Preceding Works
The project "Entwicklung eines interdisziplinären Konzepts der „ambivalenzsensiblen Nachdenklichkeit“. Reflexive Resilienz für junge Fachkräfte im Gesundheitswesen und in Seelsorge/Spiritual Care" arose from preceding research on "Resilience and Humanities". Prof. Cornelia Richter and Prof. Franziska Geiser have carried out multiple different projects in the course of this research, most of all the research group DFG-FOR 2686 "Resilience in Religion and Spirituality".
DFG-FOR 2686 Resilience in Religion and Spirituality (2019-2023)
The research project "Resilienz in Religion und Spiritualität. Aushalten und Gestalten von Ohnmacht, Angst und Sorge" is cooperation of theology, philosophy, theological ethics/moral psychology, psychosomatic medicine and psychotherapy, pallitative medicine and spiritual care. The project's gain can be seen in the innovative attempt to combine the extensive potential of humanistic disciplines on the intersection of clinical psychology, psychotherapy and pallitative medicine with religion and spirituality in the field of research on resilience.
Therefore, the research group studies resilience in relation to what is described as the "religious and spiritual dimension" of human life in the current discourse on health. Methodically, the research presents a hermeneutically oriented combination of theoretical basic research and empirical research methods with the common goal of application-oriented research.
DFG 458628023: „Trajectories of perceived stress and resilience through the crisis and the influence of semantic representations of SARS-CoV-2 in healthcare and pastoral/spiritual care workers" (2021-2025)
The COVID-19-pandemic has challenged workers in the healthcare sector and in spiritual care substantially. In addition to the direct workload caused by personell shortage, ethical conflicts and risk of infection, semantic and symbolic representations of the crisis played a part in the perception of stress and resilience. Until now, only few interdisciplinary studies exist that do not only study individual stress, but also take into account the significance of cultural and linguistic interpretative patterns for processes of resilience.
VW Stiftung: “The role of transcultural semantics and symbols for resilience during the Corona pandemic – a hermeneutic approach to historical and intercultural expressions of severe crisis“
As of the time of this writing, in the Fall of 2022, the COVID-19 virus pandemic has been affecting the global community for over two years. Given the extreme stress that individuals, groups, and social systems have been under for this whole time, it is not surprising that the concept of “resilience” - associated with "hope for crisis resistance, stability, inner strength and a calm well-being" (Richter and Blank 2016) - has become a focus of interest in both social and academic settings.
Broadly, research may be grouped into those adapting natural-scientific and mechanical-ecological approaches and those adapting cultural- and social-scientific approaches. While being different regarding their respective research methods (quantitative vs. qualitative studies) and contexts, in both cases research has proven the irreplaceability of local actors and resources; in social environments in particular, “community” comes to the forefront.
NUM/BMBF: “Online Survey zu Belastungen und psychischen Ressourcen des medizinischen Personals während der COVID-19-Pandemie“
BMBF: „TEACH – Evaluation eines teambasierten Collaborative-Care-Modells bei koronarer Herzerkrankung“
Publications
Here you can find an overview over the publications that resulted from the projects mentioned above.
Other Output
Here you can find an overview over lectures, conferences and other media that resulted from the projects mentioned above.
Contact
Prof.'in Dr. Cornelia Richter
See also
Resilience in Religion and Spirituality
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The role of transcultural semantics and symbols for resilience during the Corona pandemic
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Trajectories of perceived stress and resilience
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