The Psychology Department of Daulat Ram College, University of Delhi organised its First National Conference on 18th and 19th January, 2018 on the theme ‘Psychological Applications and Interventions: Reaching Out and Making a Difference’. The Inaugural function was graced by Chief Guest, Prof. Devesh K. Sinha, Dean of Colleges, University of Delhi and Dr. Savita Roy, Principal, Daulat Ram College. The esteemed dignitaries released a book of selected papers presented at the Conference, edited by Dr. Preeti Kapur and Dr. Pooja V. Anand, Convenor and Organising Secretary of the Conference respectively.
The Conference involved participation from over 250 delegates across India in various paper and poster presentation sessions as well as workshops in diverse domains of psychology. Participants were undergraduate, postgraduate, doctoral students as well as teachers from Psychology departments from various educational institutions all over India. The Conference provided a platform to the delegates to present their innovative research papers as well as facilitated exchange of ideas on various topics as enhancing hope, emotional intelligence, resilience, self-esteem, gender issues, developmental issues, body image, health, and well-being to name a few. Since most papers were authored either by students alone or a student-mentor combination, the Conference illustrated how mentoring students helped in realising the immense research potential in students. The two days of deliberation helped in instilling a scientific temper and a thorough understanding of concepts, theories, and research methodologies. This allowed students to go beyond classroom teaching and understand the applications of Psychology in the real world. The Conference involved various events as a panel discussion on the Conference theme, paper, and poster presentations and workshops on Arts Based Therapy, Depression, and From Personal to Interpersonal Effectiveness.
The Conference aimed to create awareness about the scope of Psychology in various domains of life. It helped in understanding how knowledge from research in Psychology should not be limited to textbooks but can be applied to find a solution to various issues ailing individuals and communities, and, finally how the knowledge of Psychology can be applied for reaching out and making a difference to the society.
Credits to Dr. Preeti Kapur & Dr. Pooja V. Anand
Department of Psychology, Daulat Ram College
This was followed by the second slot for the day, whereby more speakers threw light on the theme. Professor Rakesh Chandra, Lucknow University, Dr. Geeta Ramana, University of Mumbai and Dr. V. Sujata Raju from Daulat Ram College, were the eminent speakers who drew curtains on the day.
The second day for the conference had rather lively sessions with contemporary topics related to the broader theme of consciousness. With themes like “Consciousness: Cognitive Possibilities” and “Deep Ecology and Consciousness”
The speakers included Bonsai Practitioner Ms. Aradhna Malik , Ecological Scientist Seema Parihar and Dr. Alok Bajpai, IIT Kanpur’s psychiatrist, among others including Dr. Harshbala Sharma from IPCW. The session was concluded with the Principal’s paper on consciousness in the present day context.
All Image credits: Mr Guneet Singh, Faculty, IPCW
Kritika Narula
