Gaya, Jan. 9: Psychologists from several countries, including India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka, will go into a huddle in March to discuss the impact of natural calamities on the behaviour pattern of survivors and those who see them on television.

The occasion is the UGC-sponsored International Conference of Psychologists, to be held between March 7 and 9 at Magadh University.

Conference director Habibur Rahman Khan said psychological rehabilitation of survivors of the tsunami disaster and those who have suffered economic and emotional loss is a major challenge right now. Khan exhorted the scientific community to help survivors, many of whom have developed suicidal tendencies and withdrawal symptoms, recover from the traumatic experience.

Besides addressing the twin issues of human and material loss, the psychologists will also discuss the impact of such disasters on the religious beliefs of survivors. According to experts, eyewitnesses and survivors tend to believe in supernatural powers and lay emphasis on the negative and destructive powers of nature. Disasters like the tsunami make people more god-fearing, feel psychologists.

While the meet will see the participation of experts from India and Sri Lanka ? both of which have been affected by the December 26 disaster ? psychologists from Indonesia and Thailand have not been invited.

Sources in the academic circles feel that the participation of applied psychology experts from Indonesia and Thailand would have enriched the deliberations and widened the scope of the discussions, as, geography too, plays a role in determining emotional behaviour and in many cases, people from different parts react differently to similar experiences.

The deliberations will also focus on other issues like quality of life, crisis management, psychological management of mental stress and trauma, inter-community relationships, population explosion, human rights violation and empowerment of the hitherto deprived sections of society.

The conference will also discuss the trauma of AIDS victims and the psychological rehabilitation of their family members.

About 400 teachers and Applied Psychology researchers are expected to participate in the meet.