Discover the depth of expertise at TRI 2026!

Workshop Description

This workshop introduces and contrasts psychiatric and psychological models of mental disorder and locates them within the long-standing mind–body problem. We will examine how model-bound assumptions (e.g., disease entities vs. dimensional processes; symptom clusters vs. mechanisms) shape what we hypothesize a “disorder” to be—and, in turn, what we try to measure through questionnaires, clinical interviews and behavioral observation. Building on this, we will explore how the perceived utility of psychometric diagnostics depends on these assumptions for problem description, case formulation, and the direction of intervention.

Our approach is deliberately dual. Bottom-up: starting from explicit assumptions about the mind–body relation and about what “disorder” denotes, participants will learn to (a) select diagnostic instruments that fit those assumptions, (b) use the resulting data to structure the problem, and (c) derive intervention plans. Top-down: we will show clinicians how to interpret instruments and clinical narratives through different perspectives—psychiatric nosology, psychological process models, and integrative frameworks—and how to situate these views within research, teaching, and routine practice. Short inputs will alternate with guided small-group work. There will be ample time for questions and discussion, and participants are invited to bring brief case examples.

Personas

PD PhD DClinPsy Dipl.-Psych. Benjamin Böcking is Lead Clinical Psychologist at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, where he heads psychological services at the Tinnitus Center. His expertise covers psychosomatic conditions, neurocognitive assessment, and schema therapy. He is also an active researcher and clinical lecturer, advancing evidence-based treatments and training clinicians in psychotherapeutic treatment approaches.

Dr. phil. Dipl.-Psych. P. Brüggemann has worked at the Clinic for Psychosomatics at Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin since 2001. There she worked on studies using imaging techniques for various psychosomatic illnesses, was the clinic's senior psychologist and was heavily involved in teaching.  In 2008, she was licensed as a psychotherapist; since January 2012, she has been head psychologist at the Tinnitus Centre - Universitätsmedizin Berlin. There, she is involved in research on the multimodal diagnosis and treatment of tinnitus. She has psychosomatic expertise, including in the field of ENT, gained from clinical and supervisory experience and various research projects.

Workshop Description

This workshop aims to provide an overview of the psychoacoustic measures relevant for assessing tinnitus patients. The psychoacoustic tests considered will include pure-tone as well as speech audiometry, uncomfortable loudness levels (UCLs), minimum masking levels (MMLs), distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs), auditory brainstem responses (ABRs), and tinnitus frequency and loudness matching. The theoretical basis, key methodological aspects, and clinical relevance of each measure will be discussed.

Given the time constraints in clinical practice, particular emphasis will be placed on which tests are worth investing measurement time in and which are not. For example, extended high-frequency audiometry has proven a valuable tool for identifying hearing loss in many patients with normal audiograms in the standard audiometric frequencies. Likewise, it will be argued that more advanced speech-in-noise paradigms are far more effective in identifying performance differences between patients than conventional word repetition tests without any background noise. In contrast, elaborated paradigms for determining tinnitus frequency and loudness matches are advised against due to their limited clinical relevance. The workshop will commence with a theoretical session and, for those interested, will be followed by practical demonstrations in the laboratory.

Persona

Dr. phil. Dipl.-Psych. Kurt Steinmetzger is head psychologist at Tinnitus Center, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin. He studied psychology at FU Berlin and subsequently obtained a PhD in Speech and Hearing Sciences from University College London. After completing a post-doc in auditory neuroscience at Heidelberg University Hospital, he joined the Tinnitus Center at Charité in 2023. His work focuses on psychoacoustics and biomarker research.

Workshop Description

We are based in the ENT Department of a university hospital, where we see patients in a day clinic specializing in interdisciplinary tinnitus treatment involving psychologists, ENT physicians, audiologists, and physiotherapists. In our workshop, we will demonstrate how counselling is conducted in our setting, while also providing information relevant to other clinical environments.

Tinnitus counselling represents the first step in a structured therapeutic approach, helping patients understand and manage their symptoms. In our view, comorbid conditions are a major factor influencing tinnitus-related distress and should be thoroughly assessed. Effective counselling, therefore, also involves evaluating the severity of comorbid psychiatric disorders, screening for suicidal ideation, and identifying which aspect of the patient’s symptomatology (tinnitus-related distress, comorbid psychiatric conditions, or hearing impairment) predominates. This individualized assessment informs both the selection of the most appropriate treatment pathway and the tailoring of interventions to the patient’s specific needs. Essential components of counselling include patient education about tinnitus, reduction of fear, and, where possible, attention training. Additionally, hearing aids may help reduce tinnitus-related burden, and their potential benefits and limitations should be discussed.

In the final part of the workshop, we will conduct group exercises and present clinical examples from our clinic.

