Research Projects
Active and completed projects across our five thematic areas
Our project portfolio spans Cultural evolution, Psychology, Human development, Addiction and Substance Use, Thanatology — mostly mixed methods and ethnography, always interdisciplinary, frequently in partnership.
Active Projects
Ongoing research collaborations
CIR-Lab hosts a number of collaborative research projects spanning different regions across the globe.
Traditional Luhya Mourning Rituals
Cultural Evolution · Mixed Methods · Templeton Foundation & Cultural Evolution Society
A cultural evolutionary approach to understanding community wellbeing, cooperation, cultural transmission, and cultural resilience in a Kenyan Indigenous community.
Grief after the loss of a loved one is a universal human emotion. Around the world, communities have developed mourning rituals which aim to bring closure to the bereaved while bringing them back into the fold of the greater community. Indigenous mourning rituals face ongoing threats from globalizing forces, and despite ongoing cultural evolutionary research on the prosocial effects of religion, limited attention has been paid to how mourning rituals foster individual and community wellbeing and resilience.
In light of these issues, our project will investigate how globalization has affected the practice and transmission of Indigenous mourning rituals from the Luhya community of western Kenya, and how these mourning rituals can help enhance individual and community wellbeing. We specifically aim to answer three interrelated questions: (1) What is the therapeutic value of Indigenous mourning rituals? (2) Do mourning rituals promote cooperation? and (3) How does participation in mourning rituals contribute to cultural transmission?
These questions will be answered using qualitative and quantitative methods including focus groups, quantitative interviews, behavioral observations, and psychometric tests with traditional healers, Christian leaders, and bereaved adolescents and adults. We will disseminate our findings in peer-reviewed articles and popular op-eds. By involving Christian religious leaders and traditional healers who hold divergent views on the use of mourning rituals during dissemination workshops, we will also create a platform for dialogue, understanding, and resolution. Our research findings will be incorporated into training curricula and policy briefs to promote the valuation of Indigenous practices among Kenyan mental health practitioners.
Principal Investigator: Asatsa Stephen, PhD (The Catholic University of Eastern Africa, Kenya)
Co-Investigator: Sheina Lew-Levy, PhD (Durham University, UK) — Assistant professor of Psychology. Holds a PhD in Psychology from the University of Cambridge (2019). Conducts research in hunter-gatherer societies to understand the cultural diversity in, and evolution of, social learning in childhood. Co-founder and co-director of Forager Child Studies.
Statistical Consultant: Eric J Ringen (University of Zurich, Switzerland) — Expert in Bayesian bespoke multilevel statistical modeling. Assists the research team in developing computational workflows in R to clean and analyze data.
The Africa Long Life Study
Longitudinal · Personality & Mental Health · Swiss National Science Foundation
A longitudinal collaborative study examining the psychological development of emerging adults with focus on personality traits and mental disorders with data being collected over a period of 5 years. The work is spearheaded by psychologists from the University of Zurich, Switzerland; The Catholic University of Eastern Africa, Kenya; University of Namibia and University of the Free State, South Africa.
The Kenyan sample consists of eight hundred (800) 18-year-olds at the point of the first wave of data collection, of which 50% are men and 50% are women, from throughout Kenya and belonging to any ethno-linguistic group. Data is collected at intervals of six months for a period of 5 years. The Kenya research team is supported by a team of postgraduate students from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa working as research assistants.
The goals of the study are to compare results to those from other contexts, in order to help differentiate more universal from culturally specific aspects of psychological phenomena among emerging adults. The findings will inform counsellors, policy makers and educators in different countries about the characteristics and needs of this generation of young adults.
Dr. Stephen Asatsa — Principal Investigator, Kenya. Department of Psychology, The Catholic University of Eastern Africa.
Professor Dr. Amber Gayle Thalmayer — Overall Principal Investigator. Assistant Professor for Personality, Mental Health, and Culture, Department of Psychology, University of Zürich.
Dr. Elizabeth Shino — Principal Investigator, Namibia. Department of Psychology, University of Namibia.
Professor Luzelle Naudé — Principal Investigator, South Africa. Department of Psychology, University of the Free State, South Africa.
Virtue at Scale: Cultural Evolution and Expansion of Moral Communities
Cultural Evolution · Moral Psychology · Arizona State University
Led by Prof. Sarah Mathew (Arizona State University). Collaborators: Dr. Stephen Asatsa (USIU-A, Kenya).
