The 9th ISTFP Conference in Vienna – Much More Than We Expected

Dear Members, as most of you know, the International Society of Transference-Focused Psychotherapy (ISTFP) successfully convened its 9th Biennial Conference from June 4th to 6th, 2026. Held against the historic backdrop of the Medical University of Vienna and the Austrian National Library, this year’s landmark event gathered leading minds under the central theme of integrating science, training, and global expansion in the evolution of TFP. Over three intensive days, the international community engaged in a profound exchange of empirical research, clinical advancements, and structural innovations in the treatment of severe personality disorders.

This edition represented an exceptional operational and academic success for the global psychiatric community. Attracting 530 delegates from 48 countries, the conference underscored the truly international footing of Transference-Focused Psychotherapy. Through an extensive program structure—comprising 3 clinical workshops, 5 keynote plenaries, 10 thematic symposia, and 29 empirical poster that can be viewed in the carousel below. 

At the very beginning of the event, Stephan Doering and his team wrote an email to the conference participants on behalf of the organizers to share exciting news:  „We have an incredible number of registrations – to be precise: 500, which is exactly twice as many as we had expected.“

At the time, I didn’t realize it, but she had just summed up my entire experience of the event. The conference gave me much more than I expected. It wasn’t just bigger; I found it more intense, better organized, more intellectually rigorous, more emotional, more respectful, more demanding, and ultimately far more exciting than I was expecting.