News and Publications
News
The Cult Euro 1 Test has been nominated for the prestigious 2025 Validation Award from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). This award recognizes projects within the "Validation of the Technological and Societal Innovation Potential of Scientific Research (VIP+)" program that excel in translating research results into impactful applications.
The Cult Euro 1 Test marks a breakthrough in measuring intercultural competence: As the first validated and standardized test, it enables the precise assessment of both cross-cultural and culture-specific competence areas. With its certification by the Transparency Certificate of the German Test Commission and the use of state-of-the-art IRT-based methods, it sets new standards for scientific validity and practical applicability.
This fully digital test provides companies, public authorities, and researchers with customized, scientifically sound results. It promotes intercultural understanding, supports sustainable human resource development, and significantly contributes to labor market integration in Germany.
The nomination for the 2025 Validation Award highlights the innovative strength and societal value of this project.
On November 29, 2024, experts from across Europe gathered in an online conference to share and discuss current concepts and findings from their research in the field of diversity. The conference was initiated as part of the research project “Fair Future”, led by Prof. Dr. Petia Genkova, Professor of Business Psychology. The declared goal of the project is to reduce inequality, support equal opportunities, and address social exclusion. By bringing together multidisciplinary European researchers, existing collaborations were strengthened, and new research initiatives were launched.
This diversity of perspectives was evident in all presentations, which were used as a foundation for in-depth discussions by the involved scientists and provided the external audience with valuable insights into current research.
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Prof. Dr. Marco Peña-Jimenez (Paris Laboratory for Social Psychology, France) focused on the potential of diversity to promote social cooperation and innovation, sharing key insights from his research on team faultlines. These faultlines are symbolic dividing lines that split a group into homogeneous subgroups based on their characteristics and are associated with the innovative behavior of teams.
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Prof. Dr. Sebastian Saniuk (University of Zielona Góra, Poland) shared findings on the development of skills and competencies necessary for implementing the concept of Industry 5.0. This concept emphasizes a higher degree of collaboration between humans and cyber-physical systems, with its key pillars being sustainability, human-centric approaches (leveraging human potential in machine learning processes), and resilience.
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Prof. Dr. Todor Dyankov (University of Economics, Bulgaria) presented Bulgaria as a destination and highlighted the advantages of being a small but diverse country. His focus included resilience traits (e.g., the ability to strengthen risk management and control) and soft power aspects such as art, renowned literature, athletes and their achievements, scholarships, government participation in international forums, and the reputation of exported national goods and products.
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Prof. Dr. Eva Benková (University of Presov, Slovakia) evaluated the characteristics of social and emotional leadership competencies in relation to gender and age among entrepreneurs. These competencies include value orientation, mutual acceptance, conflict resolution, communication, politeness, empathy, and self-confidence. The study found no gender differences. Older leaders, drawing on significant experience, exhibited more open and confident communication and higher levels of emotional maturity.
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Prof. Dr. Mathias Czaika (Danube University Krems, Austria) shed light on the complexity, dynamics, and uncertainty of migration and its governance. He identified key research goals for the future, including understanding migration complexity, analyzing migration governance and policies, evaluating the effectiveness of migration policies, conducting scenario planning for migration futures, and collecting data for methodological advancements.
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Prof. Dr. Maria-Giuseppina Bruna (IPAG Business School, Paris, France) presented a systemic and integrated model for addressing and assessing key challenges related to diversity and inclusion in postmodern organizations. She addressed the complexity of the subject by examining inclusion on various levels (from individual to macro-societal), incorporating multiple dimensions, and framing it as a progressive cycle.
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Prof. Dr. Alexandra Halkias (Panteion University of Athens, Greece) examined the diverse meanings of diversity, ranging from social justice to profit. Her current research focuses on how diversity is understood in global contexts, with a particular emphasis on Greece. Her work explores two main areas: 1) how social differences and identities are portrayed as “other” in public discourse (e.g., news media and activism), especially through the lenses of gender and nationality, and 2) how diversity is leveraged by private companies and the state to advance their own objectives.
Following the presentations, the researchers engaged in a collaborative discussion about a joint research initiative for the Horizon Europe Proposal, focusing on culture, creativity, and inclusive societies.
While Ukraine is present in the media in an unpleasant way on a daily basis, it is less in the public awareness that numerous Ukrainians have been living and working in Germany for many years. As a result, several German-Ukrainian networks have already been developed in the past. Even independently of the Ukrainians living in Germany, there was cooperation between researchers in Germany and Ukraine before the recent war.
A project team led by Prof. Petia Genkova, who conducts research in the field of cultural psychology at the "Competence Center Global Competence" (Faculty of Business Management and Social Sciences), had established a research network before the current war, which includes researchers in several countries in Central and Eastern Europe. This network was formed as the core of the project "Diverschance_East - Global competence development and diversity challenges in an innovative Europe" and deals with the opportunities arising from a diversifying Europe. As a result of the exchange within this network, a researcher from Ukraine is currently spending a research stay at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences.
