Cornelia Exner

Cornelia Exner is a Professor of Psychology and Chair of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy at the Institute of Psychology, University of Leipzig, Germany. She has held this position since 2011 and directs the Psychotherapy Outpatient Clinics. Her career includes roles at the Universities of Göttingen, Marburg, and King’s College London.

Education:

• 1990–1996: Diploma in Psychology, Universities of Leipzig and Göttingen
• 1994–1995: M.Sc. in Neuroscience, King’s College London (supported by DAAD Scholarship)
• 2000: PhD in Psychology, University of Göttingen
• 2007: Postdoctoral lecture qualification (venia legendi) in Psychology, University of Marburg

Research Focus: Her work centers on neuropsychological mechanisms of mental disorders, particularly obsessive-compulsive disorders (OCD), ADHD, and the efficacy of cognitive-behavioral interventions. She explores emotional and interpersonal mechanisms in mental disorders and their treatment through psychotherapy research.

Key Contributions: Over 75 publications (SCOPUS h-index 22), including studies on cognitive deficits in ADHD, disgust regulation in OCD, and neural correlates of psychiatric disorders. Recent work emphasizes bridging objective and subjective measures in adult ADHD.

Awards:

• Heisenberg Scholarship (2009–2011)
• DAAD Scholarship (1994–1995)
• Scientific Board membership, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Neuropsychologie (since 2012)

Editorial Roles: Associate Editor of Zeitschrift für Klinische Psychologie und Psychotherapie (since 2015) and editorial board member of Verhaltenstherapie (since 2018).

Labs/Teams: Directs clinical research activities at the Psychotherapy Outpatient Clinics, integrating empirical research with clinical practice.