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psychaid.bsky.social
Psych-AID
@psychaid.bsky.social
Psychology at the Frontiers: Asylum Interviewing and Decision-Making. Led by Prof. Jan Antfolk and Prof. Julia Korkman at Åbo Akademi University.
Last week, our doctoral researchers Malin Ekelund and Obed Appiah, and PI @janantfolk.bsky.social took part in the (Re-)Constructing Credibility in Refugee Status Determination Workshop by @mobileucph.bsky.social. Thanks for having us!✨

Can’t wait for the upcoming special issue! 📖
October 28, 2025 at 8:10 AM
We’re excited to have Anastasiia Valiavko join our team! 🎉 Please welcome Anastasiia, a doctoral researcher studying attitudes toward survivors of sexual violence in the Russia-Ukraine war. Don’t hesitate to reach out to us with questions or opportunities for collaboration!
October 6, 2025 at 10:33 AM
Welcome Siyu Li to the Psych-AID team! 🎉 Siyu joins as a doctoral researcher, working on Avatar Training to help interviewers use better questions & supportive statements. Reach out for collabs!
September 30, 2025 at 6:34 AM
The Psych-AID team is growing! We are happy to welcome Dilhan Töredi as a new postdoctoral researcher in our team. Dilhan will be working on applying an innovative experimental lie paradigm where the ground truth of asylum claims is known.
September 18, 2025 at 7:37 AM
🍂 Psych-AID kicked off fall in the Turku archipelago! We welcomed our new members with a visit to Nauvoo—exploring Paratiisi (combined winery and art gallery), kayaking, and ending with pizza & board games. We are excited for the season ahead!
September 15, 2025 at 12:36 PM
We are thrilled to bring back our Meet the Team series to introduce our newly recruited team members! Catharina Walldén has just joined the Psych-AID network as project manager. Aside from these responsibilities, Catharina is also a doctoral researcher in evolutionary psychology.
September 10, 2025 at 7:49 AM
Some shots from Hedayat Selim's doctoral defence last month. Professor Hilary Evans Cameron (Toronto Metropolitan University) served as opponent, and Prof. @janantfolk.bsky.social as custos. Many congratulations to Dr Selim for this achievement!
🔗https://www.doria.fi/handle/10024/193050
September 3, 2025 at 7:42 AM
Doctoral Researcher Hedayat Selim will publicly defend her doctoral thesis entitled "Psychological aspects in the evaluation of asylum claims based on sexual orientation" this coming Friday, 22 August 2025.

More information below:
🔗 www.abo.fi/en/event/pub...
August 18, 2025 at 9:05 AM
We are incredibly proud of our Psych-AID team members for bringing home three awards from this year’s @eapl.bsky.social Annual Conference 2025 (Lithuania)!
August 15, 2025 at 6:06 AM
✨Psych-AID at the @eapl.bsky.social Annual Conference 2025 (Lithuania): Four members of the Psych-AID network had the opportunity to present their research on the psychology of asylum evaluations on day 2 of #EAPL2025.
August 14, 2025 at 7:43 AM
✨Psych-AID at @eapl.bsky.social in Vilnius: Participating in a panel on investigative psychology at hashtag#EAPL2025, our Doctoral Researchers Hedayat Selim and Obed Kwame Appiah each presented their recent studies on the influence of cognitive bias in the context of asylum decision-making.
August 12, 2025 at 9:35 AM
Finally, Professor @anneliesvrede.bsky.social (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam) shared important insights from a recent cross-cultural communication training tailored to investigative interviewing contexts, including asylum interviews, based on the "cultural humility" approach.
August 11, 2025 at 9:31 AM
Dr Jenny Skrifvars presented a conceptual paper on the effectiveness of investigative interviewing principles in eliciting identity-based claims. Doctoral Researcher Maya Hertz (Uni. Copenhagen) then took the stage to present a study assessing how digital media is used in RSD.
August 11, 2025 at 9:31 AM
Doctoral Researcher Md Yeasir Yunus (Uni. Portsmouth) presented a systematic review and meta-analysis on culture, memory and trauma in the asylum context. Dr Zoe Given Wilson (Royal Holloway Uni.) presented a project on asylum applicants' experiences of digital technology.
August 11, 2025 at 9:31 AM
✨Psych-AID & collaborators at @eapl.bsky.social: On day 1 of #EAPL2025, our team members and partners participated in the symposium "Novel perspectives on interviewing and decision-making in the asylum context," co-chaired by Drs Jenny Skrifvars & Laura Stevens.
August 11, 2025 at 9:31 AM
✨ Psych-AID & collaborators at the @eapl.bsky.social annual conference 2025 (Lithuania):

Before the official start of the #EAPL2025, our collaborators and researchers participated in the pre-conference workshop on Avatar Technologies in Interview Research and Training.
August 8, 2025 at 11:36 AM
We are immensely proud of our researchers for their active participation in numerous symposia and panels, where they showcased cutting-edge research in the psychology of asylum evaluations, and even received several awards. Stay tuned for a recap of our contributions to #EAPL2025!
August 7, 2025 at 2:41 PM
✨ The Psych-AID Network, along with our partners and collaborators, have had an incredibly productive week at #EAPL2025 (the annual conference of @eapl.bsky.social) held this year in the heart of the old town of beautiful Vilnius, Lithuania!
August 7, 2025 at 2:41 PM
📢 PROJECT FUNDING NEWS: To kick off the new academic year, the Psych-AID network is thrilled to share an exciting update: Our PI @janantfolk.bsky.social was recently awarded a research grant by the Research Council of Finland!
August 5, 2025 at 12:56 PM
Last week, the Psych-AID Network was proudly represented at the 2025 annual conference of @officialsarmac.bsky.social (the Society for Applied Research in Memory and Cognition), held in Ireland.
June 16, 2025 at 10:35 AM
After a long Finnish winter, the Psych-AID team welcomed a refreshing change of scenery with a spring retreat to the beautiful island of Brännskär in the Turku archipelago last month!
June 5, 2025 at 8:46 AM
📢 New pre-print alert! In their new manuscript, @janantfolk.bsky.social, Laura Stevens, Emilia Lundsten, Jenny Skrifvars & Hedayat Selim use data from 255 respondents to investigate how personal immigration attitudes, gender, and age shape beliefs about asylum decisions.
🔗 osf.io/preprints/ps...
June 2, 2025 at 10:26 AM
Dr. Jenny Skrifvars and Doctoral Researcher Hedayat Selim recently presented their research within the theme "The psychology of asylum interviewing and decision-making: Findings from Finland" at the PALOMA research network seminar hosted at THL, the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare.
May 26, 2025 at 7:55 AM
We are very excited to introduce you to our fab research team! @janantfolk.bsky.social is our Principal Investigator. He has conducted extensive research in legal psychology in general and asylum procedures in particular. Reach out to us with questions about Jan’s research or for collaborations!
April 14, 2025 at 9:55 AM
📢 Study participants needed! Do you speak Finnish and hold a masters degree? Help us investigate the factors influencing asylum decision-making by answering researcher Juliana Raitis' questionnaire. Participating takes no more than 5 minutes! redcap.abo.fi/surveys/?s=L...
April 7, 2025 at 11:57 AM