How benevolent experiences in childhood can help reduce the risk of depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation in adulthood is part of the discussion addressed by the UC academic and principal investigator of MIDAP, as she inaugurated the Lecture Series "Early Years, Great Opportunities: Reflection and Action" at the Early Childhood Center of the TEC de Monterrey (TEC of Monterrey) in conjunction with the FEMSA Foundation. This event was made possible thanks to the collaborative work of La Tríada, the interuniversity alliance that seeks to jointly develop research and strategies to address common challenges among Latin American countries. Early childhood care has been defined as one of La Tríada's priority lines of work. The collaborative alliance, which spans the areas of teaching, research, creation, and transfer of new knowledge, encompasses the Catholic University, the University of Los Andes in Colombia, and the Tecnológico de Monterrey. This alliance seeks to promote joint work on issues crucial to the region's development. It is in this context that the academic from the UC School of Psychology, academic director of the CUIDA Center, and associate researcher at MIDAP, was invited to inaugurate the lecture series "Early Years, Great Opportunities: Reflection and Action" at the Early Childhood Center of the TEC de Monterrey (TEC Monterrey University) in conjunction with the FEMSA Foundation. On this occasion, the researcher addressed how beneficial childhood experiences (BCEs) can act as a protective factor against the negative effects of adverse experiences (ACEs) on mental health in adulthood. While there is extensive research that demonstrates the relationship between adverse experiences and their consequences for mental and physical health, there is insufficient evidence about why this influence occurs, nor what mechanisms operate so that the same negative experience can have very different consequences for one person or another. In this regard, in her talk "Sowing Well-being in Early Childhood: Benevolent Experiences as Protection Against Adversity," the academic pointed out that just as there is a vicious cycle of trauma repetition, we could also speak of a virtuous cycle when positive experiences occur in childhood. "We know that it's very likely that people who have been victims of physical violence in childhood will repeat these violent behaviors with their children. And psychology has known this for a long time. In fact, it's called intergenerational repetition of trauma because, if not addressed with psychotherapy, it's very likely that we unconsciously repeat these same patterns. But, just as this occurs, many authors also suggest that remembering positive experiences, simply remembering them, connects us with feeling protected, cared for, and welcomed with our emotions. And there are psychotherapies based on this entire paradigm of positive experiences, which, instead of focusing on trauma and negative experiences, focus on remembering and connecting with those positive experiences." Virtuous Circle During her visit to Mexico, Pía Santelices pointed out that just as it is important to measure adverse experiences in order to generate preventive measures to protect children, it is also important to continue developing evidence regarding the relevance of early benevolent experiences as a protective factor. “Thus, about 20 years ago, the first instrument to measure them was created. And, just as with adverse experiences, these also have a cumulative effect. That is, more positive experiences will generate greater well-being.” To illustrate this, the academic presented the results of the First National Survey of Sexual Abuse and Adversities in Childhood in Chile, conducted by the CUIDA UC Center in conjunction with the Foundation for Trust. This research considered a sample of 2,101 cases, of the population aged 18 to 65, from 13 regions of the country (excluding Tarapacá, Aysén, and Magallanes). “First and foremost, in this study we wanted to understand the relationship between adverse experiences and mental health problems, because while there is a lot of evidence on this in the United States and European countries, it is not the same in Latin America. And the first thing we found in this research is that there is a high prevalence of early adverse experiences in our country. If in most studies, for example, Felitti's, one of the most famous, 6,77% of participants had four or more adverse experiences, in Chile this rises to 38,5%. This is important because it is estimated that having four or more of these experiences greatly increases the likelihood of having problems, not only mental health problems, but also physical problems.” And, although this panorama is worrying, the good news is that most people also had many positive experiences. In fact, when asked if there had been at least one

