Ifigeneia Manitsa BEd, MSc, AFHEA
​ https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0239-3579

Career Summary
Psychology Researcher and PhD Candidate with quantitative and qualitative research and analysis expertise at Kingston University London interested in improving the academic and social outcomes of vulnerable and marginalised individuals with and without SEND using developmental and social psychology theories. Academic Grants Holder with experience in the writing of grant applications and peer-reviewing in academic journals, currently investigating the impact of social inclusion on the academic learning and socioemotional development of adolescents with and without visual impairments. Involvement in other research projects includes the investigation of the role of (re)habilitation services in the academic and socioemotional development of children and adolescents with visual impairments, the examination of the provision of social support to individuals with visual impairments, the inclusion of adults with visual impairments in higher education, the exploration of the service experiences of young people aged between 16-25 years with SEND identifying as LGBTQ+ , the examination of trust and trustworthiness in young children and the application of psychology research methods on research projects focusing on the mental health of vulnerable adolescents and adults (e.g. substance use and eating disorders). Lecturer (Hourly Paid) and Seminar Leader in various Psychology and Research Methods modules (Levels 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7) with blended teaching expertise. Best New Researcher 2019 in the Faculty of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences at Kingston University London. Latest achievement was the decision of the Prime Minister of Greece to include youth entrepreneurship as a subject in all schools in the country, after the suggestions discussed in the “Innovation and Entrepreneurship at School” event, where I presented my ideas on employment and entrepreneurship of students with SEND.
 
 
Education
Oct 2017 -Present
Ph.D. research in the Department of Psychology, School of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences within the Faculty of Business and Social Sciences, Kingston University London, United Kingdom.
Thesis title: The social inclusion of adolescents with visual impairments: A multidimensional approach.

Jan 2019 -
May 2019
Associate Fellowship of the Advance HE (formerly Higher Education Academy)

Oct 2013 -
Apr 2016
MSc in Pedagogy with specialization in “Special Education”, Department of Philosophy and Pedagogy, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece.
Dissertation title: The experiences of studies in higher education from the perspective of students with visual impairments.
Grade: 9.20/10 (Honours Degree 1st)

Oct 2009 -
Jul 2013
Degree in Pedagogy from the Pedagogical School of Primary Education, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece.
Grade: 8.02/10 (Honours Degree 2:1)
 

 
Funding and Awards
May 2021 – Jul 2021
Equality Diversity and Inclusion Research Fund (ediRF)
Kingston University London, School of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences
Grant amount: £4,5k
Project title: Exploring the service experiences of LGBTQ+ youth with special education needs and disabilities: A multi-perspective focus group study
Role: Co-Investigator

Jan 2021 -
July 2021
GRS Activity Support Fund Award
Kingston University London, Graduate Research School
Grant amount: £200

Jan 2020 – Jan 2021
Sight for Surrey Vision Rehabilitation Services - RCP 10157
The National Lottery Community Fund and Sight for Surrey
Grant amount: £10k
Project title: How do specialist vision rehabilitation services impact the lives of children and adolescents with visual impairments?

Apr 2020 – Jul 2020
“Research during lockdown” Fund
Kingston University London, Faculty of Business and Social Sciences
Grant amount: £600
Project title: The impact of COVID-19 outbreak on young adults’ alcohol and cigarette consumption

2019
PhD Research Grant
Sir Richard Stapley Educational Trust
Grant amount: £1k

2019
1st prize for the Best New Researcher
10th Annual Faculty of Business and Social Sciences Conference, Kingston University London
Paper: Self-concept in adolescents with visual impairments

2013
Came first after written and oral examinations, in the field of Special Education
MSc of Pedagogy
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece (2013).

 
Professional Affiliations and Memberships
  • Associate Fellowship - Advance HE (formerly Higher Education Academy)
  • Member of the Developing Minds Lab, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London
 
 
Publications Manuscripts Under Review
  • Montague, A., Manitsa, I. & Barlow-Brown, F. (2020). Factors which explain alcohol and cigarette consumption among young adults during the COVID-19 outbreak. Manuscript submitted for publication. *first and second author contributed equally
 
