Research Focus

The Translational Clinical Psychology Lab pursues a broad and translational research agenda, bridging clinical practice, methodology, and innovation. Core areas of investigation include the cultural adaptation and effectiveness of evidence-based psychological interventions; emotion regulation and anxiety in university-age populations; autism and neurodevelopmental conditions; trauma and trauma-informed approaches in clinical psychology training and practice; and the application of artificial intelligence in mental health. The lab also advances methodological work in qualitative psychology, including the use of secondary analysis and other innovative approaches to qualitative data. Across all areas, the lab prioritises populations and settings that are underrepresented in the clinical research literature, and is committed to rigorous, transparent, and equity-centred research practice.

Core research themes: culturally adapted interventions · psychotherapy effectiveness · emotion regulation · anxiety · depression · OCD · trauma · autism · psychosis · dissociation · migration and mental health · participatory and lived-experience research · critical psychology

Methods: feasibility trials . effectiveness studies . randomised controlled trials · clinically significant change analysis · reflexive thematic analysis · thematic synthesis · constructionist grounded theory ·

Ongoing Projects

UniWELL - Improving Emotional Wellbeing of University Students

ClinicalTrials Registrations : NCT07096154 and NCT07096141

Funded by: Boğaziçi University Scientific Research Projects Office (Project code: 20022)

Role: Project Lead

This registered clinical trial tests a culturally adapted CBT-based group intervention targeting anxiety management and DBT-based group intervnetions targeting emotion regulation in Turkish university students. The trial builds on PROSPERO-registered systematic reviews. To date, the lab has delivered more than 15 group interventions at BÜREM, forming the evidence base for this ongoing trial. Both UniWELL trials are designed to produce models that can be integrated sustainably into university counselling centres. The programme protocol has been published in Translational Behavioral Medicine.

Addressing Leprosy Trauma Using the Traumatic Stress Relief Programme: An Exploratory Trial

ISRCTN Registration: ISRCTN86825441

Funded by: Leprosy Research Initiative (€136,780)

Role: Qualitative Lead

An international exploratory RCT examining the traumatic stress relief intervention with persons with lived experience of leprosy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. This project is conducted in collaboration with international partners and reflects the lab's commitment to global mental health research in low-resource settings.

Reflecting on "Close Supervision" during CBT Training: A Qualitative Study

Role: Project Lead

An ongoing qualitative study examining the experiences of psychological therapists undergoing close supervision during CBT training, with implications for supervision practice and training programme design.

Publications

Published

• Akan, A., Korkut, N. H. (2026). Improving the Emotional Wellbeing of University Students Through Culturally Adapted Cognitive and Dialectical Behavioural Group Interventions (UniWELL): Protocol for Two Parallel Feasibility and Effectiveness Studies. Translational Behavioral Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1093/tbm/ibag010
• Akan, A., Rose, E., Maarabouni, R., Thorns, H., Taylor, A., Estien, D., & Hyde, Z. (2026). Exploring Experiences of a Multidisciplinary Psychoeducational Workshop for Parents With a Child Diagnosed With Autism Spectrum Condition: A Thematic Analysis. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.1177/13591045261418179
• Kaptan, S. K., Habtamu, M., Getahun, S., Tadesse, B., Akan, A., et al. (2025). Protocol for an exploratory RCT of the traumatic stress relief intervention with persons with lived experience of leprosy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Journal of Tropical Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1155/jotm/1307578
• Kaptan, S. K., Kaya, Z. M., Akan, A. (2024). Addressing mental health need after COVID-19: A systematic review of remote EMDR therapy studies as an emerging option. Frontiers in Psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1336569
• Kaptan, S. K., Dernedde, C., Dowden, T., Akan, A. (2023). A mixed methods service evaluation for online EMDR trauma therapy in a primary care network in England. Frontiers in Psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1301540
• Strouza, A. I., Lawrence, A. J., Vissia, E. M., Kakouris, A., Akan, A., et al. (2023). Identity state-dependent self-relevance and emotional intensity ratings of words in dissociative identity disorder. Brain and Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1002/brb3.3208
• Akan, A., Green, G., Blumenfeld, F. (2023). Physical symptoms or somatisation? Turkish immigrants' experiences and understandings of common mental health difficulties: A systematic review. Studies in Psychology. http://dx.doi.org/10.26650/SP2022-1041055

Conference Presentations & Posters

• Akan, A., Guclu, B., Oztas, E. (March 2026). Preliminary Results from Twin Clinical Trials of Culturally Adapted CBT and DBT-Informed Group Interventions for Turkish University Students. The 16th Asian Conference on Psychology & the Behavioral Sciences (ACP2026), Osaka, Japan. [Oral Presentation]
• Akan, A. (November 2025). Supervising Group Psychotherapies Across International Borders: Trials and Triumphs. Annual Meeting of the BPS Psychotherapy Section, British Psychological Society. [Oral Presentation]
• Polat, A., Yanik, H.K., Kutluca, Z., Cavusoglu, Z.D., Akan, A. (September 2025). Effectiveness of DBT-Informed Skills Training Group Interventions for Emotion Regulation in Adolescents and Young Adults. EABCT 2025, Glasgow. [Poster Presentation]
• Akan, A., Okumus, O.G., Komurcu, E. (September 2025). Effectiveness of CBT-Based Group Interventions for Anxiety Management in University Students and Young Adults: A Narrative Systematic Review. EABCT 2025, Glasgow. [Poster Presentation]
• Akan, A. (June 2025). Adapting Psychotherapies for People on the Autistic Spectrum and Without Learning Disabilities in Clinical Psychology. 3rd International Social Sciences Congress, Istanbul University. [Oral Presentation]
• Akan, A. (October 2024). Similarities, Differences, and Effectiveness of Three Commonly Used Therapeutic Approaches in Addressing Post-Disaster Psychological Distress. II. International Social Sciences and Turkish Culture Symposium, Marmara University. [Oral Presentation]
• Akan, A. (September 2024). UniWELL: A Protocol for Improving Emotional Wellbeing of University Students Using CBT and DBT-Informed Group Approaches. EABCT Congress 2024. [Poster Presentation]
• Kaptan, S. K., Kaya, Z. M., Akan, A. (June 2024). Addressing Mental Health Needs after COVID-19: A Systematic Review of Remote EMDR Therapy Studies. 25th EMDR Europe Workshop Conference 2024. [Poster Presentation]
• Akan, A. (2021). Racism in Mental Health Research: An Example of Turkish-Speaking Diaspora's Experiences and Understandings of Common Mental Health Difficulties. BPS Division of Clinical Psychology Annual Conference 2021. [Oral Presentation]
• Akan, A. (2020). Understandings and Experiences of Common Mental Health Difficulties of Turkish-Speaking People in the UK. 10th Culture & International Mental Health Conference 2020. [Oral Presentation]