Four lines of research are underway:
Axis 1: Person-centred therapies and training: Study of the facilitating conditions for therapeutic change and training in facilitating relational skills
This first line of research investigates the facilitative relational conditions for personal and therapeutic change (Zech, 2008; Zech, Brison, Elliott, Rodgers, & Cornelius-White, 2018) in individual adult and couple therapy.
Two doctoral students have completed their theses in this area, one doctoral student is in the final stages of her thesis and one doctoral student is beginning her thesis.
Céline Brison (2008-2016, co-promotion E. Zech and Nady Van Broeck) was the first to start research in this axis and carried out a series of studies in care services (oncology, anxiety disorders, long-term psychiatric hospital, alcoholism) in order to examine to what extent therapeutic attitudes, i.e, authenticity, empathy, unconditional positive regard, developed by carers predicted a favourable outcome of the difficulties experienced by patients/clients as well as a development of their personality in the sense of more flexibility, acceptance, self-awareness (e.g., Brison, de Timary, & Zech, 2016). She also tested the effectiveness of innovative pedagogical methods (i.e., serially debriefed home role plays, participation in an experiential encounter group) for psychology students and showed that they developed not only their therapeutic skills and attitudes but also their therapeutic self-awareness and psychological flexibility (e.g.,Brison, Zech, Jaeken, Priels, Van Broeck, Verhofstadt, & Mikolajczak, 2015).
Marine Jaeken (2011-2017, co-promotion E. Zech, M. Mikolajczak and L. Verhofstadt) designed, developed and tested the effectiveness of a training programme for psychology students to develop their helping skills, in particular empathic skills (e.g., Jaeken, Zech, Brison, Verhofstadt, Van Broeck, & Mikolajczak, 2017). She set up the e-learning site and tested the effectiveness of an 8 or 12 hour structured training in helping skills using the videos created for the site (see www.uclouvain.be/helpingskills).
François Moors (2011-2018) is completing his thesis in which he examined the extent to which the therapist's interaction patterns influence client satisfaction in a first therapy session as a function of the client's interpersonal profile (i.e. which combinations of personal profiles are most satisfying). Her research confirmed that the therapist's warm behaviours explained the most satisfaction but also broke new ground by showing that the therapist's agency (dominance-competence) also explained this satisfaction and, above all, that the interpersonal modes of clients and therapists interacted: rather 'dominant' clients are also satisfied with therapists with a dominant profile but non-assertive clients only favour warm therapists (e.g., Moors & Zech, 2017).
Morgane Xhonneux (2019-2023, co-promotion E. Zech and M. Géonet) is starting a project on therapeutic alliance breakdowns in couple therapy While there is no doubt that the alliance plays a major role in the effectiveness of therapies, it is built and nurtured by three therapeutic attitudes: congruence, unconditional positive consideration and empathy. The alliance has been conceptualised mainly in individual therapy, while a limited number of studies have focused on the characteristics of the alliance in couple therapy. Yet, this is a therapeutic setting where alliance breakdowns may be particularly common. We postulate that increasing therapist congruence and ICC would decrease alliance breakdowns and increase the effectiveness of couple therapy.
Collaborations are underway with (1) members of the Association Francophone de Psychothérapie Centrée sur la Personne (AFPC, Brussels), notably Claire and Gaston Demaret, Jean-Marc Priels (Nouveau Centre Primavera, Jette and Clinique Sans Soucis, Jette) and Céline Brison and (2) the World Association for Person Centered and Experiential Psychotherapy and Counseling (WAPCEPC) with Pr. Robert Elliott (University of Strathclyde, UK), Prof. Jeffrey Cornelius-White (Missouri State University), Prof. Brian Rodgers (Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand).
We are currently looking for a PhD student to work on a thesis project on the beneficial and deleterious effects of evaluative (psychodiagnostic) vs. comprehensive-person-centred conceptions of psychopathology on clients, their relatives, therapists and the care provided.