The project team was recently invited to the conference "Days of Ukraine in Lower Saxony", which took place on 30.09.2022 and 01.10.2022 at Leibniz University Hannover. The conference is organized in cooperation with the German-Ukrainian Academic Society and the Hannover Medial School. It serves to promote and to further expand German-Ukrainian university cooperation and research cooperation.
On the first day of the conference, Ukrainian and German researchers presented their projects. On behalf of the project team, Jonathan Herbst reported on various international and national projects being carried out at the Competence Center Global Competence. He provided detailed insights into the project "Diverschance_East", in the framework of which Dr. Liudmyla Smokova from the National Mechnikov University Odesa is currently conducting research at the Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences.
Between the lecture sessions, the Ukrainian speakers introduced their educational institutions. Refugee researchers reported on their activities in the Lower Saxony host institutions. The project team was able to establish contacts with other researchers who are potential cooperation partners for future projects.
As expected, the current war in Ukraine also played a central role at this year's conference. Some speakers reported on how the war is hindering scientific work, but also on how cooperation projects between German and Ukrainian universities could provide quick and targeted help. The conference also provided space for German-Ukrainian aid organisations to present their activities.
Of current practical relevance was a programme item during which specific problems of refugee Ukrainian researchers were discussed through group work and solutions were sought. Jonathan Herbst was able to share his experience of working with refugees and his theoretical knowledge of refugee and integration research. The project team was also able to establish further contacts with NGOs and associations that could be important future partners in the field of refugee and integration research and research into intercultural competence.
The event was rounded off by a doctoral competition and by Ukrainian musicians, who provided a festive closing atmosphere.
On Friday 4 October, the second workshop of the research project ‘Profile Building through Diversity Management’ took place, bringing together eight representatives of equality and diversity work and research from private and public universities. Parallel to the symposium ‘Social Cohesion’ organised by the Political Psychology section of the BDP, interim results of the PDM project were shared and discussed in the context of equality and diversity work at universities. The workshop provided an opportunity to discuss the importance of diversity at universities, practical approaches to promoting equal opportunities and the challenges associated with implementing diversity initiatives.
The workshop was complemented by impulses from Prof Frank Linde and Dr René Krempkow, who provided insights into their research on diversity management at universities in North Rhine-Westphalia and diversity in the context of the Professor:innen career path.
Another highlight was the keynote speech by Prof Dr Rolf van Dick (Goethe University Frankfurt), which took place as part of the symposium and was free of charge for workshop participants. In his presentation, Prof. van Dick highlighted the benefits and relevance of identity leadership for organisations and politics. He presented the modern concept of identity-oriented leadership and showed how leaders succeed in creating a common identity in social structures such as teams, organisations or even countries. This integrative type of leadership in turn contributes to positive effects such as less burnout and a more innovative working environment. The participants learnt about the four facets of identity-oriented leadership and were given practical application options for their own areas of responsibility. They also learnt how identity-orientated leadership at a political level contributes to more commitment and greater adherence to rules. Prof van Dick's findings were eagerly received and discussed in depth in the subsequent discussion.
The keynote speech by Eva Högl, Parliamentary Commissioner for the Armed Forces in the German Bundestag, who was unable to attend in person due to illness, was followed by a presentation of her theses on the importance of a social year for social cohesion. In it, she explained her understanding of a social year, in which each and every person commits themselves to society for a period of time. This commitment could be in different areas, such as the environment, culture, social affairs or even the armed forces. There would be many possibilities and models between voluntary commitment on the one hand and a compulsory year on the other. A social year would help individuals to broaden their horizons, open up perspectives and strengthen responsibility. At a social level, this can strengthen cohesion and promote a sense of togetherness. In the ensuing discussion, the prerequisites and conditions for the implementation of such a social year were lively debated.
The participants drew a very positive conclusion from the event and particularly emphasised the insights into the current state of research and the opportunity to exchange experiences. They also expressed a desire for follow-up formats and documentation of the results of the research project.
Publications
Genkova, P., Schreiber, H., Bogdanova, P., Lefringhausen, K., Smokova, L., Rasticova, M., Poor, J., Veresné, K. V., Suhajda, C., Viszetenvelt, A., Bjekic, J. (2025). Intercultural Competence and Prejudice: A Cross-Cultural Analysis of Refugee Attitudes in Central and Eastern Europe. Frontiers in Psychology (submitted).
Genkova, P., Schreiber, H., Lefringhausen, K., Smokova, L., Rasticova, M., Poor, J., Veresné, K. V., Suhajda, C., Viszetenvelt, A., Bjekic, J. (2025). Unity in Diversity? Exploring National and European Identity Dynamics Across Central and Eastern Europ (in preparation).
