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May 2026. 

Eunseo's Trip Reflection — A Week at the University of Pécs, Hungary ✈️

From May 3 to 11, our PI, Sun Yoon and I visited the Department of Psychology at the University of Pécs, Hungary for a week of research exchange, collaboration, and tons of fascinating conversations about emotions. This visit grew out of our connection with Professor Melinda Pohárnok, a developmental-clinical psychologist at Pécs who was a visiting scholar at SKKU last year.

Sun delivered multiple lectures for MA and PhD students in the clinical psychology program, covering themes central to our lab's work on emotion regulation and daily life. On one of those days, I had the chance to present my own ongoing research as well — and what I didn't expect was how generously the audience engaged with my work, offering feedback that genuinely pushed my thinking forward.

These exchanges quickly grew into something more concrete: through lively joint meetings, the outlines of a cross-cultural follow-up study began to take shape. What I loved most were the moments when we'd be discussing a particular phenomenon and asking each other, "So what is it like in South Korea?" or "How would that look in Hungary?". The insights from these conversations will directly feed into the cross-cultural studies ahead, and we plan to hold quarterly joint lab meetings and expand our collaboration — so please stay tuned!

There was room to breathe as well. Melinda graciously showed us around the city of Pécs — its warm, peaceful streets and landmarks made the days feel longer in the best possible way. And as the trip came to a close, Sun and I spent an evening in Budapest watching the sun dip below the Danube, taking in a skyline that was hard to leave.

I'm deeply grateful for this opportunity — for the openness of the researchers we met, for the ideas that emerged, and for the reminder that the questions we care about resonate far beyond our own context. I can't wait to see where this collaboration takes us.

(For Sun's reflections on the visit, see her piece here)