PhD's and Master's

PhD in progress

• Randi Breivik: Countertransference in the treatment of patients with personality disorders. Affiliation/funding: University of Oslo/Oslo University Hospital. Main supervisor: Geir Pedersen. Co-supervisors: Jan Ivar Røssberg and Hanne-Sofie Johnsen Dahl.
• Tuva Langjord: Extreme challenges – Psychopathology and treatment experiences among extensively hospitalized, psychiatric inpatients with severe self-harming behavior in Norway. Affiliation/funding: University of Oslo/ Oslo University Hospital/Damm Foundation. Main supervisor: Elfrida Hartveit Kvarstein; Co-supervisors: Hanne Strømme and Geir Pedersen.
• Fillip Ferreira Eikeseth: Pain, personality, and polygenic risk - Chronic pain among patients with personality disorders. Main supervisor: Gunnvald Kvarstein, Department of Pain Management and Research, Oslo University Hospital.
• Dag Anders Ulvestad: Minding mentalizing. A new method for assessing mentalizing capacity in research and clinical practice. Main supervisor: Theresa Wilberg. Co-supervisors: Elfrida Hartveit Kvarstein and Geir Pedersen.
• Eileen Oftedal: Bridging affect consciousness, mentalization and trauma - Exploring an integrative treatment approach for Personality Disorder. Main supervisor: Ole André Solbakken, Co- supervisors: Elfrida Hartveit Kvarstein and Jon Trygve Monsen.