Axis 2: Psychology of dying and bereavement
This area of research is the one that has been most intensively researched since the 1990s (e.g., Zech, 2006). It examines the risk or protective factors of the mourning process, in particular the style of attachment to the deceased (secure vs. insecure, e.g., Delespaux, Ryckebosch-Dayez, Heeren, & Zech, 2013), the type of relationship to the deceased (child, parent, spouse or other) and social support. A range of research was conducted with the help of doctoral students, post-docs, dissertation students and interns. This research involves testing a series of hypotheses derived from Stroebe and Schut's Dual Process Model of Bereavement (DPM) (1999, 2010) and developing valid and reliable instruments for measuring normal or "complicated" (intense) grief reactions and grief adjustment strategies. This research, combined with clinical practice in the field, has led to the development of a conception of clinical interventions with the bereaved that focuses on bereavement processes and relational processes centred on the bereaved person (e.g., Zech, Ryckebosch-Dayez, & Delespaux, 2010).
Three PhD students and two post-doctoral fellows from abroad have actively developed this axis:
Emily Delespaux (2008-2013) investigated the cognitive inhibition processes behind intense ruminations and grief reactions. Based on experimental studies, she showed, among other things, that bereaved spouses with high mental ruminations were less able to (1) ignore or limit automatic access to grief-related thoughts (compared to negative or positive thoughts) (Delespaux & Zech, 2015) and (2) intentionally suppress and control thoughts related to death and grief but also more generally negative and positive thoughts compared to neutral thoughts (Delespaux & Zech, 2017).
Anne-Sophie Ryckebosch-Dayez (2007-2016) has developed a body of research testing several DPM postulates, both on the basis of qualitative (diary) and quantitative (questionnaire) studies. In particular, her research has shown that, one year after the death of a spouse, (1) loss-related stressors are the most frequent, (2) specific coping strategies are used effectively to deal with specific stressors (including avoidance strategies, which are particularly effective in dealing with internal stressors), (3) in a non-negligible number of cases, the bereaved use several successive strategies or none at all, and (4) certain stressors and strategies are associated with specific times of day (e.g. g., Ryckebosch-Dayez, Zech, Mac Cord, & Taverne, 2016).
Laetitia Schul-Martin (2014-) is currently conducting her dissertation on caregivers' and parents' practices after perinatal loss (fetal/baby death after 22 weeks gestation-7 days after birth). Her first interview study with 16 caregivers in two Belgian university hospitals showed, among other things, that they tended to try to humanise the dead baby/fetus in order to facilitate the parents' grieving processes.
Manuel Fernandez-Alcantara (2016) examined the impact of kinship (child, spouse, parent, grandparent) on the intensity and types of grief reactions based on dissertations conducted at UCL (Fernandez-Alcantara & Zech, 2018). This study shows that parents and spouses are particularly affected and that the types of grief reactions are experienced differently depending on the type of kinship. A similar study to Laetitia's took place in Spain and shows that Spanish carers are particularly helpless in situations of perinatal death. Manuel is now a Professor at the University of Alicante.
Leonor Fasse (2013) examined, on the basis of research interviews conducted one year after the death of their spouse, the subjective daily experiences of 16 widowed people and how they may or may not have found themselves in the DPM. Thirteen of the 16 interviewees reported that their experiences were broadly consistent with the model. However, they also identified differences in terms of (1) the difficulty of distinguishing coping processes (they are often interdependent rather than separate), (2) the non-conscious and unintentional nature of coping 'strategies', and (3) the nature of respite moments in the grieving processes. Léonor is now a lecturer at the University of Bourgogne Franche-Comté (France)
A study is underway in collaboration with Prof. Laurent Knoops (Head of Clinic, Cliniques Universitaires St Luc, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Institut de Duve, Institut de Recherche Expérimentale et Clinique, holder of the Chair in Palliative Care of the Cliniques Universitaires St Luc) on the experience of critical incidents, especially related to the death of patients and the powerlessness felt as a carer, which 3rd year medical students may have experienced during their first practical training.
