Dr. Stephen Asatsa
Assistant Professor in Department of Psychology, United States International University-Africa, founding Director of the Collective Intelligence Research Lab (CIR-Lab), and Principal Investigator of various studies ranging from Indigenous Knowledge Systems, Thanatology, Cultural evolution and Human development.
Building an African-Centred Psychology of the 21st Century
Dr. Stephen Asatsa is a Kenyan psychologist whose work bridges indigenous knowledge systems and contemporary psychological science. He researches how Indigenous knowledge can be harnessed for human flourishing and how collaboration across disciplines and regions can enhance understanding of human experience.
He leads CIR-Lab, mentoring graduate fellows and early-career professionals, and supervises interdisciplinary research across psychology, anthropology, and public health.
Working With Dr. Asatsa & CIR-Lab
Three structured pathways for students, institutions and partners to engage with our work.
Graduate Internship
A structured internship hosted within CIR-Lab for graduate students and early-career scholars in Psychology, Public Health, Anthropology and Cultural Evolution and adjacent disciplines. Hands-on training in fieldwork, data analysis, manuscript writing and grant development under direct mentorship.
Community-led Mental Health Initiatives
Community-driven programmes supporting bereavement counselling, grief support, workplace well-being, faith-sensitive psychotherapy, and substance-use recovery for youth and young adults.
School Counseling Programmes
Structured counseling programmes for schools, integrating culturally grounded approaches to student well-being, resilience and developmental support.
Five Programmes Shaping the Lab's Agenda
Indigenous Knowledge
Documenting healing, longevity and bereavement practices of African communities
Public Health
Advancing community well-being through health education, disease prevention, and equitable access to essential healthcare resources.
Mental Health
Supporting emotional well-being by fostering awareness, resilience, and access to mental health knowledge and support systems.
Human Development
Understanding and supporting the processes of human growth, adaptation, and flourishing from infancy through older adulthood. Through research, mentorship, and community engagement, we promote the development of knowledge, skills, relationships, and capacities that enable individuals and communities to thrive across all stages of life.
Cultural Evolution
How beliefs, rituals and emotion-regulation strategies transmit, adapt and shape well-being over generations.
Active Investigations
Traditional Luhya Mourning Rituals
Cultural Evolution · Mixed Methods · Templeton Foundation & Cultural Evolution Society
The Africa Long Life Study
Longitudinal · Personality & Mental Health · Swiss National Science Foundation
COVID-19 Experiences and Adolescent Emotional Regulation Across Six Countries
Adolescent Development · Religiosity · Templeton Foundation / ICDSS
Honors, Awards & Invited Engagements
Awards & Honors
- Distinguished Researcher of the Year 2025/2026. The Catholic University of Eastern Africa
- International Research Collaboration Award, Durham University, March 1, 2024
- Human Relations Area Files (HRAF) Global Scholar, 2023, Learn More
- ICDSS Covid Global Scholar (2022) Learn More
Invited Talks & Keynotes
Keynotes and invited lectures delivered at Durham University, UK; Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychology, Queens University of Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK; ISSBD Blog; European Association of Personality Psychology Podcast; Carl Jung Institute, Switzerland; Simon Fraser University, Canada.
Upcoming
Schedule of Events
Seminars, workshops, writing retreats and public engagement – find out what’s next at CIR-Lab.
IACCP Regional Conference 2026
International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology regional meeting. Paper presentation on indigenous psychometrics.
CIR-Lab Annual Research Symposium
Annual showcase of CIR-Lab research fellows' work and emerging findings in African psychology.
Guest Lecture: Wellbeing in Kenyan Universities
Invited lecture at Strathmore University exploring student mental health frameworks in East Africa.
ISSBD Workshop on Adolescent Development
Pre-conference workshop on measurement approaches for adolescent flourishing in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Partner With CIR-Lab
We welcome research collaborations, mentorship requests, internship applications, funding partnerships and media inquiries from institutions across Africa and worldwide.