Prof. Dr Yasser Khazaal, Lausanne university, Switzerland
Prof. Dr. Yasser Khazaal is a distinguished psychiatrist and researcher with extensive experience in addiction psychiatry. He earned his MD from Renรฉ Descartes, Paris V, and Swiss Board Certification in Psychiatry and Psychotherapy. Currently, he is a Full Professor at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland, and holds multiple roles including Associate Researcher at Montreal University. Prof. Khazaalโs research focuses on cognitive behavioral therapies, game-based interventions, and the development of smartphone apps for addiction treatment. He has published extensively on addictive disorders and is a key figure in international psychiatric societies. ๐ฅ๐๐ฌ
Publication Profile
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Education
Prof. Dr. Yasser Khazaal is a distinguished psychiatrist with an impressive academic background. He earned his MD from Renรฉ Descartes, Paris V, France, in 1998. In 2005, he achieved Swiss Board Certification in Psychiatry and Psychotherapy. His expertise and contributions were further recognized with his appointment as a Privat Docent (senior lecturer) at Geneva University in 2009. Dr. Khazaal is known for his work in psychiatry and psychotherapy, holding a prominent position in the academic and clinical communities in Switzerland. ๐๐ฉบ๐
Employment History
Prof. Dr. Yasser Khazaal has an extensive background in addiction psychiatry. From 2003 to 2005, he served as a senior psychiatrist and head of the mood and anxiety disorders outpatient unit at Lausanne University Hospital. From 2007 to 2018, he was the deputy head of the Addiction clinic at Geneva University Hospitals. Over the years, he held successive academic appointments at Geneva University, Switzerland, eventually becoming a full professor of addiction psychiatry at the Faculty of Biology and Medicine, University of Lausanne since 2019. He is also a member of the board of Addiction medicine at Lausanne University Hospital. Prof. Khazaal is an associate researcher at the Montreal University Institute of Mental Health, Canada, and an associate professor at the Department of Psychiatry and Addiction, Montreal University, Canada. Additionally, he served as a visiting professor at Kazimierz Wielki University, Poland, in 2022, as part of a project co-financed by the European Union. ๐๐๐
Teaching
Prof. Dr. Yasser Khazaal has extensive experience in teaching medical students at both the University of Lausanne (2003-2007, 2019-2023) and the University of Geneva (2007-2018). His teaching portfolio includes courses on mood and anxiety disorders (2003-2007), psychopharmacology (2006-2007), addiction (2019-2023), and community research in practice (2021-2023). He has also taught and supervised clinical cognitive and behavior therapy (CBT) skills (2018-2023), CBT for bipolar disorder (2007), CBT for mood disorders (2005-2006), and CBT of impulsive behaviors (2020). Prof. Dr. Khazaal is committed to integrating clinical teaching and practice in his courses. ๐๐ฌ๐ง
Grantsย
Prof. Dr. Yasser Khazaal is a leading researcher in addiction and mental health, with extensive funding from various Swiss and international sources. His projects include studies on cognitive behavioral interventions for psychosis, mood and anxiety disorders, smoking cessation, and smartphone applications for addiction treatment. Key grants include the Swiss National Science Foundation (268,426 CHF) and Astra-Zeneca (140,000 CHF) for LACOSMA, as well as research on “Impact of Pick Klop game on smoking cessation” (172,500 CHF) and smartphone applications (194,942 CHF). He collaborates internationally on projects such as managing trauma exposure in Congo (12,125 Euros) and the “Sesame” serious game for mental health (20,000 CHF). His work continues to advance the field with a focus on innovative and practical solutions to addiction and mental health challenges. ๐ง ๐๐ฌ
Conferences and Awards
Prof. Dr. Yasser Khazaal is a distinguished academic and leader in the field of social psychiatry. He served as the Chair for the European Congress of Social Psychiatry in 2012, 2015, and 2018. He was also the Co-chair for the International Conference of Behavioral Addictions in 2016, held in Geneva, Switzerland. More recently, he co-chaired the Challenges of Ecology Related to Mental Health conference in Athens in 2022. In recognition of his contributions, he was elected an Honorary Fellow of the World Association of Social Psychiatry in 2013. ๐๐๐ฌ
Scientific Achievements
Prof. Dr. Yasser Khazaal is a renowned expert in addiction studies, focusing on game-based interventions, including delusions and smoking cessation. He has contributed significantly to the development of smartphone app interventions for addictive disorders and mood regulation. Prof. Khazaal has published extensively on the assessment and psychopathology of addictive disorders. He also leads research on Recovery Oriented Services, exploring community interventions and peer support initiatives. ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ญ๐
Research Focus
Yasser Khazaal is a researcher primarily focused on behavioral addictions, particularly in the context of online gaming and internet use. His work explores how common behaviors can become problematic without necessarily being pathologized as addiction. He investigates self-reported motivations behind playing online games, such as World of Warcraft, and examines problematic involvement in these games using various psychological and survey methods. Khazaalโs research aims to refine the understanding of behavioral addiction and its implications for mental health, with a particular interest in the validation and adaptation of assessment tools for addictive behaviors in digital environments. ๐ป๐น๏ธ๐
Publication Top notes
Are we overpathologizing everyday life? A tenable blueprint for behavioral addiction research
How can we conceptualize behavioural addiction without pathologizing common behaviours?
Why do you play World of Warcraft? An in-depth exploration of self-reported motivations to play online and in-game behaviours in the virtual world of Azeroth
French validation of the internet addiction test
Validation of a short French version of the UPPS-P Impulsive Behavior Scale
Problematic involvement in online games: A cluster analytic approach
Does self-selection affect samplesโ representativeness in online surveys? An investigation in online video game research
Motivations to play specifically predict excessive involvement in massively multiplayer online role-playing games: evidence from an online survey