Doctoral dissertations

1. Aleksander Gulla Heltne: Clinician perspectives in the development of a computer-assisted instrument for the assessment of personality disorders: Learnability, clinical utility and ease of use, 2024. Affiliation/funding: University of Oslo/ Oslo University Hospital/ Research council of Norway. Main supervisor: Muirne C. S. Paap. Co-supervisors: Benjamin Hummelen, Sara Germans Selvik, and Erik Falkum.
2. Espen Folmo: Measuring MBT – A marriage of the common and specific psychotherapy factors, 2021. Affiliation/funding: University of Oslo/ Oslo University Hospital. Main supervisor: Elfrida Hartveit Kvarstein; Co-supervisors: Erik Stänicke and Sigmund Karterud.
3. Tore Buer Christensen: Towards a more valid and useful system for diagnosing personality disorders - Evaluating impairment of personality functioning by the SCID-5-AMPD-I, 2020. Affiliation/funding: University of Oslo/Sørlandet Hospital. Main supervisor: Benjamin Hummelen; Co-supervisor: Elfrida Hartveit Kvarstein.
4. Kristine Dahl Sørensen: Lived experience of avoidant personality disorder: How people diagnosed with avoidant personality disorder make sense of their everyday life and challenges, 2020, Affiliation/funding: University of Oslo/Sørlandet Hospital/Damm Foundation, Main supervisor: Marit Råbu, Co-supervisor: Theresa Wilberg.
5. Jane Fjermestad-Noll: Narcissism and Depression. Personality pathology, psychological factors and pattern of depressive symptoms in patients with narcissistic disturbances, 2019, University of Copenhagen. Main supervisor: Erik Simonsen, Co-supervisor: Bo Bach.
6. Line Indrevoll Stänicke: The punished self, the unknown self, and the harmed self - towards a more nuanced understanding of self-harm in adolescence, 2019. Affiliation/funding: University of Oslo/Lovisenberg Hospital/Damm Foundation. Main supervisor: Siri E. Gullestad. Co-supervisor: Hanne Haavind.
7. Katharina T.E Morken: Mentalization-based treatment of female patients with severe personality disorder and substance use disorder, 2018. Affiliation/funding: University of Bergen/ The Bergen Clinic Foundation. Main supervisor: Per Einar Binder; Co-supervisors: Sigmund Karterud and Helge Molde.
8. Merete Selsbakk Johansen: Affect consciousness, reflective functioning, and assessment of primary emotions in patients with personality disorders, 2016. Affiliation/funding: University of Oslo/Oslo University Hospital. Main supervisor: Theresa Wilberg; Co-supervisor: Geir Pedersen.
9. Bjørnar Torske Antonsen: Long Term Clinical Outcome of Psychotherapeutic Treatment for Patients with Personality Disorders: Findings from a Randomized Study, 2016. Affiliation/funding: University of Oslo/ Oslo University Hospital/ Damm Foundation. Main supervisor: Theresa Wilberg; Co-supervisor: Sigmund Karterud.
10. Ingeborg Helene Ulltveit-Moe Eikenæs: Avoidant Personality Disorder (AvPD) and Social Phobia (SP) – studies of personality functioning, attachment and childhood experiences, 2016. Affiliation/funding: University of Oslo/Vestfold Health Trust. Main supervisor: Theresa Wilberg; Co-supervisors: Jens Egeland and Egil Martinsen.
11. Erlend Bøen: Clinical and brain structural features of borderline personality disorder, 2015, University of Oslo, Main supervisor: Ulrik Fredrik Malt.
12. Elfrida Hartveit Kvarstein: Psychotherapy of personality disorder: Large variations in the severity and longitudinal course of global functioning, symptom distress, and costs of health services, 2013. Affiliation/funding: University of Oslo/Diakonhjemmet Hospital. Main supervisor: Sigmund Karterud; Co-supervisor: Svein Friis.
13. Tor Erik Nysæther: Outpatient treatments of patients with Borderline personality disorder Studies of attrition, co-morbidity and effectiveness, 2012, Affiliation/funding: NTNU/Sørlandet Hospital/Norwegian Research Council/Damm Foundation. Main supervisor: Hans M Nordahl.
14. Frida S Gullestad: Is there an optimal treatment format for personality disorders? Findings from a randomized clinical trial, 2012. Affiliation/funding: University of Oslo/ Oslo University Hospital. Main supervisor: Theresa Wilberg; Co-supervisor: Helge Rønnestad.
15. Vidar Hallsteinli: Measuring efficiency in mental health service delivery: a study of outpatient units in Norway, 2010. Affiliation/funding: Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU).
16. Espen Arnevik: Treatment of patients with Personality disorders: Day hospital treatment followed by combined psychotherapy compared with outpatient individual treatment, 2009. Affiliation/funding: University of Oslo/ Oslo University Hospital/ South-Eastern Norway Regional Health Authority. Main supervisor: Theresa Wilberg; Co-supervisor: Jon Monsen.
17. Geir Arild Feigum Pedersen: Psychological assessments in clinical settings: Evaluation and clinical utility of psychometric measures for the treatment of patients with personality disorders, 2008. Affiliation/funding: University of Oslo/ Oslo University Hospital. Main supervisor: Sigmund Karterud; Co-supervisor: Knut A Hagtvet.
18. Benjamin Hummelen: Validity studies of three DSM-IV personality disorder constructs: Obsessive-compulsive, avoidant, and personality disorder not otherwise specified, 2008. Affiliation/funding: University of Oslo/ Oslo University Hospital. Main supervisor: Theresa Wilberg; Co-supervisor: Sigmund Karterud.
19. Theresa Wilberg: Clinical studies of personality disordered patients treated in a psychotherapeutic day unit, with emphasis on assessment, treatment and course, 2000. Main supervisor: Svein Friis; Co-supervisor: Sigmund Karterud
20. Lars Mehlum: Clinical studies of suicidal behaviour in the young with special reference to personality disorders, 1995.
21. Sigmund Karterud: Group processes in therapeutic communities, 1989.