Peer-reviewed Conference Papers
  • Manitsa, I. (August 2021). How Do Specialist Vision Rehabilitation Services Impact the Lives of Children and Adolescents with Visual Impairments? A Case Study Approach. Oral presentation at the Inclusive and Supportive Education Conference (ISEC), UCL Institute of Education (IOE), London.
  • Manitsa, I. & Doikou, M. (August 2021). Providing social support for students with visual impairments in educational settings: Findings from an integrative literature review. Oral presentation at the Inclusive and Supportive Education Conference (ISEC), UCL Institute of Education (IOE), London.
  • Manitsa, I. & Montague, A. (June 2021). A qualitative insight into factors pertaining to alcohol and cigarette consumption among young adults during the COVID-19 outbreak. Oral presentation at the Division of Health Psychology Annual Conference 2021 (virtual conference), The British Psychological Society (BPS).
  • Manitsa, I. (2020). Social inclusion of adolescents with visual impairments: From research to practice. Oral presentation at the 3rd PhD meeting between Kingston University and University of Gothenburg, Kingston University London.
  • Manitsa, I., Barlow-Brown, F. & Lyons, E. (2019).  Self-concept of adolescents with visual impairments. Paper presented at the 10th Annual Faculty of Business and Social Sciences Conference, Kingston University London.
  • Manitsa, I., (2018).  The importance of social inclusion in general schools to the self-concept of adolescents with visual impairment and their differences from sighted children. Paper presented at Kingston University Postgraduate Research Conference, Kingston University London.
  • Manitsa, I. (2018). The importance of social relationships with sighted peers to the self-concept of adolescents with visual impairment and the differences between both groups. Oral and poster session presented at "Listen to me" Multi-sensory Impairment Conference, Seashell trust Organisation, Manchester Conference Centre, UK.
  • Manitsa, I., (2018).  The importance of social inclusion in general schools to the self-concept of adolescents with visual impairment and their differences from sighted children. Paper presented at Kingston University Postgraduate Research Conference, Kingston University London. ​
  • Manitsa, I. & Doikou, M. (2017). The academic experiences of studies in higher education from the perspective of visual impaired students. Paper presented at the 4th Pan-Hellenic Conference in Special Education with International Participation, “Modern Trends and Proposals in Special Education", The Company of Special Education in Greece, Harokopio University, Greece (published).
  • Manitsa, I. (2016). The experiences of studies in higher education from the perspective of students with visual impairment. Paper presented at the 4th Conference of Postgraduate Students in the field of Education, “New Voices 4”, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece.
 
Invited Talks
  • Manitsa, I. (2020). Doing research with vulnerable populations. Oral presentation at the First Annual PhD Autumn Symposium, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London.
  • Manitsa, I. (2020). Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Education: Students with Special Educational Needs. Oral remote presentation at the “Innovation and Entrepreneurship” event, IYDU (International Young Democrat Union).
  • Manitsa, I. (2019). The role of social inclusion in the self-esteem of adolescents with visual impairments. Whitefield Academy Trust, London.
  • Manitsa, I. (2019). The self-concept of adolescents with visual impairments. Oral presentation at the British Psychological Society (BPS) Postgraduate Meeting, London, UK.
  • Manitsa, I. (2018). Social inclusion and the differences in self-concept between adolescents with visual impairments and their sighted peers. Poster presentation at "Sensing Nature: Wellbeing with nature and sight impairment" Exhibition, London, UK.
  • Manitsa, I., Barlow-Brown, F. & Lyons, E. (2018). The role of friendship and the importance of social relationships on students with visual impairments and their sighted peers. Poster presentation at the “Children, Tablets and iPads: Concerns and New Possibilities” Open Lecture with Prof. David Messer and the CDLD lab, Kingston University London.
  • Manitsa, I. (2014). The Interdisciplinary school project " Nazism: The black pages of the History". Oral presentation at the “School Projects about Nazism” Day Conference, Department of Philosophy and Pedagogy, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece.
 
Media Appearance
  • Interview on Emotional Abuse in the working and school environment. “PolitikoLOGOS” Live Radio, Greece (10/02/21).

Other Publications
  • Manitsa, I. (2020, May). Social inclusion of adolescents with visual impairments: From Research to Practice. VIEW: The professional association of the vision impairment education workforce.
  • Manitsa, I. (2019, April). Social Inclusion. Developing Minds: Exploring Cognitive Diversity. Retrieved from http://bit.do/aprilnewsletter2019
 
 
Research Experience
Proficient User of advanced quantitative (SPSS, PROCESS, JASP, quantitative scales, controlled observations, mixed-methods systematic review) and qualitative research and analysis (semi-structured interviews, focus groups, Thematic Analysis, IPA, integrative review). Experienced in using experimental delivery software, such as Qualtrics and Gorilla, and other research software, such as Zotero.
I have been involved in the development, data collection, analysis, and dissemination of the findings (peer-reviewed publications, webinars, and conferences) of all the following research projects:
 
