Dr. Erminia Colucci
Personal details
Education
Contacts:
CIMH (Centre for International Mental Health), School of Population and
Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Level 5, 207 Bouverie St,
3053 Carlton Melbourne VIC Australia
Tel: (+ 61) 03 8344 3174 Facsimile: (+ 61) 03 9348 2794
Email: ecolucci@unimelb.edu.au or fera_76@hotmail.com
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Citizenship: Italian and Australian
Place of birth: Italy
Date of birth: 01/07/1976 Italy
Title: Dr. (PhD Cultural Psychiatry)
Languages: Italian (mother-tongue), English (TOEFL), French
(Intermediate certificate, University of Manchester), basic Spanish
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Currently completing MPhil in Ethnographic Documentary (Visual
Anthropology, School of Social Sciences), University of Manchester
(UK).
Feb-May 2010 Course in Research methodology in Cultural Community
Development (part of Master in CCD, Victoria College of Arts,
University of Melbourne)
August 2008, Awarded a PhD (D.Phil) in Cultural Psychiatry, School of
Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, The University of Queensland
(Brisbane, Australia).
2006 Visiting scholar at the University of Melbourne (MelbourneAustralia), CIMH-Centre for International Mental Health, School of
Population Health.
May 2002 Graduate Certificate in Data Analysis in Psychology at
University of Florence.
January 2002, successfully qualified as a Psychologist (University of
Padua): member of the Italian Psychologists Register number 3849
since the 1st March 2002.
From December 2001 to January 2003, completed the I year of the
School of Specialization in Cognitive Psychotherapy at “Istituto
Berna” (Mestre-Venezia, Italy), including internship in the
Association for the social integration of Psychiatric outpatients
“L’Incontro” (Asolo, Italy).
October 2001 Erasmus Intensive Program in Mathematical
Psychology, University of Oldenburg, Germany.
From 16 March 2001 to 1 September 2001 Training in Research at
AISRAP -Australian Institute for Suicide Research and Prevention,
Griffith University, Brisbane (Australia)
From 1 September 2000 to 12 March 2001 Training in Clinical
Psychology in Padua Central Hospital and in Suicidology at the WHO
Collaborating Centre for Research and Training in Suicide Prevention
(University of Padua, Italy).
27/6/2000 Bachelor in Psychology, Clinical and Community Psychology
curriculum, achieved with full marks of 110/110 summa cum laude
(First class Honours) at the University of Padua (Italy)
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1
Scholarships/
Fellowships
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22/7/1995 Five-years long Diploma for primary school teacher
(Psycho-Socio-Pedagogic Institute) achieved with full marks of 60/60
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From 1995 to 2000 winner of six annual undergraduate competitive
scholarships sponsored by ESU- University of Padua (Italy)
March 2003-September 2006 winner of the competitive
scholarships: Australian Commonwealth Government Department of
Education, Science & Training Award (IPRS) and of The University of
Queensland Award (UQIPRS) for International Postgraduate
Research Studies
HORN (Hyogo Overseas Research Network) fellowship, KUIS
University (Japan), 2008
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Awards/
Prizes
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Jobs
The University of Queensland Travel Award 2004 (GSRTA)
The Dr Helen Row–Zonta Memorial Prize 2005 (from Zonta
International Club)
First prize for best poster at the XXIV IASP conference
(International Association for Suicide Prevention), 2007, Killarney,
Ireland
Emerging Research LIFE award 2009 (Suicide Prevention Australia)
Full-time employments:
 2007-current Research Fellow and Lecturer, Centre for International
Mental Health, School of Population and Global Health, The
University of Melbourne (Australia) [Honorary Lecturer during the
year 2012].
 2002-2003 Psychologist in a nursing home for 100 elderly and 25
mentally impaired/ill young people “La Madonnina”, Bassano del
Grappa, Italy
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Part-time/casual employments:
2012-current Media Specialist/Lecturer of short course “Visual
Research Methods”, University of Philippines (Laguna, Philippines)
2009-current Guest Researcher for Kansai University of
International Studies, School of Psychology (Japan)
2009-2010 Consultant for Victorian Foundation for Survivors of
Torture (alias Foundation House, Melbourne)
2009-2010, Tutor for the Master in Clinical Psychology, School of
Health Sciences, RMIT University (Melbourne)
June 2009, UN Consultant for workshop “Youth mental health and
self-harm” for UNICEF Adolescent Development and Participation
meeting (UNICEF Asia-Pacific Region, Bangkok).
Oct 2008-Jan 2009, Guest Lecturer (supported by HORN
fellowship), School of Psychology, KUIS University (Japan).
2007-2008 Tutor in Health Practice (HP2 in 2007 and HP3 in 2008)
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Successful
Grant
Applications
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for Medicine students, (casual), School of Population Health, The
University of Melbourne.
October-Nov 2007, Guest Lecturer, Master in Clinical Psychology,
School of Psychology, Dev Sanskriti University, Haridwar, India.
2007 Consultant for the Centre for Forensic Behavioural Science,
Monash University, Melbourne.
2003-2006: Casual teaching in youth suicide prevention for the
Course in Developmental Psychology, School of Psychology, Padua
(Italy).
2003-2005 part-time research assistant for The University of
Queensland, Department of Psychiatry.
2001: Australian Commonwealth grant for a project regarding a
survey about the suicidal behaviour and an intervention with youth (a
joint application between AISRAP and The South Coast Mental
Health Promotion Unit – Gold Coast, Australia).
2006: Queensland Government subsidy to present at the Queensland
suicide and self-harm prevention conference
2007: Ogloff, Mullen, Thomas & Colucci, Review of suicide and selfharm instrument and protocol for the Australian Department of
Immigration and Citizenship (US$50,000)
2007: Minas & Jorm (PI Colucci), Development of suicide first aid
guidelines for Asian countries, American Foundation for Suicide
Prevention (US$19,000)
2008: Colucci, HORN Fellowship, Promoting mental health and
preventing suicide among Japanese school children (Yen 600000 plus
local funds).
2009-2011: Colucci, Szwarc, Minas, Guerra, Paxton, Refugee youth
and mental health services, William Buckland Foundation and
Sidney Myer Fund, AU$78,200
2010: O’Connor, Field, Colucci, Reardon, Minas, Pryor (PI Colucci).