Master's thesis based on data from the Network

1. Benjamin Skallerud (2023). På grensen mellom kjønn og system - Et empirisk speciale om manifestasjonen av borderline personlighetsforstyrrelse hos menn i et norsk pasientutvalg. Psykologisk institutt, Aarhus Universitet, Danmark. Hovedveileder: Lynn Watson; biveileder: Kjell-Einar Zahl
2. Emma Marie Birkelund Bendiksen (2023). Understanding borderline personality disorder as a childhood trauma response Childhood traumas relation to borderline personality disorder, and the differentiation of borderline personality disorder from complex PTSD. Master thesis, Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen.
3. Eli Skarderud og Thea Crawfurd Svensen (2022). Traumatiske opplevelser hos pasienter med personlighetsforstyrrelse - Påvirkning på arbeidsallianse, interpersonlige problemer og selvdestruktiv atferd. Hovedoppgave, Psykologisk institutt, Universitetet i Oslo
4. Ingrid Julie Nærø Tangen (2022). Hva kjennetegner pasienter som har både emosjonelt ustabil og -unnvikende personlighetsforstyrrelse, sammenliknet med pasienter -som kun har én av disse diagnosene? - En kvantitativ undersøkelse på data fra Nettverk for Personlighetsforstyrrelser. Hovedoppgave, Psykologisk Institutt, Universitetet i Oslo.
5. Aryan Aghdami (2022). Meaning in Life Among Personality Disorders - A Cross-Sectional Study with Norwegian Outpatients. Master thesis, MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion and Society.
6. Marte Stølsnes (2021). ‘Chronic Feelings of Emptiness’ – a Useful Criterion in the Diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder? Results from a large clinical sample. cand.psychol. thesis, UiO.
7. Minna Lind Christiansen (2019) Psykodynamisk, kunstterapi-orientert behandling av spiseforstyrrelser -  Klinisk nytteverdi med fokus på henvisningsstatus og utfall over tid (Masteroppgave, profesjonsstudium Psykologi), University of Oslo, Oslo.  Hovedveileder: Elfrida Hartveit Kvarstein; biveileder: Line Stänicke
8. Holden, K. The Relationship between Antisocial Personality Disorder, Psychopathy and the DSM-5 Level of Personality Scale. (Master), University of Oslo.  Hovedveileder: Benjamin Hummelen.
9. Maren Friis Svendsberget (2019). Substance Abuse and Suicidal Behavior in Patients with Borderline Personality Disorder and Avoidant Personality Disorder: A Literature Review and Empirical Study of the Complex Associations Between Personality Disorders and Severe Co-Occurrences. Aarhus Universitet, Danmark. Hovedveileder: Helle Spindlerv. Medveiledere Geir Pedersen og Elfrida H Kvarstein.
10. Ina Marie Kolås Bekkevold (2017). Deliberate self-harm and personality disorder (PD): Focus on borderline PD and gender differences. Master i psykososialt arbeid – selvmord, rus, vold og traumer. Universitetet i Oslo. Hovedveileder: Lars Mehlum; Biveileder: Geir Pedersen.
11. Arnesen, M., & Koritzinsky, K. (2016). Nivå av personlighetsfungering i Den alternative modellen for personlighetsforstyrrelser: vurdering ved SCID-AMPD modul 1. (Master), University of Oslo, Oslo.  Hovedveileder: Svenn Torgersen; biveileder: Benjamin Hummelen.
12. Benjamin Rognaas, B., Sütterlin, S., & Hummelen, B. (2016). Heart Rate Variability as an Index of Personality Functioning. (Bachelor), University of Lillehammer, Lillehammer.   Hovedveileder: Stefan Sutterlin; biveileder: Benjamin Hummelen.
13. Ingrid Tande Ditlefsen (2016): Jeg føler meg bedre rustet - Pasienters erfaringer med den psykoedukative gruppekomponenten i MBT. En kvalitativ intervju undersøkelse. Hovedoppgave, embetsstudie i psykologi , Psykologisk institutt, UiO. – Hovedveiledere: Agnes Andenæs/ Helene Nissen-Lie, prosjektleder og biveileder Elfrida Hartveit Kvarstein.
14. Kvam Olafsen, M., & Hummelen, B. (2015 ). Heart rate variability and level of personality functioning - a pilot study. (Master), University of Oslo. (Hovedveileder: Benjamin Hummelen.
15. Malin Ertzgaard Solvang (2015). Symptomer på spiseforstyrrelser blant menn og kvinner med personlighetsforstyrrelser. Speciale for kanditatstudiet i psykologi. Syddansk Universitet, Danmark.
16. Jens Kalleklev (2015) Gruppepsykoterapi for pasienter med borderline personlighetsforstyrrelse – hva skiller mentaliseringsbasert gruppeterapi fra psykodynamisk gruppepsykoterapi? En sammenlignende kasus-studie ved bruk av kvantitativ og kvalitativ innholdsanalyse.  Hovedoppgave - Psykologi, NTNU  Veiledere: Sigmund Karterud, Hans Nordahl.
17. Nabila Khan (2014). Interpersonlige problemer hos personer med personlighetsforstyrrelser – gruppeforskjeller mellom emosjonelt ustabil, unnvikende og avhengig personlighetsforstyrrelse. Hovedoppgave - Psykologisk institutt, Universitetet i Oslo.
18. Guro Mikaelsen Skulberg (2013). Tilknytningsstil hos pasienter med unnvikende og borderline personalighetsforstyrrelse. Hovedoppgave - Psykologisk institutt, Universitetet i Oslo.
19. Geir Pedersen (2001). Assessment of self-reported symptoms and interpersonal problems: Psychometric considerations and validity of clinical use. M. A. Thesis, Warnborough University, London.