Ritual, Warfare and Adolescent Adversity among the Turkana
Anthropology · Adolescent Development · Arizona State University
Led by Michael Baumgarten and Prof. Sarah Mathew (Arizona State University) and Dr. Stephen Asatsa (USIU-A).
Building Body Image Resilience in Populations Undergoing Rapid Economic Development
Body Image · Economic Development · Durham University, UK
Led by Prof. Lynda Boothroyd (Durham University, UK) and Dr. Stephen Asatsa (USIU-A).
Parenting by Lying
Developmental Psychology · Cross-cultural · Babeș-Bolyai University, Romania
Led by Prof. Laura Visu-Petra (Babeș-Bolyai University, Romania). Collaborators: Dr. Stephen Asatsa (USIU-A).
Environmental Connectedness and Mental Health Outcomes
Environmental Psychology · Mental Health · USIU-A & Outspan Global University
Led by Dr. Stephen Asatsa (USIU-A) and Dr. Elizabeth Wangari Gichimu. Collaborators: Outspan Global University, Kenya.
Impact of Covid-19 Experiences on Emotional Regulation among Adolescents in 6 Countries
Adolescent Development · Religiosity · Templeton Foundation / ICDSS
This study examines the mediating role of religiosity and character strengths on emotional regulation among adolescents during the Covid-19 pandemic period in 6 countries (Kenya, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Namibia, Philippines, and Australia).
The onset of Covid-19 brought about disruption in almost every sector globally, leading to travel restrictions, and the closure of schools, workplaces, and places of worship. Meaning-making and religion have emerged as one means for developing coping skills to manage stress. When the ability to use those tools is disrupted, adolescents are likely to revert to maladaptive attempts to cope, which could translate to delinquency.
In the education sector, school shutdowns resulted in the loss of a full academic year, affecting about 168 million children globally (UNICEF, 2021). In Kenya, the reopening of schools was accompanied by the introduction of a crash academic programme, suspension of extracurricular activities, and reduced school holidays. During the recovery period, Kenya witnessed heightened delinquency among school adolescents in the form of arson, indicating a shift in emotional regulation strategies and character strengths of adolescents.
This study hypothesizes that Covid-19 disruptions inversely affected religiosity and character strengths, consequently reducing their buffering effect against stress.
Dr. Stephen Asatsa — Principal Investigator, Kenya. Department of Psychology, The Catholic University of Eastern Africa.
Co-Investigators:
- Alex Gardener — Griffith University, Australia
- Eden Terol — University of the Philippines
- Mulat Asnake Goshu — Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia
- Chidozie Nwafor — Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Nigeria
Covid-19 Pandemic-Related Impacts and Severity of Substance Use Disorder Symptoms
Substance Use · Rehabilitation · ICUDDR
This study examined the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the severity of substance use disorder symptoms among patients in selected rehabilitation centres in Nairobi, Kenya, to inform treatment programs during the ongoing pandemic.
The onset of Covid-19 brought about disruption in almost every sector globally. In an attempt to contain the spread of the virus, many countries imposed travel restrictions, closed social places, and introduced working from home. Among the affected places in Kenya were rehabilitation centers, where patients were discharged to avoid infection. This was accompanied by the closure of bars and the introduction of curfews, among other measures.
The study targeted 204 residential patients in selected rehabilitation centers in Nairobi, who were selected through simple random sampling, with the inclusion criterion being those who had started treatment before the Covid-19 pandemic. Data were collected using a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Epidemic-Pandemic Impacts Inventory (EPII), and the Modified Addiction Severity Index. Data were analyzed using univariate analysis, Pearson correlation analysis, and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA).
Global Research on Work Addiction
Occupational Health · Cross-cultural · National Science Centre, Poland
The role of macro-, meso-, and micro-level factors in work addiction and related health problems. Funded by the National Science Centre in Poland (project number 2020/39/D/HS6/00198).
Global Collaboration on Traumatic Stress
Trauma · Culture-sensitive Assessment · Global Psychotrauma Network
Culture sensitive assessment of traumatic stress — a collaborative initiative within the Global Psychotrauma Network focused on developing culturally appropriate tools and methodologies for assessing trauma across diverse populations.
Recently Completed
Closed projects with published outputs
- Adolescent reproductive health behaviour study — closed 2024. Outputs: 2 journal articles, 1 policy brief.
- Faith, meaning-making and resilience — closed 2024. Outputs: 1 journal article, 1 book chapter.
- Open methods working group — closed 2023. Outputs: shared methods toolkit and training programme.
- Pilot of CIR-Lab fellowship model — closed 2022. Outputs: programme white paper.