Optentia appointed as extraordinary professors
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Two international experts in happiness and quality of life were recently appointed as extraordinary professors and now form part of the Optentia Research Programme at the Vaal Triangle Campus of the North-West University (NWU – Vaal). The two extraordinary professors, Prof Ruut Veenhoven (Erasmus University in the Netherlands) and Prof Hans de Witte (Katholieke Universiteit, Leuven) will visit the NWU will present keynote addresses at the South African Positive Social Sciences Symposium on 14 April - 15 April 2011.
Prof Veenhoven, a renowned expert in the field of happiness and quality of life, will involve the researchers in the Optentia Research Programme to become involved in the maintenance of the World Database of Happiness (a website which consolidates research findings regarding happiness in all nations in the world – see http://worlddatabaseofhappiness.eur.nl/).
The other extraordinary professor, Prof Hans de Witte, is an expert in job insecurity and unemployment. Researchers at the Optentia Research Programme are currently working closely with colleagues at the KU Leuven to study how positive social sciences can be applied to deal with job insecurity and unemployment in Southern Africa. The collaboration with Prof de Witte and his colleagues is crucial to provide answers to dealing with unemployment and job insecurity given the uncertainty and instability experienced worldwide. The Optentia Research Programme is a recently established focus area of research support by the Vaal triangle Campus of the North-West University. The establishment of Optentia was an initiative implemented and supported by the NWU Vaal. The Optentia Research Programme plans to become a focus area acknowledged by the North-West University. The researchers in Optentia come from different social sciences backgrounds but have a shared focus to develop and organize knowledge regarding optimization of individual, social and institutional potential).
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Published by Sipho Msolo on 06 May 2011.