Seçil Gönültaş, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology

Education

  • Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, University of Exeter, England (2021-2022)
  • Ph.D. Lifespan Developmental Psychology, North Carolina State University, USA (2017-2021)
  • M.A. Developmental Psychology, Koç University, Turkey (2015-2017)
  • B.A. Psychology, Boğaziçi University, Turkey (2009-2014)

Research

Dr. Gönültaş’s research focuses on understanding how group processes (e.g., prejudice, discrimination, and threat perception) and social-cognitive mechanisms (e.g., Theory of Mind) shape children’s and adolescents’ attitudes and behaviors in intergroup contexts. Her work aims to advance theories explaining the development of social-moral reasoning and decision-making during childhood and adolescence. 

She also investigates bullying and bystander responses to bullying, particularly within intergroup contexts, to understand how social and moral factors influence intervention and inaction. Through this line of research, she aims to inform and design policy-oriented, proactive intervention programs that reduce prejudice and discrimination—especially in school settings—and promote equity and social justice. 

Research Interests: 

  • Bullying and bystander responses to bullying in intergroup contexts 
  • Social cognition and intergroup decision-making in children and adolescents 
  • Prejudice and discrimination toward immigrants and refugees 
  • Civic engagement in adolescents 

Selected Publications

Gönültaş, S. & Ayhan, S. (2025). Promoting Positive Intergroup Emotions Toward Refugees Through Perceived Similarity, Empathy, and Justice Sensitivity. International Journal of Intercultural Relations. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2024.102127  

Ayhan, S., & Gönültaş, S. (2024). Bystander responses in five‐steps: Paving road to prosocial intervention to social exclusion through social‐cognition. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 42(4), 517-523. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjdp.12513  

Gönültaş, S., Argyri, E.,Yüksel, A., McGuire, L., Palmer, S., Killen, M. & Rutland, A. (2024). Peer group norms affect adolescents’ bystander judgments and reasoning. Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology, , 30(3), 372-390.  https://doi.org/10.1037/pac0000731 

Gönültaş, S. & Mulvey, K. L. (2023). Does Negative Media Representation Shape Adolescents’ Discriminatory Tendencies towards Syrian Refugees through Threat Perception and Prejudice? International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 95, 101807. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2023.101807 

Gönültaş, S., & Mulvey, K. L. (2022). Do adolescents intervene when outgroup members are victimized?: intergroup processes and social-cognitive predictors of bystander responses in bias-based bullying of Syrian refugees in Turkey. Journal of Research on Adolescence. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12752 

For a complete list of publications, please visit my Google Scholar profile: https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=bT8T7iMAAAAJ&view_op=list_works&sortby=pubdate