Ms Ifigeneia Manitsa
Contact
- Email: k1738620@kingston.ac.uk
- Location: Penrhyn Road
- Faculty: Faculty of Business and Social Sciences
- School: School of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences
- Department: Department of Psychology
- Research groups/centres: Developmental Psychology Research Group, Social Psychology Research Group
- Job market candidate
- Personal website
Research project: The social inclusion of adolescents with visual impairments
Abstract
In my PhD, I am investigating the social and academic inclusion of adolescents with and without visual impairments. The current research is being carried out within the context of two major theoretical approaches: socioecological theory and social cognitive theory. My two supervisors are Dr Fiona Barlow-Brown (Associate Professor in Psychology) and Professor Evanthia Lyons (Head of the School of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences).
Additionally, we have recently undertaken a new research project with my supervisor, Dr. Fiona Barlow-Brown, in order to evaluate the role that rehabilitation services play in the academic learning and socioemotional development of children and adolescents with visual impairments. This project has been funded by the the National Lottery Community Fund and Sight for Surrey.
- Research degree: PhD
- Title of project: The social inclusion of adolescents with visual impairments
Biography
I am a Psychology Researcher and Seminar Leader at Kingston University. I have a Degree in Primary Education and a Masters in Special Education. I have certified qualifications in Braille and my Master's dissertation was about the academic and social inclusion of students with visual impairment in higher education. Visual impairment has been my field of expertise for the last seven years with a focus on social inclusion. I have undertaken a number of research projects examining the inclusion of students with visual impairments in higher education, the development of social skills in students with visual impairments, the provision of social support in mainstream and special settings and the role of rehabilitation services in the academic learning and socioemotional development of young children and adolescents with visual impairments.
I am an Associate Fellow of the Advance HE (formerly Higher Education Academy) and a peer-reviewer in the British Journal of Visual Impairment (BJVI).
Areas of research interest
- special educational needs and visual impairments
- social and academic inclusion
- social skills/social competence
- social isolation/self-isolation
- quality of social relationships
- self-concept/self-esteem
- social support
- school engagement
- rehabilitation services
- Psychology research methods (quantitative and qualitative research and analysis)
Qualifications
- Associate Fellowship of Advance HE (formerly Higher Education Academy)
- MSc in Pedagogy with specialization in Special Education, Department of Pedagogy, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
- Degree in Pedagogy from the Pedagogical School of Primary Education, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.
Funding or awards received
- Manitsa, I. £10,000 PhD studentship, The National Lottery Community Fund & Sight for Surrey. How do specialist vision rehabilitation services impact the lives of children and adolescents with visual impairments? (2020-2021).
- Montague, A., Manitsa, I. & Barlow-Brown, F. £600 Kingston University funding for the research project "Factors which explain alcohol and cigarette consumption among young adults aged 18-25 years during the COVID-19 outbreak" (2020).
- Manitsa, I. £1,000 PhD research grant, Sir Richard Stapley Educational Trust (2019-2020).
- 1st prize for a New Researcher in the 10th Annual Faculty of Business and Social Sciences Conference, Kingston University, London (2019).
- Came first after written and oral examinations, in the field of Special Education at the MSc of Pedagogy in the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece (2013).
Publications
Academic articles
Manitsa, I. & Doikou, M. (in press). Social support for students with visual impairments in educational institutions: An integrative literature review. British Journal of Visual Impairment.
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
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. http://bit.do/aprilnewsletter2019
Jump to: Article | Conference or Workshop Item
Number of items: 2.
Article
Manitsa, Ifigeneia, Barlow-Brown, Fiona and Lyons, Evanthia (2019) Self-concept of adolescents with visual impairments. British Journal of Visual Impairment, ISSN (print) 0264-6196 (Epub Ahead of Print)
Conference or Workshop Item
Manitsa, Ifigeneia, Barlow-Brown, Fiona and Lyons, Evanthia (2019) Self-concept in adolescents with visual impairments. In: 10th Annual Faculty Research Conference: Contemporary Issues in Business and Social Sciences in a period of uncertainty; 03 - 04 Jun 2019, Kingston upon Thames, U.K.. (Unpublished)
Conference papers
- 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., (2018). The importance of social inclusion in general schools to the self-concept of adolescents with visual impairment and their differences with sighted children. Paper presented at Kingston University Postgraduate Research Conference, Kingston, UK.
- 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.
Invited talks
- Manitsa, I. (2020). Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Education: Students with special educational needs. IYDU (Invited talk via Skype).
- Manitsa, I. (2019). The role of social inclusion in the self-esteem of adolescents with visual impairments. Whitefield Academy Trust.
- 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 (invited poster presentation).