Summer Program in Social and Cultural Psychiatry

31st Annual Summer Program

May 5 - June 27, 2025

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Download the 2025 平特五不中 Summer School Program Booklet

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Registration information

for Academic Credit
for Professional Interest

Courses and workshops

Cultural Psychiatry
Research Methods in Social听and听Cultural Psychiatry听
Working with Culture
Art and Healing
Contemplative Studies
Culture, Mind & Brain
Global Mental Health
Indigenous Mental Health

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In 1995, the Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, 平特五不中, inaugurated an annual summer school in social and cultural psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology. The program provides the conceptual background for research and clinical work in social and cultural psychiatry and will be of interest to:

postdoctoral trainees and researchers in psychiatry, psychology, and other mental health disciplines
graduate students in health and social sciences
physicians, psychologists, social workers, and other health professionals

The summer program forms part of the training activities of the Montr茅al WHO Collaborating Centre and is endorsed by the Canadian Academy of Psychiatric Epidemiology.

General information

Director: Laurence J. Kirmayer, MD

Administrator:听Samantha Wunderlich, MSc

Administrative Office:
Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry
Department of Psychiatry
平特五不中
1033 Pine Avenue West
Montr茅al (Qu茅bec) Canada H3A 1A1

Tel.: 514-398-7302
Fax: 514-398-3282
Email: tcpsych [at] mcgill.ca

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Registration Information

Courses may be taken for academic credit or for professional interest. Workshops and the Advanced Study Institute may only be taken for professional interest.

Application for the Summer School is now听.

You will be asked to select the courses/workshops and submit your CV.
You will be contacted when your application has been processed.

If you have specific questions not answered on the website, you can contact the Division Summer Program Coordinator, Samantha Wunderlich听at听tcpsych [at] mcgill.ca.

Enrolment for courses and workshops is limited and early application is strongly advised. Please note the application deadlines in order to submit your application.

Professional Interest

Canadian and International students and professionals applying to the Summer School for professional interest can do so through the Division of Social & Transcultural Psychiatry by following the instructions above in Registration Information.

On successful completion of the course or workshop, a certificate of attendance will be provided by the Division. This does not confer formal academic credit, for which a separate application is required (see below). Registration for professional interest is accepted as long as room is available in the course or workshop.

Academic credit

The following courses may be taken for academic credit by students enrolled in a graduate program at 平特五不中 or another university: Cultural Psychiatry (PSYT711); Psychiatric Epidemiology (PSYT713) [not offered in 2025]; and Research Methods in Social and Cultural Psychiatry (PSYT633).

All applicants for academic credit must submit their CV and register online as indicated above听to obtain permission to attend the course(s).

平特五不中 Graduate Students
Please apply online as indicated above. After receiving permission to attend the course(s), 平特五不中 students should register on Minerva once the summer registration period for graduate students begins. Detailed registration information for students enrolled in a 平特五不中 graduate program will be available March 14, 2025 (for more information see: www.mcgill.ca/gps/students/registration/dates). Students are billed by 平特五不中 Student Accounts.

平特五不中 Double Program Students and 平特五不中 Psychiatry Residents
Please apply online as indicated above. After receiving permission to attend the course(s), double program students may go to the following link to register: /student-records/request-registrationcourse-changes. After receiving permission from the coordinator of the Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry to attend the course(s), Psychiatry residents who want to take the courses for credit must obtain permission from the Graduate Program Director (graduate.psychiatry [at] mcgill.ca) and from the Faculty of Medicine. 平特五不中 double program students and 平特五不中 psychiatry residents are billed by 平特五不中 Student Accounts. If you applied for professional interest, you will receive an e-mail confirming your application.

Visiting, Exchange and Special Students
Please apply online as indicated. After receiving permission to attend the courses, please visit the 平特五不中 Graduate Studies website () to verify what category of student applies to you. Please observe the application deadline: January 15 for international students; February 15, 2025 for Canadian students. Official notification of acceptance is issued by the Faculty of Graduate Studies.

