Saba Safdar

Professor

College of Social and Applied Human Sciences, Psychology

Field

Applied Social Psychology

Accepting New Experiential Learning Students

Research Areas

Cross-cultural psychology

My research interests are broadly situated within cross-cultural psychology, with a focus on sociopsychological issues related to migration and intergroup relations, spanning both local and global communities. I collaborate closely with community groups, service providers, and ethno-cultural organizations in Canada and internationally.

My work primarily explores factors that influence the adaptation processes of immigrants and international students, including resilience, acculturation strategies, and ethnic and national identity. I am committed to both the theoretical and applied dimensions of cross-cultural psychology. A key feature of my research is conducting studies across different cultures or ethnic groups within a culture, reflecting the diverse perspectives that are essential in cross-cultural psychology. Further information about my research and graduate students please see Centre for Cross-Cultural Research | https://cccr.uoguelph.ca/

Education

PH.D. Social Psychology/ York University
M.A. Social Psychology/ York University
B.A. Honours Psychology/ McMaster University

Research

My primary research focuses on intergroup relations, particularly on the psychosocial adaptation of newcomers and the attitudes and engagement of the broader society towards immigrants and minorities. Through a series of studies involving samples from Canada and other countries, I developed the Multidimensional Individual Differences Acculturation (MIDA) model (Safdar et al., 2003).

Building on the initial study, the model was validated with Iranian immigrants in the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands (Safdar et al, 2009). It was further tested with Russian and Indian immigrants in Canada (Safdar et al., 2012), Syrian refugees in Germany (Safdar et al., 2021) and Venezuelan refugees in Colombia (Safdar et al., 2023).

In addition to my research on acculturation, I have explored the experiences, barriers, and values of minorities and ethnic groups in Canada. My work includes studies on the intersectionality of ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation (Choubak & Safdar, 2023), social inclusion of Muslims in Canada (Tahir & Safdar, 2022), social beliefs and attitudes of English Canadians toward minorities (Safdar, Dupuis, Lewis, El-Geledi, & Bourhis, 2008), social beliefs among Muslims and Christians (Safdar et al., 2006; Safdar et al., 2009), ethnic identity of Canadian-Caribbeans (Litchmore et al., 2015), adjustment of Muslim Canadians (Litchmore & Safdar, 2014), and the experiences of Muslim Canadian women (Litchmore & Safdar, 2016). This body of work aligns with my broader research focus on the psychosocial adaptation of minority groups in Western societies.

Publications

Only most recent journal publication is listed below. For a complete list, please visit my website: Cross-Cultural Research | https://cccr.uoguelph.ca/"

Zawisza, M.; Kosakowska-Berezecka, N.; Glick, P.; Olech, M.; Besta, T.; Jurek, P.; Sobiecki, J.; Best, D.; Bosson, J.; Vandello, J.; Safdar, S.; Włodarczyk, A.; Zadkowska, M. (in press). Worse for Women, Bad for All: A 62-Nation Study Confirms and Extends Ambivalent Sexism Principles to Reveal Greater Social Dysfunction in Sexist Nations. Social Psychological and Personality Science.

Ray-Yol, E., Ghassemi, E., & Safdar, S. (2024). Newcomers’ psychosocial resources and their acculturation and adaptation into settlement society: Mediating role of hope. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 105, 102111. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2024.102111

Hosseini, M., Zarani, F., Heidary, M., Azadfallah, P., Safdar, S. (2024). The role of ego strengths and object relations in migration decision-making. Journal of Clinical Psychology & Personality, 22 (1), 1-16, DOI: 10.22070/CPAP.2023.16088.1220

Kosakowska-Berezecka, N., Besta , T., Jurek , P., Olech , M. Sobiecki , J., Bosson , J., Vandello, J., Best , D., Zawisza , M., Safdar , S., Włodarczyk , A., Żadkowska, M. (2024). Towards Gender Harmony Dataset: Gender Beliefs and Gender Stereotypes in 62 Countries. Nature: Scientific Data. 11:392 (1-8). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-024-03235-x

Hou, S. H., Safdar, S., Newby-Clark, I. R., & Giguère, B. (2023). Navigating parent-child value differences: Capturing strategies used by immigrant parents from the perspective of East Asian young adult children of immigrants. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 97, 101902

Choubak, M. & Safdar, S. (2023). Intersectionality of ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation: Intergroup bias towards immigrants in Canada. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 93, 101854. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2023.101854

Safdar, S., Chahar Mahali, S., & Scott, C. (2023). A critical review of multiculturalism and interculturalism as integration frameworks: The case of Canada. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 93, 10756.