Culturally determined barriers and nature of Domestic Violence (DV)
within the Australian Indian Community”. AU$76,000 (Legal Service
Board and Australia India Society of Victoria). O’Connor & Colucci,
Australia culture awareness training and research $20,000 (Victoria
Multicultural Commission). Colucci, Windows on the new world:
Australia from the eyes of international students, $3000 (Knowledge
Transfer Grant) plus sponsors. Colucci, CCRAG (Cultural and
Community Relations grant) for Photovoice project on International
Students AU$9,000.
2011: Contributed to the preparation of the tender for Mental
Health in Multicultural Australia national project (AU$ 900.000);
Colucci and Nadera, WHO and CBM funding for training on
Community-based suicide prevention training in the Philippines (US$
12,000). Cultural and Community Relations grant for community action
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project for the prevention of domestic violence against Indian women
AU$5,000;
Publications
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Colucci E. (2004). Il suicidio adolescenziale (Trans. Youth suicide),
Psicologia dell’Eta’ Evolutiva, Jun, pp. 119-128
Dello Buono M., Daru’ E., Colucci E., Pavan L. (2004). Predictors of
suicide risk across the life cycle: a study of 511 suicides, Rivista di
Psichiatria, Vol. 29 (5), Oct, pp. 340-348
Meneghel, M., Scocco, P., Colucci, E. et al.. (2004). Suicidal behaviour
in Italy, pp 211-217, in Schmidtke, A., Bille-Brahe, U., De Leo, D.,
Kerkhof, A. (Ed.), Suicidal behaviour in Europe, Ashland, US: Hogrefe
& Huber
Colucci, E. (2006). The cultural facet of suicidal behaviour: its
importance and negligence, AeJAMH (Australian e-Journal for the
Advancement of Mental Health), Vol 5 (3), pp. 1-13.
Colucci, E., Martin, G., Marsella, A.J. & Schweitzer, R. (2007). Youth
suicide: Social representation, attitudes and meanings among
students in Italy, India and Australia. The preliminary results. In
Rogers, J. R. (Ed.), Proceedings for the 39th American Association of
Suicidology Conference, Apr-May 2006, Seattle, Washington, US
Colucci, E. & Martin, G. (2007). The ethno-cultural aspects of youth
suicide: Rates and methods of youth suicide, Suicide and LifeThreatening Behaviour, Vol. 37 (2), pp. 197-221
Colucci, E. & Martin, G. (2007). The ethno-cultural aspects of youth
suicide: Risk Factors, precipitating agents and attitudes towards
suicide, Suicide and Life-Threatening Behaviour, Vol. 37 (2), pp. 222237
Colucci, E. (2007). “Focus groups can be fun”: The use of activityoriented questions in focus group discussions, Qualitative Health
Journal,
Vol.
17
(10),
pp.
1422-1433,
(http://qhr.sagepub.com/cgi/content/short/17/10/1422?rss=1&ssour
ce=mfc), [Ranked one of the most read articles in Qualitative
health research, www.feedage.com/feeds/2190295/most-readfull-text-articles]
Colucci, E. & Minas, H. (2007).“The people making suicide prevention
programs haven’t gone out and sourced from young people what it is
that they want”: A cross-cultural study on help-seeking and
suggestions for youth suicide prevention, World Psychiatry
Association (WPA) International Congress, Dec 2007, Melbourne,
Australia. Abstract published in Australian and New Zealand Journal
of Psychiatry, Vol. 31 (Suppl 2), A329
Colucci, E. (2008). Recognizing spirituality in the assessment and
prevention of suicidal behaviour. World Cultural Psychiatry Research
Review (WCPRR), Special issue: Suicide and Culture, Vol. 3 (2), pp. 774
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95, (http://www.wcprr.org/index-03_02.htm).
Colucci, E. (2008). Recognizing spirituality in the assessment and
prevention of suicidal behaviour. Proceedings for Diversity in Health,
Mar 2008, Sidney, Australia
Colucci E. (2008) The cultural meaning of suicide: A comparison
between Italian, Indian and Australian students. Doctoral
dissertation. Australia: The University of Queensland
Colucci, E. & Martin, G. (2008). Spirituality and religion along the
suicidal path, Suicide and Life-Threatening Behaviour, Vol. 38 (2), pp.
229-244.
Colucci, E. & Martin G. (2008). Spirituality and suicide: what do we
know and what should we know? Proceedings for Diversity in Health,
Mar 2008, Sidney, Australia
Colucci, E., & Minas, H. (2008). A cross-cultural in-depth study of
attitudes towards suicide among Italian, Indian and Australian
youths. Proceedings for Diversity in Health, Mar 2008, Sidney,
Australia
Ogloff, J., Mullen, P., Thomas, S. & Colucci, E. (2008), Review of
suicide and self-harm instrument and protocol, Prepared for the
Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship
Minas, H., & Colucci, E., Jorm, A.F., (2009). Evaluation of Mental
Health First Aid training with members of the Vietnamese community
in Melbourne, Australia, International Journal of Mental Health
Systems, Vol 3(19).
Colucci E. (2009), Recognizing spirituality in the assessment and
prevention of suicidal behaviour, European Network of Research on
Religion, Spirituality and Health - Newsletter July 2009
(http://www.rish.ch/dynasite.cfm?dsmid=92513)
Colucci, E. et al. (2010), Mental Health First Aid guidelines for helping
a suicidal person: a Delphi consensus study in India, International
Journal of Mental Health Systems, 4:4 (designated as Highly
Accessed) http://www.ijmhs.com/content/4/1/4
Colucci, E. et al. (2010), Mental Health First Aid guidelines for helping
a suicidal person: a Delphi consensus study in the Philippines,
International
Journal
of
Mental
Health
Systems,
4:32
http://www.ijmhs.com/content/4/1/32
Colucci, E. et al. (2011), Mental Health First Aid guidelines for helping
a suicidal person: a Delphi consensus study in Japan. International
Journal
of
Mental
Health
Systems,
5:12
http://www.ijmhs.com/content/5/1/12
Colucci, E. & Nadera, D. (2011). Manual for training in Suicide First
Aid Guidelines for the Philippines, Manila (Philippines).