Non-平特五不中, Qu茅bec University Students
Please apply online as indicated. After receiving permission to attend the course(s) from your home University and from the Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry, you must initiate an online application to request the required authorizations at . Refer to your home university website for regulations on the number of credits allowed, as well as policies for transferring credits. Note: Once the Qu茅bec Inter-University Transfer (IUT) application is approved by both the home and host universities, you remain responsible for registering in the course that was approved. At 平特五不中, you must register on .

Students from University of Toronto and University of British Columbia
Please apply online as indicated. After receiving permission to attend the course(s) from your home university and from the Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry, students must submit a Graduate Exchange Agreement form (available from your home institution website) to your home university and to the Division program coordinator at 平特五不中: graduate.psychiatry [at] mcgill.ca. and to the Division coordinator: tcpsych [at] mcgill.ca.

Students from other Universities in Canada (Inter University Credit Transfer)
Please apply online as indicated. After receiving permission to attend the course(s) from your home University and from the Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry, please verify the registration procedure that you should follow: Visiting, Exchange or special Student by visiting the following link: . The application fee cannot be applied towards course/workshop fees. Official notification of acceptance as a 鈥淰isiting Student鈥� or a 鈥淪pecial Student鈥� is issued by the Faculty of Graduate Studies. Students obtain a 平特五不中 student identity number when applying and use this to register for the course(s) on Minerva. Transfer of academic credits should be arranged with the applicant鈥檚 own university.

M.Sc. & PhD Program in Mental Health
Students who wish to apply for the MSc or PhD program in the Department of Psychiatry (with concentration in Social and Transcultural Psychiatry) should direct inquiries to:

Graduate Program Coordinator
Department of Psychiatry
平特五不中
1033 Pine Avenue West, Room 104
Montr茅al (Qu茅bec) Canada H3A 1A1

Tel.: 514-398-4176
Email:听graduate.psychiatry [at] mcgill.ca
Website:

The deadlines for applications to the MSc or听PhD program听for International or Canadian students are:

MSc in Mental Health

August 1: entry in January for International applicants
November 10: entry in January for Canadian applicants
January 15: entry in September for International applicants
June 21: entry in September for Canadian applicants

PhD in Mental Health

August 1: entry in January for International applicants
November 10: entry in January for Canadian applicants
January 15: entry in September for International applicants
June 21: entry in September for Canadian applicants

For more information please visit:听

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Courses and workshop

Courses

Click here for a list of Required and Recommended readings for these courses.

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PSYT711 Cultural Psychiatry
L. Kirmayer & Faculty (3 academic credits)

This course surveys recent theory and research on the interaction of culture and psychiatric disorders. Topics to be covered include: history of cultural psychiatry; cross-national epidemiological and ethnographic research on major and minor psychiatric disorders; culture-bound syndromes and idioms of distress; culture, emotion and social interaction; somatization and dissociation; psychosis; ritual and symbolic healing and psychotherapy; mental health of indigenous peoples; mental health of immigrants and refugees; psychiatric theory and practice as cultural constructions; methods of cross-cultural research; models of mental health care for multicultural societies; globalization and the future of cultural psychiatry听

Prerequisites: Courses in abnormal psychology, psychiatry or medical anthropology, and permission of the instructor.
Text: Course readings will be available online.
Date: May 6-29, 2025 (36 hours) T鈥h 飥� 13:00-17:00 & W 飥� 9:00-12:00

PSYT633 Research听Methods in Social and Cultural Psychiatry
R. Whitley, A. Ryder & Faculty

This workshop will introduce participants to research methods in cultural and social psychiatry in a stepwise manner. The course consists of three modules: (1) introduction to qualitative research; (2) introduction to quantitative research; and (3) introduction to mixed-methods studies. Modules 1 and 2 will focus on methodologies, study design, execution, analysis and dissemination. In Module 3, students will learn how and when to integrate qualitative and quantitative approaches in a mixed-method study. Ample time will be given for questions and discussion of participants鈥� projects.

