Dr. Tara Donker is Associate Professor at the Department of Clinical Psychology, VU University Amsterdam, and licensed therapist specialized in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy at a mental health institute (Prezens, Amsterdam). Her research focuses on early intervention and prevention of depression, anxiety and suicide, based on innovative technologies such as virtual reality and mobile apps. Her main goal is to make mental health care more accessible and scalable.

ZeroPhobia
Her main focus of research currently is investigating the effectivity and user-friendliness of ZeroPhobia: a low-cost mobile app using virtual reality for specific phobias. Results from an RCT demonstrated large effect sizes for ZeroPhobia Acrophobia compared to a control group. Now, she will develop and testZeroPhobia Aviophobia.

• Teacher: CBT seminar for master students clinical psychology
• Teacher: clinical communication skills for bachelor students clinical psychology (2011)
• Internship coordinator of low intensity treatment (caring universities)
• Supervisor of bachelor- and (research)master thesis students
• Lectures in clinical psychological treatments (CBT, IPT, mental health psychology)
• Coordinator of bacholorthese (2012-2014)

Over the years she received multiple grants from NWO (including a personal grant "Aspasia"), Fonds NutsOhra, Fonds Psychische Gezondheid, VSB fonds for projects on innovative technologies such as virtual reality in the treatment of specific phobia and online interventions for caregivers of depressed patients. She has received an Aspasia grant to conduct research into virtual reality for psychiatric disorders.

CBT Workshop by Aaron T. Beck and Judith Beck

Black Dog early career travel award

EMGO travel grant

• GGZ inGeest | Amsterdam | Medewerker | 2014-12-01 - present

Ancillary activities are updated daily