Colucci, E., Minas, H., Szwarc, J., Paxton, J. and Guerra, C. (2011). A
mental health research agenda for people of refugee background in
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Australia:
a
consensus
study
(Report)
http://www.focushealth.com.au/events/Speakers/harryminas
Colucci, E. & Lester, D., Eds (2012), Suicide and Culture:
Understanding the context. U.S:Hogrefe Publishing.
Colucci, E., Szwarc, J., Minas, H., Paxton, J. and Guerra, C. (2012).
The utilisation of mental health services among children and young
people from a refugee background: A systematic literature review.
International Journal of Culture and Mental Health (Ahead of print).
Lenzi, M., Colucci, E. and Minas, H. (2012). Suicide, culture and society
from a cross-national perspective. Cross-cultural research, 46(1), 5071.
Totaro, S. & Colucci, E. (2012). Suicide and artists: stereotypes and
beliefs. Rivista di Psicologia Clinica, 2 (112-128).
Tarchi, C., & Colucci, E. (2013). Youth suicide in Germany: A review of
the literature. World Cultural Psychiatry Research Review 8(1), (2128).
Colucci, E., Minas, H., Szwarc, J., Paxton, J. and Guerra, C.
(submitted). Barriers and facilitators to the utilization of mental
health services among young people of refugee backgrounds.
http://www.foundationhouse.org.au/resources/publications_and_reso
urces.htm
Colucci, E., O’Connor, M., Field, K., Baroni, A., Pryor, R., & Minas, H. (in
press). Nature of domestic/family violence and barriers to services
among Indian immigrant women. Alerstice. International Journal of
Intercultural Research (Intimate partner violence and cultural
diversity).
Colucci, E., & Heredia Montesinos, A. (in press). Violence against
women and suicide in the context of migration. Suicidology Online.
Colucci E., Minas, H. (in press) Attitudes towards Youth Suicide. A
Comparison Between Italian, Indian and Australian Students.
Proceedings International Association of Cross-Cultural Psychology
conference, July 2010.
Colucci E. (in press) Arts-Based Research in Cultural Mental Health.
Proceedings International Association of Cross-Cultural Psychology
conference, July 2010.
Totaro, S. & Colucci, E. Romantic perception of suicide among artists
(submitted to Death Studies).
Colucci E., O'Connor M., Pereek R., De Giovanelli F. Minas HK., (under
submission), Spiritual well-being, beliefs and suicide among young
college students in India.
Colucci, E. & Baroni, A. (under submission). Community Participatory
Theatre as research method on domestic violence among Indian
immigrant women.
Colucci E., (under submission in ‘Ethnography’). Ethnographic photo
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and film-documentary to study about human rights among mentally ill.
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Presentation at
Conferences
(unless
otherwise
specified, they
are
all
oral
presentations)
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Invited publications:
Colucci, E. (2008). On the use of focus groups in cross-cultural
research, 233-252, in Liamputtong, P. & Rumbold, J. (Eds), Doing
cross-cultural research: Ethical and methodological considerations.
Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Springer
Colucci, E. (2009). Book Review: Liamputtong, P. & Rumbold, J. (Eds.),
Knowing differently: Arts-based and collaborative research methods,
Nova Science Publishers, The International Journal of Social
Research Methodology, Vol 12 (2), p. 173-176.
Colucci, E., (2009), Cultural issues in suicide risk assessment, in
Kumar, U. & Mandal, M.K., Suicidal Behavior: Assessment of Peopleat-risk, New Delhi: SAGE, pp. 107-135
Colucci, E., (2012), Spirituality, religion and suicide, in Pompili, M.
(Ed.) Suicide: a Comprehensive Perspective“, Bentham EBooks
Colucci, E. & Pryor, R. (in press), Prevention of violence against women,
in Okpaku, S. (Ed.) Global Mental Health, Cambridge University Press.
Buffoli, A. & Colucci, E. (under submission). The risk of suicide among
gays, lesbians, and transgender. Manuale di Suicidologia (Handbook of
Suicidology), Girardi, G. and Pompili, M. (Eds).
Colucci, E., The cultural meaning of youth suicide, Postgraduate
conference, Oct 2004, The University of Queensland, Brisbane,
Australia
Colucci, E. (presenter) & Martin, G., Culture and the meaning of
suicide: A comparison between Australian, Indian and Italian
students. Preliminary results, International Association for Suicide
Prevention (IASP), Sept 2005, Durban, South-Africa
Colucci E. (presenter) & Martin G., Ethnocultural aspects of suicide in
young people, Diversity in Health, Oct 2005, Melbourne, Australia
Colucci E. (presenter) & Martin G., Culture and the meaning of suicide:
A comparison between Australian, Indian and Italian students.
Preliminary results from the Indian sample, Asia-Pacific Suicide
Prevention Conference, March 2006, Singapore (abstract accepted)
Colucci, E. (presenter) & Martin, G., Culture and the meaning of
suicide: A comparison between Australian, Indian and Italian
students. Results from the Australian sample, Queensland Suicide
and Self-harm Prevention Conference, Mar 2006, Brisbane, Australia
Colucci, E. (presenter) & Martin, G., The Neglect of Spirituality in
Suicidology, Transcultural Psychiatry Section of the World
Psychiatric Association (TPA-WPA), Apr 2006, Wien, Austria
Colucci, E. (presenter) & Martin, G, Youth Suicide: Social
Representation, Attitudes and Meanings among Students in Italy,
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India and Australia. The preliminary results, 39th American
Association of Suicidology (AAS) Conference, Apr-May 2006,
Seattle, Washington
Bartocci, G. (presenter) & Colucci, E., Il Suicidio in un’ ottica
transculturale (trans. Suicide in a transcultural perspective), Suicidio
tra prevenzione e culture, Associazione Famiglie Italiane per la
Prevenzione del Suicidio (Association of Italian Families for the
Prevention of Suicide), May 06, Palermo, Italy
Colucci, E., “Focus groups can be fun”: The use of activity-oriented
questions, IIQM Conference Advances in Qualitative Methods, July
2006, Gold Coast, Australia
Colucci, E.. “The people making suicide prevention programs haven’t
gone out and sourced from young people WHAT it is that THEY
want”, Postgraduate Conference, May 2007, The University of
Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
Cagnoli, A. & Colucci, E. “Suicidal behaviour among drug-addicted
Italian adolescents”, VI National Congress on Prevention in School
and in the Community, June 2007, Padua (Italy)
1) Colucci, E. “The cultural meaning of suicide; A comparison between
Italian, Indian and Australia students”; 2) Colucci, E. “Gender-related
issues in youth suicide”. Posters: 3) Colucci, E. & Martin, G.
