Chair Huoshen
The Huoshen Chair was founded with the support of the Huoshen Foundation to sustainably anchor the theme of psychophysical work with young people (approximately high school age) in the academic field. The Chair builds on the Eastern-inspired belief that physicality, body awareness, health, well-being, and meaning are not separated but form an integrated whole that deserves special attention in education, assistance, and research into the quality of life of young people.
The establishment of the Chair arose from a growing need for scientific depth and academic recognition of embodied, experiential forms of learning and guidance, both preventive and therapeutic. Young people are usually in a period of intense physical, emotional, and moral development. Psychophysical practices—in which the body and practical experience are central—offer them opportunities to develop awareness, resilience, and self-understanding. Nevertheless, this field of research remains underrepresented within existing academic disciplines.
The Huoshen Chair is situated at the intersection of Eastern and Western conceptual frameworks and brings together insights from Eastern traditions about the unity of body and mind (for example, Taoism, Buddhism, Confucianism, traditional Chinese medicine, and Japanese body practices) with Western approaches from orthopedagogy, psychology, and educational sciences. The Chair is embedded in the Centre for Research on Body Cultures in Motion (BOCULT) within the Department of Eastern Languages and Cultures and works closely with the Department of Orthopedagogy in the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences. Through this interdisciplinary approach, the Huoshen Chair aims to connect academic knowledge with practical experience and contribute to an integrated vision of well-being, learning, and care for young people.
Aim
The Huoshen Chair aims to advance the development of academic and societal knowledge and experience in the field of psychophysical work with young people. It focuses on strengthening, connecting, and making visible the knowledge, practice, and research surrounding the relationship between body, mind, meaning, resilience, and moral development in young people.
Specifically, the Chair aims to:
- Develop, conduct, and disseminate scientific research through publications on embodied and experiential forms of learning and working with young people. Particular attention is given to how they can cultivate self-insight and resilience through movement, reflection, and body awareness.
- Support and supervise master’s and PhD projects so that new generations of researchers can contribute to the further scientific grounding of this domain.
- Map the field of practice and coordinate the smaller projects supported by the Huoshen Foundation, with a focus on knowledge exchange between practice and science.
- Promote public outreach by organizing study days, seminars, workshops, and open-access publications, and by fostering cooperation between schools, welfare organizations, and cultural partners.
- Strengthen education and academic training by offering courses and guest lectures on topics such as body-oriented work and embodied pedagogy in working with young people, as needed and upon request.
Through these initiatives, the Huoshen Chair seeks not only to deepen academic debate but also to make a tangible contribution to improving the quality of life and sense of purpose among young people.
Donor
Period
1 October 2025 - 30 September 2028 (with the possibility of an extension)
Supervisor
Prof. Andreas Niehaus, founder and point of contact for the Centre for Research on Body Cultures in Motion (BOCULT)
Tutor
Dr. Mieke Matthyssen
