Janina is a DPhil student in the Department of Social Policy and Intervention (SPI), supervised by Prof. Lucie Cluver and Dr. Franziska Meinck. Prior to this degree, Janina completed an M.Sc. in Psychological Research (University of Oxford) and a B.Sc. in Psychology (University of Groningen). Janina is interested in working with and for vulnerable populations. Specifically, she is interested in understanding the concrete mechanisms, underlying social interventions and social policies that cause sustainable changes and alleviate hardship for those living under conditions of great adversity.
Janina's DPhil project concerns the determinants of educational attainment and educational continuity in adolescent South African mothers who are affected by HIV. With this research, Janina aims to stimulate policy changes that support young women to continue schooling during pregnancy and thereafter and hopes to provide recommendations for the South African government on how avoid intergenerational cycles of deprivation and, potentially, downward social mobility. Besides her doctorate, Janina is working on a systematic review on available Child abuse measures, supervised by Dr. Franziska Meinck and continues her voluntary work at the Oxfordshire Sexual Abuse and Rape Crisis Centre.
In preparation for her upcoming DPhil, Janina has been calling the Eastern Cape in South Africa her home for the past months. During this time, she has been working closely with the incredible team of researchers from the University of Oxford, University of Cape Town, healthcare providers and fieldwork staff in East London. Janina knows she is extremely lucky to be able to continue working in this amazing team for the next three years and is looking forward to learn from this incredibly resourceful group of people.