Safdar, S., Soltan, H., Martinez-Gonzalez, M., Palacio Sanudo, J. (2023). Adaptation of Venezuelan refugees in Colombia: The mediating roles of acculturation orientations in influencing acculturation adaptations. International Journal of Psychology, 58(3), 196-206, DOI: 10.1002/ijop.12901

Soltan, H., Safdar, S., Giguere, B. (2023). Acculturation gaps among Afghan refugee families in Canada: Implications for family relationships, adaptation outcomes, and subjective wellbeing of emerging adults. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 97, 101877. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2023.101877

Hosseini-Nezhad, S., Safdar, S., & Nguyen Luu, L. A. (2022). Perceptions of gender roles and freedom among Iranian international students in Hungary. Women’s Studies International Forum, 90, 102555. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wsif.2021.102555

Kosakowska-Berezecka, N., Bosson, J.K., Juerk, P., Besta, T., …..., Safdar, S., …. and 133 authors (2022). Gendered self-views across 62 countries: A test of competing models . Social Psychological and Personality Science. 1-17. DOI: 10.1177/19485506221129687

Tahir, H. & Safdar, S. (2022). Cultural similarity predicts social inclusion of Muslims in Canada: A vignette-based experimental survey. Frontiers in Psychology. 1-13. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.973603

Torres, C., Safdar, S., Oliveira, S.E., Adaid-Castro, B.G., Faiad, C., Rodrigues-Marçulo, A.O. & Nofal., B. (2022). Refugees in Brazil: An investigation of Syrian refugees' psychological experiences. International Journal of Psychology. 57(4), 466-474. DOI: 10.1002/ijop.12815

Berry, J.W., Lepshokova, Z., , Annis, R.C., Au, A.K.Y., Bano, S., Boehnke, K., Buholzer, A., Brylka, A., Chen, S.X., Dandy, J., Dunn, K., van Egmond, M., Galyapina, V., Gibson, R., Grad, H., Gui, Y., Hanke, K., Jasinskaja-Lahti, I., Kruusvall, J., Haenni Hoti, A., Heinzmann, S., Hui, B.P.H., Inguglia, C., Jetten, J., Kus-Harbord, L., Künzle, R., Lauri, M.A., Lebedeva, N., Coco, A.L., Makarova, M., Mishra, R.C., Motti-Stefanidi, F., Musso, P., Neto, Fl., Neto, J., Paradies, Y., Pavlopoulos, V., Raudsepp, M., Renvik, T.A., Robinson, L., Rohmann, A., Ryabichenko, T., Safdar, S., Sam, D.L., Sammut, G., Tatarko, A., Tripathi, R.C., Valk, A., Vetik, R., Ziaian, T., & Grigoryev, D. (2021). How shall we all live together? Meta-analytical review of the mutual intercultural relations in plural societies project. Applied Psychology, 00, 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1111/pps.12332

Bosson, J., Jurek, P., Vandello, J., Kosakowska-Berezecka, N., Olech, M., Besta, T., Bender, M., Hoorens, V., Becker, M., Sevincer, T., Best, D.L., Safdar, S., & 150 more authors (2021). Psychometric properties and correlates of precarious manhood beliefs in 62 nations. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 52(3), 231-258. DOI: 10.1177/0022022121997997

Jassi, A. & Safdar, S. (2021). The inclusion of immigrants in Canada: An examination of social markers of acceptance. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, 53(4), 433-444. https://doi.org/10.1037/cbs0000199

Hosseini-Nezhad, S., Safdar, S., & Nguyen Luu, L. A. (2021). “We begin 300 meters behind the starting line”: Adaptation of Iranian students in Hungary in the post-sanctions era. Journal of International Students, 11(2), 341–360. https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v11i2.1779

Safdar, S., Ray-Yol, E., Reif, J., & Berger, R. (2021). Multidimensional Individual Difference Acculturation (MIDA) Model: Syrian Refugees’ Adaptation into Germany. International Journal of Intercultural Relations. 85(3), 156-169. DOI:10.1016/j.ijintrel.2021.09.012

Safdar, S. & Jassi, A. (2021). Development of the Meanings Of the Hijab (MOTH) Scale. Asian Journal of Social Psychology, 25 (2), 227-236. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajsp.12487

Vaswani, M., Safdar, S., Newby-Clark, I., & Giguere, B. (2021) Canadian identity attenuates the negative impact of familial rejection on psychological distress. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 81, 142-153. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2021.01.009