Genkova, P., Herbst, J., Schreiber, H., Rašticová, M., Poor, J., Veresné, K. V., Suhajda, C., Viszetenvelt, A. & Bjekic, J. (2022). A comparative study on culture-specific and cross-cultural aspects of intercultural relations in Hungary, Serbia, Czech Republic, and Germany. Frontiers in psychology, 13, 886100. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.886100
Related Publications
Genkova, P. (2024). Handbook of Diversity Competence: European Perspective. Wiesbaden: Springer.
Genkova, P. (2024). Handbuch Globale Kompetenz. Wiesbaden: Springer. https://www.springerprofessional.de/handbuch-globale-kompetenz/50022284?tocPage=1
Genkova, P., & Schreiber, H. (2023). If You Like One, You Like Them All? The Relationship of Intercultural Competence, Contact, and Xenophobia. International Journal of Diversity in Education, 23(2). http://dx.doi.org/10.18848/2327-0020/CGP/v23i02/93-117
Genkova, P. & Schreiber, H. (2022). Diversity attitudes and sensitivity of employees and leaders in the German STEM-sector. Frontiers in psychology, 13, 960163. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.960163
Genkova, P., Semke, E., Schreiber, H. (2022). Diversity Nutzen und Annehmen? Praxisimplikationen für das Diversity Management. Wiesbaden: Springer. https://www.springerprofessional.de/diversity-nutzen-und-annehmen/20397134
Events and Awards
From the 31.10. to the 02.11.2019, the project coordinator Prof. Petia Genkova and Mr. Henrik Schreiber participated at the international IACCM2019 conference in Paris. There they presented among others the DNA projects first results.
The conference organized by the International Association of Cross-Cultural Competence and Management took place in the modern rooms of the IÉSEG Business School Paris. The conference theme thus focuses on creativity and innovation as we want to explore new approaches and ideas to familiar problems that nonetheless present themselves anew every day. The conference aimed to continue the dialogue between scholars, trainers and practitioners as all three groups contributed valuable insights to this discussion and to explore together new and creative ways of promoting and embedding intercultural competence in organizations and to managing in a VUCA world. Therefore over 40 talks, seminars and workshops took place within the two days of the conference.
Right at the beginning, Prof. Genkova and Mr. Schreiber held two talks in a row. One about “Diversity beliefs and Diversity Climate: Potentials for Organizations”, that also contained the latest insights of the DNA project. The other one was about “ Impact of Stays Abroad on Intercultural Competence of Students“. The talks both were accompanied by a professional discussion, giving the interdisciplinary audience the opportunity to contribute to the themes from their various points of view. Therefore, there was a lot of opportunities to get in contact with other researchers and to enrich the discussion with a variety of understandings and points of views. Moreover the contributors submitted a written Article accompanying each talk. Surprisingly Prof. Genkovas and Mr. Schreibers article “ Impact of Stays Abroad on Intercultural Competence of Students“ got awarded as the conferences´ best paper. Therefore the conference ended as a great success, even more as it was Mr. Schreibers first international conference experience.
József Poór presented another topic in Hungary on 25 June, reflecting the ever-growing need for knowledge and the related development of learning.
The concept of learning has changed due to the high-speed Internet and the diversity of content on the Internet. Learning has been technologically integrated. In just one generation we have gone from traditional learning programmed to e-learning, integrated, talented learning and continuous learning. Technology is now enabling digital learning.
E-learning is a process of training or knowledge transfer supported by digital devices. In concrete terms, it can be described as an open form and framework of training that supports the efficient organization of training processes as well as proper communication and feedback between tutors and trainees regardless of time and space distances. The transfer of knowledge is stored in digital form and is obviously supported by ccomputers.
E-Learning is confronted with typical problems. Users can struggle with adaptability or technical problems. Time management and self-motivation are often also a problem. These challenges can easily be solved by changing the user's attitude or by using technical support. Other solutions include a scheduler or basic courses in computer literacy.
If these problems are solved, e-learning has a lot of advantages. Cost reduction, flexibility and learning efficiency are just a few of them. However, only 40% of employees in Hungary have used e-learning and only a third of companies are e-learning users.
Against this background, Poór conducted a study with the University of Szent István to get an overview of the dissemination and practical use of e-learning methods in Hungary. The sample of the study were large companies, sixty percent domestic and 65 percent private. The study found that almost half of them used e-learning for reasons such as efficiency, owner's desire, simple paperwork or standardization.
The use of e-learning gradually increases with the increasing turnover and number of employees of a company. In addition, statistical analyses show a significant correlation between the type of owner and the use of e-learning, although this correlation is significantly weaker. The study shows that the use of e-learning is lowest in domestic companies (42%) and highest in listed companies (86%). The main purpose is the training of office workers, the study showed.
Poór concluded that e-learning is a difficult and complicated, but mature market. Each company has its own personal reason for not using e-learning. While IT professionals are enthusiastically developing new and wonderful functionalities in e-learning systems, the appetite of decision makers in companies is there, but at a very low level.
