Bio
After obtaining a bachelor degree in social work (1994) and a bachelor and master degree in Chinese Studies (1998), and following an intensive course in modern Chinese at Sichuan
University (1999), I started to work as a freelance trainer of Chinese culture and interpreter/translator in companies (Alcatel, Bayer, BASF) and at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Later, I worked for three years for the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs as chief representative of the Netherlands Business Support Office in the North of China (Shenyang). In this period, I became very fascinated by the rapid social changes in China and by the way Chinese people deal with them. At the same time, these three years immensely increased my insight into and intuitive sense of Chinese cultural patterns, behavior, and nuances, vital for understanding the characteristically Chinese cultural, social and psychological phenomena that I study now. After my long working experience in China, I took up a teaching and research assignment at the Department of Chinese Studies of Ghent University, where I obtained my PhD with a thesis on the popular saying Nande hutu (‘It is difficult to be muddled’) and ‘The art of being muddled’ in contemporary Chinese society (public defense: December 2012).
My research now mainly deals with the philosophical, psychological and sociological dimensions of Chinese philosophies of life related to (non-)wisdom, happiness and wellbeing. One recent research field is body-based therapies in China. My broader research interests focus on health strategies and indigenous psychology, from the perspective of traditional
Chinese medicine and philosophy, and how they are interpreted in contemporary society.
At the department of Chinese Studies, I teach modern Chinese and am part of the guidance and assessment commission for master dissertations. Within the university, I also teach
courses at other departments on intercultural communication and corporate culture and leadership styles with a focus on China. Outside the university, I occasionally give expert advice to public media for issues related to Chinese culture and contemporary China, and give public lectures and workshops at all kinds of institutes and associations. I still regularly visit China to keep in touch with the fast and often disorienting social changes.
Research interest
• Public health, self-health and the therapeutic in contemporary
China
• Chinese philosophies and practical wisdom
• Indigenous Chinese psychology
• Social and cultural change in contemporary China
• Cross-cultural communication with focus on China
SHORT
Dr. Mieke Matthyssen is a teaching and research assistant at the Department of Eastern Languages and Cultures, Ghent University. Her research mainly deals with the philosophical, psychological and social dimensions of popular Chinese philosophies of life related to (non-)wisdom, happiness and wellbeing. One particular research field is body-based therapies. Her broader research interests focus on Chinese health strategies and indigenous psychology, from the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine and philosophy, and how they are interpreted in contemporary society.
CURRICULUM VITAE
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Selected Publications
For publications, see:
https://biblio.ugent.be/person/801001966632
Matthyssen, Mieke (2015) Zheng Banqiao’s Nande hutu and “the Art of Being Muddled” in Contemporary China, Contemporary Chinese Thought, 46:4, 3-25, DOI: 10.1080/10971467.2015.1067426 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10971467.2015.1067426 PDF
Matthyssen, Mieke (2013) Scholars Should Be Considered the Last of the Four Classes - The Case of Scholar-official Zheng Banqiao, p. 219-244. Edited by Müller, Claudius and Ptak, Roderich. JOURNAL OF ASIAN HISTORY, 47 (2013) 2, Harrassowitz Verlag, Wiesbaden. PDF |
