Claire
Garandeau
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Areas of expertise
Biography
I have been a Professor of Psychology at the University of Turku since 2019. I studied psychology at Université René Descartes-Paris V from 2001 to 2006, including one year spent at the University of Connecticut in 2003-2004. I began my doctoral studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and continued them at the University of Turku. After defending my doctoral dissertation at the University of Turku in 2014, I joined Utrecht University as an Assistant Professor, a position I held until 2018. In 2019, returned to the University of Turku as a Professor in the INVEST Research Flagship Centre. I have served as Associate Editor for the International Journal of Behavioral Development since 2022.
Teaching
Since 2019, I have been coordinating and lecturing in two courses - Peer Relations and Prevention and Intervention - for the Master and Doctoral Programs of the INVEST Research Flagship Centre. Both courses are taught in English. I also co-chair the research seminar for the INVEST Doctoral Program together with Elina Kilpi-Jakonen. In addition, I co-supervise several doctoral researchers.
Research
My research focuses on the causes and consequences of school bullying and the effectiveness of anti-bullying interventions. Using data from the evaluation of the KiVa anti-bullying program, I have investigated for whom the program is most effective and the mechanisms through which it achieves its effects. I am particularly interested in how teachers can intervene effectively in individual bullying cases. I also examine the cognitions that motivate students to initiate bullying, as well as the factors that lead them to reinforce perpetrators or defend victimized peers. In addition, I investigate how the classroom social context—including status hierarchies and bullying norms—affects the social costs and rewards of bullying and the psychological adjustment of victimized students. Ultimately, my research aims to inform practical guidance for schools, parents, and victimized students, as well as the development of more effective anti-bullying interventions.