After his lecture in Hungary on labor shortages and retention, Prof. Jozsef Poór made his way to Vienna on April 25th to speak about trends in external professional providers of human resource management in the light of three consecutive empirical surveys at the ESIAM conference.
Poór starts his presentation at the 34th workshop on Strategic Human Resource Management with an interpretation of consulting. He explains consulting as a form of help. Even though the industry is less than 150 years old, it is almost impossible today to find an area of business life that is not associated with some kind of consulting business. Consulting is characterized by the goal of solving the customer's problems or achieving the desired result for the customer.
Consulting has recently faced new challenges, such as changes in the direction of capitalism, innovation and culturally complex societies, and solving these challenges is not easy. The challenges have an impact on consulting, because clients begin with offshoring their consulting purchases and multi-sourcing, which means they choose consultants from different consulting firms to work together on projects. In addition, clients are becoming increasingly cautious with their spending and are paying close attention to the cost of professional services. Overall, the entire consulting cycle tends to shift from consulting to inquiry.
Poór presented three empirical studies. These studies showed that most HR areas recorded a dramatic decline in the number of companies in 2008/10. In the meantime, it appears that a number of companies, with the exception of the Eastern European cluster, use external providers. The effects of the financial crisis have therefore led to a decline in the use of external service providers. In addition, the results show that the occurrence of an HRM department increases the likelihood of using external service providers. In cases where the company has a human resources department, the use of external service providers is increased. The final conclusion from the studies is that larger companies are more likely to use external services than smaller ones.
Poór concludes his presentation with a quote from a top Austrian expert for the consulting industry: "With the presentation of the Constantinus Awards the professional association of consultants has set an exemplary initiative for exceptional quality of advice in order to make the quality of the local professionals visible".
József Poór, one of the team members of Cult Open, was holding a lecture about labor shortages and labor retention in Central and Eastern Europen Countries (CEE) in light of three consecutive empirical surveys at the International Conference on Management in Gödöllő, Hungary. He started presenting the issues causing the labor shortages followed by empirical surveys and a conclusion.
One of the many issues that are causing labor shortages and labor retention, is that the global economic activity continues to firm up. Furthermore, the employment structure is changing constantly along with the minimum wages. Minimum wages had a drastic change between eight and eighteen per cent in most CEE countries, but there still is a big difference between East and West. Additionally, the unemployment rates have changed drastically in a positive way as well.
Even though those positive changes have happened, the immigration is still causing CEE countries to lose valuable workers. Nevertheless, more and more labor workers are being replaced by robots. In 2016, per ten thousand workers, there were on world average 74 industrial robots.
Poór presented three studies over the course from 2016 to 2018 with a number of respondents between 200 and 700. The studies show that the value of turnover has been constantly increasing and that replacing an employee becomes more and more expensive. Furthermore, in 2016, the vacant positions in the examined organizations were on average for 11 weeks in 2016, 20 weeks in 2017 and 20 weeks in 2018. The most difficult position to fill seems to be the position of engineers and in the public sector, the health sector is the most affected area, especially doctors and veterinarians.
The studies were looking for the reason of labor shortages and turnovers and they found that low wages, labor shortages of professional workforce and war for labor / talent are the main cause. Luckily, ways are known that reduce fluctuation. A competitive pay and payment system are supposed to decrease the likelihood of turnovers. The same applies to performance evaluation and a premium system, as well as flexible working hours.
Poór concluded his lecture by supporting the opinion of experts that the CEE countries are assembly centers, not knowledge centers. For the future, it would be extremely important for more and more companies to move in the direction of increasingly automating their processes.
After their visit to Italy at the beginning of June, Prof. Genkova and Mr. Schreiber travelled together with Mr. Castner, member of the Competence Center “Global Competence” at the University of Applied Sciences Osnabrück, to the Serbian capital Belgrade last Monday. From 17 - 18 June they were guests at the partner university Belgrade and visited Dr. Jovana Bjekic, employee at PIN, the Psychosocial Innovation Network.
PIN, in particular Dr. Bjekic, has already been involved in the Cult Open research and is also carrying out numerous other projects.
The NGO supports vulnerable and marginalized groups and tries to help them with various social and psychological challenges through psychological interventions and to improve their quality of life. PIN is currently cooperating with the Kahane Foundation on psychological support and counselling for refugees and migrants. The Psychosocial Innovation Network is working with UNHCR, the United Nations Commissioner for Refugees, on several projects, including promoting the well-being of asylum seekers in Serbia and promoting a sensitive asylum system.
In addition, cooperation is being conducted with the Open Society Foundation Serbia, the European Union, the Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation and Citizens Association Atina, as well as the International Rescue Committee and the DIVAC Foundation.
The travelers discussed with PIN future project proposals and cooperations, as well as the joint Cult Open research.