Active Research Projects
2017 - Present
PhD thesis
The examination of the social inclusion of adolescents with visual impairments, which has been conceptualised as a multidimensional term by developing my own socio-ecological model. The relationship between social inclusion (here defined as participation in school activities, development of the sense of belonging and social relationships with teachers and peers), academic inclusion (here defined as academic performance and classroom participation), self-esteem (here defined as a multidimensional term which consists of domain-specific and global self-esteem) and social competence has been also examined using a quantitative approach (currently writing-up and finishing the data collection for the last two studies in one month). Teachers’ perceptions towards the inclusion of their students with visual impairments is also examined. The project has been presented to various conferences and invited talks and it is promoted by numerous organisations in the field of SEND and Visual Impairment, as well as schools. The following published manuscript analyses the theoretical background of the first study which has been now completed: Manitsa, I., Barlow-Brown, F., & Lyons, E. (2019). Self-concept of adolescents with visual impairments. British Journal of Visual Impairment, 38(2), 160-167. https://doi.org/10.1177/0264619619883900. More manuscripts based on the findings of this research project will be prepared during the next academic year.

Mar 2021 - Present
Co-Researcher, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London
Project title: Siblings’ experiences of having a brother or sister with an eating disorder: A mixed-methods systematic review
PI: Anya Heneghan
Supervisor: Dr Maria Livanou
Tasks: systematic review and dissemination of the findings

April 2021 - Present
Principal Researcher, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London
Project title: Exploring the service experiences of LGBTQ+ youth with special educational needs and disabilities: A multi-perspective focus group study
Research team: Dr Maria Livanou, Dr Fiona Barlow-Brown, Ms Amy Montague
Tasks: grant application, literature review, ethics application, development of the research tool (interview schedule - focus groups), data collection, analysis, writing of the paper and dissemination of the findings

May 2021 - Present
Research Assistant, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London
Project title: How observation influences moral decisions and compliance
Principal Investigator (PI): Dr Amanda Rotella
Research team: Dr Pat Barclay, Mrs Sharmistha Chaudhuri
Tasks: coding methods sections of papers (meta-analysis)

June 2021 - Present
Research Assistant, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London
Project title: How toddlers make judgements about trustworthiness
Principal Investigator (PI): Dr Claudia Uller
Tasks: puppet experiment (Baby Research Unit, Kingston University London)

 
Completed Research Projects
Feb 2020 – Jan 2021
Principal Researcher, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London
Project title: How do specialist vision (re)habilitation services impact the lives of children and adolescents with visual impairments? (funded by the National Lottery Community Fund & Sight for Surrey)
PI: Dr Fiona Barlow-Brown
Tasks: grant application, literature review, ethics application, development of the research tool (interview schedule), data collection, analysis, writing of the paper and dissemination of the findings

Apr 2019 – May 2020
Principal Investigator, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London
Project title: Social support for students with visual impairments in educational institutions: An integrative literature review
Co-Investigator: Dr Maro Doikou
Tasks: literature review, integrative review, writing of the paper and dissemination of the findings

Apr 2020 – Dec 2020
Co-Researcher, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London
Project title: Factors which explain alcohol and cigarette consumption among young adults during the COVID-19 outbreak
Research team: Ms Amy Montague, Dr Fiona Barlow-Brown
Tasks: grant application, literature review, ethics application, development of the research tool (interview schedule), data collection, analysis, writing of the paper and dissemination of the findings

Apr 2015 – Apr 2016
MSc dissertation
The investigation of the inclusion of students with visual impairments in Universities in Greece using a qualitative approach (semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis). A part of this project’s findings has been presented in the “Innovation and Entrepreneurship at School” event, where the Prime Minister of Greece decided to include youth entrepreneurship as a subject in all mainstream and special schools in the country (2013-2016).

 
 
Academic Teaching Responsibilities
Jan 2021 – Apr 2021
Hourly Paid Lecturer, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London
Module title: Advanced Issues in the Psychology of Thinking (Level 6)
Tasks:
  • preparation and delivery of online academic seminars focused on communication and language, numerical cognition and representation and categorisation in animals

Hourly Paid Lecturer and Grader, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London
Module title: Social, Individual and Developmental Psychology (Level 5)
Tasks:
  • preparation and delivery of online academic seminars focused on language development/mathematical development/comparative cognition
  • grading university assignments on language development

Sep 2020 - Present
Hourly Paid Lecturer and Grader, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London
Module title: Advanced Developmental Psychology (Level 6)
Tasks:
  • preparation and delivery of online and face-to-face academic seminars focused on infants' cognitive and perceptual development, children’s cognitive and social development, prosocial and antisocial development and Williams Syndrome
  • grading university assignments on infant cognition
 
