Risk and Resilience in Developmental Diversity and Mental Health

ongoing

Individuals with mental health (MH) conditions and their families, especially those with highly prevalent neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), are exposed to high levels of discrimination and stigma, which significantly affects their physical and mental well-being. Our world-leading collaborative group at the forefront of research in NDDs will launch a new project - ?Risk, Resilience and Developmental Diversity in Mental Health? (R2D2-MH). We propose a double paradigm shift to improve the wellbeing of people with MH conditions and their families. We will move (i) from risk-focused studies towards understanding and promoting resilience, and (ii) from a diagnosis-based approach to a developmental diversity approach that will define wellbeing and functioning across the human lifespan. R2D2-MH aims to identify genetic and environmental protective/resilience factors and how they influence developmental diversity and MH. We will investigate at multiple levels two highly prevalent early risks for MH conditions: prematurity and genetic liability for NDDs. Our project has four main ambitions 1. Provide the largest European multi-scale dataset on early human brain development and MH outcomes; 2 Identify biological mechanisms of resilience to the adverse effects of NDD; 3. Co-develop, with the stakeholders, new digital tools to increase participatory research/medicine and reduce stigma; 4. Establish predictive models to guide personalised interventions. R2D2-MH integrates interdisciplinary and complementary expertise across Europe, Israel, and Australia that covers ethics, epidemiology, sociology, genetics, cell biology, neuroscience, computational modelling, Information Technology, psychology, and psychiatry. Our research is highly engaged: it embeds participant and patient involvement in research to ensure that our expected outcomes are truly translational, and will help to reduce stigma and burden for individuals with MH conditions.