The University of Belgrade is the oldest and most important university in the country and therefore cooperation with this university is a promising opportunity. Founded in 1808, Belgrade University is the second largest university in Southeast Europe. In addition, it is considered one of the most modern and one of the greatest contributions of the European peoples to the world cultural heritage. In addition to cooperations, Erasmus and contracts were discussed as well.
After all the new experiences and interesting and informative discussions, Prof. Genkova, Mr. Schreiber and Mr. Castner made their way back to Osnabrueck.
After long work and research on "Cult Open" Prof. Genkova travelled to Matera, Italy last week for meetings and lectures at the International Forum on Knowledge Asset Dynamics (IFKAD). Since 2006, IFKAD offers a unique opportunity for international exchange. This year's forum, from the 5th to the 7th June, was dedicated to the topic "Knowledge, Ecosystems and Growth".
On Thursday, Prof. Genkova and Christopher Castner presented their results of Cult Open at the IFAKD under the title "Migration and Diversity Potentials for Organisation". The lecture refers to the fact that the successful integration of migrants into the labour market and into organisations is becoming increasingly important due to demographic change. The results of the project show that although employees in companies have recognised the importance of diversity, managers are not aware of the severity and urgency of cultural diversity measures. HR managers are not able to properly assess the additional stress of migrants and take it into account in their daily leadership and diversity activities.
Finally, the results were published in a peer review process and discussed with interested colleagues.
The session of their presentation was held under the theme "Sustainable Ecosystems and Communities: Value Creation and Innovation" and was led by Mauro Romanelli.
In addition to other project presentations in the same session, Prof. Wesselmann from the Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences also had the opportunity to give the lecture "Networks for regional sustainability: A case study approach".
Further lecture topics and additional information on the International Forum on Knowledge Asset Dynamics can be found here.
After Prof. József Poór gave a lecture at the Hochschule Osnabrück in March, Prof. Petia Genkova travelled to Hungary this April. A meeting of the project coordinator with Dr. Henriett Nagy, Internationale Dean at the Szent István University, Prof. József Poór and Andrea Visztenvelt took place in Gödöllő near Budapest. Together with other project participants, the first results of the joint Cult Open research were discussed and analysed, including the collected results from the visit of Prof. Genkova to Slovakia and the Czech Republic. In addition, the possibilities for further projects and Erasmus cooperations were discussed.
The discussions were followed by a lunch and then a visit to the ancient castle Gödöllő, the largest baroque palace in Hungary, which offered a pleasant and culturally rich conclusion to the day.
After her visit in Bratislava, Slovakia, the project coordinator Prof. Dr. Petia Genkova travelled to Brno, Czech Republic. There she met with her research partners Prof. Martina Rasticova, International Dean at Mendel University in Brno, and Prof. Clary Krekula. The topics of discussion primarily related to the future cooperation of the three professors.
As the joint project Cult Open is nearing its end, the first results of the joint research were analysed and discussed.
Cooperation on scientific and political topics is crucial and necessary for solving problems. COST Action, the European cooperation of science and technology, promotes scientific cooperation of cross-border networks through national research funds. For further joint research, a participation in a pan-European consortium of Cost Action is planned by the professors.
A basic research project is also planned at the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the Czech Science Foundation (GACR). Furthermore, Erasmus cooperation’s were discussed.
In the middle of April, the coordinator of the project, Prof. Dr. Petia Genkova travelled to Bratislava (Slovakia) and had a meeting with Doc. Ing. Daniela Spirkova, PhD. to discuss about further common research and to plan the next steps. Dr. Julius Gojej, a collegue of Spirkova, also took part in the meeting.
Now, that the CultOpen project has expired, the application for funding for the FairFuture research project has recently been submitted. The project focuses on developing European cooperation in the field of integration of refugees and migrants and has the aim of improving conditions for them; especially in terms of living conditions and future perspective. The opportunity to receive education also looms large here. There are currently 15 partners from whole Europe involved in the project.
Doc. Ing. Daniela Spirkova, PhD. and her colleague could be convinced as partner for the project. In addition to expertise, they also bring in further contacts to other scientists, so that the European linkage and exchange can be expanded more and more.
It is also planned to write a joint paper for the Journal for Political Psychology, which analyzes and compares the situation of refugees and migrants in each country.
In addition, further collaborative research is planned between Germany and Slovakia. In this, topics such as the economic situation and housing conditions of refugees and migrants and attitudes and prejudices of the population should be linked.So the meeting was really successful.
So the meeting was successfully completed. During a visit to the castle of Bratislava, the participants also found time for further exchange and concluded the meeting.
Prof. Dr. Petia Genkova will now travel to the Czech Republic and Hungary to meet other project partner.