Text: Course readings will be available online.
Date: May 5-30, 2025 (36 hours)听M鈥鈥听飥� 13:30-17:00

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Workshops

Working with Culture: Clinical Methods in Cultural Psychiatry
C. Rousseau & J. Guzder

This workshop for mental health practitioners provides an overview of clinical models, methods and approaches in cultural psychiatry. Invited lecturers will frame the basic issues of clinical intervention with individuals, families and communities through sessions focused on: Cultural formulation; families and systemic approaches; working with interpreters and culture brokers; cultural safety, cultural humility, structural competency and institutional racism; trauma-informed care with refugees and racialized groups; working with Indigenous communities; intercultural work with multidisciplinary teams and health care institutions; integrating advocacy in mental health care.

Text: Course readings will be available online.
Date: May 6-29, 2025 (24 hours) T鈥h 飥� 9:00-12:00

Art and Healing
J. Guzder & Guest Faculty

This workshop will focus on clinical, theoretical, research, and community engagement issues on the use of art in transcultural psychiatry. Invited faculty will elaborate on clinically relevant theory, creative arts practice and experiential learning on topics including: historical intersections of the arts and psychiatry; poiesis, improvisation and healing; theatre, music and embodiment; the psycho-historiographic group therapy approach; research methods and ethics; project development in global health contexts. Presentations will promote reflection on arts鈥攊ncluding theatre, visual arts, music, and dance鈥攁s applied and emerging aspects of healing both historically and in contemporary contexts relevant to clinical practice and research in social and cultural psychiatry and global mental health. Faculty will include an international roster of clinicians from Brazil, Canada, India, Jamaica and the U.S., working with people with severe mental illness, youth at risk, immigrant and refugee groups, as well as Indigenous communities.

Text: Course readings will be available online.
Date: June 2-6, 2025 (30听hours) M鈥鈥鈥h鈥听飥� 9:00-17:00

Global Mental Health Research
L.J. Kirmayer & Guest Faculty

This workshop introduces key issues in global mental health (GMH) research with special reference to low and middle-income countries. We will explore the tensions between a vertical public health approach, grounded in a biomedical frame and current evidence-based practices, and a horizontal community-based approach, that emphasizes local taxonomies and priorities, empowerment of local resources and endogenous solutions. We will also consider issues that arise in forging and maintaining partnerships and self-care in GMH research. The workshop aims to provide a balanced critical perspective on GMH as a field of enquiry and practice that acknowledges the importance of the socioeconomic and geopolitical determinants of mental health and the interplay between biological, psychological socio-cultural factors in mental health and illness. The format includes pre-recorded and live lectures, panel presentations, case studies and plenary discussions of readings by faculty and students.

Text: Readings will be available online.
Date: June 2-6,听2025 (30 hours) M鈥鈥鈥h鈥听飥刺�09:00-17:00听[Hybrid, online]

Culture, Mind and Brain
L.听Kirmayer & Guest Faculty

This workshop will provide an overview of core topics and recent developments in social, and cultural neuroscience research. After an introduction to cognitive, social, and cultural neuroscience, the workshop will focus approaches to integrating phenomenology, social determinants of health, and cultural meaning and practices into neuroscience research through complex systems theory. We will discuss the inter-relationships of these processes and how to capture health-relevant aspects of sociocultural contexts for research and clinical case formulation. Participants will have an opportunity to discuss their own projects.

