Francine Shapiro Award

The Francine Shapiro Award is a prestigious honor bestowed annually by EMDR Europe. This accolade recognizes the authors of the best scientific article presented at the EMDR Europe annual conference from the previous year. 

Instituted to celebrate significant contributions to EMDR research, the award highlights advancements in effective clinical applications across diverse populations.

Background on Francine Shapiro

Francine Shapiro was a pioneering psychologist and the originator of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy. Her groundbreaking work led to the development of EMDR as a widely recognized and effective treatment for trauma and other psychological disorders. Shapiro's innovative approach has transformed the field of psychotherapy, providing a robust framework for addressing traumatic memories and emotional distress.

Achievements and Contributions to EMDR

Francine Shapiro’s work has had a profound impact on the field of mental health. She developed EMDR therapy in the late 1980s and conducted extensive research demonstrating its efficacy. Her contributions have significantly shaped contemporary understanding and application of trauma therapy.

The Francine Shapiro Award continues to honor her legacy by recognizing outstanding research that advances the field of EMDR. This award celebrates those who contribute to the development and enhancement of EMDR therapy, reflecting Shapiro’s dedication to improving mental health treatment through rigorous research and innovation.

Award Process

  • Nomination and Selection: The EMDR Europe Research Committee reviews submitted papers and evaluates their impact on EMDR research.
  • Voting: The Research Committee votes to select the most deserving paper.
  • Annual Conference: The award is presented at the EMDR Europe annual conference, where the recipient's research is celebrated.

2024

Melanie Baas

How safe is the treatment of pregnant women with fear of childbirth using eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy? Obstetric outcomes of a multi-center randomized controlled trial.

2023

Andrea Mattera, ITA

A Biologically Inspired Neural Network Model to Gain Insight Into the Mechanisms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy Front Psychol.

2022

Laurian Hafkemeijer, NL

Hafkemeijer L, Starrenburg A, van der Palen J, Slotema K, de Jongh A, Does EMDR Therapy Have an Effect on Memories of Emotional Abuse, Neglect and Other Types of Adverse Events in Patients with a Personality Disorder? Preliminary Data. J Clin Med. 2021 Sep 23.

2021

Ifigeneia Mavranezouli, UK

Mavranezouli I, Megnin-Viggars O, Grey N, Bhutani G, Leach J, Daly C, Dias S, Welton NJ, Katona C, El-Leithy S, Greenberg N, Stockton S, Pilling S., Cost-effectiveness of psychological treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder in adults, PLoS One, 2020 Apr 30, 15(4):e0232245, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0232245, eCollection 2020, PMID: 32353011

2020

Hee-Sup Shin, South Korea

Jinhee Baek, Sukchan Lee, Taesup Cho, Seong-Wook Kim, Minsoo Kim, Yongwoo Yoon, Ko Keun Kim, Junweon Byun, Sang Jeong Kim, Jaeseung Jeong & Hee-Sup Shin, Neural circuits underlying a psycho-therapeutic regimen for fear disorders, Nature 566, 339–343 (2019)

2019

Luca Ostacoli, Sara Carletto, Marco Cavallo, Paula Baldomir-Gago, Giorgio di Lorenzo, Isabel Fernandez, Michael Hase, Anai Justo Alonso, Maria Lehnung, Giuseppe Migliaretti, Francesco Oliva, Marco Pagani, Susana Recarey-Elris, Riccardo Torta, visal Tumani, Ana I. Gonzalez-Vazquez, Arne Hofmann

Comparison of Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy as Adjunctive Treatments for Recurrent Depression: The European Depression EMDR Network (EDEN)  Randomized Controlled Trial. Front Psychol. 2018 Feb 13;9:74. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00074. eCollection 2018.

2018

Carlijn de Roos, The Netherlands

Carlijn de Roos, Saskia van der Oord, Bonne ijlstra, Sacha Lucassen, Sean Perrin, Paul Emmelkkamp, Ad de Jongh. Comparison of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy, cognitive behavioral writing therapy, and wait-list in pediatric posttraumatic stress disorder following single-incident trauma: a multicenter randomized clinical trial. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 58:11 (2017), pp 1219–1228.

2017

Ceren Acarturk, Turkey

Acarturk, E. Konuk, M. Cetinkaya, I. Senay, M. Sijbrandij, B. Gulen and P. Cuijpers:
The efficacy of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing for post-traumatic stress disorder and depression among Syrian refugees: results of a randomized controlled trial. Psychol Med. 2016 Sep;46(12):2583-93.

2016

van den Berg, The Netherlands

van den Berg, de Bont, van der Vleugel, de Roos, de Jongh, van Minnen:
Prolonged exposure vs eye movement desensitization and reprocessing vs waiting list for posttraumatic stress disorder in patients with a psychotic disorder: a randomized clinical trial. JAMA Psychiatry. 2015 Mar;72(3):259-67.

2015

Benedikt Amann, Spain

Novo P, Landin-Romero R, Radua J, Vicens V, Fernandez I, Garcia F, Pomarol-Clotet E, McKenna PJ, Shapiro F, Amann BL.  Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy in subsyndromal bipolar patients with a history of traumatic events: a randomized, controlled pilot-study. Psychiatry Res. 2014 Sep 30;219(1):122-8

2014

Paul A.J.M. de Bont, The Netherlands

de Bont PAJM, van Minnen A, de Jongh A.
Treating PTSD in patients with psychosis: A within-group controlled feasibility study examining the efficacy and safety of Evidence-Based PE and EMDR protocols. Behavior Therapy, 2013 Dec;44(4):717-30:

2013

Myriam Nijdam, The Netherlands

Nijdam AJ, Gersons BP, Reetsma JB, de Jongh A, Olff M.
Brief eclectic psychotherapy versus eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy for post traumatic stress disorder: A randomized control trial. Brit J Psychiatry 2012; 3:224-31

2012

Iris Engelhard, The Netherlands

Engelhard I M, van den Hout M, Dek ECP, Giele CL, van de Wielen JW, Reijnen MJ, Van Roij B. Reducing vividness and emotionality of recurrent “flashforwards” by taxing working memory: an analogue study. J Anxiety Disorders 2011: 25; 599-603.

2011

Marco Pagani, Italy

Nardo D, Högberg G, Looi JC, Larsson S, Hälstrom T, Pagani M,
Gray matter density in limbic and paralimbic cortices is associated with trauma load and EMDR outcome in PTSD patients. J Psyciatr Res 2010; 44:477-485.

2010

Roos Rodenburg, The Netherlands

Rodenburg R, Benjamin A, de Roos C, Meijen AM, Stams GJ. Efficacy of EMDR in children. Clinical Psychology Reviews, 2009; 29:599-606.

2009

Christopher Lee, Australia

Lee CW, Drummond PD. Effect of eye movement versus therapist instruction on the processing of distressing memories. J Anxiety Disorders, 2008; 22: 801-808.

2008

Martin Sacks, Germany

Sacks M, Lempa W, Steinmetz A, Lamprecht FF, Hofmann A. Alteration of autonomic tone during trauma exposure using eye movement desentization and reprocessing (EMDR): Result of a preliminary investigation. J Anxiety Disorders, 2008; 22:1264-1271