On March 18, 2024, students of the Psychology and Culture course attended an online class session inviting Pina Marsico, PhD. She serves as the Associate Professor of Development and Educational Psychology at the University of Salerno in Italy, a Visiting Professor at the PhD Programme in Psychology at the Federal University of Bahia in Brazil, and an Associate Researcher at Aalborg University in Denmark. With extensive experience in research within the educational field, she is now the leading figure in the Cultural Psychology of Education. Through an approximately 100-minute learning session, precisely from 2.20 PM to 4 PM, the students were granted an opportunity to delve into the interplay among culture, the individual, and the environment.

On Monday, 3rd June 2024, students of Psychological Intervention course embarked on a field study to Lembaga Pembinaan Khusus Anak (LPKA) Klas II Yogyakarta, an institution in Yogyakarta that aims to help children juveniles aged 14-18 on behavior improvement before returning to the society. The whole class, which consisted of 45 students in total, were expected to observe and conduct several interviews with stakeholders and children of the LPKA for their field study report.

Upon arriving at the place, the students gathered at the main hall where they sat side by side with children of LPKA, or more well-known as ‘anak binaan’. As it was midday, the students and anak binaan were divided into 8 different groups where they sat in circles to have their lunch together. The students were encouraged to explore more on the daily activities of the anak binaan and how being in LPKA has helped them on behavior improvement. read more

On 31st of May 2024, Students of Children and Adolescents with Special Needs (CASN) course, a course where students learn about types of disabilities/disorders experienced by children and adolescents, recently had the incredible opportunity to visit Wahana Keluarga Cerebral Palsy (WKCP), a remarkable community dedicated to supporting individuals with cerebral palsy and their families. This visit was not just a learning experience but one filled with understanding and empathy.

The visit to WKCP offered a chance for students to learn firsthand about the concepts they learn in class from family members of children with cerebral palsy and the inspiring members of WKCP who are diagnosed with cerebral palsy themselves. They shared their strategies for coping, the hurdles they face daily, and the unwavering love and dedication that fuels their journey. From this experience, students get to gain new insights and knowledge, as well as building new connections from the local community that aims to provide a safe space for individuals with cerebral palsy and their families. read more

Almeira Hadi, known as Mella, was a student at IUP Psychology from batch 2018 who is currently pursuing her masters degree in School Psychology at Leiden University, Netherlands. 

When asked on why she decided to pursue School Psychology, a rather rare choice for Psychology undergraduates, Mella revealed that she had always been passionate in teaching since high school. During her time as an undergraduate in IUP Psychology, she had the chance to become a lecturer’s assistant for 4 times, and she enjoyed giving feedback on students’ assignments as well as the dynamics of teachings. Following her graduation as an undergraduate, Mella had the experience as an intern for 6 months at Sekolah Cikal, where she then continued to be a teacher there. read more

The Psychology Department at State Islamic University Sunan Kalijaga, Yogyakarta, conducted a writing competition for the year 2023. The writings are incorporated in a journal titled Jurnal Psikologi Integratif. One of the IUP Psychology students batch 2019, Beatrice Febe Fedolina, with guidance from Mrs. Edilburga Wulan Saptandari as her supervisor, participated in the competition and successfully won the 2nd Best Article. The title of her article is “Perceived Social Support as a Predictor of Acculturative Stress Among Indonesian Exchange Students in Europe.” Although studying abroad seems very interesting and exciting, the number of changes and differences students need to adapt to could make them feel overwhelmed and eventually stressed. Acculturative stress is a decrease in ethnic minorities’ mental health and well-being that occurs throughout the process of adapting to a new culture. Many factors affect students’ acculturative stress levels; one example is the social support they receive from their surroundings. The findings from prior studies have demonstrated that social support is a positive coping mechanism for dealing with stress and psychological adjustment by improving functioning and acting as a buffer against adverse outcomes. To fill a gap in the literature on Asian international students’ acculturative stress levels, specifically those who originated from Indonesia, this research was conducted to determine whether perceived social support predicts students’ acculturative stress levels. read more