Text: Kirmayer, L.J., Worthman, C., Kitayama, S., Lemelson, R. & Cummings, C. (Eds.) (2020). Culture, Mind and Brain: Emerging Concepts, Methods & Applications. Cambridge University Press.
Date: June 18-20,听2025 (18 hours) W鈥h鈥 飥� 9:00-17:00

Contemplative Studies
M. Lifshitz, E. Solomonova & Guest Faculty

This two-day workshop will explore emerging topics in the field of Contemplative Studies. Faculty will present from diverse disciplinary perspectives including neuroscience, psychiatry, psychology, anthropology, philosophy, and religious studies. Our focus will be on the concept of the self and its many transformations. We will explore the self as a multidimensional process and discuss how it may be dissolved, simulated, possessed, and transmitted through practices of meditation, prayer, dreaming, and psychedelic ritual. Each day will include in-depth presentations from faculty along with ample time for group discussion. Together, we will consider ongoing debates in the field with a focus on tracing the dynamic relationships between individual experience, brain function, and the social and cultural contexts in which these practices are embedded and enacted.

Date: June 16 & 17, 2025 (12 hours) M鈥 飥� 10:00 -17:00

Indigenous Mental Health Research
L. Kirmayer听& Guest Faculty

This workshop will survey recent work on the social determinants of mental health and discuss issues in the design and implementation of culturally appropriate mixed-methods research with Indigenous communities and populations. The emphasis will be on conceptual issues and the development of research methodology to address both common and severe mental health problems and interventions. Specific topics will include: ethical issues in Indigenous health research; social, historical and transgenerational determinants of mental health; the role of indigenous identity in mental health, resilience and well-being; suicide prevention and mental health promotion; participatory research methods; evaluation of community-based mental health services; culturally-adapted interventions; and indigenous approaches to wellness and healing.

Text: Kirmayer, L. J., & Valaskakis, G. G. (2009). Healing traditions: The mental health听of Aboriginal peoples in Canada. Vancouver: UBC Press. Course readings will be available online.

Date: August 4-8, 2025 (30听hours) M鈥鈥鈥h鈥 飥� 10:00-17:00

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Guest Faculty

Naomi Adelson, PhD, Professor and Associate Vice President, Research and Innovation, Toronto Metropolitan University

Neil Aggarwal, MD, Professor of Clinical Psychiatry, Columbia University

Doerte Bemme, PhD, Lecturer in Global Health & Social Medicine, King's College London

Amy Bombay, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Neuroscience, Carleton University.

Debbie-Ann Chambers, PhD, Head University Counselling Service, University of the West Indies, Mona

Axel Constant, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow, School of Engineering and Informatics, University of Sussex

Hanne De Jaegher, PhD, Visiting Fellow, University of Sussex

Guillaume Dumas, PhD, Associate Professor of Computational Psychiatry, Universit茅 de Montreal

Sandra Fortes, MD, PhD, Professor, Rio de Janeiro State University

Shaun Gallagher PhD, Lillian and Morrie Moss Professor of Philosophy, University of Memphis

Gilah Yelin Hirsch, MFA, Professor of Art, Emerita, California State University, Los Angeles

Brandon Kohrt, MD, PhD, Charles and Sonia Akman Professor of Global Psychiatry, Director, Center for Global Mental Health Equity, George Washington University

Randy McIntosh, PhD, Professor & Director, Institute for Neuroscience and Neurotechnology, Simon Fraser University

Christopher Mushquash PhD, Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Mental Health and Addiction, Professor, Department of Psychology at Lakehead University

Vitor Pordeus, MD, Founder of DyoNises Theater, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Maxwell Ramstead, PhD, Honorary Research Fellow, Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging

M贸nica Ruiz-Casares, PhD, Professor, School of Child and Youth Care, Toronto Metropolitan University

Andrew Ryder, PhD, Professor & Chair, Department of Psychology., Concordia University

Suzanne Stewart, PhD, Professor & Director, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto

Evan Thompson, PhD, Professor, Department of Philosophy, University of British Columbia

Rebecca Todd, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia

Geoffrey Walcott, MB, Bs, DM Psychiatry, Clinical Director, Psychotherapy Associates, & CARIMENSA, University of West Indies, Kingston, Jamaica

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平特五不中 Faculty

Please see our Faculty web page for more information.

