NEWS

Istanbul Nişantaşı University Faculty of Medicine participated in the EMDR European Conference 2026 with its scientific studies.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Alişan Burak Yaşar, a faculty member of the Department of Mental Health and Diseases at Istanbul Nişantaşı University Faculty of Medicine, participated in the EMDR European Conference 2026 held in Oslo, Norway.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Yaşar, who also serves as the Chair of the Scientific Research Committee of the EMDR Association and as a Board Member of the Trauma and Disaster Mental Health Research Association (TARDE), presented two scientific posters at the congress.

The first presentation focused on the Targeting Core Affective Image (TCAI) Protocol, which brings together object relations theory and EMDR’s Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) model and proposes a new approach to the conceptualization of complex trauma, attachment issues, and personality patterns.

The second presentation addressed the External View on Insight (EVI) Model, an innovative clinical approach developed to transform negative self-representations observed in depression by integrating the video feedback method with EMDR and the AIP model.

Numerous studies on trauma, disaster mental health, child and adolescent mental health, neurobiological research, virtual reality applications, and new EMDR protocols were presented at the congress. In particular, the number and quality of research presentations from Türkiye drew the attention of international participants, and our country’s academic productivity in the field of EMDR was appreciated by many researchers.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Alişan Burak Yaşar is among the researchers who have contributed most significantly to Türkiye’s academic visibility in this field through the randomized controlled studies, international publications, and scientific projects he has conducted in the field of EMDR in recent years. During the scientific meetings and researcher gatherings held throughout the congress, it was observed that studies conducted in Türkiye were followed with great interest by international researchers, and discussions were held on new research and collaboration opportunities.

As a result of the contacts established within the scope of the congress, important steps were also taken toward new international academic collaborations. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Yaşar will attend various academic meetings in Amsterdam next week upon the invitation of Prof. Dr. Ad de Jongh, one of the world’s leading researchers in the field of EMDR. He will also visit the Psytrec Trauma Center, which is considered one of the leading international centers in the treatment of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Complex Trauma, to examine its research and clinical practice infrastructure on site and to hold discussions regarding the establishment of a similar center in our country. During the visit, intensive trauma treatment programs, research laboratories, and innovative clinical practices will be evaluated, and potential collaborations for developing similar scientific and clinical structures in our country will be discussed.

The EMDR European Conference brings together mental health professionals and researchers from different countries around the world every year, enabling the sharing of current scientific developments in the field of trauma. The 2026 meeting held in Oslo also served as an important platform for new research collaborations and scientific projects.