Sandra Manfreda, M.S.

Hello, I'm Sandra (she/her) and I am a fourth-year Social  Psychology Ph.D. student at Rutgers University, New Brunswick. 

Across two lines of work, my research explores factors that promote or dissuade intergroup contact. My first line of research focuses on experiences of identity threat, including stigmatization and bias, for marginalized group members. My second line of research investigates bridges of intergroup contact, including relational safety cues and faciliators of disclosure-responsiveness processes. 

In addition to research, I am passionate about increasing equity within academia and have served as co-chair of the graduate student Diversity & Climate Committee, an executive member of the Discovering Psychology Day Planning Committee, and am leading organization efforts of Rutgers Interdisciplinary Behavioral and Social Sciences Conference. 

My work is supervised by Dr. Valerie Jones Taylor in the Stereotyping and Social Interactions - Virtual Reality (SSI-VR) Lab. I also collaborate with Dr. Diana Sanchez in the Close Relationships, Identity, and Stigma Lab. 

In 2025, I received my Master's degree in Social Psychology from Rutgers University, New Brunswick. In 2021, I received my Bachelor's degree, with honors in Psychology, from Lafayette College.