“Spirituality and suicide: What do we know and what should we
know?”; 4) Buffoli, A. & Colucci, E. “Suicide prevention: What young
Italian lesbians, gays and bisexuals believe it should be done”; 5)
Buffoli, A. & Colucci, E. “Self-harm and suicidal behaviour among
young Italian lesbians, gays and bisexuals” (First prize winner); 6)
Cagnoli, A. & Colucci, E. “Suicidal behaviour in young drug addicted
Italians”, Aug-Sept 2007, International Association for Suicide
Prevention (IASP), Killarney, Ireland.
1) Colucci, E. (presenter) & Minas, H. “There is no person we can
freely talk: Help-seeking behaviour and suggestions on youth suicide
prevention among Italian, Indian and Australian students”; Posters: 2)
Buffoli, A. & Colucci, E. “Attitudes towards suicide and reasons for
youth suicide among young Italian lesbians, gays and bisexuals”; 3)
Cagnoli, A. & Colucci, E. “Suicidal behaviour in young drug addicted
Italians”, Transcultural Psychiatry Section of the World Psychiatric
Association (TPA-WPA), Sept 2007, Stockholm, Sweden.
Colucci, E. (presenter) & Minas, H. “The people making suicide
prevention programs haven’t gone out and sourced from young people
what it is that they want”: A cross-cultural study on help-seeking and
suggestions for youth suicide prevention”, WPA (World Psychiatric
Association) International Congress, Nov-Dec 2007, Melbourne,
Australia.
1) Colucci, E. (presenter) & Martin G. (2008). Spirituality and suicide:
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what do we know and what should we know? 2) Colucci, E., (presenter)
& Minas, H. (2008). “I already hate him:” A cross-cultural in-depth
study of attitudes towards suicide among Italian, Indian and
Australian youths. Poster: 3) Colucci, E. Recognizing spirituality in the
assessment and prevention of suicidal behaviour. Diversity in Health,
Mar 2008, Sidney, Australia
1) Colucci, E., Gender and youth suicide in different cultures; Posters:
2) Colucci, E., Meanings in life and suicide prevention; 3) Colucci, E.,
Attitudes towards youth suicide among Italian, Indian and Australian
students; 4) Colucci, E. & Minas, H., Help-seeking behaviour and
youth suicide in different cultures; 5) Buffoli, A. & Colucci, E.,
Attitudes towards suicide among Italian young lesbians, gays and
bisexuals; 6) Buffoli, A. & Colucci, E., Self-harm and suicidal
behaviour among adult Italian lesbians, gays and bisexuals. ESSSB12
(European Symposium on Suicide and Suicidal Behaviour), Aug 2008,
Glasgow, Scotland.
Colucci, E. (Guest speaker), LIFE Framework: Suicide prevention in
Australia, Congress of the Japanese Society of Public Health, Nov
2008, Fukuoka, Japan.
Colucci, E. (Guest speaker), Suicide Prevention in Australia vs. Japan,
Congress of the Japanese Society of Mental Health, Nov 2008,
Beppu, Japan.
Colucci, E. (Guest speaker), Youth mental health and self-harm in
Asian-Pacific developing countries, UNICEF Asia-Pacific Adolescent
Development and Participation meeting, June 2009, Bangkok,
Thailand.
Colucci, E. (Guest speaker), Suicide in different cultures, World
Suicide Prevention Day, Sept 2009, Rome (Italy)
(Chair/organizer) Symposia “Spirituality, meanings and suicide: A
multi-cultural perspective”; (Co-chair/organizer) Symposia “Artsbased therapy and research in Cultural Psychiatry. Cultural traditions
and techniques”; (presenter) Colucci, E., Spirituality/religion, beliefs
in afterlife and youth suicide; Colucci, E., Arts-based research;
Posters: Buffoli, A. & Colucci, E., Suicide prevention: the point of view
of Italian gays, lesbians and bisexuals; Buffoli, A. & Colucci, E., Selfharm and suicidal behaviour among adult Italian lesbians, gays and
bisexuals, World Association of Cultural Psychiatry, Sept 2009,
Norcia (Italy).
Colucci, E. and Eales, M., Arts and suicide: A short-documentary on a
suicide survivor’s artwork; Colucci, E., Cultural attitudes,
religious/spiritual beliefs and suicide among young Indians. poster:
Buffoli, A. & Colucci, E., Suicide prevention: the Italian homosexuals’
point of view, IASP (International Association for Suicide Prevention)
2009, Montevideo (Uruguay)
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O’Connor M., Colucci, E. & Minas, H. Assessment of the need for
domestic violence services for the Melbourne Indian community,
RANZCP (Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists)
conference, 2010, Auckland (New Zealand).
Colucci, E., member of scientific committee, Chair Symposium
“Suicide and human/women rights” and co-facilitator workshop
“Imagination Inspiration Improvisation: A Visual Arts Enquiry into
Understanding Suicide”. Colucci, E. & O’Connor, M., Domestic/family
violence among Indian immigrant women and suicide; Colucci, E. et al.,
Suicide First Aid Guidelines for the Philippines; Eales, M. & Colucci, E.
What does being suicidal feel like? A co-researcher/bricolage
approach to understanding suicide; Fernandes, A. & Colucci, E. The
Effectiveness of Suicide Intervention Programmes for South Asian
Youth. IASP (International Association for Suicide Prevention) 2011,
Beijing (China).
Colucci, E., Gender issues and suicide in different cultures; Colucci,
E., Video session Art and Mind (chair and presenter); O’Connor,
Colucci, E., et al., Modified forum theatre: a novel means of
prevention and early recognition of family abuse and domestic
violence in an Australian Indian community, World Association of
Cultural Psychiatry, Mar 2012, London, U.K.
