The fundamental essence of CIBER is to encourage collaborative, multidisciplinary work in groups which have different approaches to a common problem. In the case of CIBERSAM, studies into mental health have sought to be translational character that allows innovative results. Consequently, the groups in CIBER of Mental Health are principally clinical and/or groups which are distinguished by their expertise in the fields of pharmacology, biochemistry, genetics, imaging, molecular biology or epidemiology. Regular external evaluation of these groups ensures their continual quality and excellence.

CIBERSAM is undertaking more than a hundred collaborative projects, funded either through CIBER external calls or intramural ones. The number of collaborative projects in these groups ranges from 2 to 16. The most important lines of investigation in CIBERSAM are those researching depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, childhood and adolescence mental disorders, psychogeriatrics and anxiety disorders. Most of the projects seek to provide answers to questions raised from clinical studies via translational neuroscience investigation. There are also projects with an epidemiological component, on top of disease or meta-analytical. Finally, some projects are looking to create new tools, validation and refinement of existing tools that allow us to evaluate better what we want to study in areas such as psychopathology, performance, the evaluation of needs, neuro-psychology and neuroimaging, among others.