Staff Spotlight: Dr. Saya Karavadra, Professor of Psychology - Barcelona

The CEA CAPA Staff Spotlight 是每月一期的系列文章，重点介绍在全球不同留学地点的全球学习中心教授课程和提供学术指导的个人吗. Their teaching leaves a mark on students who study abroad. This month, we meet Saya Karavadra, DPsyc, (she/her) from our Barcelona destination.

Q: WHICH COURSE(S) DO YOU TEACH AT CEA CAPA?

Dr. Karavadra: I teach Abnormal Psychology and Cognitive Psychology.

Q: HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN TEACHING FOR CEA CAPA?

Dr. Karavadra: I’ve been teaching with CEA CAPA for three years.

Q: WHAT ARE YOUR ACADEMIC INTERESTS AND FOCUS(ES)?

Dr. Karavadra: 在我的学术和临床生涯中，我对与 minority groups, such as those identifying as LGBTQIA+, racial and ethnic minorities, 最近，那些被认为是专业少数群体的人，比如性工作者. Focusing on such minority groups who experience stigma and discrimination, where risks are high and where help-seeking is low, has become a passion in my work, both academically and clinically. Exploring the experiences of such minority groups through qualitative research, 专注于为那些在心理学领域历史上被低估和被污名化的人发声，是我觉得有必要通过我的工作来尝试和解决的问题.

Another academic interest I have is the experiences of those who self-harm; my doctoral thesis explored the experiences of LGBTQIA+ individuals who engage in self-harm.

Finally, I’m also interested in psychosexual psychotherapy. 心理根源的性问题很常见，并不遵循我们可能想象的刻板印象. 人们对这样的困难感到羞耻，我喜欢和他们一起解决这个问题, and their perception of it. Working with sex, sexuality, gender, 我觉得我的学术和临床培训并没有充分解决这个问题，因此我的目标是确保我的学生不会经历同样的差异. 我试图创造一种环境，鼓励我的学生在面对对自己的假设时，批判性地思考这些话题, each other, and mental health and well-being in general.

Q: WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR PROFESSIONAL HIGHLIGHTS?

Dr. Karavadra: Finally completing my doctorate was of course a professional highlight. At age 18 I enrolled in an undergraduate degree in business and marketing; I have no idea why and I failed miserably. I changed to a psychology degree and quickly decided I wanted to become a psychologist, but was daunted by the 10 years it'd take to get there. In the end it took a lot longer. I graduated from my doctorate aged 35! It was such a long and treacherous journey which I wanted to quit often. Life threw me countless curve balls and thwarted my plans again and again, so it took what felt like forever. It wasn’t until I finally attended graduation, wore the gown, threw the hat, and took the obligatory pictures with my family that it all sunk in; I was finally done and it felt great.

Another professional highlight for me was my conducting doctoral thesis. It took five years to write, 这些年来，它的发展和变化如此之大，以至于我经常怀疑自己是否有能力解决我所关注的复杂话题:LGBTQIA+个体的自我伤害经历. 激励我的是一种承诺，让那些自愿与我分享他们故事的参与者发出自己的声音. It was an intense process and I felt a strong sense of responsibility to analyze, interpret, and report their interviews as best I could. I feel really satisfied that I could do so, 特别是考虑到LGBTQIA+经历和自残经历在定性研究中的代表性不足.

Finally, simply being a professor of any kind is indeed a professional highlight for me! I’ve had a public speaking phobia since childhood where I would panic, shake, and stutter to the point of not being able to speak in front of groups. I never thought teaching was even a possibility for me. 尽管成功地与经历过同样困难的客户合作，并且知道治疗方案, etc., I couldn’t overcome it and avoided public speaking at all costs. So, 事实上，我现在非常喜欢站在一群学生面前演讲，这种感觉很棒.

Q: PLEASE SHARE SOMETHING UNIQUE ABOUT YOUR CLASS OR ACADEMIC DISCIPLINE.

Dr. Karavadra: I aim to create classes within which we discuss, reflect, and challenge each other often. I encourage students to not blindly accept the conclusions of the research papers, theories, and models we cover, or even what I teach them, but instead to question things from a well-formed critical perspective. This can be tough for them and debates can be lively. There is an increasing censorship in the academic world (and beyond), which I can feel my students are aware and cautious of. While I’m strict about maintaining respect for each other’s opinions, 我绝对鼓励讨论心理健康及其他领域的困难和复杂话题. I find that once students feel comfortable and safe in the classroom, 他们通常有很多话要说，我致力于确保我的课程是一个让他们能够这样做的地方. 

Q: WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT TEACHING STUDY ABROAD STUDENTS?

Dr. Karavadra: 这听起来很老套，但我最喜欢看到我的学生在这学期的课程中取得的进步. 在最初的几个星期里，他们沉默寡言，畏缩不前，不愿参与或分享自己的想法. It’s a big adjustment arriving in Barcelona for most of them. But by the end of the semester, 我可以看到惊人的进步，学生们可以对各种话题进行批判性和洞察力的思考. 他们对自己交流想法的能力有了信心，我强调他们也需要在正式和学术上这样做. 我喜欢看到他们的想法受到挑战，他们理解我介绍给他们的内容.

Additionally, the international nature of study abroad programs means that I also get to learn a lot from my students each semester. While my expertise is in psychology, 我班上的学生来自不同的背景和学科，所以他们的观点对我来说往往是新颖而有趣的. I may think about a certain topic for years and sometimes a student will offer a perspective on that same topic which I never even considered; this I enjoy a lot.

ABOUT DR. SAYA KARAVADRA

Saya Karavadra is a doctor of psychology, psychotherapist, and professor of psychology. She’s living and working in Barcelona for the last five years. She has an extensive academic and clinical background, and currently works in private practice providing therapy to adults, and teaching two undergraduate psychology classes at CEA CAPA. Dr. 卡拉瓦德拉有15年的精神卫生工作经验，在各种不同的角色和环境中工作，包括公共场所, private, and charitable sectors. She completed a majority of her training in London, gaining a masters from King’s College and a professional doctorate from City, University of London. 她的临床工作包括为经历各种心理健康问题的成年人提供心理治疗, 借鉴多种治疗模式，但主要是从精神分析的角度出发. Dr. 卡拉瓦德拉在过去的三年里一直在CEA CAPA任教，她把作为CEA CAPA教授的角色看作是与学生交流思想的机会, 鼓励他们挑战自己对心理健康和一般心理学的假设.