At the international level, collaborations are underway with (1) Prof. M. Margaret Stroebe, Universiteit Utrecht, The Netherlands on studies testing her model of grief adjustment; (2) Prof. M. Fernández-Alcántara, M., University of Alicante, Spain on a study of perinatal loss; (3) the International Work Group on Death, Dying and Bereavement (IWG) network and in particular (3a) Prof. Charles Corr, Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville, USA on a literature review of citations of Elisabeth Kübler-Ross's model of dying and bereavement; (3b) Prof. Joachim Wittgowski, University of Wuersburg, Germany and J.- M. Paré for a validation study in French of the Multidimensional Evaluative Inventory of Experiences Associated with Dying and Dying; (3c) Phyllis Kosminsky, Center for Hope/Family Centers, Darien, USA, evaluation of existing training programs in the field of dying and bereavement around the world and (3d) Prof. Chris Davis, Carleton University, Canada. Translation of the video "Teen's grief" into French.
Axis 3: Predictors and mediators of burnout.
This new line of research was created in collaboration with Isabelle Roskam (PSP/IPSY) and Moïra Mikolajczak (PSP/IPSY) who are investigating parental burnout.
Pierre Gérain (2016-) studies the problem of burnout The objective of this research is to study the problem of burnout among informal caregivers. Burnout has been studied extensively among professional caregivers but mainly in terms of the "burden" felt by family caregivers. His first study showed that parents of children with difficulties (disability, developmental problems) were at higher risk of suffering burnout reactions, especially when several issues were involved, compared to parents of children without difficulties (Gérain & Zech, 2018). A second meta-analytical study also confirmed that close caregivers had an increased risk of burnout compared to non-caregivers. Two other studies (one epidemiological and one in progress) aim to examine the risk and protective factors of the effects of caregiving on health (both positive and detrimental).
A collaboration exists with Prof. Maximilien Gourdin and Pascal Janne (CHU Mont-Godinne) and Sandra Schnell for the publication of a literature review on the predictors of burnout of caregivers.
Three additional lines of research have been developed in the past and have led to the current lines of research
Originally, the research was developed within the framework of the academic position opened in 2004 in "Psychology of adversity" obtained by Emmanuelle Zech. The situations of help are particularly varied and numerous in the human sciences and can concern all situations where a person in difficulty or in need of help addresses or is addressed to a person who can provide this help.
Axis 4: Predictors and mediators of caregiver burnout.
This new line of research was initiated in collaboration with Isabelle Roskam (PSP/IPSY) and Moïra Mikolajczak (PSP/IPSY) who are investigating parental burnout.
Pierre Gérain (2016-) is studying the problem of burnout among close caregivers. The aim of the present research is to study the problem of burnout among informal caregivers, also called family or informal caregivers. Burnout has been studied extensively among professional caregivers but mainly in terms of the "burden" felt by family caregivers. His first study showed that parents of children with difficulties (disability, developmental problems) were at higher risk of suffering burnout reactions, especially when several issues were involved, compared to parents of children without difficulties (Gérain & Zech, 2018). A second meta-analytic study also confirmed that close caregivers had an increased risk of burnout compared to non-caregivers. Two other studies (one epidemiological and one in progress) aim to examine the risk and protective factors of the effects of caregiving on health (both positive and detrimental).
There is a collaboration with Pr. Maximilien Gourdin and Pascal Janne (CHU Mont-Godinne) and Sandra Schnell for the publication of a literature review on the predictors of burnout of caregivers and the research department of the Mutualité Chrétienne.
At the international level, Pierre Gérain is developing a collaboration with Prof. Mariët Hagedoorn, University of Groeningen, Department of Health Psychology.
Two additional axes were developed in the past and led to the current research axes:
Originally, the research was developed within the framework of the academic position in "Psychology of Adversity" obtained by Emmanuelle Zech in 2004. The situations of help are particularly varied and numerous in the human sciences and can concern all situations where a person in difficulty or in need of help addresses or is addressed to a person who can provide this help.
