Conference: The Psychology of Global Crises: State Surveillance, Solidarity and Everyday Life

The American University of Paris will be hosting the fully virtual conference entitled The Psychology of Global Crises: State Surveillance, Solidarity and Everyday Life," in cooperation with the Department of Psychology and Professor Martin Dege. 

Event Details
  • Dates: May 20–30, 2020
  • Submissions: open April 17, 2020 and close May 10, 2020
  • Registration: opens May 11, 2020
Call for Submissions

The current global Covid-19 crisis is unprecedented in many ways. Yet, ‘crisis’ as a phenomenon is everything but new. In the past years, we have been in the middle of the so-called ‘refugee crisis,’ the European sovereign debt crisis, the subprime mortgage crisis and the 2007-2008 global financial crisis. Some attest to a more general crisis of liberal democracy, an eventual crisis of capitalism, or a ‘population change crisis.’ Climate change is typically identified as a central factor in the emergence of future global crises. Beyond economically driven crises, we experience crises on the social and cultural levels: the Occupy movement, #MeToo, Black Lives Matter, Cambridge Analytica, the global surveillance disclosures, etc. On a smaller scale, we witness crises of various academic disciplines, famous among them perhaps the replication crisis in psychology. Some go further and argue that the social sciences are in a state of perpetual crisis at least since the beginnings of the 20th century. Last not least, psychologists identify and treat crises on an individual level: loss of workplace, loneliness, depression. Every crisis phenomenon maps its territory and calls for its experts and expert discourses, measures and publicly communicated courses of action.

Sparked by current developments, the theme of this conference is ‘crisis’ in all its varieties. Who is speaking to the current crisis and with what advice? Which voices are heard? What can the social sciences contribute to understand crises, the current global situation and expectations for the future? How can we critically examine the concept of ‘crisis.’ Who defines a situation as a crisis? Who benefits from and who is negatively affected by crises? How do crises change local communities? How do they affect the individual agency and the relationship of citizens to one another?

In times of crisis, let us come together in the virtual world and discuss the phenomena at hand.

Presentations could focus on but are not limited to:

  • crisis, victims, power struggles
  • agency and activism during crises
  • health and inequality
  • how crises implement politics
  • solidarity in times of crises
  • nationalism and crises
  • the history and genealogy of the concept
  • the philosophy of crisis
  • globalization and geopolitics

Please submit an abstract to your contribution (max 500 words). The entire conference will take place online. This allows us to handle a large variety of contributions. You are welcome to experiment. Talks can be delivered asynchronously (you can create a recording in advance). This makes sense specifically if you want to include other media etc. You are asked to be present at the time your talk is streamed to allow for a (synchronous) discussion of your ideas. Synchronous talks are also possible. We actively encourage creative and experimental formats.

The deadline for submission is May 10, 2020.

 

The Organizing Committee
Zachary Beckstead

Brigham Young University–Hawaii, USA.

Assistant Professor. Zach’s research explores the experiences of pilgrims, tourists, veterans and other travelers and the consequences of geographical movement on the psyche. Zachary is particularly interested in how geographical movement and commemorative practices are mediated through the built environment (e.g., memorials, ruins, roadside shrines and cemeteries) and how they guide human development.

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Robert Beshara

Northern New Mexico College, USA.

Assistant Professor. Robert’s is a transdisciplinarian and a critical psychologist, interested in theorizing subjectivity by drawing on theoretical frameworks as psychoanalysis, decoloniality and discursivity.

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Niklas Chimirri

Roskilde University, Denmark.

Associate Professor. Niklas’s research connects participatory approaches on dialectical developmental psychologies with audience research, critical childhood studies, feminist technoscience, and multimodal ethnographical design studies.

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Martin Dege

The American University of Paris, France.

Assistant Professor. Martin’s research focuses on critical social psychology and the historical sources of the discipline.

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Yasuhiro Igarashi

Yamano College of Aesthetics, Japan.

Professor. Yas is a theoretical, critical psychologist doing research in history, philosophy and sociology of psychology, and doing discourse analysis.

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Antonia Larraín

Universidad Alberto Hurtado, Chile.

Professor. Antonia works on how to (re)conceptualize concepts like subjectivity, reflexive thinking and inner speech, discussions and dialogues. Antonia’s research also focuses on aspects in educational psychology.

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Pina Marsico

University of Salerno, Italy.

Associate Professor of Development and Educational Psychology. Pina has a proven international research network. Pina is also the Editor-in-chief of the book series Cultural Psychology of Education (Springer).

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Athanasios Marvakis

Aristotle University, Greece.

Professor in Clinical Social Psychology. Athanasios’s interests revolve around psychology and its relations with the various forms of social inequalities and social exclusion, solidarity as theoretical and practical issue and tool in the social sciences.

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Maria Medved

The American University of Paris, France.

Professor of Psychology. Maria investigates psychological functioning after trauma and the nexus between culture and health, including exploring the correlates of suicidality in Aboriginal peoples, perceptions of cardiovascular disease (aka white man’s disease) in Aboriginal women, and the role of solvent user in homelessness.

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Ernst Schraube

Roskilde University, Denmark.

Professor of Social Psychology of Technology. Ernst’s teaching and research center on the social and political implications of modern technologies in everyday life. Ernst is currently working on a project on the significance of digital technology in students' learning and conduct of everyday life.

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Irene Strasser

The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Assistant Professor of Developmental Psychology. Irene’s research focuses on lifespan development with an emphasis on age and aging. Irene’s work is informed by critical perspectives in gerontology, social justice studies, and gender studies.

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Fu Wai

Shue Yan University, Hong Kong.

Associate Professor. Fuwai’s research focuses on the history of Psychology, Lacanian Psychoanalysis, Gambling Prevention and Qualitative Psychology.

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