ICSP2027 Speakers

This page is updated periodically as the ICSP2027 program develops and additional speakers and presentation details are confirmed.

Belief in a just world. What significance does it have for mental health, and how does it relate to the belief in karma?

In Western psychology, the belief in a just world (BJW) describes the assumption that everyone gets what they deserve. This fundamental psychological need enables predictable, goal-oriented action. Specifically, the personal belief in a just world (PBJW) promotes mental health, with optimism and self-efficacy acting as central mediators (Schniesko & Lüdmann, 2026).

In Asian cultures shaped by Buddhism and Hinduism, a very similar concept exists: the belief in karma. Both constructs stem from the need for order, predictability, and fairness, yet they differ fundamentally in their moral framework and temporal dimension.

This lecture examines the close relationship and key differences between the Western just-world belief and the spiritual doctrine of karma. Drawing on empirical findings (e.g., Chobthamkit et al., 2022), it explores how these two constructs interact and how their combination impacts mental health.

Holding Space for Helping Professionals: A Passport to Becoming Through Art, Nature, Voice, and Community

Helping professionals hold the stories, pain, and healing journeys of others, yet they often have limited opportunities to receive the same compassion, connection, and restorative care they provide. Counselors Amy Tuski and Bernadette Stanford introduce Passport to Becoming, a restorative framework that guides helping professionals through four movements: Gather, Release, Grow, and Declare. Through expressive arts, reflective writing, voice, sound, storytelling, nature, and contemplative practice, participants will reconnect with themselves and experience brief, accessible activities that invite grounding, emotional expression, symbolic meaning-making, and collective connection. Participants will leave with a practical four-stage framework and a declaration word or symbol representing how they want to move forward with renewed presence and purpose.

The Intelligence of the Pattern: Understanding the Unconscious Architecture of Human Behavior and Lasting Change

This presentation explores the hidden intelligence beneath human behavior and the unconscious patterns that shape how we think, respond, relate, and make decisions.
Rather than viewing behaviors such as perfectionism, people-pleasing, avoidance, overachievement, or emotional withdrawal simply as problems to eliminate, we'll examine the protective functions they may once have served.
Drawing from psychology, nervous system awareness, unconscious patterning, identity development, and transformational work, this talk invites a more compassionate and precise understanding of change.
We'll explore why insight alone is often not enough, how identity and learned responses can preserve familiar patterns, and what helps create lasting transformation.
At the intersection of psychology and spirituality, this presentation asks a deeper question: What becomes possible when we stop fighting our patterns and begin understanding the system that created them?