SCIENTIFIC Committee
The Scientific Committee involved in the Dublin conference comprises a diverse group of experts, including:
Prof Jolanta Burke
Prof. Jolanta Burke is a Chartered Psychologist and an award-winning researcher at the Centre for Positive Health Sciences at RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences. She is a Programme Director for Masters in Applied Positive Psychology (Wellbeing and Health), and a Research Lab Founding Director of the Positive Activity Lab at RCSI. She specialises in amplifying the impact of positive psychology. Her team won over 6 million in funding from organisations such as EU Interreg, EU Erasmus+ KA220, Science Foundation Ireland, Irish Research Council, Health Research Board and others. Prof. Burke authored 15 books about Positive Psychology, Wellbeing and Positive Health. Her latest book is “The Foundation of Positive Psychology: A Compilation of Key Studies, Theory, and Practice”.
She has led the RCSI team in conceptualising the new field of Positive Health Sciences and publishing the core texts in this area of research and practice. She wrote for such popular publications as the Guardian, Irish Independent, and Metro (UK). Several millions of readers have viewed her articles on The Conversation and Psychology Today. Her research was featured worldwide in the media, including CNN, Fox News, BBC, Sky News, New Zealand Evening Standard, and many others. For her work on wellbeing, she was acknowledged by the Irish Times as one of 30 people who make Ireland a better place. For more information, please go to her WEBSITE.
Dr Pádraic Dunne
Dr Pádraic Dunne (Associate Professor/Senior Lecturer) is an immunologist (research scientist), practicing psychotherapist, accredited senior coach and certified lifestyle medicine professional, based at the Centre for Positive Health Sciences (CPHS). As Principal Investigator of the Digital Health Research Group, Pádraic is interested in the development of health coach-led health and wellbeing programmes for the public and those with a chronic disease diagnosis. Online health coaching platforms have the capacity to deliver motivational and educational support to citizens, in conjunction with existing community-based services like Slaintecare Healthy Communities and Healthy Ireland. Pádraic is also a co-director of the Centre’s MSc in Positive Health Coaching.
Dr Aaron Jarden
Associate Professor Aaron Jarden is past Director of the Masters of Applied Positive Psychology (MAPP) program at the Faculty of Education, University of Melbourne. He is a wellbeing consultant, social entrepreneur, has multiple qualifications in philosophy, computing, education, and psychology, and is a prolific author and presenter. He has previously been a Senior Research Fellow at Flinders University, and Head of Research at the Wellbeing and Resilience Centre at the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI). He is founder and past president of the New Zealand Association of Positive Psychology, also founder and co-editor of the International Journal of Wellbeing, and lead investigator for the International Wellbeing Study amongst others
Dr Roger Bretherton
Dr Roger Bretherton is Programme Director for the Professional Diploma in Positive Health in the Centre for Positive Health Sciences at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, and Senior Fellow at the University of Lincoln (UK). He is a Chartered Clinical Psychologist, an Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society and a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. He is also on the faculty of the VIA Institute on Character, and conducts extensive training, consultancy and research on character strengths interventions. His research has investigated the benefits of humility in leaders, the role of mindfulness in character development, a strengths-based approach to pro-environmental behaviours, the role of wisdom in business leadership, and character strengths in entrepreneurs. He has authored two books, and dozens of articles and book chapters, and is a reviewer for several leading academic journals in applied psychology. He delivers coaching, training and keynotes across a broad range of public and private sector organizations.
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Dr Claudia Harzer
Professor Claudia Harzer is full professor for psychological assessment at the Medical School Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany. She earned her Ph.D. in psychology at the University of Zurich, Switzerland, and has been awarded the Dissertation Award by the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA). Her primary research interests include the role of individuals’ character strengths and strengths use for mental health in the workplace (e.g., job performance, counterproductive work behaviors, work-related well-being, work engagement). She has authored over 40 scientific publications and was invited to speak at events worldwide. She serves as reviewer for several leading academic journals in positive, personality, and work psychology. She has been teaching courses on positive psychology, health promotion, psychological assessment, and test development.
Helena Águeda Marujo
Helena Águeda Marujo is the Founder and Director of the UNESCO Chair on Education for Global Peace Sustainability of the University of Lisbon. Currently, she is an Associate Professor at Instituto Superior de Ciências Sociais e Politicas (Institute of Social and Political Sciences) from the University of Lisbon. She was an Invited Researcher with a Fulbright Scholarship at Massachusetts University, USA. She also serves as the Scientific Coordinator of the Post-graduation in Applied Positive Psychology. She is a Senior Researcher at Centro de Administração e Politicas Publicas (CAPP, Centre for Administration and Public Policies, University of Lisbon) where she created and coordinated for 7 years a Mission Unit on University Wellbeing (ISCSP-Wellbeing), which was the recipient of Merit Prizes in 2017 and 2019. She co-launched the project Contributions for Public Happiness, at Lisbon University. Helena has more than 60 scientific publications, including the authorship and co-authorship of six books. Helena coordinates in Portugal the Hope Barometer study, an international research project that involves 14 universities on 4 continents, which led to the recent publication of the free open book “Hope across cultures” (Springer, 2023).
