A new science of mental disorders: Using personalised, transdiagnostic, dynamical systems to understand, model, diagnose and treat psychopathology
Open accessAbstract
The core ideas of a 10-year research program 'New Science of Mental Disorders' are outlined. This research program moves away from the disorder-based 'one-model-fits-all' approach to treating mental disorders, and adopts the network approach to psychopathology as its foundation of research. Its core assumption is that dynamically interacting symptoms constitute the disorder. Our goal is to further develop the network approach by studying (1) dynamic networks of symptoms and other variables (i.e., elements) in a large number of individuals with a wide range of mental disorders from a transdiagnostic perspective (network-based diagnosis; mapping), including both Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) and digital phenotyping, (2) the transdiagnostic mechanisms reflecting potential causal relations among elements of the networks by performing experimental (pre-)clinical studies (zooming), and (3) the effectiveness of personalised network-informed interventions (targeting). Challenges to overcome in this research program are discussed, which relate to data collection (e.g., selection of EMA variables) and data analyses (e.g., power considerations), the development and application of network-informed diagnoses and network-informed interventions (e.g., what characteristic(s) of the network to target in interventions), and the implementation in clinical practice (e.g., train therapists in the use of networks in therapy).
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Modeling downstream mechanisms will likely require complex approaches such as network analytic frameworks.
“Modeling downstream mechanisms will likely require complex approaches such as network analytic frameworks”
From Measuring the active elements of cognitive-behavioral therapies (2023) · cites this paper as Roefs et al., 2022
Sections 5 and 10 describe using dynamic network models to study relations among elements of psychopathology and investigate possible causal mechanisms. They support network analysis as an approach to those mechanisms, but do not establish that modeling downstream mechanisms generally requires it. (LLM, conf=0.78)
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References 100 · Cited by 185
Research works printed but not linked: 2
- Haslbeck, J., Borsboom, D., & Waldorp, L. (2020). Moderated network models. arXiv. htt ps://arxiv.org/abs/1807.02877
- Myin-Germeys, I., & Kuppens, P. (Eds.). (2021). The open handbook of experience sampling methodology: A step-by-step guide to designing, conducting, and analyzing ESM studies. Leuven: Center for Research on Experience Sampling and Ambulatory Methods Leuven.
- Authors
- Roefs, A., Fried, E. I., Kindt, M., Martijn, C., Elzinga, B., Evers, A. W. M., Wiers, R. W., Borsboom, D., & Jansen, A.
- Affiliations
- Maastricht University (NL)
- Leiden University (NL)
- University of Amsterdam (NL)
- Corresponding author
- Roefs, Anne
- ORCID
- Venue
- Behaviour Research and Therapy
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2022-06
- Volume
- 153
- Pages
- 104096
- ISSN
- 0005-7967 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W4224040440
- Cited by
- 185
- References
- 100
- Citations by year
- 2026: 46 · 2025: 53 · 2024: 36 · 2023: 35 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 2
- FWCI
- 31.52
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Behaviour Research and Therapy (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Research Publications (Maastricht University) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Leiden Repository (Leiden University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- UvA-DARE (University of Amsterdam) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Research Publications (Maastricht University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Funders
- Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (024.004.016)
- Ministerie van Onderwijs, Cultuur en Wetenschap
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Mental Health Research Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Personality Disorders and Psychopathology
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Keywords
- transdiagnostic mechanisms, network-based interventions, personalized treatment, dynamical systems, ecological momentary assessment, digital phenotyping, clinical implementation, mental illness
- MeSH terms
- Mental Disorders, Humans, Psychopathology
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