On Monday the 11th of March 2019, we had the honour to have Prof. Dr. Poor from the Szent Istvan Unviersity in Hungary as a guest professor at our university. His presentation about management in an intercultural context was not only informative, but also tangible. With his professional knowledge and experience in management, Prof. Dr. Poor drew lively connections between academic theories and the working processes of global players in the management branch. However, most interesting were his own experiences he shared with the students.
With his open and direct teaching style, Prof. Dr. Poor grabbed the attention of the students and lead them with enthusiam and patience through the challenging content of intercultural management.
By involving the class with interactive tasks and visual input in form of a video clip, important models and constructs of intercultural management could be understood with ease. Overall, Prof. Dr. Poor’s visit was not only an enrichment for our students, but also exemplary for the strong ties to the Szent Istvan University as a partner.
As previously announced, the official handover of the Höffmann Business Award for Intercultural Competence, worth € 10000, took place on 07.02.2019 at the University of Vechta (Germany). The project coordinator Prof. Dr. Petia Genkova is this year's winner. The ceremony was musically accompanied by the Höffmann-Youth-Choir of Vechta. As a guest of honour, Emery Kabongo, archbishop of the Vatican, attended the award ceremony, honouring Petia Genkova's contribution to society across national borders.
In his welcome speech, the University President Prof. Dr. Burghart Schmidt accentuated the high relevance of the topic of intercultural competence for a mutual understanding and a free cooperation. The Minister of Science and Culture of Lower Saxony, Björn Thümler, also participated in the award ceremony and praised in his speech the award winner especially for the high practical transfer of the results of research. Especially, the transfer is important in order to induce a change and to be successful. This was also accentuated by the chairman of the selection jury, Prof. Dr. Prof. h.c. Egon. He also emphasized that Petia Genkova is engaged in training courses and practice seminars - beyond the boundaries of academic research - for the dissemination of the knowledge to businesses, authorities and the public. Uwe Bartels, chairman of the University Association Vechta e.V., also gave a speech. Especially, he talked about international discourse on intercultural competence.
The laudatory speech to Professor Genkova was given by Prof. Dr. Siegfried Preiser, rector of the Psychological University Berlin and Professor for Lifelong Learning. He explained how insecurities and fears are stoked in the public discourse by seemingly positive and actually destructive slogans. In the context of climate change, for example, this led to a carefree illusion that ends in hope and anticipation. With regard to Genkova's research on migration and its positive reception in culture and the world of work, it is important to keep an eye on items like satisfaction, success and health. "If we succeed in directing the perspective of success conditions instead of bad, migration will no longer be negatively occupied," said Preiser. He also emphasized the breadth of Genkova's research in cross-border intercultural competence.
Prof. Dr. Finally, Petia Genkova gave an informative but also colourful and vivid lecture on various aspects of the research field of intercultural competence. Among other things, she also addressed prerequisites, success predictors and ways out, giving a little insight into the diverse subject areas of her research. She concluded with a small appeal to the audience: "In a global world it is important not just to be on it, but to be part of it."
On 7th of February 2019, the Höffmann-Science-Award for Intercultural Competence is presented at the University of Vechta (Germany). The Award is part of a long-term project, which aims to the promotion of Intercultural Competence. It honours the opus of a scientific, who propounds excellent research activities to the subtopics of Intercultural Competence.
This special honour is issued to the project coordinator Prof. Dr. Petia Genkova.
Especially, the jury emphasise the great importance of transfer to praxis in Genkovas’ research activities as well as the extensive references to related disciplines. ”Petia Genkova exceeds greatly across the traditional level of cultural comparison.”, says Prof. Dr. Prof. h.c. Egon Spiegel, head of the jury. One focus of Genkovas research work is on the impact of migration for society and organisations.
The minister for science and culture of Lower Saxony, Björn Thümler, will participate to the award ceremony with a word of greeting. The solemn laudation for Prof. Dr. Petia Genkova is given by Prof. Dr. Siegfried Preiser, rector of the University of Psychology Berlin and professor for long-life learning.
Prof. Dr. Genkova feels honoured to receive the award. She explains: “The research shows that the relevance of Intercultural Competence for the society had risen enormously. Therefore it is a priority of mine to contribute to the promotion the Intercultural Competence.”
The coordinator of the project, Prof. Dr. Petia Genkova, travelled to Riga (Latvia), to have a meeting with Prof. Dr. Aija Klavina and to plan the further project schedule. Especially, the application for the federal program Horizon 2020 was reviewed. This application will be submit in January 2019.
Furthermore, the two project partner exchanged views about the different problems in Germany and Latvia, which occurred in the course of emigration and immigration. While Germany struggles with a high migration, Latvia has a negative population balance. So here the main focus is on reducing the emigration.
Other discussion topics were the financial planning as well as the project organisation. In the meeting they specified that Prof. Dr. Klavina will take on the position as quality manager.
In the end of the meeting there were an appointment with the rector of the Latvian Academy of Sport Education.
