Claude-Hélène Mayer is a Professor in Industrial and Organisational Psychology at the Department of Industrial Psychology and People Management at the University of Johannesburg, South Africa. She is a Semester at Sea Alumni (SASFA22) and a Board member of the International Academy of Intercultural Research (IAIR). Claude is a Senior Editor for the Europe`s Journal of Psychology (EJOP), an Associate Editor for Frontiers in Psychology (Positive Psychology) and for the International Journal of Cross-Cultural Management (IJCCM). She holds Doctoral degrees in Psychology, Management and Cultural Anthropology. Her Venia Legendi is in Psychology with focus on Work, Organisational and Cultural Psychology (Europa Universität Viadrina, Frankfurt, Germany).
Her research areas include transcultural mental health, salutogenesis, transcultural conflict management and mediation, women in leadership, shame and love across cultures, The Fourth Industrial Revolution, and psychobiography. Together with Elisabeth Vanderheiden, she is the winner of the William B. Gudykunst Book Award 2023 for the “International Handbook of Love” (Springer), awarded by the IAIR. Additionally, she won two Silver Nautilus Awards 2024, both with special honours for academic rigor for her book: “Unwrapping Transcultural Romanitc Love Relationships” (Springer Brief) and another one together with six other editors for “Women`s Empowerment for a Sustainable Future”. Her research areas include transcultural mental health, salutogenesis, transcultural conflict management and mediation, women in leadership, shame and love across cultures, the Fourth Industrial Revolution, systems thinking and psychobiography. She is a licenced systemic family therapist and facilitator in family therapy (SG, Germany), constellation facilitator (KI), mediator and mediation facilitator (BM 2001-2021), hypnotherapist (TIM) and coach in private practice. Since 2005 she has been advising international companies on leadership, global team and organisational management, intercultural competence, diversity and conflict management, as international consultant.
Elisabeth Vanderheiden is a researcher, pedagogue, adult educator, intercultural mediator, and researcher. She currently serves as the CEO of the Global Institute for Transcultural Research, an organisation dedicated to interdisciplinary research in culture, positive psychology, education, and societal matters. In addition, she is the CEO of the NeuroTech Centre for Advanced Research, where she leads initiatives in the exploration of brain-machine interactions and artificial intelligence. Her work bridges diverse fields, offering unique insights into the intersections of technology, psychology, and cultural studies. Additionally, Vanderheiden holds the title of President of Catholic Adult Education in Germany and is the Managing Director of a Catholic adult education organisation in Rhineland-Palatinate. She has published numerous scientific books and articles. Her research interests range from shame as a resource, conflict, and love to andragogical research questions. She focuses particularly on cultural and transformative issues in the context of andragogy and positive psychology. Her work has received numerous awards, including the William B. Gudykunst Outstanding Book Award from the International Academy for Intercultural Research in July 2023 for the International Handbook of Love: Transcultural and Transdisciplinary Perspectives. Moreover, her book Empowerment for a Sustainable Future: Transcultural and Positive Psychology Perspectives (2024) received the Nautilus Award, Silver Winner 2024, Special Honors: Academic Rigor.