of Digital Interventions (Apps, iCBT, AI, VR)

Their collective research involves the full lifecycle of digital interventions. Dr. Moltrecht's work focuses on designing and validating mobile apps for young people, specifically targeting emotion regulation. This is complemented by the work of Dr. Buckman, who rigorously evaluates the effectiveness of internet-delivered Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (iCBT) in large-scale clinical trials, comparing it to traditional face-to-face therapy. Dr. Krebs applies this approach to specific conditions, developing and testing internet-based CBT for adolescents with Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD).

Pushing the technological frontier, researchers are exploring more immersive and artificially intelligent systems. Dr. Dechant and Dr. O'Driscoll investigate the use of AI-powered chatbots to promote well-being in youth, with Dr. O'Driscoll also developing AI to train therapists. The use of virtual reality (VR) is another key area; Dr. Dechant explores VR for treating social anxiety, while Dr. King uses immersive VR environments to assess cognitive functions and disrupt traumatic memories. Dr. Singh's work contributes to this theme by focusing on the underlying principles of behavior change and human-computer interaction necessary to build effective digital health tools, particularly for managing chronic conditions.