Jura Agustinavicius, PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of Equity, Ethics, and Policy, School of Population and Global Health

Stefanie Blain-Moraes, PhD, Associate Professor & Canada Research Chair in Consciosness and Personhood Technology, School of Occupational and Physical Therapy

V茅ronique Bohbot, PhD, Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Research, Douglas Research Centre

Lara Braitstein, PhD, Associate Professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies, School of Religious Studies

Alain Brunet, PhD, Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Researcher, Psychosocial Research Division, Douglas Mental Health University Institute

Jacob Burack, PhD, Professor, Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology

Franco Carnevale, RN, PhD, Professor, Ingram School of Nursing

Eduardo Chachamovich, MD, PhD, Associate Professor, Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry; Researcher, Douglas Mental Health University Institute

Samuele Collu, PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of Anthropology

Myriam Denov, PhD, Professor & Canada Research Chair in Canada Research Chair in Youth, Gender and Armed Conflict, School of Social Work

Nicole D鈥檚ouza, PhD, Research Associate, Culture & Mental Health Research Unit & Division of Social & Transcultural Psychiatry

Ian Gold, PhD, Professor of Philosophy and Psychiatry, Chair Department of Philosophy

Ana G贸mez-Carillo, MD, Assistant Professor, Division of Social & Transcultural Psychiatry

Nathan Fisher, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow, Division of Social & Transcultural Psychiatry

Phoebe Friesen, PhD, Assistant Professor, Division of Ethics and Policy & Department of Social Studies of Medicine

Kyle Greenway, MD, Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry

Danielle Groleau, PhD, Professor, Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry; Research Associate, Culture and Mental Health Research Unit, Lady Davis Institute, Jewish General Hospital

Jaswant Guzder, MD, Professor, Department of Psychiatry; Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry and Division of Child Psychiatry

Matthew Hunt, PhD, Associate Professor, School of Occupational Therapy

Srividya Iyer, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry

G. Eric Jarvis, MD, MSc, Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry; Director, Cultural Consultation Service, Jewish General Hospital

Janique Johnson-Lafleur, PhD, Assistant Professor, Division of Social & Transcultural Psychiatry

Laurence J. Kirmayer, MD, FRCPC, FCAHS, FRSC, James 平特五不中 Professor; Director, Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry; Culture and Mental Health Research Unit, Jewish General Hospital

Rachel Kronick, MD, MSc, Assistant Professor, Division of Children Psychiatry & Division of Social & Transcultural Psychiatry

Vincent Lalibert茅, MD, MA, Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry, & Jewish General Hospital Department of Psychiatry

Marc Laporta, MD, Director, Montreal WHO-PAHO Collaborating Centre for Research and Training in Mental Health, Douglas University Institute and 平特五不中 Health Center

Myrna Lashley, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry; Researcher, Culture & Mental Health Research Unit, Lady Davis Institute

Michael Lifshitz, PhD, Assistant Professor, Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry.

Karl Looper, MD, Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry; Psychiatrist-in-Chief, Jewish General Hospital

Toby Measham, MD, MSc, Assistant Professor, Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry

Lucie Nadeau, MD, MSc, Associate Professor, Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry

Melissa Park, PhD, Associate Professor, School of Physical and Occupational Therapy

C茅cile Rousseau, MD, MSc, Professor, Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry; Canada Research Chair in Preventing Violent Radicalization

Jai Shah, MD, Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry; Program for Prevention and Early Intervention in Psychosis, Douglas Mental Health University Institute

Elizaveta Solomonova, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Philosophy

Constantin Tranulis, MD, MSc, Adjunct Professor, Department of Psychiatry

Ashley Wazana, MD, MSc, Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry. Jewish General Hospital

Denis Wendt, PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology

Robert Whitley, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Douglas Mental Health University Institute

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平特五不中