Prof. Dr. med. Andreas Meyer-Lindenberg

Peripersonal space, the representation of the space immediately surrounding the body, will be studied as an underlying factor for threat experience. Early-life stressors and daily-life stressors will be tested as factors influencing PPS processing and associated specific brain activation patterns. Location tracking and geoinformatics mapping, virtual reality (VR) experiments, physiological stress markers, and brain function during the processing of PPS violations in healthy at- risk individuals will be used to identify predictive biomarkers related to psychiatric risk, enhanced neural behavioral sensitivity to PPS interference and reactive aggression in daily life.

The project employs fMRI and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) hyperscanning techniques to explore how brain-to-brain synchrony and dynamic processes within peer dyads facilitate or inhibit aggressive behavior under diverse levels of provocation in adolescent patients and controls. In two fully interactive tasks, we will probe aggressive behavior towards a task partner, and quantify the building of interpersonal trust/distrust applying a social interaction and economic exchange paradigm. These paradigms will be employed within dyads in fMRI hyperscanning settings and extended by group-based fNIRS methods in triads to study effects of peers, social exclusion, and coalitions on aggressive behavior in semi-naturalistic interactions. Between-brain neural synchrony will be computed and related to everyday social experiences and individual predispositions to identify markers for the prediction of aggressive behavior.

Focus on the neural correlates of characterizing cognitive control deficits during conflict situations. The project will investigate patients with varying levels of cognitive control along with their close partners (sibling or intimate partner) to identify the dynamics of self-regulation and co-regulation in provoked conflict situations in patients with control deficits. To identify the precursors and dynamics of conflict escalation, the project will apply measures of behavioral reactions, skin conductance, simulated or real conflict, fMRI and fMRI-hyperscanning techniques and physiological measures. Neuroimaging data will also be combined with information on stress, control and conflicts in real-life via EMA.

Heidelberg University is Germany’s oldest university, founded in 1386. Renowned for its research excellence and strong emphasis on the humanities, natural sciences, and medicine, it consistently ranks among Europe’s top universities. The university fosters a rich academic tradition and an international outlook, attracting students and scholars from around the world.

The Central Institute of Mental Health (Zentralinstitut für Seelische Gesundheit) in Mannheim, Germany, is a leading psychiatric research institution affiliated with Heidelberg University. It specializes in research, treatment, and education related to mental health disorders, neuroscience, and psychosocial factors influencing mental well-being. The institute plays a crucial role in advancing psychiatric knowledge and developing innovative therapies through interdisciplinary collaboration and state-of-the-art facilities.