Synergy Workshop

Collaboration And Innovation In Theory And Research In
The European Health Psychology Society

SYNERGY Workshop 2007

12-14^th August 2007, Hasselt University, Belgium

’Culture, health and illness representations – Developing an international agenda for cross-cultural health psychological research

The Workshop at a Glance

The SYNERGY annual three-day workshop is organised to provide an opportunity for synergistic discussion within health psychology at an advanced level. The focus is on improving the standards by pooling expertise, instigating critical evaluations and discussions, and stimulating networking and collaborative research between researchers from all over Europe in an informal and supportive atmosphere.

The aim is to review current theoretical and methodological approaches, find ways to improve them, and to discuss the development of practical applications with regard to improving overall health.  The workshop provides an unique opportunity for researchers to present their research for discussion with other experts working in the same field in a friendly and relaxed atmosphere. By focusing on a core topic on which all participants have some expertise and have conducted research (published and unpublished), we would expect to reach a shared understanding of the strengths, weaknesses and opportunities in this area. We hope that the workshop will facilitate collaborative research among attendees and will influence future research within Culture and Health.

Facilitators will guide the work and support and moderate the discussion. The events of 9/11 have alerted the Western world about cultural differences in worldviews and the effects such discord can have. The new interest in culture and cultural difference has transpired into health care and illness management. Hence it seems timely to give more consideration to culture and its effects and develop a comprehensive international agenda for research on culture and health. Whereas mental health has a dedicated network for exchange (e.g. the transcultural psychiatry section of the world psychiatry congress), there is no equivalent infrastructure for exchange about culture and health psychology. The SYNERGY workshop was designed to fill this gap and start an intellectual exchange about culture and health psychology. The aim is to develop and deepen expertise with culture and cross-cultural research in health care in Europe. The focus will be on the management of illness and other chronic conditions. The facilitators will be

§         Michael Diefenbach, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, USA

§         Alison Karasz, Albert Einstein College School of Medicine, USA

§         Jeanne Edman, Cosumnes River College, USA

The workshop will provide opportunities to develop new ideas, approaches or methods for understanding cultural differences or working with patients' beliefs to manage their chronic conditions. Subgroups will work on upcoming themes (e.g. the assessment of culture, the effects of culture on care; and the consideration of culture in health psychological research) in more detail. Participants will be encouraged to use different kinds of working methods like individual presentations, discussion, teamwork in smaller groups, etc.

In order to disseminate the newly gained insights to a broader audience, it is expected that a report will be drafted to communicate the outcomes of the workshop.

The workshop will be held at the Hasselt University.

The workshop will be held in English language.

The workshop fee is 200 Euro.

Participants need to become a member of the EHPS and therefore will also receive the benefits of EHPS membership (www.ehps.net).

Application Procedure 

1. In order to facilitate the discussion within the workshop, each participant is required to submit the following information.
*   a brief CV (maximal 1 page).
*   a brief abstract summarizing your research on the topic (not more than 500 words).
*   a paragraph on: a) your expectations regarding the workshop, i.e. which t18 July, 2007 what would you like to get out of it and b) your possible contributions. 

Submission deadline – March 23^rd  2007
2.You will be notified by email or regular mail whether you have a place at the workshop by April 16^th 2007.
3. Please note that participation must be confirmed by registering and paying the workshop fee (deadline is June 30th 2007).
4. The other participants' abstracts and a programme outlining the themes will be sent to all participants by July 16th, 2007.

Registration (only for accepted workshop participants)

Participants need to become a member of the EHPS and therefore will also receive the benefits of EHPS membership.

For registration and payment please use the online form.

Please note that the registration deadline is June 30th 2007.

For questions or information please contact the workshop organisers: