SWELL – NET International Conference
Advancing scientific understanding of seafarers’ mental health, well-being, diversity and inclusion, resilience, psychosocial safety, and the social dimensions of maritime life through international collaboration and interdisciplinary research.
About the Conference
The SWELL-NET International Conference is an international academic event specifically dedicated to advancing a scientific understanding of seafarers’ well-being, mental health, diversity, equity and inclusion, and human factors in the maritime sector.
While these topics have gained increasing attention from regulators, industry stakeholders, and maritime organisations, research in this field remains fragmented and relatively underdeveloped. SWELL-NET seeks to bridge this gap by bringing together universities, researchers, doctoral candidates, maritime professionals, and industry representatives to build a stronger evidence base and foster meaningful dialogue between science and practice.
VENUE
School of Maritime Studies – Campus Universitario de Gijón University of Oviedo – Spain
Conference Programme
Sources of ill-being in the maritime sector
- Organisational justice in the maritime sector
- Technostress and Well-being
- Burnout at Sea: An Updated Systematic Review of Risk Factors and Protective Buffers Among Seafarers
- The Influence of Seafarers’ Personal Circumstances on Stress and Fatigue in Maritime Work
- The Human Cost of Automation: Cognitive Demand and Safety at Sea
Preparing future seafarers for life at sea
- Beyond Technical Skills: The SWELL Experience in Maritime Education and Training
- SeaSafe: A Skills-Based Psychological Safety and Professional Readiness Programme for Maritime Cadets in Ireland
- From Maritime Education to Life at Sea: A Strategic Psychological Approach to Supporting Cadets’ Well-being
- Beyond Technical Training: Preparing Future Seafarers for Life at Sea: Insights from India and the Philippines
- Teaching soft skills to officers and cadets: the UDC experience
Listening to seafarers’ needs
- The Third-Quarter Phenomenon as a Trajectory: A Pilot Study Protocol Using Ecological Momentary Assessment and a Mindfulness-Based Intervention in Merchant Marine Crews
- Can We Talk with Anybody? A Pilot Study on Sources of Support Among Seafarers
- Competent, But Not Performing
- Preparedness, Perceived Job Demands and Training Resources in Maritime Decarbonization
- Separated by Sea, Shaped at Home: Psychological Needs and Child Well-Being in Seafaring Families
Building inclusion at sea
- Maritime Masculinity as a Regulatory Regime: Implications for Mental Health and Well-being at Sea
- Commercial Fishing Fleet versus Traditional Artisanal Fishing: A Conflict That May Lead to Human Mobility in Fishing-Dependent Regions
- When Silence Speaks: Creating Inclusive Teams at Sea
- Gender Diversity Starts Before Going to Sea: 45 Years of Women’s Participation in Marine Engineering Education
- The Influence of Gender Equality Climate and Maritime Labour Convention Awareness on Seafarers’ Well-being and Safety Reporting Culture: Evidence from Indonesian Seafarers
Promoting and managing seafarer’s well-being
- Addressing Maritime Labour Protection Gaps: The Role of the ILO and MLC 2006 in Safeguarding Seafarers’ Wellbeing
- Art as a Bridge: Real-World Implementation of an Arts-Based Family Connection Programme for Seafarers
- Motivation Beyond the Horizon: Applying Self-Determination Theory to Seafarer Well-Being, Safety and Retention
- Under Pressure at Sea: Job Demands, Resources, and Occupational Health Among Greek Seafarers
- One Maritime Ecosystem: Connecting Seafarers, Ship Managers, Recruiters and Flag States Through Human-Centred Digitalisation and a Digital Seaman Book
Poster Session
- Who Carries the Adaptation? Seafarer Wellbeing, Human Factors and Adaptive Capacity in Complex Maritime Work
- Hegemonic Masculinity, Gender and Inclusion at Sea
- Psychometric and seafarers: the role of measurements in predicting mariners career advancement and retention
- From Problem to Strategy: A Strategic Approach to Peer Support Among Female Maritime Cadets
- Unequal Patterns of Marine Casualties Across Distinct Operational Environments: Evidence from the Galician Fishing Fleet (2011–2021)
- Gender, Diversity and Inclusion in the Maritime Sector
- Using Systems-Based Maritime Event Investigation to Understand the Operational and Psychosocial Conditions Shaping Human Performance
- Cognitive Demands and Stress on the Navigation Bridge: The Role of Uncertainty in Decision-Making
- Promoting Physical Activity on Board Merchant Ships: A Framework for Enhancing Seafarers’ Health, Well-being and Physical Fitness
Call for Abstracts
The SWELL-NET International Conference invites scholars, doctoral candidates, early-career researchers, and professionals to submit abstracts related to the conference themes, with a particular emphasis on concrete actions, successful policies, empirical studies on perceptions, and innovative methodological approaches. All contributions will be evaluated by the Scientific Committee. Following evaluation, accepted contributions will be assigned to one of the following formats:
Oral presentation
12 Minutes
3 Minute discussion
poster presentation
Poster Session
Conference Exhibition
The Scientific Committee will determine the most appropriate presentation format according to scientific quality, thematic balance and programme availability. Contributions not selected for oral presentation may be considered for poster presentation.
Online Participation
The SWELL-NET Conference is primarily designed as an in-person event. However, the Organising Committee will consider requests for online presentations on a case-by-case basis, particularly for international participants or in justified circumstances.
For the wider public, the conference will be broadcast via Microsoft Teams for participants who have registered their interest and provided a valid email address in advance, by contacting the Organizing Committee.
Scientific Committee
Greece, University of Crete
Alexios Arvanitis
Panagiota Dimitropoulou
Leonidas A. Zampetakis
Ireland, Munster Technological University
Honor Carroll
Michael Hall
Paul McCarthy
Agnes Looney
Italy, Gabriele d’Annunzio University
Michela Balsamo
Michela Cortini
Teresa Galanti
Spain, Univeristy of Oviedo
Fernando Crestelo
Luis Alfonso Díaz
Deva Menéndez
Aitana Sánchez
Marco Sernaglia
Verónica Soto
Conference Fees
The SWELL-NET International Conference is developed within the framework of an INGENIUM Alliance project and is co-funded by the European Union. In this context, both participation and attendance at the conference are free of charge.
