Thursday 23 July 17:15
- 18:45
Hall: 13 - Room 10 SA
Chair and Presenter:
Giordano Francesca
Co-Chair:
Milani Luca
Division: Division 5: Education and School Psychology
This symposium examines the role of resilience education as a scientifically grounded strategy to promote adaptation and psychological functioning in the face of contemporary global challenges, including war, displacement, climate change, and socio-political instability. While resilience has traditionally been studied as an individual trait, emerging evidence emphasizes its dynamic and context-sensitive nature, which can be cultivated through structured educational and training programs. The symposium brings together five empirical contributions that explore how resilience can be taught, practiced, and operationalized at different levels: within national education systems, among university students, and in humanitarian professional contexts.
Each presenter offers a unique contribution to this theme: Carmel Cefai reports results from a nationwide assessment of social-emotional skills and academic functioning in Maltese students from kindergarten to secondary school. The study provides large-scale empirical data to inform targeted educational policies and interventions promoting resilience in school systems.
• Shannon Lipscomb presents a pilot study evaluating the adaptation of a resilience-building intervention for undergraduates involved in internships and community work. The study highlights qualitative shifts in students' conceptualization of resilience and quantitative trends toward reduced stress and enhanced adaptability and empathic listening.
• Lana Batinić presents an educational program on resilience implemented with undergraduate psychology students at a Croatian university. The study investigates how structured, scaffolded learning can foster core resilience and interpersonal functioning. It offers a higher education perspective on resilience-building interventions.
FrancescaGiordanoexplorestheinterplaybetweenmeaning-makingandresiliencein66humanitarianprofessionalsoperatinginwar-affectedareasofeasternUkraine.UsingaMultilevelNetworkPsychometricsapproach,thestudyidentifiesreciprocalassociationsamongkeyresiliencemechanismsandrevealshowmeaning-makingprocessesdrivedailyempowerment,agency,andpositivereframing.•VeronicaHurtubiaToroexaminesthecompetenciesrequiredfortraining"tutorsofresilience"acrossthreehumanitariancontexts—Syria,Guatemala,andMozambique.Usingphenomenologicalanalysisandmixedmethods,thestudyhighlightstheimportanceofeducatinghelpingprofessionalstofosterresilienceprocessesinbeneficiaries,whileelucidatingculturallyembeddedmechanismsandtransferablepracticesrelevanttoprofessionaldevelopmentinsocio-educationalsettings.Collectively,thesepresentationsadvanceaconceptualizationofresilienceasaneducationaltargetandaprocessofadaptivefunctioning,groundedinempiricalevidenceandwithstrongtranslationalpotentialforschools,universities,andhumanitarianorganizations.Thenoveltyandrelevanceofthissymposiumlieinitsmultilevel,cross-cultural,andmethodologicallydiverseapproachtoresilienceasaneducationalobjective.Itintegratesqualitative,quantitative,andnetwork-psychometricmethodologiestogenerateevidence-basedinsightsintothemechanisms,competencies,andoutcomesofresilienceeducation.ThetopicalignswiththeCongress'sbroadermissionbyaddressinghowpsychologicalsciencecaninforminterventionscapableoffosteringadaptationandwellbeinginthefaceofsystemicchallenges.