From 21th to 23th of November 2018 the conference ‘MobilityloT’ occured in Guimarães in Portugal. With the theme ‘Mobility of Future’ new innovative technologies were presented. Besides car manufacturing, e-mobility and sustainability also social responsibility and multiculturalism will be paramount. So it was of great interest, to be present and to share the knowledge of the project research.
The programme includes many keynotes and calls as well as poster presentations. Springer will publish a special magazine with all studies and articles.
1. The key topics of the conference were:
- Technological Innovation
- Urban mobility
- Smart Factory (Factory of the Future)
- Social mobility
- Sustainability
The project partner Prof. Dr. Dagmar Cagáňová was General Chair of the Organizing Committee and also presented new studies about the importance of managerial skills for innovation support. Prof. Dr. Petia Genkova, coordinator of the project and member of the scientific committee, participated to the conference, too. Together with Jan Schneider und Christina Nuhn she gave a lecture. Also a networking session was hold about the project ‘’CultOpen’’. So new cooperation partners could be allured for an enlargement of the network. Besides both project partner assumed additional responsibility by being members of the ‘Scientific Board’ of the conference.
Here you can find further information.
Prof. Dr. Matt Flynn, one of the projects partners, is very familiar in with the Chinese culture, as well he speaks Mandarin. Within another project, he worked together with Louise Wong. Next to her main occupation as a manager by Wai Yin, she hosts a radio show by All FM for Cantonese speakers (Cantonese is one of the Chinese languages) in Manchester (GB). All FM 96.6 is one of the of the longest running community radio stations in England and a volunteer led organisation. The radio station is characterised by diversity: next to the normal radio show, All FM has a special program for South Asian, African, Afro Caribbean, Polish as well as Irish communities in the area around Manchester. So the radio stations makes a valuable contribution for intercultural communication and integration of the different cultures to the population of the UK. In Ms Wongs Cantonese show the different contributions are broadcasted in English as well as in Cantonese, so that both cultures can benefit from it. Here you find former information on All FM 96.9. Prof. Dr. Flynn visited this show and gave an interview. In this interview he provided information about the history of culture and the development of culture. Knowledge about culture helps to assemble a well intercultural cohabitation. Furthermore he talks about one of his different projects relating to diversity: In cooperation with Ms Wong he researched for the working conditions in the social health care with the focus on the elderly staff. The key questions was how to integrate these older people in the social care sector in a better way. Especially, the project focused the older employee, whose native language is not Enlish. So Prof. Dr. Flynns` interview redound to create attention and interest in the public for diversity (in age) and inter-culturalism.
Federal congress of school psychology and congress of German Psychological Society in Germany
From 20th to 22th of September 2018 the 23th federal congress of school psychology of Germany took place in Frankfurt (Main). Lectures on current topics, areas of problems und research results in the working area of school psychologists were given. The motto of the congress were: ‘heterogeneity unites’. School psychologists mingle with many different children and teenager – e.g. relating to performance or psychological problems. In the course of migration the topic heterogeneity were bought to the fore. The integration of children of refugees and migrants into the daily school business is attached with many obstacles. The lectures and workshops of the congress focussing new concepts for the handling of the challenge of heterogeneity. They should provide new input to the participants how to handle with diversity of pupils and how this diversity can be used as a chance. So there were – besides presentations about spelling and reading - numerous programme items about the topics integration and migration, e.g. a workshop about flight and traumata. One project partner, Prof. Dr. Petia Genkova, attended the federal congress and lecturing about migration and school. Thereby, she indicated influencing variables and areas of problems. The presence on congresses is important to build up public understanding and to push the exchange of knowledge.
So Prof. Dr. Petia Genkova also visited the congress of German Psychological Society. The congress were from the 17th to 19th of September in Frankfurt (Main) in Germany. With the motto ‘psychology forms’ the relevance of research to solve new individual and societal challenges were highlighted. Even on this congress the topics migration and inter-culturalism were highly relevant. Prof. Dr. Petia Genkova give a lecture about the subject area of handling with stress in connection with migration and also give to poster-presentations on the topics diversity in organisations and universities.
Within a research project the exchange of information is important. So there was another conference in March of 2018 in Brno (the Czech Republic). The main focus was to report about the progress of the project. Three topics were focused:
- Notice in the magazine ‘Political Psychology’
- Status of the surveys
- Status of the calls for the application for Horizon 2020
In the magazine ‘Political Psychology’ there is an article about the research project in the current edition, which appears in July of 2018. The content of the article was determined on the conference just as well who does have the responsibility. The publication helps to draw attention of the public to the project and to find more sponsors and promoters.
Another focus of the conference were the status of the different surveys. Like said in Targets of the project, surveys were conducted in the different project countries. The surveys focused on the topics migration, refugees and attitude of the population to integration. At the time of conference, the partner gave feedback that the data collections were started. The partner determined, that the evaluation of the datas will be done with the statistic programme SPSS. The results can be used to create measures and suggestions for action that are adapted to the beginning conditions of each country.
