Biographical Statements by Candidates
Student Representative (4 candidates)
Candidate 1 - Ihuoma Faith Obioma
Biographical Information
Since February 2019, I have been a Ph.D. student at the Social Psychology Department of Goethe University, Frankfurt researching on “cross-cultural gender stereotyping and its effect on housework and workplace diversity in the Global South and North”. Specifically, I examine these variables in Nigeria, South Africa, Germany, and India. During this time, I have prepared and published works from a cross-cultural perspective. Over the years I have volunteered at various institutions and positively contributed to my team. I joined IACCP to meet like minds and have been actively involved in the progress of the association since 2020. This involvement includes 3-4 hours of group discussion and independent tasks for the association. Because I am already highly integrated into the association, I believe I would be the ideal student representative.
I am in frequent contact with many members of the Executive Committee, have suggested activities, workshops and events that will be relevant to the student network and experienced researchers and active at IACCP conferences. As I am from Africa and sitting in Europe, I can integrate both perspectives (as well as my research in Asia) and support members on various continents because I understand these contexts. I am happy to bring my experience, participate at EC meetings, spearhead activities targeted at young researchers in the association and generally contribute to the future of IACCP.
Candidate 2 - Henry Lopez
Biographical Information
EDUCATION
Iowa State University Present Ph.D. Psychology
San Diego State University 2021 M.A. Psychology
University of Redlands 2018 B.A. Psychology and Spanish, Magna Cum Laude
AWARDS, FELLOWSHIPS, & GRANTS
SPSP Graduate Travel Award 2022
George Jackson Scholarship 2021-2023
SPSP Emergency Bridging Grant 2020
PUBLICATIONS Lopez, H.N., Somo, A., & Devos, T. (2022) State-level cultural tightness–looseness accounts for implicit associations between American and White identities. 3, 1-10. Current Research in Ecological and Social Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cresp.2021.100033 Goldstein, S. B., & Lopez, H. N. (2021). An intersectional investigation of study abroad intent among Latino/a and White first-generation college students. Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad, 33 (2), 1-16. https://doi.org/10.36366/frontiers.v33i2.534
Every human being is a cultural being. However, only 11% of the world is represented in psychology's most prestigious journals (Thalmayer et al., 2021). The study of human behavior has ignored 89% of the world, yet there has been little movement towards resolving this issue. I have gained a rich understanding of culture's potent influences on human behavior, and I am committed to diversifying the field of psychology by using samples from human groups that have been vastly underrepresented in psychological research. My commitment to diversifying psychological research is a key goal of the IACCP, and it would be a pleasure to serve as the student representative for the association.
My motivation to serve as the student representative is to learn and provide input when necessary. Much of the research in psychology represents and serves the U.S. population, and there is a blatant disregard for the lived experiences of humans beyond the U.S. As a western researcher myself, I acknowledge the power and privilege my position grants me, and I will work to raise the voices of those scholars who are often underrepresented in mainstream psychological research. Beyond uplifting non-western scholars, I am interested in engaging in an important discussion focusing on the association's future. A recent round table announcement has called into question the role of culture in cross-cultural psychology. How do we continue as a discipline when the very construct we are studying is highly debated? I am interested in contributing to the discourse surrounding important issues in the association, and I hope to discuss ways to improve the discipline as a budding researcher in cross-cultural psychology. In sum, my goals as student representative are to promote non-western research and engage in thoughtful conversations that will work to improve the IACCP.
Early Career Representative
10 candidates)
Candidate 1 - Sieun An
Biographical Information
Dr. Sieun An spent most of her childhood in S. Korea, and part of it in Japan. She went to the US for her higher education; B.A. in Psychology (Minor in Sociology), M.A. in Experimental Psychology, and Ph.D. in Social Psychology in 2013. Following that, she moved to Canada to work as a postdoc (Cross-Cultural Psychology), and then moved to China to work as a postdoc (Neuropsychology). She is currently in India working as an assistant professor.
She specializes in Experimental Psychology, with an emphasis in social cognition. Her research interests are attribution, morality, and emotion, and she researches these topics both within and across cultures. She investigates human thought processes and behavior cognitively, physiologically, and neurologically.
Motivation Statement
Culture has been always a big part of my life, yet I did not feel that I fully belonged anywhere, as I grew up in different places. It probably is why I ended up studying psychology, and specialized in cultural psychology. It would be a great opportunity if I could be selected for the early career representative. I have been always been a minority wherever I was, and this could be an opportune moment of change for me, as well as the society we are in.