Module title: Foundations of Psychology (Level 4)
Tasks:
  • preparation and delivery of online lectures on infants’ cognitive development and evolutionary theory
  • grading university assignments on mental health treatments, on the facial expressions of emotions or on the psychodynamic and humanistic approach to understanding personality

Guest Lecturer, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London
Module title: The Person in Psychology (Level 7)
Task:
  • delivery of a face-to-face and online lecture on Bronfenbrenner’s socio-ecological model (How nature and nurture affect development)

Sep 2018 - Present   
Seminar Leader, Supervisor and Grader in Psychology Research Methods modules, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London
Modules titles: Psychology Research Methods 1 (Level 4), Psychology Research Methods 2 (Level 5), Methods and Statistics for MSc Psychology (Level 7)
Tasks:
  • SPSS and JASP software/thematic analysis/IPA
  • grading lab reports

Grader in Psychology modules, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London
Module title: Practical Research Skills (Level 3)
Task:
  • grading academic posters
 
Module title: Historical and Philosophical Concepts in Psychology (Level 4)
Task:
  • grading university assignments on Freud and internationalisation
 
Module title: Mental Health and Brain Function (Level 5)
Task:
  • grading university assignments on Schizophrenia

Dec 2019
 

Guest Lecturer, Department of Psychology, Kingston University London
Module title: Child Psychology MSc (Level 7)
Tasks:
  • preparation and delivery of the lecture "Blind children's socioemotional development


Administrative Experience
2021
  • Organisation and delivery of the webinar “Doing Psychology Research in the Field of Mental Health: A Multifaceted Discussion on the Impact of our Projects”, Festival of Research, Kingston University London
Presentation title: The social inclusion of adolescents with visual impairments – A multidimensional approach
  • Co-organisation and delivery of the webinar “COVID-19: Perspectives from across the lifespan”, Festival of Research, Kingston University London
Presentation title: The importance of providing support to students, their teachers and caregivers – The role of habilitation services
  • Co-organisation and delivery of the webinar “The impact of COVID-19 on children and their caregivers: an international perspective”, Developing Minds Lab, Kingston University London
Presentation title: The importance of providing support to students, their teachers and caregivers – Tips for homeschooling
  • Co-organisation and delivery of the webinar “Emotional trauma in the time of Covid-19. Why now?”, Kingston University London
Presentation title: Cyberbullying in the shadows of homeschooling during COVID-19 - Tips to protect and support students
  • Co-organisation of the FARO (Faculty Research Online) seminars, Faculty of Business and Social Sciences, Kingston University London
  • Co-organisation of the online “Young Scientists Days” event where children and adolescents with and without SEND participate in numerous fun research tasks, Kingston University London
  • Co-organisation and delivery of the Pint of Science event, a worldwide science festival, Kingston University London

2020
  • Facilitating the publication of the latest newsletter of the Developing Minds Lab (developmental psychology research group), Kingston University London

2019
  • PGR representative, University Research Degrees Committee, Kingston University London
  • Social Media Director of Postgraduate Creativity Researcher’s Society at Kingston University London
  • Panel Judge of undergraduate poster presentations, Undergraduate Psychology Posters, Kingston University London
  • Co-organisation and delivery of the “Young Scientists Days” event, Kingston University London

2018                  
  • Examiner of MSc and BSc students in “Biological Psychology, BPP – London Waterloo University
  • Co-organisation and delivery of the “Young Scientists Days” event, Kingston University London

2017
  • Co-organisation of the “Summer School 2017: Doing and Communicating Qualitative Research”, Kingston University London
 
 
Peer Review Experience
2020 - Present
  • Guest Peer Reviewer in the British Journal of Visual Impairment (BJVI)
  • Guest Peer Reviewer in the Journal of Health Psychology
 
 
Professional Experience – School Teaching Responsibilities
2020-Present
  • Volunteer English teacher in the Greek Orphanage for Girls “Melissa” (online teaching)

2017-2021
  • Teacher in Year 2 at the Greek Orthodox School of St Barnabas, Wood Green, London

2012-2021
  • Private tutor of various typical and atypical developed (learning difficulties, ASD, intellectual disability, mental and conduct disorders) individuals, age range from nursery school to higher education and in different subjects, such as English and Greek Language, French, German, Mathematics, Music and Pedagogy

2018 - 2019
  • Special needs assistant at Hinchley Wood Primary School, Esher, Surrey, United Kingdom
  • Supervisor of four Lego Therapy and one Social Stories Social Club at Hinchley Wood Primary School, Esher, Surrey, United Kingdom

