Harald Baumeister

University of Ulm, Institute of Psychology and Education · Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy

Background: Digital formats have the potential to enhance accessibility to care for individuals with suicidal ideation. However, digital self-help interventions have faced limitations, including small effect sizes in reducing suicidal ideation, low adherence, and safety concerns. Objective: Therefore, we aimed to develop a remote blended cognitive...

Abstract Background Academic procrastination is widespread among college students. Procrastination is strongly negatively correlated with psychological well-being, thus early interventions are needed. Internet- and mobile-based cognitive behavioral therapy (iCBT) could provide a low-threshold treatment option. Human guidance seems to be a decisive...

BACKGROUND Objective unobtrusively collected GPS features (e.g., homestay, distance) from everyday devices like smartphones may offer a promising augmentation to current assessment tools for depression. However, to date there is no systematic and meta-analytical evidence on the associations between GPS features and depression. OBJECTIVE The presen...

Introduction: New digital treatment formats may reduce barriers to treatment for individuals with suicidal ideation. This study aimed to investigate the feasibility of a remote blended care programme for this population, defined as acceptability, demand, practicality, adaptation, indications of efficacy and safety. Methods: We conducted a mixed-...

Background: Chronic stress poses risks for physical and mental well-being. Stress management interventions have been shown to be effective, and stress management apps (SMAs) might help to transfer strategies into everyday life. Objective: This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the quality and characteristics of SMAs to give pote...

Objective Mental health self-report and clinician-rating scales with diagnoses defined by sum-score cut-offs are often used for depression screening. This study investigates whether machine learning (ML) can detect major depressive episodes (MDE) based on screening scales with higher accuracy than best-practice clinical sum-score approaches. Metho...

Background and aims Internet use disorder (IUD), characterized as the inability to control one’s internet use, is associated with reduced quality of life and mental health comorbidities such as depression, substance abuse, or anxiety. Evidence-based treatment options are scarce due to the novelty of the diagnosis. Internet- and mobile-based interve...

Background Accurate and timely diagnostics are essential for effective mental healthcare. Given a resource- and time-limited mental healthcare system, novel digital and scalable diagnostic approaches such as smart sensing, which utilizes digital markers collected via sensors from digital devices, are explored. While the predictive accuracy of smart...

Initial findings indicate the effectiveness of internet-based interventions for body dysmorphic disorder (BDD). In order to substantiate these findings, a seven-module guided internet-based intervention was created and examined. We report the mixed data of participants with clinical and subclinical BDD of the treatment group ( n = 18). We investiga...

Background: While there is evolving knowledge on change processes of digital cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in the treatment of depression, little is known about how these interventions produce therapeutic change in the comorbid constellation of chronic back pain (CBP). Here, we examined whether the effects of a digital intervention to treat d...

Background: Student mobility across borders poses challenges to health systems at the university and country levels. International students suffer from stress more than their local peers, however, do not seek help or underutilize existing help offers. Some barriers to help-seeking among international students are insufficient information regarding...

Background Existing evidence suggests internet- and mobile-based interventions (IMIs) improve depressive symptoms in college students effectively. However, there is far less knowledge about the potential mechanisms of change of mindfulness-based IMIs, which could contribute to optimizing target groups and interventions. Hence, within this secondary...

Abstract Background Adolescents and young adults (AYA) with a chronic somatic disease (CD) have a 3-fold higher risk of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) than healthy controls. In addition, elevated post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) have a negative impact on CD severity, treatment adherence, health problems and functional impairment. Howeve...

Introduction: During the COVID-19 pandemic, questions about both consequences and helpful strategies to maintain quality of life (QoL) have become increasingly important. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the distribution of coping factors during the COVID-19 pandemic, their associations with QoL and the moderating role of certain soci...

Introduction: Digital cognitive behavioral therapy (i-CBT) interventions for the treatment of depression have been extensively studied and shown to be effective in the reduction of depressive symptoms. However, little is known about their effects on suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STB). Information on the impact of digital interventions on STB ar...

Background: Depression is highly prevalent among individuals with chronic back pain. Internet-based interventions can be effective in treating and preventing depression in this patient group, but it is unclear who benefits most from this intervention format. Method: In an analysis of two randomized trials (N = 504), we explored ways to predict h...

Unlabelled: The proliferation of online eHealth has made it much easier for users to access healthcare services and interventions from the comfort of their own homes. This study looks at how well one such platform-eSano-performs in terms of user experience when delivering mindfulness interventions. In order to assess usability and user experience,...

BACKGROUND Digital formats have the potential to enhance accessibility to care for individuals with suicidal ideation. However, digital self-help interventions have faced limitations, including small effect sizes in reducing suicidal ideation, low adherence, and safety concerns. OBJECTIVE Therefore, we aimed to develop a remote blended cognitive b...

Objective: The mechanisms of change in digital interventions for the prevention of depression are largely unknown. Here, we explored whether five theoretically derived intervening variables (i.e., pain intensity, pain-related disability, pain self-efficacy, quality of life [QoL], and work capacity) were mediating the effectiveness of a digital int...

