Considerable hope is placed in digital mental health, often delivered via omnipresent mobile devices, to ease resource constraints in youth services. Although early trials are encouraging, the question remains whether digitalization in mental health can reduce the gap between young people’s mental health needs and available care. As an early postdoctoral researcher in the research group of Prof. Dr. Marialuisa Cavelti, I focus on evaluating whether the implementation of digital tools in diagnosis and treatment delivers on this promise.
A core method in my research is ecological momentary assessment (EMA), which enables real-time tracking of symptoms and context in daily life. EMA captures within-person fluctuations and dependencies and can inform just-in-time adaptive interventions (JITAIs) that tailor the type, dose, and timing of support to a person’s current state.
Currently, my main focus is developing a JITAI for young people awaiting psychiatric treatment to help bridge prolonged waits – periods linked to symptom worsening and disengagement from services. The goal is a low-threshold, scalable approach that enhances access to evidence-based support and mitigates the adverse effects of waiting for treatment.
In a parallel line of work, I study psychotic experiences in youth: examining their transdiagnostic impact, how daily stressors contribute to their emergence, and whether adaptive interventions can reduce the distress associated with auditory verbal hallucinations (hearing voices).
