Public PhD Defense of Elena Piccinelli

Elena Piccinelli, a PhD candidate in the Doctoral Program in Psychology, will defend the thesis titled "Subtle, but not innocuous: The role of perceived discrimination within the psychological acculturation process of immigrant women". The public defense is scheduled for May 6, 2025, 10:00 at Sala de Provas, B327 (Building 4) of Iscte-University Institute of Lisbon. And online: https://videoconf-colibri.zoom.us/j/7441410132

Changes on room and Zoom link may be updated at Iscte's website.

Abstract:

Migrants worldwide frequently experience discrimination, which is considered a major stressor within their psychological acculturation process. Nevertheless, research has long overlooked the unique manifestations and implications of subtle and blatant forms of discrimination. Across three studies adopting diverse research methodologies and proposing novel bridges between key theoretical frameworks, this thesis sought to (a) systematize the current literature on (subtle and blatant) perceived discrimination and first-generation immigrants’ psychological acculturation (Study 1), (b) adopt an intracategorical intersectional approach to qualitatively (Study 2) and quantitatively (Study 3) examine the experiences of an understudied immigrant population (i.e., first-generation women from the Community of Portuguese Language Countries) in an understudied post-colonial context of reception (i.e., Portugal). Study 1 involved a scoping review (k = 143) to identify concepts, measures, and evidence linking perceived discrimination with psychological acculturation. Findings emphasized the detrimental effect of perceived discrimination; yet they also revealed a fragmented state-of-the-art, where subtle discrimination is under-researched and inconsistently conceptualized and operationalized. In Study 2, ten focus groups (N = 52) explored immigrant women’s experiences of subtle discrimination. Thematic analysis, guided by the frameworks of microaggressions and post-colonial discourse, illustrated its manifestations and systemic nature. Study 3 provided cross-sectional (N = 690) and, in part, longitudinal (N = 135) evidence for the adverse effect of subtle discrimination on psychological, sociocultural, or cognitive adaptation outcomes, over and above blatant discrimination. By addressing crucial research gaps, this thesis highlights the necessity of acknowledging subtle discrimination and its harmful consequences for psychological acculturation in research, policy, and intervention.

Members of the jury:

• Nicolas Geeraert (University of Essex)

• Anca Minescu (University of Limerick)

• Sven Waldzus (Iscte-Instituto Universitário de Lisboa)

• Christin-Melanie Vauclair (Iscte-Instituto Universitário de Lisboa)