Background: Counseling adolescents with chronic medical conditions (CMCs) can be challenging regarding suitable interviewing skills and clinicians' attitudes toward the patient. Successful communication can be a key element of treatment. Motivational Interviewing (MI) is broadly applicable in managing behavioural problems and diseases by increasing...

The college years can be accompanied by mental distress. Internet- and mobile-based interventions (IMIs) have the potential to improve mental health but adherence is problematic. Psychological guidance might promote adherence but is resource intensive. In this three-armed randomized controlled trial, “guidance on demand” (GoD) and unguided (UG) adh...

Given the limited availability and accessibility of onsite cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I), other CBT-I settings, such as internet-delivered CBT-I (iCBT-I), have been proposed. The primary aim of the study was to compare the efficacy of available CBT-I settings on insomnia severity. A systematic review and frequentist network meta...

Mental comorbidities in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D) are common, and can have a negative impact on acute blood glucose levels and long-term metabolic control. Information on the association of T1D and comorbid posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with diabetes-related outcomes is limited. The aim was to examine the associations betw...

Introduction Depression has a significant impact on individuals and society, which is why preventive measures are important. Farmers represent an occupational group exposed to many risk factors for depression. The potential of guided, tailored internet-based interventions and a personalized telephone coaching is evaluated in a German project of the...

Introduction: Comprehensive evidence on prevalence and incidence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and symptoms (PTSS) in people with chronic somatic diseases (CD) is lacking. Objective: To systematically and meta-analytically examine prevalence and incidence of PTSD and PTSS in people with CD compared with people without CD. Methods: MEDL...

Zusammenfassung Videobasierte Psychotherapie ist ein möglicher digitaler Ansatz zur Bereitstellung psychotherapeutischer Behandlung – insbesondere dann, wenn Psychotherapie aufgrund von strukturellen Hindernissen nicht im unmittelbaren Kontakt stattfinden kann, zum Beispiel in Zusammenhang mit der COVID-19-Pandemie. Die Nutzung dieses Ansatzes hat...

BACKGROUND Specialized studies have shown that smartphone-based social interaction data are predictors of depressive and anxiety symptoms. Moreover, at times during the COVID-19 pandemic, social interaction took place primarily in virtual space. To appropriately test these objective data for their added value for epidemiological research during the...

Due to the constant use of smartphones in daily life, mHealth apps might bear great potential for the use in health care support. In this chapter the potentials, limitations, current quality and future directions of mHealth apps will be discussed. First, we describe potential benefits like quicker facilitation of information, patient empowerment an...

The ubiquitous presence of sensors (e.g., in smartphones) in our everyday life allows a constant real-time collection of data. This data has been successfully used in diagnosis and prediction of health outcomes and has the potential to improve health care. However, with data security and accountability as core requirements of medical applications,...

Many people who suffer from mental disorders do not have access to adequate treatment options and the use of, and access to, prevention and mental health promotion remains limited. The rapid advances in digital technology make a compelling case to help deliver and implement evidence-based interventions in areas of public mental health provision (i....

In this chapter a short overview on the many topics falling under the umbrella terms digital phenotyping and mobile sensing are provided. The key terms digital phenotyping and mobile sensing are also shortly introduced. Chapter 1 is meant as a starting point to get insights on the many areas of research being covered in the second edition of this b...

The advent of chatbots (also called conversational agents) has been recognized to support various treatment procedures in the medical and psychological fields. Chatbots may be particularly useful before and after medical procedures when patients are at home. For example, while being in the preparation phase of a colonoscopy, a chatbot might answer...

Sensors represent the prerequisites for data collection in the field of digital phenotyping and mobile sensing. Today, many sensors are connected over the Internet or feature advanced processing, thus provide smart functions that go beyond simple measurements. Embedded in everyday devices such as smartphones and wearables, smart sensors enable the...

At a time, in which people are more and more suffering from lifestyle-related diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, or obesity, changing health behavior and preserving a healthy lifestyle are salient factors of any public health effort. Hence, research on predictors and pathways of health behavior change is increasingly important. Fol...

Background: Internet-based interventions (IBIs) are effective for the prevention and treatment of mental disorders and are valuable additions for improving routine care. However, the uptake of and adherence to IBIs are often limited. To increase the actual use of IBIs, it is important to identify factors for engaging with and adhering to IBIs. Obj...

We are presenting the conceptual framework for a Just-In-Time Adaptive Intervention (JITAI) for adults with breast cancer after completion of primary medical treatment. The intervention is nested in the BetterCare project (BrEasT cancer afTER CARE) and is offered to its participants once elevated distress (PHQ-8 and/or GAD-7 > 10) is identified.

Musculoskeletal symptoms are increased in farmers, whereas the prevalence of chronified pain is unknown. Online interventions based on acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) have shown encouraging results in the general population, representing a promising approach for reducing pain interference in green professions (i.e., farmers, foresters, gard...

With about 300 million affected people, major depressive disorder (MDD) is one of the most common diseases worldwide. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of cases increased even further, by 28%. Many factors may be correlated with MDD, including the excessive use of social media apps. In this paper, we investigated the relationship between the...