Pamela Franco will continue to research the implications of "Mom, I Understand You," an online intervention she developed based on a web application aimed at preventing and treating symptoms associated with postpartum depression. "In our pilot study, it proved to be feasible and well-accepted, which motivates us to now evaluate its short- and medium-term efficacy in a large-scale randomized clinical trial," she says. This is yet another recognition of her work, dedication, and ingenuity. Pamela Franco, a graduate of the PhD program in Psychotherapy from the Catholic University, who last December received the UC Doctoral Thesis Excellence Award in the area of Social Sciences, will be able to continue the research for which she was awarded, after being awarded an ANID postdoctoral grant. As part of her doctoral thesis, entitled "Guided Internet-Based Intervention for Postpartum Depression Symptoms: Development and Feasibility Trial," the researcher developed "Mom, I Understand You," an online intervention based on a web application whose purpose is to prevent and treat symptoms associated with postpartum depression. In this context, the resources granted will allow this initiative to expand its reach, shedding greater light on its benefits, says the UC psychologist, who says she received the news "with great joy and pride, because it means the opportunity to continue developing as a researcher, and because it will allow us to continue a project into which we have put a lot of effort and heart." "Mom, I Understand You is an intervention in which we deeply believe. And this funding gives us the possibility to expand it and evaluate its effectiveness on a large scale. Furthermore, I see it as recognition of the previous work and the impact this project can have on maternal mental health in Chile," she maintains. According to her, the high prevalence of postpartum depression and the barriers to accessing treatment make it urgent to develop accessible and cost-effective interventions. In that sense, this project represents a major innovation in mental health that could ultimately benefit thousands of people. “Health technologies offer a great opportunity. This is a psychological intervention designed specifically for postpartum women with depressive symptoms. It is based on cognitive-behavioral therapy and integrates elements of mentalization and attachment. The intervention presents content structured into modules and interactive exercises with feedback from clinical psychologists,” explains the doctor of psychotherapy. “In our pilot study, 'Mom, I Understand You' proved to be feasible and well-accepted, which motivates us to now evaluate its short- and medium-term efficacy in a large-scale randomized clinical trial. In this study, we will recruit 200 postpartum mothers from various health centers in Chile, who will be randomly assigned to either the intervention or a waiting list group. We will evaluate its impact on symptoms of depression, anxiety, perceptions of the mother-infant bond, and maternal self-efficacy. If the results are positive, this study could lay the groundwork for its future integration into the Chilean health system,” she adds. But there is still a long way to go. Pamela Franco's postdoctoral fellowship will last three years, a period during which the clinical trial will be a fundamental part of the research given the complexity and time required for this type of study. Nevertheless, expectations are optimistic. “Our experience with the pilot study has shown us that there is a high level of interest in this type of intervention. We hope this interest will continue and facilitate the recruitment of participants,” she states. “This is the first evaluation in Chile and Latin America of a locally developed digital psychological intervention for postpartum depressive symptoms. If this project proves effective, it could become a flexible, accessible, and low-cost tool for the prevention and treatment of postpartum depression. In the long term, our goal would be to integrate it into the healthcare system and evaluate its impact at the population level,” she comments. Pamela Franco completed her undergraduate, master's, and doctoral degrees at the Catholic University of Chile (UC), and emphasizes the importance of her school of study in developing a career full of contributions. “The UC School of Psychology has been my educational center, and from my early years, I have had a strong interest in both clinical and research work. My first exposure to research was as an assistant on a project during my undergraduate studies, which marked my path and consolidated my interest in this area,” says the psychologist, who is particularly grateful for the support of Professor Marcia Olhaberry, principal investigator of MIDAP. “Working with Marcia on my PhD was an enriching experience, and I'm thrilled to continue collaborating with her in this new phase. The School has been key to my development as a researcher, providing me with tools and opportunities to grow along the way,” she emphasizes. Source: Nicolás Pérez Lozano, UC Psychology Communications.