Axis 5: Effects of the expression of emotions
This line of research was carried out between 1993 and 2005 and has had several extensions (see Lines 1, 2, 3 and 6). We initially tested the extent to which verbalising the emotions experienced as a result of life events had beneficial effects. The results of this research mainly showed that :
The belief in the beneficial effects of social sharing of emotions is widely held
Contrary to the idea of a cathartic effect, verbalising emotions has no effect on emotional recovery measured at different times (pre vs. post social sharing emotional intensity), whatever the way of talking about it (emotions, facts, meanings).
On the other hand, people who share their emotions subjectively report beneficial effects: they say that it helps them, relieves them. It also increases the feeling of intimacy, affection and affiliation with the partner (especially when the partner has listened and understood).
This productive line of research was carried out in direct collaboration with Prof. Bernard Rimé, Prof. Olivier Luminet, Prof. Véronique Christophe (University of Lille-III), Prof. James Pennebaker (Southern Methodist University), Prof. Peter Lang and Prof. Margaret Bradley (University of Florida) and two post-doctoral fellows: Catharine Evers (now Professor at the Universiteit Utrecht (Netherlands) and Dimitry Davydov (researcher at the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Moscow).
Axis 6: Adjustment and interventions after traumatic events
This line of research was carried out between 2000 and 2010 and developed around three projects. Following on from the studies on the expression of emotions in everyday life, the first examined the short-term reactions of personnel involved in critical incidents and the effectiveness of social resources and psychological debriefing interventions carried out within the Federal and local police in Belgium (Zech, De Soir, & Ucros, 2008; collaboration with the Stressteam of the Federal Police, psycho-social services of local police and Erik De Soir & Jacques Mylle of the Royal Military School).
Two extensions of this project were created following the disaster that occurred at the end of July 2004 in the Ghislenghien industrial estate. Firstly, a study similar to the one carried out with the police services was carried out with the police, fire brigade and emergency services involved in the disaster (in collaboration with the stress team of the Federal Police, the Royal Military Academy and the Hainaut Police and Fire Brigade Support Service (SPAPP)). Secondly, a collaboration with the epidemiology section of the Scientific Institute of Public Health (IPH) allowed a study to be carried out on the impact of the disaster on physical, mental and social health, and in particular on the incidence of post-traumatic stress among the civilian population located around the epicentre. With the support of the Ministry of Public Health, a longitudinal study was financed and carried out (N = 1024 adults and 127 children aged 8 to 14 years living in the municipalities of Ghislenghien, Ollignies, Bassily, Hellebecq, Meslin-l'Evêque, Gibecq and Isières). The results were the subject of a report and several publications in collaboration with E. De Soir, A. Versporten and H. Van Oyen (De Soir, Versporten, Van Oyen, Kleber, van der Hart, Mylle, 2008; De Soir, Versporten et al, 2015; De Soir, Zech et al, 2015).
A third line of research in collaboration with researchers from the University of Florida, NIMH-Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention (Peter Lang and Margaret Bradley) and the University of Konstanz (Thomas Elbert, Margarete Schauer, Frank Neuner) aimed at examining the effectiveness of an intervention aimed at reducing post-traumatic stress reactions in Belgium (on refugee populations) and abroad (German, English and Italian partners): Narrative Exposure Therapy. This project was funded twice by the European Union (European Community Fund (2005-2006), European Refugee Fund: Community Actions 2006) and allowed the engagement of Dr Pamela Bell. A colloquium was organised at the European Commission to bring together potential field partners with access to refugees in Belgium (both in Flanders, Brussels and Wallonia, e.g. Belgian Red Cross, Fedasil, Closed Centres, MSF). It was found that the system of access to health care in Belgium and in particular to mental health care for refugees is very diverse, uncoordinated and underfunded. This situation implies that in Belgium it was more urgent to assess the health care needs and health status of refugees than to consider testing the effectiveness of a particular therapeutic intervention, even if the manual is available in French (Zech & Vandenbussche, 2010)