Colucci, E., Free from Pasung:The fight for human rights for
Indonesiaʼs mentally ill. Visual Anthropology Workshop on “Visualising
Crises”, Ascona, Switzerland, Jul-Aug, 2012
McDonough, S. & Colucci, E., Cultural responsiveness learning
programs: building the capability of mental health practitioners in
multicultural Australia, Melbourne, The Mental Health Services
conference, Aug 2013.
Forthcoming:
 Colucci, E. The visual representation of spiritual healing practices.
IUAES, Aug 2013 U.K.
 Colucci, E. ‘Free from Pasung’: Ethnographic film-documentary to
study human rights and mental health; Colucci, E. Visual Methods in
Global Mental Health. IVM3 (International Visual Methods
conference), New Zealand, Sept 2013
Conference
organization
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Ideator and organizer of photo-exhibition for World Association of
Cultural Psychiatry, Sept 2009, Norcia (Italy).
Ideator and organizer of photo-exhibition for Cultural Psychology
International Association of Cross-Cultural Psychology 2010
(http://www.iaccp2010.com/photography/), (Australia)
Scientific Committee, International Association for Suicide
Prevention conference 2011 (China)
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Advisor/
Assessor
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Book reviews
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Journal
reviewer/
editorial board
Lectures
seminars
(selection)
and
2007, NHMRC (National Health and Medical Research CouncilAustralia) suicide prevention grant application
2009, State-wide forum: Youth Human Rights charter (Centre for
Multicultural Youth, Melbourne).
2009, Suicide Risk Assessment and Management Guidelines,
Department of Human Services, Victoria Government, Australia.
2010, Advisory group multi-media project with Karen refugees
(Centre for Multicultural Youth, Melbourne).
2012-: Steering committee Young Refugee Network (Australia)
2008, Liamputtong, P. & Rumbold, J. (Eds.), Knowing differently:
Arts-based and collaborative research methods, Nova Science
Publishers (published in The International Journal of Social Research
Methodology).
2008, The veil of silence: Human rights and suicide, in Dudley, M.,
Silove D., & Gale, F. (Eds.), Mental health and human rights.
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Mental Health, Religion and Culture
Social Science & Medicine
Qualitative Health Research
International Journal of Culture and Mental Health
Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences
Scandinavian Journal of Psychology
The International Journal of Interdisciplinary Social Sciences
Suicide and Life-Threatening Behaviour
International Journal of Mental Health Systems
Transcultural Psychiatry
Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry
Suicidology Online
Journal of Psychology
Crisis: Journal of Crisis Intervention and Suicide Prevention
Australian Journal of Psychology
Psicologia dell’Eta’ Evolutiva
Crisis: The Journal of Crisis Intervention and Suicide Prevention
Stress and Health

15/01/2002 “Youth suicide: myths and facts”, University of Padua,
Department of Psychology (Italy)
13/07/2004 “The cross-cultural meaning of suicide”, Mahatma Gandhi
University, Dept of Psychology, Trivandrum (Kerala, India)
17-20/01/2005 “Youth suicide”, University of Padua, Department of
Psychology (Italy)
26-27/04/2006 “Youth suicide”, University of Padua, Department of
Psychology (Italy)
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11
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Media releases
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20/06/2006 “The cultural meaning of suicide”, Centre for
International Health, The University of Melbourne, (Australia)
20/03/2007 Workshop: “Suicide Risk Assessment: What difference
does culture make?”, Victorian Transcultural Psychiatry Unit
(Australia)
30/05/2007 Seminar: “I already hate him”: A cross-cultural in-depth
study of attitudes towards suicide among Italian, Indian and
Australian youth, La Trobe University, Dept of Public Health,
(Australia)
October-Nov 2007, Guest Lecturer, Master in Clinical Psychology,
Dev Sanskriti University, Haridwar, Uttaranchal (India)
October 2008-January 2009, under/post-graduate Psychology,
Medical Social Work and Child care students, Kansai University of
International Studies, School of Psychology, Miki-cho, Japan.
18/12/08, Workshop: “Suicide warning signs among Japanese from
the Suicide First Aid study”, G-Net (Gender Network), Omihachiman,
Japan.
15/01/09 Workshop: “Suicide prevention from the community’s
perspective”, Hyogo Prefectural Mental Health & Welfare Centre,
Kobe, Japan.
15/05/09, Arts and Suicide, The University of Melbourne
12/10/10, Guest speaker for Mental Health Week, “Towards
Recovery. “How do we talk about Suicide?” (hosted by ACT
Transcultural Mental Health Network and the Mental Health
Community Coalition)
July 2011 Development of a training manual and training sessions
based on the “Suicide First Aid guidelines for the Philippines”
Philippines
(funded
by
CBM
and
WHO,
http://foundationawit.com/project3.1.html).
2009-2011:
Lectures
for
the
International Mental
Health Leadership Program (Centre for International Mental Health,
University of Melbourne and Department of Social Medicine, Harvard
University)
31/08/2005 Radio interview for Rai Radio 3 (Italy)
16/09/2005, interview for a Spanish video-documentary about
suicide
26/10/2005, Radio interview for SBS (Australia)
June-July 2006, articles on suicide in youth gays in several websites
(e.g. www.gay.tv and www.gay.it)
March 2007, video-interview for a DVD about cultural aspects of
suicide for GPs, supported by BeyondBlue (Australia)
10, 13 and 15/03/2008, four radio interviews for SBS radio (Sydney
and Melbourne stations, Australia)
16/03/2008, interview for the newspaper La Fiamma (Australia)
12
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2008, shooting and co-editing of the short-documentary “Haridwar: A
spiritual journey”.
22/12/08, Mental Health Newsletter, Japan.
05/03/09, SPRC (Suicide Prevention Resource Center), Spark
Newsletter, US
27/05/2009. “The cultural contribution to suicide in Asia” for CNN
International
17/07/2009, Radio interview for SBS (Australia) on torture on
animals and serial killers
October 2009, “Using art to understand suicide”, MUSSE, Issue 20
(Australia)
January 2010, Cultural approach to suicide prevention, The Voice
(with
The
Age
newspaper,
http://voice.unimelb.edu.au/view.php?articleID=6044).
