News
Find out what we are currently working on and what developments are influencing our research.
Poster Award for Maike Kneist
For her poster on “taVNS Effects on Cognitive Emotion Regulation: the Modulatory Role of Noradrenergic Activity,” our doctoral student Maike Kneist (pictured left with Dr. Valerie Jentsch) recently received an award at the “Psyche und Gehirn” congress in Heidelberg.
New publication on contingency awareness
In a translational model of pain-related conditioning, we investigated the brainbehavior relationships that underlie contingency awareness ....
Inaugural symposium with international guests
With around 100 invited guests and both national and international speakers, our center was inaugurated on May 13, 2026, as part of a symposium held at the Bochum Jahrhunderthalle.
New publication on emotion regulation
The study investigated how rumination and reappraisal as emotion regulation strategies affect psychophysiological responses to repeated social stress.
New publication on the biopsychosocial aspects of disorders of gut–brain interaction
This review summarizes evidence-based psychosocial approaches for adult and pediatric patient groups and highlights the bidirectional influences of biological and psychosocial factors on gut physiology and brain mechanisms.
New publication on predicting learning processes
The ability to learn and adapt is crucial, but individuals differ greatly in how effectively they learn, especially in extinction learning.
New publication on defecation urgency
Defecation urgency is a frequent and troubling symptom for people with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)—yet what exactly defines it remains unclear. In our study, we explore how urgency can be measured, both in real life and through rectal sensation thresholds, and examine its clinical and neural connections.
New publication on nocebo effects
This experimental study investigates, among other things, whether visceral pain is more susceptible to nocebo effects than somatic pain and what role negative treatment experiences play.
![[Translate to English:] https://www.arte.tv/de/videos/117723-000-A/freundschaft-eine-superkraft/](/fileadmin/_processed_/a/4/csm_Artefoto_18-2-2026_223434_www.arte.tv_cb4e9a26aa.jpeg)
ARTE documentary “Friendship - a Superpower?”
ARTE examines the significance of friendships and their impact on health and well-being. Neuroscientist Dirk Scheele investigates the causes of loneliness and demonstrates how friendships can buffer stress and reduce the risk of premature death. The science also explores the factors that determine with whom we befriend and how friendship can continue to play a role in the age of AI and digitalization.
New publication on empathy and visceral pain
In this current study, we investigated how we empathize with familiar and unfamiliar people who are experiencing abdominal pain (visceral pain).
New publication on pain-related fear learning
This study investigated whether pain-related fear learning shapes the perception of acute experimental pain in quiescent IBD. You can find the full publication here.
New publication on brain topology
Identifying brain topology alterations in chronic pain is a crucial step in understanding its pathophysiology. This is the topic of a new publication.
For older news, please take a look at our archive.