Personas

Prof. Dr. rer. soc. Dipl.-Psych. Christian Dobel is Director of the Tinnitus Center at the University Hospital in Jena, specializing on cutting-edge research in experimental otolaryngology. His research focuses on the neurophysiological correlates of chronic tinnitus and its comorbidities. In addition to behavioural measures, his preferred method is magnetoencephalography. In his previous life, he was involved in scientific projects on second-language acquisition, object and person perception, interactions between vision and language, emotional neuroscience, and aphasia. The Tinnitus Center in Jena provides multidisciplinary treatment for chronic tinnitus, bringing together experts from various fields. Given CDs neuroscientific background in verbal and nonverbal communication, he is also interested in the human face as a medium of communication. His scientific background made him perfectly suitable to investigate the various aspects of tinnitus.

Cosima F. Lukas, M.Sc. is a Psychologist and Psychotherapist at the University Hospital and the Friedrich Schiller University Jena. Her clinical and research work focuses on tinnitus and comorbid depression, using magnetoencephalography to investigate maladaptive cortical network alterations underlying tinnitus-related distress.

Workshop Description

Tinnitus as a multicausal neurophysiological symptom is demanding in daily practice, because:

1. The multiple causes are found as disorders in different clinical disciplines: Psychosomatic medicine (Psychiatry), Audiology, Dentistry, Orthopedics, Internal medicine.
2. Audiologists and ENT-physicians have very limited time in their daily routine – not enough to assess all important tinnitus-causing disorders. As a result, tinnitus counselling and tinnitus therapies stay unspecific and symptomatic instead of specific and causal.

Fortunately, also unspecific counselling and CBT have shown significant efficacy in improving the quality of life in tinnitus patients, here specifically psychiatric comorbidities. But in the diagnostic of these heterogenous tinnitus disorders – we can do better! This workshop focusses on the diagnostic tools, necessary to diagnose the most important tinnitus-causing disorders, important implications in daily practice of audiologists, ENT-physicians, dentist, physiotherapists and psychiatrists and discusses the possible role of AI-tools in the future. As foundation however serves a better understanding of the pathophysiology of tinnitus-causing disorders and their clinical symptoms, so that we can use our first contact with tinnitus patients – the first assessment as a most powerful tool for a specific tinnitus counselling and a specific tinnitus therapy.

Persona

Dr. med. Michael Golenhofen is a ENT- and general practise-board certified physician with office in Prien/Germany. Specialized in the integrative treatment of Tinnitus, Menières disease and vertigo disorders. Assessment spectrum in Tinnitus disorders: neuro-otological tests, craniomandibular functions and dental screening, craniovertebral and craniosacral osteopathic assessment, psychological assessment with hypnotherapeutic-systemic background.

Workshop Description

This workshop examines the current and future landscape of hearing care. It will present the latest developments in hearing technology and review growing evidence that hearing care provides benefits beyond improved hearing, including positive effects on tinnitus, cognitive health, social connection, and overall well-being. The session will also discuss key barriers and facilitators influencing hearing care uptake, such as stigma, the evolving patient journey, new care delivery models, and the role of digital health innovation in enhancing access and engagement. Collectively, these perspectives will offer a forward-looking view of how hearing care can become more effective, inclusive, and patient-centered.

Personas

Dr. rer. nat. Maren Stropahl is the Director of Holistic Hearing Care at Sonova Group and Head of Audiology at Sonova Audiological Care. Dr. Stropahl  is an experienced audiology leader with a strong track record in driving innovation, clinical excellence, and strategic development in global hearing care with a broader perspective on healthy aging and longevity. In her current role, Dr. Stropahl focuses driving exploration in the field of healthy aging and new approaches to hearing care delivery including driving translation to clinical practice for both pediatric and adult hearing care in close collaboration with the hearing care field and the scientific community.

Dr. Raffael Schmitt is a Researcher in Health and Hearing Sciences at Sonova Group. In his role, he leads scientific research in tinnitus and hearing care, contributing to a broad range of internal projects and international collaborations. As a data analyst, he engages in large-scale data initiatives, translating real-world data from hearing devices and clinical sources into actionable insights. Through cross-disciplinary collaboration, he supports improvements in care pathways and patient experience, aiming to enhance quality of life for people with hearing disorders.

Workshop Description

This workshop examines the umbrella term “CBT” through the lens of the mind–body problem and contemporary clinical science. Rather than starting from psychiatric nosology or symptom- or disorder-specific manuals, we will focus on the meaning and function of a person’s experiences—how sensations, thoughts, affects, and behaviors make sense within peoples' current context and developmental history. Our starting point is individual case conceptualization: collaboratively mapping maintaining processes, goals, and constraints, and then selecting interventions that target these processes. The emphasis is on felt experience and function, not on symptom checklists. Participants will learn how common CBT procedures (e.g., behavioral experiments, exposure, cognitive change, attentional retraining, values-based action) can be flexibly chosen and sequenced once the case formulation is clear.