9/02/2010 “Australian study of suicide shows cultural differences”,
news.xinhuanet.com; “Cultures of suicide”, North Carolina Mental
Hope (national.ncmentalhope.org); “Australian study of suicide shows
cultural
differences”,
People’s
daily
(http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90782/90880/6892028.ht
ml; Teens' View on Suicide (http://news.softpedia.com/news/TeensView-on-Suicide-134463.shtml); Radio interview for ABC radio
(Australia) on youth suicide in different cultures.
10/02/2010 “Cultures of suicide studied by University of Queensland
Researcher, Australia”, Medical News Today
11/02/2010
Cultures
of
suicide
(http://www.ibtimes.com.au/contents/20100210/culturessuicide.htm)
Culture
influences
suicide
views
(www.medconnect.com.au/Portals/0/images/.../ClinPsychNews_6_1.pd
f)
11/02/2010 Radio Interview, National Radio News
15/02/2010 Radio Interview ABC Mornings (Australia)
2008-ongoing: Monthly CIMH newsletters (International Mental
Health)
March 2010 “Culture Influences Suicide Views”, Clinical Psychiatry
News
May 2010, Suicide First Aid Guidelines for India: Recommendations
for the Indian Public for Helping a Suicidal Person, Suite101, (healthpsychology.suite101.com/article.cfm/suicide-first-aid-guidelines-forindia#ixzz0oFNOLlIE)
Life newsletter (June 2010)
Radio Interview on Domestic Violence and Women International Day,
SBS radio (March 2011)
Radio Interview Multicultural Women in Arts, 3RRR (September
13
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Photo/videoexhibitions
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Film/Documenta
ry
&
Arts
projects
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2011)
“The lens of cultural understanding” The Voice, Volume 7 Number 12
December
2011
http://voice.unimelb.edu.au/volume-7/number12/lens-cultural-understanding
October-November 2012: several media releases about suicide in the
Philippines (e.g. Inquirer, WHO-Asia Pacific, Manila TV)
November 2012: “Inspiring lives-suicide survivors’exhibition”, The
Age; Art Almanac, Art news
December 2012: “Human rights abuses on the mentally ill” 3R Radio,
SBS Radio.
“North India”, August 2009, Sidney Myer Asia Centre (Melbourne,
Australia)
“India: A spiritual journey”, September 2009, Museo La Castellina
(Norcia, Italy)
Short-documentary “Haridwar: A spiritual Journey”, 2009 (screened
in Italy, Australia and The Netherlands)
Selection of photos on Melbourne and Victoria screened during the
concert “Eight Seasons”, Orchestra Victoria, Melbourne Recital
Centre, Feb 2010
“Atman: The soul of India”, June-July 2010, Brunswick Street
Gallery, Melbourne
Photography group exhibition- Centre for Contemporary Photography,
Melbourne, Jul-Sept 2010
Organizer of a photo-exhibition on cultural mental health at the
University of Melbourne Union House, July 2010
“Triptych on Modernity” Group show, BSG Gallery, Dec 2010-Jan 2011
“Japan: between ritualistic traditions and modernity”, Jan 2011-Feb
2011, Brunswick Street Gallery, Melbourne
Windows on a new world: Australia from the eyes of international
students (photo-voice), July 2011, The University of Melbourne
http://throughothereyes.wordpress.com/
Photo/film-documentary series “Open for (more than) Business”.
Immigration Museum (Melbourne), August 2011-May 2012
Director, camera, co-editor of short-documentary “Haridwar: A
spiritual Journey”, 2009 (India)
Photography in the 72 Hours Movie project (Melbourne International
Film Festival) “The Ballad of Des & Mo” 2009 (Australia)
“Arts and Suicide: A short-documentary on a suicide survivor’s
artwork”, participatory video, 2010 (Australia)
Co-director, camera, co-editor “The Bloody Kids”, short-documentary
2011 (UK)
Co-director and co-editor “Home”, short-documentary 2011 (UK)
“Different voices, Different Perspectives” participatory video, 2012
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Research
experiences
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(Australia)
Director, editor, camera, “Songs of Memory, Songs of Loss”,
documentary 2012 (UK-Italy)
Director, editor, camera of ethnographic photo- and filmdocumentary “Free from Pasung: The fight for the human rights for
Indonesia’s mentally ill” 2012 (Indonesia)
Co-founder of suicide and arts website http://toofewladders.com/\
Oct 2012- Jan 2013 Co-curator of exhibition on arts and suicide
(University of Melbourne) http://www.daxcentre.org/whats-on/pastexhibitions/
1996: “How primary school children conceive the growth of flowers,
animals and humans”, supervisor Prof. G. Petter (Department of
Psychology, University of Padua)
1998: “Suicide explained by the press” supervisor Prof. M. Tessarolo
(Department of Psychology, University of Padua)
1999-2000: Monitoring and data analysis of suicide attempters in the
Central Hospital of Padua (Department of Neurological and
Psychiatric Sciences, Padua Central Hospital, University of Padua) for
the year 1997-1999 and of suicide deaths (Department of Legal
Medicine, University of Padua) for the years 1989-2000, for the
Honours thesis (First class) “Suicidal behaviour in adolescents:
results from the Monitoring Study by the WHO Collaborating Centre
for Training and Research in Suicide Prevention in Padua, 1989-1999”
Supervisors: Prof. G. Petter, Prof. D. De Leo (Faculty of Psychology
and Department of Psychiatry).
2001: Data collection of suicide deaths for the period 1989-1999
recorded in the Court of Padua; Editor of the Australian version of
Coping and Feeling Questionnaire for the “CASE Study” – (AISRAPAustralian Institute for Suicide Research and Prevention, Griffith
University, Brisbane, Australia); Content Analysis of the “Community
Survey” (AISRAP, Griffith University, Brisbane); data entry and
analysis for the “Princess Alexandra Hospital – Opinion Survey”,
(AISRAP, Griffith University, Brisbane)
2003-2006: PhD project “Culture and the meaning of suicide: A
comparison between Italian, Indian and Australian students”: editor
of the questionnaire “Exploring the meaning of suicide”,
questionnaires collection and focus groups moderator in various
colleges in Padua (Italy), Bangalore (India) and Brisbane (Australia).
Quantitative (SPSS) and qualitative analysis (ATLAS-ti). Spirituality
and suicide (literature reviews).
2007: PI for multi-method research on spirituality and suicide in
Haridwar (North India). Agenda for Immigration Detention Research
(on-line survey), Suicide risk assessment in Australian Immigration
Detention Centres (Consultant for Forensic Psychiatry).