Background Gastrointestinal diseases are associated with substantial cost in health care. In times of the COVID-19 pandemic and further digitalization of gastrointestinal tract health care, mobile health apps could complement routine health care. Many gastrointestinal health care apps are already available in the app stores, but the quality, data p...

Introduction The efficacy and effectiveness of digital interventions for depression are both well-established. However, precise effect size estimates for mediators transmitting the effects of digital interventions are not available; and integrative insights on the specific mechanisms of change in internet- and mobile-based interventions (IMIs)—as r...

Early investigations of subjective well-being responses to the COVID-19 pandemic indicated average deterioration but also high variability related to vulnerability of population groups and pandemic phase. Thus, we aimed to gain new insights into the characteristics of certain groups and their differences in subjective well-being response patterns o...

Zusammenfassung. Digitale Phänotypisierung stellt einen neuen, leistungsstarken Ansatz zur Realisierung psychodiagnostischer Aufgaben in vielen Bereichen der Psychologie und Medizin dar. Die Grundidee besteht aus der Nutzung digitaler Spuren aus dem Alltag, um deren Vorhersagekraft für verschiedenste Anwendungsmöglichkeiten zu überprüfen und zu nut...

BACKGROUND Chronic stress poses risks for physical and mental well-being. Stress management interventions have been shown to be effective, and stress management apps (SMAs) might help to transfer strategies into everyday life. OBJECTIVE This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the quality and characteristics of SMAs to give potentia...

Background Depression is a common comorbid condition in individuals with chronic back pain (CBP), leading to poorer treatment outcomes and increased medical complications. Digital interventions have demonstrated efficacy in the prevention and treatment of depression; however, high dropout rates are a major challenge, particularly in clinical settin...

Objectives College is an exhilarating but stressful time often associated with mental distress. The StudiCare project offers Internet- and mobile-based interventions (IMI) for college student mental health promotion. Within this framework, we evaluated the IMI StudiCare Mindfulness , and examined potential moderators and mediators of effectiveness....

Background Partners of people with cancer are supporters and affected persons at the same time. Existing psychosocial services (e.g., face-to-face therapies) are often not used due to time and logistical constraints. The newly developed online intervention PartnerCARE offers a low-threshold service for flexible use. The intervention includes psycho...

Introduction It is unclear how internet-delivered cognitive-behavioural therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) can be integrated into healthcare systems, and little is known about the optimal level of therapist guidance. The aim of this study is to investigate three different versions of a stepped care model for insomnia (IG1, IG2, IG3) versus treatment as u...

Introduction Farmers, forest workers and gardeners have a higher risk of developing depression compared to other occupational populations. As part of the German pilot project “With us in balance”, the potential of six guided internet- and mobile-based interventions (IMIs) to prevent depression among their insurants is examined. The IMI program is t...

Introduction Living with diabetes can be burdensome and lead to serious emotional distress and impaired mental health. Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) can support people facing the challenges of living with diabetes. This trial aims to evaluate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of the internet-based and mobile-based intervention (IMI...

Debilitating persistent somatic symptoms of varying etiology are very common in emerging adults. Internet-delivered interventions could help to prevent the burden and chronicity of persistent somatic symptoms. This study investigated the impact of therapist guidance on the effectiveness of a cognitive-behavioral Internet intervention for somatic sy...

Purpose: Child maltreatment may be linked with long-term sleeping disorders and limited coping with stress. Yet, the potential relationships are only marginally studied. Patients and methods: Based on a sample of young adults (n = 312) this study aims at exploring the effects of child maltreatment and the experience of threat to personal safety...

Introduction: The integration of a web-based computer-adaptive patient-reported outcome test (CAT) platform with persuasive design optimised features including recommendations for action into routine healthcare could provide a promising way to translate reliable diagnostic results into action. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness and cost...

Introduction Farmers have a high risk for depression (MDD). Preventive measures targeting this often remotely living population might reduce depression burden. The study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of personalized telephone coaching in reducing depressive symptom severity and preventing MDD in farmers compared to enhanced treatment as usual...

Background Mobile health apps (MHAs) may offer a mean to overcome treatment barriers in Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) mental health care. However, MHAs for BPD on the market lack transparency and quality assessment. Methods European app stores were systematically searched, and two independent trained reviewers extracted relevant MHAs. Empl...

Depression is a prevalent mental disorder. Current clinical and self-reported assessment methods of depression are laborious and incur recall bias. Their sporadic nature often misses severity fluctuations. Previous research highlights the potential of in-situ quantification of human behaviour using mobile sensors to augment traditional methods of d...

Background Relatively little is known about protective factors and the emergence and maintenance of positive outcomes in the field of adolescents with chronic conditions. Therefore, the primary aim of the study is to acquire a deeper understanding of the dynamic process of resilience factors, coping strategies and psychosocial adjustment of adolesc...

Depression is a prevalent mental disorder. Current clinical and self-reported assessment methods of depression are laborious and incur recall bias. Their sporadic nature often misses severity fluctuations. Previous research highlights the potential of in-situ quantification of human behaviour using mobile sensors to augment traditional methods of d...