Svala Sigurðardóttir MD
Svala is a medical doctor who has worked for over 3 years in the digital health field, where she was the clinical and therapeutic lead for the design and development of multiple disease-specific digital therapies (DTXs), for various chronic diseases, like Heart failure, Coronary artery disease, Rheumatoid arthritis and more. She works as a family physician in Iceland and is also a PhD candidate at the University of Iceland and Aarhus University. Her focus is on the effects of Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for patients in primary care with mild to moderate symptoms of anxiety and/or depression. Svala has a diploma in positive psychology and teaches positive health and introduction to basic positive psychology and mindfulness research to medical students, students in the Master of Public Health program in Iceland and the positive health part in the diploma program of positive psychology education in Iceland. Svala is passionate about introducing positive psychology and its application to physicians in primary care and hospital settings and connecting those working in the field especially related to lifestyle changes. Lastly, she is one of the founders of the Icelandic Lifestyle Medicine Association and the former executive secretary for the European Network of Positive Psychology (ENPP 2016-2022).
Braňo Kaleta
Braňo Kaleta is a PhD Scholar and a Research Assistant at the Centre for Positive Health Sciences. He holds a Master’s degree in Psychology with a focus on Neuroscience and Neuroimaging. While his research focuses on the benefits of nature and storytelling, his favourite topics also include awe, mortality, and virtue.
ENPP Advisory Team
Charles Martin-Krumm
Charles Martin-Krumm is full Professor in Psychology at the Ecole de Psychologues Praticiens de Paris (EPP). He is the director of the Vulnerability, Capability, Recovery research team at EPP. He is researcher at INSERM INSPIIRE UDL in University of Lorraine and associate at the Institut de Recherche Biomédicale des Armées (IRBA), in Brétigny. He is received the Fellow Award of the International Positive Psychology Association. Author of eleven books in psychology and sport sciences, and more than a hundred scientific publications, his research themes are related to quality of life and education in the fields of school, physical activity and sports, health and organisations.
Elisabeth Grimaud
Elisabeth Grimaud has a PhD in cognitive psychology. She is also trained as a linguist specializing in textual analysis, dietician and sports educator. She is a lecturer at the EPP school in Paris, France, and a research associate at the VCR laboratory. Her scientific interests focus on a multidisciplinary approach to cognitive reserve factors and successful aging, using qualitative approaches. Elisabeth is also co-president of the Association Française et francophone de Psychologie Positive (AFfPP).
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Marta Bassi
Marta Bassi, PhD, is an associate professor of general psychology at the University of Milano, Italy. Her research interests primarily focus on optimal experience and its role in psychological selection. She has conducted research concerning individuals’ quality of experience in areas such as education, leisure and health. She is a founding member of the Italian Society of Positive Psychology (SIPP) and of the European Flow Researcher’s Network (EFRN).
Matthew Smith is an Associate Professor and founding member of the Centre for Positive Psychology at Buckinghamshire New University (BNU), having co-developed the MSc Applied Positive Psychology (MAPP) at BNU since 2012. His research interests span positive psychology, applied social psychology, and exceptional human experience. Recent work has brought these interests together in exploring how ideas within positive psychology might impact people’s experiences of ‘luck’.
Corinna Peifer
Corinna Peifer is a Professor of Work and Organizational Psychology at the University of Lübeck, Germany and leads the research group Work and Health. At the interface between Organizational Psychology and Psychobiology, her research interests include topics such as flow experience, stress management and well-being at work. She is an active and founding member of the European Flow Researcher’s Network and German National Representative for the European Network of Positive Psychology (ENPP), as well as Vice President of the German Society for Positive Psychological Research (DGPPF).
Alena Slezackova
Alena Slezackova, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Psychology at the Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic. Her scientific interests include mainly hope, mental health, and well-being. She also has a special interest in the research and practice of mindfulness. Alena is a founder and director of the Czech Positive Psychology Centre (CPPC), a member of the Advisory Council of the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA), and the Country Representative for the Czech Republic in the European Network for Positive Psychology (ENPP). She has been a member of several international research projects and she likes to communicate, exchange experiences, and share knowledge with colleagues and students from abroad.