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Research
supervision
experience
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2008-2009: PI in a study on the concept of spirituality in Japan and
on a study on cultural representations of youth suicide, both using
drawings as a research method; PI for the development of Suicide
First Aid Guidelines for Japan, India and the Philippines; evaluation
of a Mental Health First Aid training with the Vietnamese community;
knowledge transfer projects on arts and suicide. Development and
research for a “Cultural Awareness” program for International
students.
2010-2011: PI on mental health research agenda for young refugees,
mental health services’ utilization among young refugees in Australia,
arts and suicide, shooting and co-editing of a short-documentary on
spirituality in India; Consensus study on the role of Cultural Portfolio
Holders; Participatory-action research project based on community
theatre on barriers to accessing services for domestic violence
among Indian migrant women; Photo-voice project on international
students.
2012: Ethnographic photo/film-documentary research project “Free
from Pasung: The fight for human rights for Indonesia’s mentally ill”
2013: PI for ‘Workforce and leadership development’ and ‘Research,
Evaluation, Knowledge exchange and innovation’ activities for the
Governmentally-funded ‘Mental Health in Multicultural Australia’; Coreearcher on ‘Strengthening human resources for mental health in
the north and east of Sri Lanka’.
Academic year 2004-2005: Tutor for four Psychology interns.
Supervisor for Honours thesis on youth suicide in Germany and youth
suicide in Norway.
Academic year 2005-2006: Tutor for four Psychology interns.
Supervisor for Honours thesis on suicide in young Italian gays and
suicide in young Italian drug addicted in therapy.
Academic year 2006-2007: Tutor for three Psychology interns.
Supervisor for Honours/Masters thesis on suicide and cultural values;
spirituality and well-being among Indian college students; and focus
groups on suicide in young Italian gays (including use of art-based
methods).
Academic year 2007-2008: Tutor for two Psychology interns.
Supervisor for Honours/Masters thesis on the social representation
of suicide among artists; suicide, spirituality and well-being in Val di
Sol (North Italy).
Academic year 2008-2009: Tutor for one Psychology intern and
supervisor for Master thesis on spirituality and suicide.
Academic year 2009-2010: Tutor/supervisor for four interns, two
Masters and two PhD (local and International) students (e.g.
“Community mental health in Malaysia”; “Mental health recovery
principles in work with people from CALD backgrounds”).
16
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Main areas of
interests
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Abilities
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Academic year 2010-2011: Supervisor for two International Masters
and one PhD students (e.g. ‘Cross-national study of suicide and
cultural values’)
Academic year 2011-2013: Supervisor for two International PhD
students (“Development of a core curriculum for psychologists
working in primary health care” and “Generation 1.5 Cambodian
Refugees in Australia: Survivorship, Resilience, and the Implications
for Mental Health and Wellbeing”.
Generic:
Suicidology, Visual and Medical Anthropology, Cultural and Crosscultural Psychology/Psychiatry, Qualitative research methods, ArtsBased Research, Youth mental health, Traditional/Alternative
Healing, Indian and Indigenous cultures,.
Specific:
Cultural meaning and representation of suicide (particularly in Indian,
Pacific Islanders and Indigenous cultures)
Culturally-sensitive suicide prevention/intervention and life promotion
strategies
The influence of spirituality and religion on suicidal behaviour and,
more in general, mental health
Use of arts (photography, film-documentary, theatre, visual art,
music, narrative, etc.) in research, prevention and therapy.
Visual Anthropology/Visual Cultural Research
Cultural interpretation of mental health and mental illness.
Health/illness narratives
Qualitative cross-cultural research (especially focus groups,
ethnography, story-telling)
Integration of traditional healing and Eastern medicines with
Western medicine
Computer: use of many software (e.g. Office, SPSS v.13, Nudist, NVivo, ATLAS.ti, EndNote, Databases) and curiosity and capacity to
learn quickly and efficiently new software
Psychological assessment: knowledge of many tests and
questionnaires (e.g. Rorschach, MMPI, WISC-R, STAXI, Mini-Mental)
Research skills: Strong project management skills. Qualitative and
quantitative research proficiency, in particular moderation and
analysis of focus group discussions, Delphi groups, and in-depth
interviews; construction of questionnaires, data collection,
management and statistical analysis. Interested in arts-based
research/prevention.
Good interpersonal skills, in particular with young people, and in
maintaining a network of contacts across countries and disciplines.
17
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Possible limits
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Objectives
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Main Social and
community
activities
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Courses
training
organized
(selection)
and
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Strong-willed, determinate, creative and enthusiast. Able to work
autonomously (good self-discipline) and in a team. Self-motivation and
able to motivate others.
Strong time and personal management skills.
Open to new possibilities and challenges.
Seriously interested in my profession and always ready to work hard
in order to learn new skills and improve my knowledge.
I like working with people who have passion for what they do, are
open to new ideas and show human and ethical respect…but are also
able to laugh and enjoy life and can step out of the mainstream.
Determinate and enthusiast!
Pursue an academic career (Teaching and Research), with
specialization in Cultural and Global Mental Health, suicide prevention
and in the use of arts/visual methods for research, prevention and
advocacy.
Become more involved in human rights, in particular women’s rights,
minority ethnic groups rights and human rights in mental health.
Do part-time clinical psychology practice.
Run training in suicide prevention, cultural/global mental health issues
and cultural research methods and ethnographic photo and filmdocumentary.
1989-1994 Coordinator/educator for a group of at-risk teens c/o the
“Maria Ausiliatrice” Institute in Martina Franca, Taranto, Italy
Extra schooling lessons for a 9-year-old child with Learning Disorder,
for one year
Teacher training in Year 4 of “Chiarelli” Primary School in Martina
Franca, Taranto (Italy), for 6 months
August 2005, Centre “Ferrer”, Anantapur, Andra Pradesh (India)
Co-chair of the Taskforce on Domestic Violence among Indian
Immigrants
Chair of MWA (Multicultural Women in Arts) non-profit community
organization
2007-2010: Three-days annual seminars on Youth suicide prevention,
University of Padua, Italy.