Fondecyt es una iniciativa que promueve la investigación de base científico-tecnológica en diversas disciplinas, mediante el financiamiento de proyectos de investigación individual de excelencia orientados a la producción de conocimiento. El lunes 27 de enero se dieron a conocer los resultados del Fondecyt Regular 2025: Alex Behn, director de MIDAP, es investigador responsable de una de las propuestas adjudicadas. Alex Behn señala que es muy importante que en Chile se financien proyectos de ciencia aplicada que contribuyan a solucionar o mitigar temas tan importantes como la salud mental. “En este caso nuestro proyecto intenta desarrollar una intervención, un tratamiento innovador, en el contexto de atención pública. Y eso creo que es una muy buena noticia. Otro aspecto que también creo que es destacable, a nivel de Escuela, es que la cantidad de proyectos adjudicados por la EPUC tanto en los Fondecyt de Iniciación como en los Fondecyt Regular, hablan de la fortaleza de sus investigadores e investigadoras. De la capacidad que tenemos para generar ciencia que pueda avanzar en temas, no solo de salud mental, sino que de psicología en general”. En esa línea, el estudio busca probar e instalar en el sistema público alternativas de tratamiento más efectivas, personalizadas y modernas. Es que si bien existe un significativo progreso en el desarrollo de tratamientos en las últimas décadas, la efectividad, incluso de las mejores intervenciones disponibles, aún es modesta. Al respecto, la iniciativa plantea que la respuesta a tratamiento insuficiente que ha sido detectada en estudios meta-analíticos se podría explicar porque la mayoría de los tratamientos basados en la evidencia para la depresión han sido concebidos, desarrollados y testeados sin considerar aspectos de heterogeneidad sindromática, comorbilidad y factores trans-diagnósticos de vulnerabilidad; los que en la práctica habitual llevan a presentaciones clínicas más complejas que aquellas especificadas en los manuales de tratamiento. “La depresión compleja entendida como la concurrencia entre un trastorno depresivo mayor y Alteraciones de la Auto-Organización secundarias al trauma complejo o a una disfunción de la personalidad requerirá de modificaciones en los tratamientos de psicoterapia antidepresiva usual para poder ayudar a los pacientes. La modularización es una de las estrategias que se pueden utilizar para optimizar los efectos de tratamientos psicoterapéuticos personalizados, debido a su capacidad para adaptarse a las necesidades individuales de los pacientes. Esta aproximación permite descomponer la terapia en módulos específicos que pueden ser seleccionados y ajustados según los síntomas, comorbilidades, vulnerabilidades y características particulares de cada persona siguiendo algoritmos específicos de decisión clínica. En el marco de evidencia científica de Research Domain Criteria (RDoC), el estudio propuesto derivará módulos de intervención clínica basados en la evidencia para la recuperación de las AAO en el marco de la depresión compleja. El estudio propone realizar un ensayo clínico aleatorizado multi-céntrico en Centros Comunitarios de Salud Mental (COSAM) pertenecientes al Servicio de Salud Metropolitano Sur Oriente (SSMSO) para comprobar la efectividad de una intervención modular desarrollada especialmente con módulos basados en la mejor evidencia disponible desde el marco de los RDoC y especializada para el tratamiento de la depresión complicada por una vulnerabilidad trans-diagnóstica compartida por dos factores de complejidad clínica, a saber, trauma complejo y trastorno de personalidad”, señala el director de MIDAP. Fuente: Comunicaciones Psicología PUC. 

Con un gran marco de público se realizó, el lunes 13 de enero, el café científico de MIDAP: “Más allá del cuidado: entendiendo la salud mental de las personas cuidadoras informales de personas que viven con demencia”, a cargo de Claudia Miranda, doctora en Envejecimiento y Salud Mental, Profesora Asociada de la Facultad de Enfermería de la Universidad Andrés Bello, investigadora principal de MIDAP y directora de MICARE (Millenium Institute for Care Research). Este café científico contó con el apoyo del Gobierno de Santiago y del Instituto Milenio MICARE.  Claudia Miranda presentó algunos de los principales hallazgos de sus investigaciones sobre la salud mental de quienes cuidan de forma no remuneradas a personas que viven con demencia, y destacó la importancia de brindar atención integral tanto a las personas cuidadoras como a quienes reciben cuidados, para responder eficazmente a las necesidades de salud mental y calidad de vida de ambos. Este encuentro también contó con la participación de Nicole Sáez, jefa de la División Desarrollo Social y Humano del Gobierno de Santiago.