Fleur Baert

Fleur Baert earned her Master of Science in Clinical Psychology from Ghent University in 2016. Her early research explored psychosocial processes in health contexts, beginning with her master’s dissertation on mindfulness-based stress reduction in breast cancer survivors. In 2017, she started her PhD under Prof. Dr. Tine Vervoort, funded by the Special Research Fund (BOF), investigating injustice appraisal processes in chronic pain—a project she successfully defended in 2021.

Since then, Fleur has continued to deepen her focus on psychosocial and societal factors shaping pain experiences and pain care, including stigma, health disparities, and patient–provider interactions. As a postdoctoral researcher affiliated with HEALinG and with the Ghent Health Psychology Lab, she works on projects that move beyond the individual level of chronic pain to examine how social structures and biases influence healthcare. Throughout her academic career, the notion of gender has taken on an increasingly central role, informing a gender-sensitive and intersectional lens through which she reviews her work and structures future research. Her current research centers on intersectional dynamics of credibility and communication within chronic pain care (relating to gender and racialized identity), advancing both empirical investigations and conceptual frameworks. Her academic engagement is further strengthened by her enrollment in the Master in Gender and Diversity, reflecting her commitment to understanding inequities across gender and other, intersecting social identities in health and pain care.

Alongside her research, Fleur practices as a clinical psychologist at PRAKTIJK50, specializing in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and developing group-based ACT interventions. She also works as a freelance research consultant, supporting organizations such as Victoria Deluxe in projects on diversity and inclusion, drawing on her expertise in qualitative methodologies.