20/03/2007 Workshop: “Suicide Risk Assessment: What difference
does culture make?”, Victorian Transcultural Psychiatry Unit
(Australia)
17/03/2008 Seminar: The clinical benefits of Yoga, (speaker: Dr P.
Pandya, India)
15/10-15/11 2008 “Psychology Psychodiagnosis”, DSVV University,
Haridwar, India
23/01/2009 Seminar: Suicide Prevention in Japan, CIMH,University
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Courses
workshops
attended
(selection)
and
of Melbourne, Melbourne (speaker Dr T. Takeshima, Japan)
17/01/2009 Training “Suicide First Aid Guidelines for Japan”, Kobe,
Japan.
04/03/2009 Seminar: Morita Therapy for Psychosocial Health Inside
and Outside Asia, CIMH, Melbourne (speakers: Prof. N. Watanabe,
Japan; A/Prof P. LeVine, Australia)
15/05/2009: Seminar and two workshops “A Visual Arts inquiry into
understanding suicide” (with Mic Eales), CIMH, Melbourne
June 2009. Technical workshop on youth mental health and self-harm
at the UNICEF Adolescent Development and Participation AsiaPacific meeting Bangkok (Thailand).
30/6-20/7 2011 WHO and CBM Train the trainer courses on Suicide
First Aid Guidelines for the Philippines (with Dinah Nadera),
University of Philippines, Manila (Philippines).
13/09/2011 “Imagination Inspiration Improvisation: A Visual Arts
Enquiry into Understanding Suicide” (with Mic Eales), Beijing (China).
23-25/10/2012: Visual Research Methods (University of Philippines,
Los Banos, Philippines)
31/10/2012: Reporting of suicide in the media, WHO training for
media representatives (University of Philippines, Manila).
9-11/01/2013: Visual methods in (mental) health research (The
University of Melbourne, Australia).
March-June 1998 “Psychological tests” Dr. Antonelli (Padua)
14-16/05/1999 “Strategic therapy in the group setting” Prof. A.
Salvini (Gallio)
 March-June 1999 “Narrative diagnosis” Dr. G. Turchi (30 hours,
Padua)
 4 -15/10/1999 Course in English (56 hours) c/o “Princes College” in
London
 12-14/05/2000 “Well-being techniques in Oriental Psychology” Dr. G.
Pagliaro (Gallio)
 March-June 2000 “Sexual dysfunctions” Dr. M. Panzeri (24 hours,
Padua)
 March-May 2000 “Projective methods in psychodiagnostics” Prof. D.
Passi Tognazzo (60 hours), (Padua)
 Oct 2000-Feb 2001 Course in English (33 hours) c/o UNESCO in
Padua
University-based courses:
 Academic Year 1999/2000: Computer Courses: Word (4 h), Excel (4
h), Windows (3 h), Bibliographic research (4 h), SPSS (16 h), Visual
Basic 6.0 (20 h), SPADT-Textual Analysis (40 h) c/o Padua University
 Academic year 2000/2001: Computer Courses: Macro Excel (20 h),
MEL (Micro Experimental Laboratory) (19 h), Visual Basic (20 h),
SAS (24 h), SPSS (26 h), Neural Networks (6 h) c/o Padua University
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19
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Associations/
memberships
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Academic year 2001/2002: Erasmus Intensive Program in
Mathematical Psychology, University of Oldenburg, Germany
Academic year 2003/2004: Computer Courses: Endnote (3 h),
Literature Review (2 h), Cochrane Library (2 h), Medline (2 h),
PubMed (2 h), Intellectual Property (2 h) et al. c/o The University of
Queensland
Academic year 2004/2005: Computer courses: Nvivo 6 (4 h), Nudist
(12 h) c/o The University of Queensland
Academic year 2005/2006: Computer courses: ATLAS.ti (6 h) c/o
Queensland University of Technology; Transcultural Mental Health
Workshops c/o Transcultural Mental Health Queensland (3 days); Art
& Therapy Workshop (1 day) c/o Mater Hill Hospital, Brisbane
Academic year 2006/2007: several seminars in Transcultural Mental
Health, Academic teaching workshops, workshop in Indigenous issues,
Nvivo 7 (3 h), Super-Search (3 h), Ethnographic film-making (20
hours, La Trobe University, Melbourne)
Academic year 2007/2008: Photojournalism (16 hours, The University
of Melbourne); Workshops: “How to publish good papers”, and on
Cultural Psychiatry and Peace building.
Academic year 2008/2009: Film documentary; People Photography
(RMIT-Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Melbourne), CSM
(Content Management System) for web publishing.
Founder member of the cultural association “Claudio Schiavone”
Since 2002 member of Italian Register of Psychologist
2004 member of CAPS (Community Action for the Prevention of
Suicide-Brisbane)
Since 2005 member of ARIA (Association for Research between
Italy and Australia)
Since 2006 member of the American Association of Suicidology
(AAS)
Since 2007 member of Psychologists for Social Responsibility
Since 2008 member of Movement for Global Mental Health (Human
rights)
Since 2009 member of the World Association of Cultural Psychiatry
(WACP)
Since 2009 member of the Cultural and Qualitative Research
Interest Group, National Institutes of Health (NIH), US
Since 2010 member of the International Association for CrossCultural Psychology
Since 2011, Chair of the Special Interest Group on “Culture and
Suicidal Behaviour”, International Association for Suicide Prevention
Since 2012, National Representative for Italy of the World
Suicidology Net.
Since 2012, Co-Chair of the Special Interest Group on Arts and
20
Cultural Mental Health, World Association of Cultural Psychiatry.
Extra skills/job
experiences
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Hobby
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1990-92 DJ for Radio Luna, Martina Franca (Italy
1992- 1995 Events organizer for the entertainment and fashion
company “Uno Enterprise”, Martina Franca (Italy)
1990-1996 Singer in a choir (soprano)
1994 Actress for the theatre company “Arte Martina”, Martina
Franca (Italy)
Since 2000, play saxophone
Since 2001, Ashtanga yoga
Photography, currently digital people photography
Film-documentary
Horse-riding license
Visual arts, music, travel journalism and photography, photo and
video-documentary, yoga, outdoor, sports and adventure (rockclimbing, swimming, trekking, cycling, kayaking), travel, cinema,
theatre, reading, cooking.
Discover and know different countries, worldviews and cultures.
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