Profile
I am a researcher in quantitative social science, with a special interest in the application of advance quantitative techniques in large-scale, empirical driven research, seeking to assess peer effects and contextual influences on cognitive and affective domains in childhood and adolescence. My research has so far received several awards and grants, among others, the 2015 Bruce Choppin Memorial award and the 2017 AERA travel award grant. In addition, it has been published in major scientific journals (SESI, Journal of Educational Psychology, Learning & Instruction) and it has attracted funding from major funding bodies (e.g. the Economic Social Research Council, UK and the Research Promotion Foundation, Cyprus). As well as doing research, I very much enjoy teaching Research Methodology and Quantitative Methods courses to both undergraduate and postgraduate students in Education, Psychology, and allied fields. I have extensive experience in teaching Distance Learning – as well as conventional courses.
Studies:
As an undergraduate, I earned a 1st class honours in Pure Mathematics (University of Cyprus). I then went to Oxford where I completed an MSc in Applied Statistics – a degree with a focus on applications of Statistics using R programming language – and a second MSc in Educational Research Methodology. During my doctorate studies (Oxford University Department of Education, 2009-2014), I worked under the supervision of Herbert W. Marsh (Professor at Australian Catholic University, Emeritus Professor at Australian Catholic University and founder of the International SELF Research Centre).
Research Interests:
My research interests lie in the application of advance quantitative research methods to investigate inter-disciplinary substantive issues from the field of psychology and education. Part of my research seeks to estimate the peer influence on students’ academic outcomes, using statistical methodology capable to adjust for measurement error bias, and, omitted variable bias. I am also working on a research project concerned with the extent that individual countries provide religious freedoms to their citizens, and the effect that this has on the religious crime incidence and, the subjective feeling of religious freedom of the citizens themselves. Finally, in a collaborative project with researchers from the University of Nicosia Medical Education Programme, we are trying to evaluate the impact that teaching in a Problem Based Learning Environment, has on the students’ academic outcomes, and the development of their learning style and learning approach.
Selected Publications:
Televantou,I., Marsh, H.W., Dicke, T. & Nicolaides, C. (in press). Phantom and Big-Fish-Little-Pond-Effects on academic self-concept and academic achievement: Evidence from English early primary schools. Learning and Instruction.
Dicke, T., Marsh, H. W., Parker, P. D., Pekrun, R., Guo, J., & Televantou, I. (2018). Effects of School-Average Achievement on Individual Self-concept and Achievement: Unmasking Phantom Effects Masquerading as True Compositional Effects. Journal of Educational Psychology. 110(8), 1112-1126.
Caro, D.H., Kyriakides, L. & Televantou, I. (2017). Addressing omitted prior achievement bias in international assessments: an applied example using PIRLS-NPD matched data, Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 1-23, doi:10.1080/0969594X.2017.1353950
Televantou, I., Marsh, H.W., Kyriakides, L., Nagengast, B., Fletcher, J., & Malmberg, L.-E. (2015). Phantom effects in school composition research: Consequences of failure to control biases due to measurement error in traditional multilevel models. School Effectiveness and School Improvement, 26, 75-101. doi: 10.1080/09243453.2013.871302
Marsh, H. W, Nagengast, B., Fletcher, J. & Televantou, I. (2011). Assessing educational effectiveness: policy implications from diverse areas of research. Fiscal Studies, 32, 279 – 295. doi: 10.1111/j.1475-5890.2011. 00137.x