Congratulations to Johannes Freymann on being selected as the Student Spotlight Award winner for March 2025!
The purpose of this award is to highlight students who are doing important work in the CBS community whether for research, clinical, and/or volunteer-humanitarian efforts.
This is a way to highlight their achievements, let the ACBS community know important work students are doing, and possibly provide a platform for mentoring, collaboration, professional development, and conversations around highlighted areas.
Learn more about Johannes Freymann
Background of CBS Research/Clinical/Volunteering efforts/achievements
2021: Bachelor’s Thesis: Psychological Flexibility in Times of Crisis – Effectiveness of an ACT-Based Video Course During the COVID-19 Pandemic
2023: Research Intern and Therapy Assistant at ACThealthy Lab, focusing on research and therapy with unaccompanied refugee minors
2024: Clinical Internship at a OVID Clinic Berlin, delivering ACT training to staff and patients
2024: Publication of Article in JCBS: Examining Psychological Flexibility in Unaccompanied Refugee Minors: A Network Analysis
2024: Presentation of Research and several workshops at ACBS Conferences in Katowice, Buenos Aires, and Zurich
2024: Research Award from DGKV (German-Speaking Chapter of ACBS)
2023-2024 (current): University of Leipzig: Developing a DNA-V-Based Guide for Teachers to Integrate CBS and ACT into School Curricula in Germany
2023-2024 (current): Licensure Training with Focus on Systemic Psychotherapy and ACT and preparation of PhD project
Autobiography
I’m Johannes Freymann, originally from a small town in eastern Germany. After finishing high school, I spent a year volunteering in Sri Lanka, where I engaged in community service, and assisted in occupational therapy. This experience deeply influenced my decision to pursue a career in psychology. I went on to complete a four-year B.A. in Communication Psychology in Görlitz, Germany, which included an Erasmus semester in Lithuania and an internship with Lufthansa in Singapore. My Bachelor’s thesis focused on the effectiveness of a self-provided ACT-based video course in promoting psychological flexibility during times of crisis, a topic that took on added significance during the COVID-19 pandemic. My curiosity about different cultures then led me to study Clinical, Social, and Intercultural Psychology at the University of Padua, Italy. An internship at the ACThealthy Laboratory in Cyprus allowed me to use network analysis to examine the psychological flexibility of unaccompanied refugee minors in Cyprus. I am currently part of a student lab at Leipzig University, where I am developing a DNA-V guide for teachers and students. I am also training as a psychotherapist, specializing in ACT. Additionally, I serve as a trainer in experiential learning with the European Federation of Psychology Students’ Associations (EFPSA), where I lead sessions on communication, mindfulness, and applied ACT concepts such as DNA-V. Beyond these roles, I am an active member of EFPSA and the MIND Foundation, communities that inspire and support my commitment to advancing the field of psychology and promoting psychological flexibility across diverse contexts.
Future goals (one sentence describing goals in any relevant area)Next year, I plan to continue my licensure training with a focus on systemic therapy and ACT, promote the DNA-V model and guide at various conferences, and begin my PhD in Germany to advance CBS research and foster collaboration within the German-speaking clinical community.
Publications:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2212144724000887
https://dnav.international/article/dna-v-is-integrated-into-high-school-curricula-in-germany-via-openevo/
https://openevo.eva.mpg.de/about/?lang=de
https://dgkv.info/dgkv/vorstand/vorstandswahl-2025/#:~:text=Vorsitzende%3A%20Theresa%20Witting,Johannes%20Freymann%20und%20Lora%20Grozeva