This panel aims to foster greater interdisciplinary dialogue by highlighting the subtleties, challenges, and opportunities involved in working across disciplines. Faculty representing diverse academic perspectives will give a brief overview of their discipline, including discussion of the central questions and approaches used in each, and how these come into play in contemplative studies. There will also be a demonstration of the disciplines in action, as panelists consider different approaches to the same raw data (excerpts from an elicitation interview, a qualitative method aimed at generating rich phenomenological data). Finally, there will be an opportunity for attendees to breakout into groups to discuss their reactions to the panel, questions they had, and propose answers to guiding questions that will be provided to help stimulate discussion. No “reporting back” is required after the small groups—the goal is to stimulate interdisciplinary discussion and help create community

Martijn van Beek, PhD

Aarhus University, Denmark

Reviewer

Martijn van Beek, PhD is an Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology and based at the Interacting Minds Centre at Aarhus University in Denmark. He lived and worked among … MORE

Catherine Kerr, PhD

Brown University

Convening Faculty, Fellow, Grantee

Catherine Kerr, PhD was director of translational neuroscience at the Contemplative Studies Initiative at Brown University. Her neuroscience research focused on neural dynamics underlying embodied attention and the sense of … MORE

Laurence J. Kirmayer, MD, FRCPC, FCAHS, FRSC

McGill University

Laurence J. Kirmayer, MD, FRCPC, FCAHS, FRSC is James McGill Professor and Director, Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, McGill University. He is Editor-in-Chief of Transcultural Psychiatry, … MORE

David McMahan, PhD

Franklin & Marshall College

David McMahan, PhD is the Charles A. Dana Professor of Religious Studies at Franklin & Marshall College in Pennsylvania. He received his PhD in religious studies from the University of … MORE

Andreas Roepstorff, PhD

Aarhus University

Fellow, Grantee, Reviewer

Andreas Roepstorff, Ph.D. is Professor, Center of Functionally Integrative Neuroscience and Department of Social Anthropology, Aarhus University / Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark. As an anthropologist in neuroscience, Andreas tries to … MORE

Carol Worthman, PhD

Emory University

Reviewer

Carol Worthman is the Samuel Candler Dobbs Professor of Anthropology at Emory University (Atlanta), where she also directs the Laboratory for Comparative Human Biology. After taking a dual undergraduate degree … MORE