Dr Ela Polek PhD
Contact Details
|
 |
Biography:
I completed a 5-year masters program in Psychology at the University of Warsaw, Poland, specialising in psychometrics and psychotherapy. After a brief period of practicing as a psychologist, I moved to the Netherlands where at the University of Groningen I received a scholarship for my doctoral research on the adjustment and well-being of immigrants. Having completed my PhD in 2008, I worked on two postdoctoral projects at the University of London, researching pathways to well-being among socially disadvantaged women in the UK (Institute of Education), and the quality of life and well-being of kidney transplant patients (Royal Holloway). Following this, I joined UCD Social Science Research Centre as a data analyst/research fellow to facilitate the usage of the Growing up in Ireland data in the college. In March 2012 I was appointed as a lecturer in UCD School of Psychology. |
Research Interests
| At the moment my interests focus mainly on applied quantitative research that addresses social problems such as poverty, domestic violence, child abuse and neglect, and suffering caused by mental and physical health problems. I am also interested in survey methodology and statistics, as well as theoretical research in Personality & Social Psychology.
|
Research Projects
| Sponsor : Enterprise Ireland (EI) Title : Personality and Emotions Start Date / End Date : 20-FEB-12 / 19-FEB-13 |
| Sponsor : Irish Research Council (IRC) Title : Support of collaboration with the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect at Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research (Cornell University) Start Date / End Date : 01-OCT-12 / 01-OCT-13 |
| Sponsor : University College Dublin (UCD) Title : Economic crisis, value change and psychological well-being Start Date / End Date : 01-MAY-12 / 31-OCT-13 |
Books
Polek, E (2008) Attachment in cultural context. The Netherlands: University of Groningen.  [Details] |
Book Chapters
| Bardi, A., Jaspal, R., Polek, E., & Schwartz, S. (2012) 'Values and identity process theory: Theoretical integration and empirical interactions' In: R. Jaspal & G.M. Breakwell (eds). Identity process theory: Identity, social action and social change. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [Details] |
| Polek, E. & Coen, M. (2012) 'Parental linguistic adjustment or social status: what is more important for adjustment in migrant children?' In: R. Dimitrova, M. Bender & F. Van de Vijver (eds). Advances in immigrant family research. Netherlands: Springer. [Details] |
Peer Reviewed Journals
| Goodwin, R., Polek, E., & Goodwin, K. (2012) 'Perceived changes in health and interactions with 'the Paracetamol force': A multi-method study'. Journal of Mixed Methods Research, :1-21. [DOI] [Details] |
| Goodwin, R., Polek, E., & Bardi, A. (2012) 'Values and Beliefs: A longitudinal Study within a Major Life Transition'. European Journal of Personality, 26 (3):360-370. [DOI] [Details] |
| Schoon, I. & Polek, E. (2011) 'Teenage career aspiration and adult career attainment: The role of gender, social background and general cognitive ability'. International Journal of Behavioural Development, 35 (3):210-217. [DOI] [Details] |
| Polek, E., Van Oudenhoven, J. P., & Ten Berge, J. (2011) 'Evidence for a 'Migrant Personality': Attachment styles of Poles in Poland and in The Netherlands'. Journal of Immigrant and Refugee Studies, 9 (4):311-326. [DOI] [Details] |
| Schoon, I. & Polek, E. (2011) 'Pathways to economic well-being among teenage mothers in Great Britain'. European Psychologist, 16 (1):11-20. [Details] |
| Polek, E., Wohrle, J. & Van Oudenhoven, J.P. (2010) 'The Role of Attachment Styles, Perceived Discrimination and Cultural Distance in Adjustment of German and Eastern European Immigrants in the Netherlands'. Cross-Cultural Research, 44 (1):60-88. [DOI] [Details] | |||||||||
| Polek, E. & Schoon, I. (2008) 'Sociocultural adaptation of Polish brides in the Netherlands: Marital and occupational status'. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 39 (3):353-370. [Details] | |||||||||
| Polek, E., Van Oudenhoven, J. P., & Ten Berge, J. (2008) 'Attachment styles and demographic factors as predictors of sociocultural and psychological adjustment of Eastern European immigrants in the Netherlands'. International Journal of Psychology, 43 (5):919-929. [DOI] [Details] | |||||||||
| Hide | |||||||||
Other Journals
| Schoon, I & Polek, E (2009) 'Pathways to economic well-being among teenage mothers in Great Britain' GeNet Newsletter nr 4 . [DOI] [Details] |
Conference Publications
| Polek, E. et al. (2012) Child injuries in Ireland: Risk factors related to family, school, neighbourhood and the child Growing Up in Ireland Annual Conference Dublin, [Details] |
| Polek, E. et al. (2012) Economic crisis, value change and psychological well-being European Social Survey Conference Nicosia, Cyprus, [Details] |
| Vanni-Igbinomwanhia, V. & Polek, E. (2011) Childhood obesity: Impacts of lifestyle, parental factors and ethnicity: A cross-sectional study in Ireland Growing up in Ireland Annual Conference Dublin, Ireland, [DOI] [Details] |
| Polek, E. (2011) Predictors of child well-being in Irish families: evidence from the GUI study Summer School on Poverty and Social Exclusion University College Dublin, [Details] |
| Polek, E. et al. (2011) Values and beliefs: A longitudinal study within a major life transition The 4th Conference of the European Survey Research Association Lausanne, Switzerland, [Details] |
| Polek, E. (2011) Sociolinguistic acculturation and children's social functioning: Evidence from migrant families in 'Growing Up in Ireland' survey Regional Conference of the International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology Istanbul, Turkey, [Details] | |||||||||
| Polek, E. (2011) Household and individual characteristics predicting violent conflict within couples in Ireland Growing up in Ireland Annual Conference Dublin, [DOI] [Details] | |||||||||
| Polek, E. & Schoon, I. (2009) Pathways to psychological well-being among teenage mothers in Great Britain ESRC Gender Equality Network (GeNet) Symposium Cambridge, UK, [Details] |
|||||||||
| Schoon, I. & Polek, E. (2009) High hopes in a changing world: Social disadvantage and educational aspirations in three age cohorts ESRC Gender Equality Network (GeNet) Symposium Cambridge, UK, [Details] |
|||||||||
| Polek, E (2008) Sociocultural adaptation of Polish brides in the Netherlands Invited seminar: Cross-cultural Psychology Research Group University of Tilburg, the Netherlands, [Details] | |||||||||
| Polek, E. & Van Oudenhoven, J.P. (2008) A cultural look at parenting and attachment styles in Eastern and Western Europe 19th Congress of Cross-Cultural Psychology Bremen, Germany, [Details] | |||||||||
| Hide | |||||||||
Published Reports
| Fahey, T., Keilthy, P., & Polek, E. (2012) Family Relationships and Family Well-Being: A Study of the Families of Nine Year-Olds in Ireland. Family Support Agency, Dublin. [Details] |