Candidate 2 - Jasper Van Assche
Biographical Sketch
I am Jasper Van Assche, a young scholar who is eager to learn, discover, and contribute to the scientific knowledge on cross-cultural and intergroup relations. During my college years, I was Ambassador for International Development at the Flemish Council for Youth, and I mentored three ethnic minority students at Ghent University (Belgium). These engagements elicited my interest in intercultural dynamics and the study of diversity and social issues. In June 2012, I volunteered at the IACCP conference in Stellenbosch, South Africa. This experience further motivated me to become an academic. In December 2012, I started a Ph.D. at the Social Psychology unit of Ghent University on the interplay between person and culture in the formation of intergroup attitudes. Since October 2018, I am a postdoctoral research fellow with the Research Foundation - Flanders. I am also a part-time lecturer at the Center for Social and Cultural Psychology at the University of Leuven. I have always found the IACCP conferences a true learning experience - the 2013 one in Reims (France) being particularly memorable since it sparked several collaborations! It would be an honor to become an IACCP Early Career Representative in the Executive Council, and to be the voice of all other “Next Generation” scholars around the globe who - like me - look forward to making a difference in this world.
Candidate 3 - Anastasia Batkhina
Biographical Information
I graduated the Department of Psychology of Lomonosov Moscow State University with GPA of 4.98 out 5. After that I completed and defended my PhD thesis “Predictors of behavioral strategy choice in intercultural conflict” at National Research University Higher School of Economics. I also work as junior researcher at the Centre for Socioсultural Research of Higher School of Economics. My research achievements were rewarded with a university award “Group of high professional potential”. I conducted studies in collaboration with Prof. John Berry, Prof. Fons van de Vijver and Prof. Susan Fiske. My papers were published in Frontiers in Psychology, Journal of Intercultural Communication Research, Journal of International Migration and Integration and Peace and Conflict. I am a participant of Cultural and Ethnic Diversity Board on European Federation of Psychologists’ Associations.
Candidate 4 - Anastasia Batkhina
Biographical Information
Dr. Daina Crafa is an award-winning early-career scientist who studies 1) how the social world shapes human social processes and 2) mechanisms explaining why these processes sometimes look differently across cultures or in psychiatric populations. She combines methods from anthropology, psychology, and neuroscience to capture domain complexity. Hired as a tenure track Assistant Professor directly from graduate school, both her professional and personal life is multinational. She is an Italian-American from the Florida subtropics who has lived in 4 countries with research from 9 countries. She founded the World Association for Cultural Psychiatry’s Trainee Section and Denmark’s first fNIRS adult brain imaging centre. Dr. Crafa has been an IACCP member for nearly 10 years. As ECR, she will promote cross-disciplinarity and further inclusion of underrepresented countries.
Candidate 5 - Alex English
Biographical Information
It is with great honor that I write my motivation letter to contribute to the EC of IACCP for the 2020-2022 term. In 2016, I had the privilege of serving as the Student Representative and I can honestly admit it has opened my eyes to IACCP. It was an extremely rewarding experience to volunteer in such a capacity and to be working so closely with leading scholars and now, new friends. I served on the emergency committee to draft a Code of Conduct for conferences. It was rewarding to work closely with the regional representatives in Europe, Oceania and Africa. Currently, I continue my service as the C&P Summer School co-organizer. Our school has successfully launched 3 sessions in conjunction with IACCP conference. We had over 75 students attend and received excellent feedback from students and colleagues. Professionally, IACCP is very welcoming and the best-fit association for my career development. I have lived abroad for most of my adult life including spending time in Chile and China. I completed my Ph.D. Cultural Psychology at a Chinese University and now teach about how culture impacts behavior. I hope I can bring a collaborative spirit and a new perspective to the IACCP executive committee so we can grow and expand membership in underrepresented areas of the world.
Candidate 6 - Tripti Kathuria
Biographical Information
I, Tripti Kathuria. am graduated at the Department of Human Development and Family Studies, The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, India, in January, 2020. My doctoral research entitled “Emotion socializaation in an urban Indian context: Multiple caregivers’ context” was a part of cross cultural study. My research interests are cross cultural psychologoy, with specific interst in socializatoion, parenting, identity and emotion socialization. I worked as Assistant Professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies, The M.S. Univeristy of Baroda and taught courses on interpersonal relationships, guidance and counselling and supervised practicum courses. As an Early career myself, I feel I matured a senstivity to the needs of early careers and identified the needs/ priorties of early career scholars. For example, network among scholars, early career mentorships, and to explore ways to create resources to facilitae early scholars funding oportunities. I aspire to learn, and explore opportunities in the cross- cultural psychology as well as represent the early scholars’ voice within IACCP to learn and support the research practices in order to produce valuable work, and to facilitate the opening of new opportunities and experiences.
