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Dr. Irina-Catrinel Crăciun

Short Bio

PD Dr. Irina Catrinel Crăciun is a psychologist whose work bridges research, teaching, and practice. She specializes in health psychology, developmental psychology, cognitive behavioral therapy, and positive psychology, with a particular focus on health communication, health promotion, healthy ageing, and human development across the lifespan. 

She completed her PhD in Health Psychology at Freie Universität Berlin under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Ralf Schwarzer and later obtained her habilitation in Psychology at Freie Universität Berlin. Her research has addressed a wide range of topics, including global mental health, women’s health, ageing, behavior change, and health inequalities across diverse cultural contexts. She is also the author of several books on development in middle and older adulthood.

At the Hasso Plattner Institute (HPI), Dr. Crăciun focuses on storytelling for health. She leads the Digital Story Lab, where she develops and applies innovative approaches to health communication through digital storytelling. Within the Digital Story Lab, she coordinates the development of the StoryQ framework and the StoryHelper platform, supporting the creation of evidence-based health stories that promote behavior change and improve health literacy in a global context.

Teaching

Bridge Modules

  • Health and Disease Core Competencies
    • Mental Health
    • Behavior Change Digital Interventions
  • Applying Digital Storytelling for Global Health Issues

 

Professional Skills

  • Health Communication
  • Psychological Counselling
  • Mixed Methods Research in Health Promotion

 

Leader of the Digital Story Lab Page

Short Resume

  • Postdoc Researcher   2023 — Present 
    Digital Global Health, Hasso Plattner Institute — Potsdam, Germany
  • Lecturer for Qualitative Methodology and Healthy Ageing Across the Lifespan   2015 — 2023 
    Freie Universität Berlin — Berlin, Germany
  • Assistant Professor in Health Psychology   2012 — 2021 
    Babeş-Bolyai University — Cluj-Napoca, Romania
  • Guest Professor for Gender and Health   2015 — 2016 
    Freie Universität Berlin — Berlin, Germany
  • Post-doc, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation Fellowship   2012 — 2014 
    Alice Salomon University of Applied Sciences Berlin and Freie Universität Berlin — Germany
  • Positive Psychology Counsellor   2024 — Present 
    Certified by the Association of Positive Psychology — Germany
  • Habilitation in Psychology   2023 
    Freie Universität Berlin — Berlin, Germany
  • PhD in Health Psychology   2007 — 2010 
    Freie Universität Berlin — Berlin, Germany
    Thesis Title: “Motivational and volitional processes in sunscreen use: A longitudinal online
    experiment” (Supervision Prof. Dr. Ralf Schwarzer)

Selected Publications

  • Designing Effective Digital Storytelling Interventions for Health Promotion: A Digital Story Quality Framework (STORY-Q) and the StoryHelper Platform. Crăciun IC., Lederer G., Seidel S., Elgayar M. Zenodo (2026). doi: 10.5281/zenodo.1902475
  • The StoryHelper Manual. Crăciun IC., Adotey SK. (2025).
  • Positives Altern und Prekariat. Crăciun IC. Springer Nature (2025). doi: 10.1007/978-3-031-83299-4
  • Förderung der Entwicklung im mittleren und höheren Lebensalter. Eine Perspektive der positiven Psychologie. Crăciun IC. Springer Nature (2023). doi: 10.1007/978-3-031-44679-5
  • Development across Midlife and Old Age: A Positive Psychology Perspective. Crăciun IC. Springer Nature Switzerland (2023). doi: 10.1007/978-3-031-24449-0
  • Designing qualitative research with the elderly. Crăciun IC. in U. Flick (Ed.), The SAGE Handbook of Qualitative Research Design, Vol. II: Applications, Data, Fields, and Challenges, pp. 957–972. SAGE Publications Ltd (2022). doi: 10.4135/9781529770278.n58
  • From Hostile to Benevolent Ageism: Polarising Attitudes Towards Older Adults in German COVID-19 Related Tweets. Døssing MV., Crăciun IC. in The Gerontologist (2022). doi: 10.1093/geront/gnac063
  • The power of anticipated regret: Predictors of HPV vaccination and seasonal influenza vaccination acceptability among young Romanians. Penţa MA., Crăciun IC., Băban A. in Vaccine 38(6) 1572–1578 (2019). doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2019.11.04
  • "Taking responsibility for my health": Health system barriers and women's attitudes toward cervical cancer screening in Romania and Bulgaria. Crăciun IC., Todorova I., Băban A. in Journal of Health Psychology 1–13 (2018). doi: 10.1177/1359105318787616
  • Too Old to Work: Views on Reemployment in Older Unemployed Immigrants in Germany. Crăciun IC., Rasche S., Flick U., Hirseland A. in Ageing International (2018). doi: 10.1007/s12126-018-9328-8
  • "I wonder if robots will take care of me when I am old": Positive aging representations of professionals working in health promotion services. Crăciun C., Flick U. in Journal of Health Psychology (2017). doi: 10.1177/1359105315587141
  • "They Do Not Know How to Use Their Health Insurance Card": Implementation of Active Aging Policy and Aging Perceptions in Romanian General Practitioners. Crăciun C. in Ageing International (2016). doi: 10.1007/s12126-015-9239
  • Aging in precarious times: Exploring the role of gender in shaping views on aging. Crăciun C., Flick U. in Journal of Women & Aging 28(6) 530–539 (2016). doi: 10.1080/08952841.2016.1223896
  • Aging in precarious circumstances: can positive views on aging make a difference? Crăciun C., Gellert P., Flick U. in The Gerontologist (2015). doi: 10.1093/geront/gnv135