Københavns Universitet - DIS Study Abroad in Scandinavia
Mental Health, Immigration, & Multiculturalism
I studied the intersection of culture, politics, positive psychology, and philosophies and praxis of mental health as a Political Science and Psychology student at Københavns Universitet - DIS Study Abroad in Scandinavia. Below are three pieces I wrote during my study - the first centered on Danish national identity and tensions with the concept of multiculturalism, second piece on phenomenology and heterophenomenology and how both disciplines influence our understanding of mental health diagnoses in the health care system, and the third piece focused on positive psychology and normative perspectives on what it means (maybe) to be happy.
The Migrant Crisis: Danish National Identity and Multiculturalism
“Danish society, characterized by a generous welfare system, ‘hygge’, high social trust and cohesion, low crime rates, and listed as the third happiest place to live in the world by the World Happiness Report, purports a nation of mere perfection. With a country of 5 million people, there is this strong sense of nationalism and vitality about what it means to be Danish. Moreover, the recent migrant crisis facing Europe has affected this sense of Danish nationalism and pride. How does the recent migrant crisis affect Danish national identity, and how does the strong Danish social cohesion between citizens play a role in immigrant assimilation and the concept of multiculturalism?”
Read my full paper here.
Consciousness & the Outside World
“In order to understand what it is like to suffer mentally, we need to be able to understand consciousness in view of objectivity and subjectivity. Phenomenology strives to analyze the first person perspective of one’s consciousness in order to understand why someone suffers mentally. Phenomenology psychopathology, thus, emphasizes the roots of mental suffering in a patient’s prereflective experience, whilst focusing on the importance of the basic structures of consciousness such as embodiment, self-awareness, and intersubjectivity.”
Read my full paper here.
Why “Happiness” May be Making Us Unhappy
“Happiness functions as a state of psychological, emotional and social well-being, though when we think of happiness, we picture ourselves at our most optimal experience. We think of the moment we won our basketball game, when we were promoted for our job, when we got that great internship or when we fell in love with our soulmate. Happiness, thus, has generally been understood as an emotion that we can obtain, that we can pursue, that we can experience if we search for it. In this way, happiness is a pursuit and a goal, rather than a state of psychological, emotional and social well-being.”
Read more here.