The session is not about teaching generic “skills” or a bag of "strategies". Instead, we will practice reasoning from formulation of symptom-in-context to intervention, and consider how different assumptions about the mind–body relation shape what we notice, how we measure change, and what we expect therapy to do. The workshop should be of equal interest to clinicians and researchers. There will be ample opportunity for questions and discussion—please feel free to bring brief case examples for group-based conceptualization exercises.

Persona

PD PhD DClinPsy Dipl.-Psych. Benjamin Böcking is Lead Clinical Psychologist at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, where he heads psychological services at the Tinnitus Center. His expertise covers psychosomatic conditions, neurocognitive assessment, and schema therapy. He is also an active researcher and clinical lecturer, advancing evidence-based treatments and training clinicians in psychotherapeutic treatment approaches.

Workshop Description

ENT medicine encompasses a wide range of activities, such as the treatment of classic inflammatory processes in the ENT area, the provision of hearing aids, the surgical removal of the tonsils, the investigation of dizziness or swallowing difficulties, and the treatment of tumours of the throat and larynx.

Against this background, psychosomatics is of particular importance for ENT doctors: For some disorders of speech, language, voice, and hearing, no organic causes can be identified, or psychosocial comorbidities determine the level of suffering. This training programme imparts knowledge of specialist psychosomatics with a focus on tinnitus and hearing disorders in order to be able to offer optimal – usually interdisciplinary – treatment for affected patients.

Personas

Dr. phil. Dipl.-Psych. P. Brüggemann has worked at the Clinic for Psychosomatics at Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin since 2001. There she worked on studies using imaging techniques for various psychosomatic illnesses, was the clinic's senior psychologist and was heavily involved in teaching.  In 2008, she was licensed as a psychotherapist; since January 2012, she has been head psychologist at the Tinnitus Centre - Universitätsmedizin Berlin. There, she is involved in research on the multimodal diagnosis and treatment of tinnitus. She has psychosomatic expertise, including in the field of ENT, gained from clinical and supervisory experience and various research projects.

Dr. rer. medic. Dipl.-Psych. Claudia Seydel is a clinical psychologist at the Tinnitus Center, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin. After studying psychology at Humboldt University Berlin she completed her doctorate on psychosomatic aspects in tinnitus treatment, followed by extensive clinical and academic experience. Dr. Seydel joined the Tinnitus Center at Charité in 2003. Her work focuses on the psychosomatic and psychological aspects of tinnitus, integrating clinical care, research, and university lecturing since 2006 to improve patient outcomes.

Dr. med. Eva M. Winter works as a senior consultant in the Medical Department with a focus on Psychosomatics at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin. She heads the Psychosomatic Outpatient Clinic at the Mitte campus. She is a general practitioner and holds additional qualifications in pain therapy and psychotherapy.

Workshop Description

We are excited to announce a comprehensive course on somatosensory tinnitus, designed to bridge practical skills with solid theoretical foundations. The program features hands-on exercises, live demonstrations, thorough theoretical sessions, and a contextual background to deepen understanding of this complex condition. 

Join us to gain actionable skills, theoretical clarity, and a deeper appreciation for the somatosensory influences on tinnitus:

• Hands-on practical exercises exploring somatosensory modulation of tinnitus
• Demonstrations of assessment techniques and therapeutic approaches
• In-depth theoretical framework covering neural mechanisms, somatosensory pathways, and multimodal integration
• Background information on the epidemiology, clinical presentations, and differential diagnosis of somatosensory tinnitus
• Case discussions and evidence-based strategies for management

Course structure

• Practical sessions with guided activities and real-time feedback
• Demonstrations illustrating key assessment and treatment procedures
• Theory lectures that connect clinical findings with underlying neuroscience
• Background modules detailing historical development and current research directions

Personas

Dr. med. Eberhard Biesinger is the portrait of expertise for this course. He began his professional journey as a physiotherapist in Tübingen, Germany, where he laid the groundwork for a patient-centered approach to rehabilitation. He later pursued higher education and advanced clinical responsibilities at the University of Tübingen, where he completed his medical studies and served as a senior physician. Dr. Biesinger brings a unique blend of practical rehabilitation experience and scholarly medical training to the topic of somatosensory tinnitus, enriching the course with insights from both clinical practice and research.

Prof. Dr. med. Christoph Arens is Director of the ENT Clinic at the University Hospital of Giessen and Marburg. In addition to many years of extensive experience across the entire spectrum of ENT diseases, Prof. Arens has concentrated his clinical work particularly on the diagnosis and treatment of laryngeal disorders as well as tumors of the upper airways and digestive tract. His research focuses on investigations into the diagnostics of laryngeal carcinoma and its precursors, as well as on the development and application of endoscopic imaging techniques.