2017-2018
  • Teacher in a class which consisted of students from different educational levels at the Greek Orthodox School of St Constantine and Helen, Westow St, London

2017
  • Volunteer teaching assistant in Year 1 at St George Greek Orthodox School, Kingston, London
  • Volunteer teaching assistant in Years 2 and 5 at Epsom Primary School, Epsom, Surrey, London

2014
  • Seminar leader of educational courses in nutrition delivered to primary and secondary students with and without SEND, Department of Food Technology, School of Agriculture, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki

2013
  • Observation and teaching of students with learning disabilities and mental disorders, 80th Primary school, Thessaloniki, Greece

2012
  • Practitioner (six-month internship) in Year 2 at 81st primary school, Thessaloniki, Greece

2006–2007
  • Tutor of the theory of music in primary school students, as prerequisite for obtaining the degree of expert in Music Composition, “Aristotle Conservatory”, Trikala, Greece

 
 
Career and Skills Development Training
Professional
  • “Tackling the hidden curriculum in Higher Education” session, Learning and Teaching Enhancement Centre (LTEC), Kingston University London (2021)
  • Introduction to Epigeum, Kingston University London (2021)
  • Attendance of the VIEW Conference 2020, Birmingham (2020)
  • ERASMUS Exchange Workshop: Flipped classroom and problem-based learning, LTEC, Kingston University London (2019)
  • Voice Coaching, LTEC, Kingston University London (2019)
  • "Mobile eye tracking” training, Kingston University London (2018)
  • Workshop "Autism in the classroom", CDLD, Kingston University London (2018)
  • Attendance of the “UCL ICH: Psychological wellbeing & mental health of children & young people with visual impairment”, UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, London (2018)
  • 3 Minute Thesis and media training, Kingston University London (2018)
  • Observing the Infant: An interdisciplinary workshop on infancy from 1900 to Today, Kingston University London (2018)
  • Interactive Data Skills Modules, UK Data Service (2018)
  • Attendance of the “England Vision Strategy” National Conference 2018, London, UK (2018)
  • “Own your own work: how copyright and IPR affect your research” workshop, Discover session resources, Kingston University London (2018)
  • “Creating Academic Posters”, Discover session resources, Kingston University London (2018)
  • Children Safeguarding Training, Epsom Primary School, United Kingdom (2017)
  • Certificate in Braille Reading and Writing (2012)
  • Knowledge of Sign Language (2012-2014)

IT
  • International Diploma in IT Skills Standard – Full Certificate- University of Cambridge International Examination

Languages
  • Greek (mother language)
  • English (C2 - Certificate of Proficiency in English, University of Michigan)
  • French (C2 - Diplôme De Langue Et Littérature Françaises 2eme Degré – Sorbonne C2)
  • German (Level 1)

Artistic
  • Degree in Music Composition, Piano

 
 
Other Awards and Achievements
  • 1st prize in the 7th European Student Competition on the Ancient Greek Language and Literature
  • 1st prize awarded for the highest mark in school examinations at the end of General Gymnasium (Greek High School)
 
 
Other Professional Engagements
2019-2020
  • Volunteer columnist in the column “Children's development” of the Online Magazine "OFF THE RECORD" writing articles about Education and Special Education

2019 - 2019
  • Exam invigilator - Kingston University London

2018 - 2018
  • Exam invigilator - Glenthorne High School, London

2017-2020
  • Volunteer columnist in the column “Personal Development” of the Online Magazine “SIMPLE LIFE” writing articles about Education and Special Education

 
References
  • Dr Fiona Barlow-Brown, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, School of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences, Kingston University London, f.barlow-brown@kingston.ac.uk
  • Professor Evanthia Lyons, Emeritus Professor of Psychology, Kingston University London, e.lyons@kingston.ac.uk
  • Dr Sabira Mannan, Head of the Department of Psychology, School of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences, Kingston University London, s.mannan@kingston.ac.uk
  • Professor Frederic Vallee-Tourangeau, Department of Psychology, School of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences, Kingston University London, f.vallee-tourangeau@kingston.ac.uk
  • Dr Maria Livanou, Senior Lecturer, Department of Psychology, School of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences, Kingston University London, m.livanou@kingston.ac.uk
  • Dr Claudia Uller, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, School of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences, Kingston University London, c.uller@kingston.ac.uk
  • Dr Elisa Back, Senior Lecturer, Department of Psychology, School of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences, Kingston University London, e.back@kingston.ac.uk
  • Dr Maro Doikou, Assistant Professor, Department of Education, School of Pholosophy and Education, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, maro@edlit.auth.gr
 
 
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