Bernadette Denk

This is what I study:

Interpersonal physiology: how do people influence each other in their physiological processes when they interact?
Do interaction partners synchronize their heart rate? Is this influenced by their relationship? Is this influenced by how they are feeling?
(How) do emotions spread within a group? Can people guess what others are feeling? Are they influenced by others’ emotions?
Do children synchronize in an educational setting? Is this influenced by their relationships and does synchrony influence their relationships in turn?

Areas of interest:

Interpersonal physiology
Physiological synchrony
Emotions and emotional contagion
Autonomic nervous system
Collective stress
Peer interactions in children

Publications:

Denk, B.F., Dimitroff, S.J., Meier, M., Benz, A.B.E., Bentele, U.U., Unternaehrer, E., Popovic, N.F., Gaissmaier, W., & Pruessner, J.C. (2021). Influence of stress on physiological synchrony in a stressful versus non-stressful group setting. Journal of Neural Transmission, 128(9), 1335–1345. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00702-021-02384-2
Meier, M., Unternaehrer, E., Schorpp, S.M., Wenzel, M., Benz, A.B.E., Bentele, U.U., Dimitroff, S.J., Denk, B.F., Pruessner, J.C. (2020). The opposite of stress. Experimental Psychology, 67(2), 150-159. https://doi.org/10.1027/1618-3169/a000483
Bentele, U.U., Meier, M., Benz, A.B.E., Denk, B.F., Dimitroff, S.J., Pruessner, J.C. (2021). The impact of maternal care and blood glucose availability on the cortisol stress response in fasted women. Journal of Neural Transmission, 128, 1287-1300. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00702-021-02350-y
Benz, A.B.E., Gaertner, R.J., Meier, M., Unternaehrer, E., Scharndke, S., Jupe, C., Wenzel, M., Bentele, U.U., Dimitroff, S.J., Denk, B.F., Pruessner, J.C. (2022). Nature-based relaxation videos and their effect on heart rate variability. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 866682, https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.866682
Benz, A.B.E., Kloker, L.V., Kuhlmann, T., Meier, M., Unternaehrer, E., Bentele, U.U., Dimitroff, S.J., Denk, B.F., Reips, U.-D., Pruessner, J.C. (2021). Psychometrische Kennwerte einer deutschen Übersetzung des Parental Bonding Instrument. Psychotherapie Psychosomatik Medizinische Psychologie, 72(01), 34-44. DOI: 10.1055/a-1503-5328
Meier, M., Bentele, U.U., Benz, A.B.E., Denk, B.F., Dimitroff, S.J., Pruessner, J.C., Unternaehrer, E. (2021). Effects of psychological, sensory, and metabolic energy prime manipulation on the acute endocrine stress response in fasted women. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 134, 105452. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2021.105452
Benz, A.B.E., Dimitroff, S.J., Jeggle, C., Gaertner, R.J., Meier, M., Unternahrer, E., Bentele, U.U., Denk, B.F., Klink, E.S.C., Pruessner, J.C. (2023). Increased empathic distress in adults is associated with higher levels of childhood maltreatment. Scientific Reports, 13(1), 4087. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-30891-7
Dimitroff, S.J., Würfel, L., Meier, M., Faig, K.E., Benz, A.B.E., Denk, B.F., Bentele, U.U., Unternaehrer, E., Pruessner, J.C. (2023). Estimation of antibody levels after COVID-19 vaccinations: Preliminary evidence for immune interoception. Biological Psychology, 182, 108636, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108636
Gaertner, R.J., Kossmann, K.E., Benz, A.B.E., Bentele, U.U., Meier, M., Denk, B.F., Klink, E.S.C., Dimitroff, S.J., Pruessner, J.C. (2023). Relaxing effects of virtual environments on the autonomic nervous system indicated by heart rate variability: A systematic review. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 88, 102035, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2023.102035
Bentele, U.U., Klink, E.S.C., Benz, A.B.E., Meier, M., Gaertner, R.J., Denk, B.F., Dimitroff, S.J., Unternaehrer, E., Pruessner, J.C. (2024). The effect of cognitive reappraisal and early-life maternal care on neuroendocrine stress responses. Scientific Reports, 14(1), 6837. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-57106-x
Denk, B.F., Dimitroff, S.J., Meier, M., Wienhold, S., Gaertner, R.J., Klink, E.S.C., Benz, A.B.E., Bentele, U.U., & Pruessner, J.C. (2024). Physiological synchrony of the autonomic nervous system—An analysis and comparison of different methods [Preprint]. PsyArXiv. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/dws8c

Conference Proceedings:

Denk, B.F., Dimitroff, S.J., Meier, M., Unternaehrer, E., Zerbe, T., Zyschka, M., Bentele, U.U., Benz, A.B.E., Pruessner, J.C. (2020). Physiological dynamics of group interactions under varying degrees of stress [Poster]. Conference: International Society of Psychoneuroendocrinolgy (ISPNE).
Denk, B.F., Dimitroff, S.J., Zyschka, M., Zerbe, T., Meier, M., Benz, A.B.E., Bentele, U.U., Unternaehrer, E., Pruessner, J.C. (2021). Influence of stress on RR-interval wavelet coherence in groups [Poster]. Conference: European Society for Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience (ESCAN).
Denk, B.F., Dimitroff, S.J., Zyschka, M., Zerbe, T., Geiger, G., Meier, M., Benz, A.B.E., Bentele, U.U., Unternaehrer, E., Pruessner, J.C. (2021). Does accuracy of emotional stress estimates depend on stress states of rater and target? [Poster]. Conference: European Brain and Behavior Society (EBBS).
Denk, B.F., Dimitroff, S.J., Meier, M., Benz, A.B.E., Bentele, U.U., Unternaehrer, E., Popovic, N.F., Gaissmaier, W., Pruessner, J.C. (2021). Does stress influence cortisol synchrony during the Trier Social Stress Test for Groups or a non-stressful control task? [Poster]. Conference: World Association for Stress Related and Anxiety Disorders (WASAD).
Denk, B.F., Bentele, U.U., Dimitroff, S.J., Meier, M., Gaertner, R.J., Unternaehrer, E., Pruessner, J.C. (2022). Movement during the Trier Social Stress Test [Poster]. Conference: Psychologie und Gehirn (PuG).
Denk, B.F., Meier, M., Packheiser, J., Ocklenburg, S., Dimitroff, S.J., Klink, E.S.C., Pruessner, J.C. (2023). Is heart rate synchrony in romantic couples related to adult attachment style and acute stress? [Poster]. Conference: Interpersonal synchrony and its relevance for attachment and caregiving.
Denk, B.F., Farah, S., Pruessner, J.C., Grütter, J. (2024). Heart rate synchrony and dyadic relationships in children [Poster]. Conference: Behavioural dynamics in social interactions.
Denk, B.F., Dimitroff, S.J., Meier, M., Wienhold, S., Gaertner, R.J., Klink, E.S.C., Benz, A.B.E., Bentele, U.U., Volkmer, N., Pruessner, J.C. (2024). How to analyze autonomic nervous system synchrony [Poster]. Conference: Psychologie und Gehirn (PuG).

Academic Curriculum Vitae:

July 2019 – present:

Researcher and Doctoral Candidate, AG Grütter and AG Pruessner, University of Konstanz, Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour

March 2019 – March 2021:

M.Sc. Psychology at the University of Konstanz

Thesis: “Investigation of Endocrinological and Emotional Synchrony Between Participants of the Trier Social Stress Test for Groups”

October 2014 – March 2019:

B.Sc. Psychology at the University of Konstanz

Thesis: “Early life adversity and happiness”

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