Furthermore the partner discussed about the third topic for a long time – the concrete title for the application for the Horizon 2020 had to be generated. The point ‘Which profit to we want to have?’ was particular important. In the end they put their focus on the political perspective. By the compilation of a ‘tool kit’ the project partner want to help the governments to push integration and the openness of the inhabitants for migrants. Therefor the analysis of the labour market and the conditions of live in each country is important. Furthermore the partner want to draw attention to the aspect gender and equal treatment. In the course of integration women shall get the same chances like men to receive education and to enter the labour market of the new country.
Finally the responsibilities for the next step of project were allocated (again).
From 05.08.2017 to 08.08.2017 there was a ‚Research Meeting‘ at the University of Applied Scieneces in Osnabrueck, which was resolved by the Federation of German Psychologists. Scientists form the universities of Hungary, the Czech Republic, Latvia, Serbia, Slovakia and Germany met for planning the project. The Cooperation from the workshop strived for strengthen the internationalisation, the orientation on Europe and the competiveness of institutions in the research and education sector. As well a promotion of an Innovation Union was encouraged. Thereby the regional cooperation in the society and economy should be strengthen and the cross-border exchange should be ensured. The workshop focused on diversity and intercultural competency as well as on the determination of relevant aspects for the promotion of a positive diversity-culture. Especially, this is important in the context of the integration of refugees. For a long time the topic intercultural competency was a niche topic and not relevant for the mainstream-research. But today it is highly topical, amongst others this is conditional by globalisation and internationalisation of organisations and the refugee crises.
At the workshop, which last four days, the partners of the project worked intensively with the topics diversity and intercultural competency. These topics are key skills in the present-days world of work.
In the beginning of the workshop the situation of migrants in the European countries was presented. The comparison of the involved countries showed that migration is a widespread and actually topic in Europe. All of the involved European countries did have contact with refugees.
In the workshop the scientists grabbled intensively with the current challenges of the European economics and society. They want to find innovative approaches for the praxis amongst other for the problems in context of refugee crises.
The question the partners grabbled with was, how individuals can dismantle concerns against diversity and refugees to see diversity as enrichment. Cultural, individual, political, social and religious aspects were discussed. A long-term target of the cooperation is to develop corporate European measures in with regard to refuges and to promote intercultural competency of individuals. The change of attitude and measures for promotion of competencies is focused. The partners assert that the scientists had a common understanding of intercultural and global competency and that they saw this competencies as being key aspects for individuals. But migration and diversity are challenges for the state, the society and the economy. The research had shown, that doubt and distance are the typical first reaction on diversity-conditional changes. In the Czech Republic the seniors are particularly sceptical. They are influenced by media. The scepticism against migrants do not depend on social status or level of education.
In the course of the Small Research Meeting long-term measures should be deduce, that are focused on the development of intercultural competency and the reduction of prejudices against migrants. The corporate research and different measures should change the attitudes and should lay the foundation for a positive European diversity-culture. So the challenges of immigration of refugees and the challenges of interacting with different cultures should be managed. Culture plays a significant role in context of integration of refugees. A special challenge is also the handling withp different religions.
The social, corporative and political handling of the topic refugees is very different in the corporate countries and cultures. For example Serbia placed the focus on a good medical care for the refugees. Especially, a humane treatment is important. Serbia and the Czech Republic did not received many people in the last years. The countries are used as interstation. In contrast 180.000 migrants from China, Rumania, Serbia and the Ukraine did found asylum in Hungary. But all in all in comparison to Germany the east European countries did not received many refugees as being asylum seekers.
The partners discussed about their own experiences with refugees and the challenges of globalisation, digitalisation as well as im- and emigration. The compared the different measures and tried to find culture-adequate approaches for the different problem-areas in the involved countries. The discussion showed that the emigration of high qualitied personal from e.g. Hungary and Serbia to West Europe or Scandinavia is an economic challenge. About 300,000 young people left Serbia in the last years, because they hoped for better changes in the western European countries. The inhabitants of western European countries do have a better income (in comparison to eastern European countries). Besides the labour shortage is higher (in Western Europe) and the infrastructure is better. E.g. in Slovakia the labour shortage is very high and the wages better than in Hungary. So many Hungarian people immigrate to Slovakia.
Another focus of the meeting were placed on the promotion of diversity and intercultural competency e.g. of university graduates and medium-sized companies. This may help to build up a corporate European identity. A result of the workshop is, that the corporate project countries wanted to start a joint research at their universities (in 2018). In each case at least 200 students of the universities were asked about their opinions and attitude towards migrants and refugees. The results will be presented in October 2018.
Diversity and intercultural competency play a central role in context of integration of refugees. Also in different situations of employment intercultural competency (as part of the global competency) of employees is an important factor of success and a key qualification. The economic and political exchange will be supported.