Eugene Chuang Professorship in Social and Developmental Psychology

The Eugene Chuang Professor in Social and Development Psychology, Professor Cecilia Cheng is an internationally renowned scholar whose work advances understanding of young people’s social and emotional development, mental wellness, and resilience in an increasingly AI‑driven and digitally connected world. At The University of Hong Kong (HKU), she integrates social, developmental, and health psychology with emerging technologies to explore how artificial intelligence, online platforms, and cyber environments shape the wellbeing of individuals, families, and communities across cultures.

Professor Cheng is an elected Fellow of the Association for Psychological Science (APS) and currently serves as Director‑at‑Large of the International Council of Psychologists (ICP), contributing to international leadership and policy dialogue within the discipline. Her research excellence has been recognised through numerous prestigious honours, including the Fulbright Senior Scholar Award, the Cambridge Hughes Hall Fellowship, the ICP Early Career Research Award, and the Humanities and Social Sciences Prestigious Fellowship awarded by the Research Grants Council (RGC). She is also listed among Stanford University’s World’s Top 2% Scientists and honoured as one of Clarivate’s Top 1% Scientists worldwide.

Internationally, Professor Cheng is widely respected for her editorial leadership in flagship journals. Since 2009, she has served as Associate Editor of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Health Psychology Review, and Psychology and Health, and currently holds the position of Senior Editor of Social Science & Medicine. She is also a Consulting Editor for Psychological Bulletin and the British Journal of Social Psychology, and an editor of the second edition of the SAGE Handbook of Health Psychology. At HKU, she has previously served as Associate Dean (Postgraduate Education) in the Faculty of Social Sciences and now contributes as Associate Dean (Personal Development) at the Graduate School.

Professor Cheng is the Founder and Director of the Cyberpsychology and Resilience Enhancement (CARE) Laboratory, where her team conducts cutting‑edge research on AI and society, digital wellbeing, problematic versus responsible technology use, gaming disorder, digital citizenship, stress and coping, and psychosomatic health. A defining feature of her work is its strong focus on helping young people develop healthy emotional regulation, effective stress management, meaningful social connections, and robust mental wellbeing as they navigate algorithm‑driven media, AI‑enabled tools, and rapidly evolving online social environments.

Deeply committed to knowledge exchange and societal impact, Professor Cheng leads large‑scale, evidence‑based initiatives that translate research into practice. Through AI‑informed mental wellbeing programmes, school‑based prevention projects, teacher and parent training, youth workshops, public education, and accessible digital resources, her work directly supports children, adolescents, families, educators, and local communities in Hong Kong. Guided by a strong belief in prevention, compassion, and inclusivity, her work strives to empower the next generation to thrive—emotionally, socially, and digitally—in the AI era.