Cultural sensitivity in clinical practice will be front and centre at the international event, sponsored by ACAP.
ACAP University College will support the upcoming joint International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology (IACCP) and International Academy of Intercultural Research (IAIR) conference with a $1000 grant.
The conference, themed ‘Bridging Intercultural Divides in a Digitally Connected World’, will be held in Brisbane between 28 June and 1 July 2025.
It aims to bring together researchers and practitioners from disciplines including psychology, counselling, education, business communication and health sciences to explore culturally informed practices.
ACAP lecturer Dr Alice-Viviana Bercean is on the conference’s organising committee and said the insights that will be explored would encourage more holistic learning and teaching among teachers and students.
“Australia is one of the most culturally diverse countries in the world. More than 30 per cent of Australian residents are born overseas,” said Dr Bercean.
She said conferences like the IACCP/IAIR event in Brisbane encouraged researchers, practitioners, teachers and students to learn about, and from, other cultures to improve care for migrants.
“Migrants in Australia face significant barriers in accessing mental health services, including practical barriers like not knowing where to go or how to use Medicare. But they also face cultural barriers, such as stigma attached to mental illness. I truly believe that it's health professionals' duty of care to take responsibility in educating themselves about providing health services to individuals from different cultures.” - Dr Alice-Viviana Bercean
The grant will support two ACAP students to attend the conference, with opportunities to potentially present research papers or posters.
“There will be many sessions with practical applied knowledge where they can learn about research conducted in different countries – research that they wouldn’t come across easily,” Dr Bercean explained.
“There will also be a session where the focus will be on practical findings about how to do psychotherapy or counselling with clients who are migrants or have a refugee background.”
ACAP General Manager Lucy Schulz said the support for the conference reaffirmed ACAP’s dedication to teaching culturally informed care.