COMPARE Final Conference in Marburg

On September 10th and 11th, 2023, Professor Dr. Anna-Lena Zietlow and our doctoral candidate Ines Brenner enthusiastically participated in the concluding conference of the COMPARE study in Marburg. For the first part of the conference, representatives from various subprojects, as well as affected individuals and participating families of the study, were invited.

During the conference, the project leaders (COMPARE-family with Prof. Dr. Hanna Christiansen, COMPARE-emotion with Prof. Dr. Christina Schwenck, COMPARE-interaction with Prof. Dr. Corinna Reck and Prof. Dr. Anna-Lena Zietlow, COMPARE-work with Prof. Dr. Kathleen Otto, and COMPARE-school with Prof. Dr. Ricarda Steinmayr and Dr. Linda Wirthwein) provided exciting insights and initial results from their respective subprojects. Undoubtedly, a highlight was the panel discussion on the topic of "Supporting Families with Psychological Stress". This discussion included Professor Dr. Hanna Christiansen, affected individuals, therapists, adolescents, as well as representatives from city administration and the healthcare sector.

The poster session held during the conference provided an excellent opportunity for exchange among the different projects. In this context, Ines Brenner presented her research on bio-behavioral synchrony between mothers and their three-month-old infants during the Still-Face Paradigm.

Furthermore, there were three keynotes by national and international guests who presented their projects. Prof. Dr. Babette Renneberg provided insights into the Pro-Child project, which focuses on the prevention of abuse and the promotion of mental health in children and mothers with borderline personality disorder. Dr. Jean Paul presented exciting insights into the "It takes a village" project, which aims to support children with mentally ill parents. Additionally, Prof. Dr. Anne Thorup shared results from the Danish longitudinal study "High Risk and Resilience" (VIA), which examines children of parents diagnosed with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. The conference concluded with a closing roundtable discussion in which the project leaders, along with representatives from other research groups, discussed "Lessons Learned" and provided an outlook on further necessary research studies.

A heartfelt thanks goes to the Marburg team, whose excellent organization significantly contributed to the successful concluding meeting.

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