Candidate 7 - Kuba Krys
Biographical Information
I specialize in positive cross-cultural psychology. As of 2020, my primary research focuses on well-being and societal development. Previously I studied gender equality, emotions, smile, facets of collectivism, and family issues. I find large-scale studies the most informative for cross-cultural research – in my investigations, I try to cover several dozen countries. I did my PhD in 2012. Since the beginning of my scientific career, I am affiliated to the Institute of Psychology of the Polish Academy of Sciences. In 2017-2019, I did post-doc at the Kokoro Research Center at the Kyoto University in Japan (my sensei is Yukiko Uchida). I love Japan. I am interested in learning how people live a good life across cultures. In doing so, I am crossing the boundaries that culture imposes on us. I apply for the position of the Early Career Representative to take more responsibility for the future of IACCP. I find IACCP the exceptional society – in terms of people and scientific potential.
Candidate 8 - Andrian Liem
Biographical Information
My name is Andrian Liem (he/him/his), originally from Indonesia and earned my PhD from School of Psychology, the University of Queensland, Australia, in May 2019. My doctoral research was about knowledge of, attitudes towards, experience with, and educational needs for complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) among clinical psychologists in Indonesia since CAM use is part of culture and belief among Indonesian people. By using mixed-methods design, through national survey and in-depth interviews, my PhD contributed to theoretical insight and deeper understanding of clinical practices of Indonesian clinical psychologists. For example, spiritual-religious therapy was used consistently for their personal and in professional practices (https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-019-00880-0). I am currently a postdoctoral fellow at University of Macau with a primary task is developing digital mental health intervention for migrant workers. Other research / social projects that I am involved in are: migrant workers’ mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic in Greater China region; and use and access to mental health services among Africans in Macau. I have been a member of IACCP since 2013. I would like to become more active member by representing the early career members. I believe that this opportunity will allow me to excel my networks and soft skills. I hope that by being an Early Career Representative, I can promote more collaboration between the members and provide more mentoring opportunities to the younger members. (More info: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Andrian_Liem)
Candidate 9 - Jaimee Stuart
Biographical Information
I am a Cross-cultural and Developmental Psychologist at Griffith University in Brisbane, Australia. I conduct applied research examining pressing, current social issues in Australasia such as; multiculturalism and its influence on social cohesion, attitudes towards migration, positive development for cultural and religious minority communities, as well as youth development, technology use, and mental health. I am an Adjunct member of the CACR at Victoria University of Wellington, Associate Editor for the International Journal of Intercultural Relations, and Treasurer of the Australasian Human Development Association. I am the author of 31 peer reviewed journal articles and 5 book chapters and have been awarded a number of grants to the value of half a million dollars. I am also the 2020 awardee of the Brisbane Lord Mayors Trailblazers award that was received in recognition of my work in advocating for Cross-cultural Psychology in my city. As the ECR representative for IACCP I would seek to connect with the leaders in the field, to represent early career voices for the association, to increase my own leadership capacity, and help guide the future of IACCP.
Candidate 10 - Amber Gayle Thalmayer
Biographical Information
I would be thrilled to engage more deeply with the IACCP, to help develop this important global network of scholars. My life experience and research focus are both profoundly cross-cultural. Currently a junior lecturer at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland, I am the principal investigator on a Swiss National Science Foundation project on personality and mental health in Namibia, where I have established a strong network of colleagues and research assistants. I published a recent article in American Psychologist to assess the extent to which research in psychology relies predominantly on data from North America and Northern Europe. To rectify this imbalance, I have explored personality structure and measurement across contexts; most recently on personality terms in West and East Africa, published 2019 in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. I seek to collaborate with and amplify the contributions of colleagues from the majority world, for example as an elected member of the executive committee for the World Association of Personality Psychology, and as a visiting scholar to the National University of Malaysia in early 2020, where I shared my work on personality and mental health across cultures, and advised colleagues individually and through a large workshop on how to successfully publish in international journals. I am a native speaker of English, fluent in German and French.
|
