Recent Publications

• L. Schäfer, and 23 authors, including C. Lavest. (2026). "Associations between inclusivity norms and tolerance, contact, and cooperation amid polarization: Evidence from 12 European countries". PNAS Nexus, European Sociological Review, https://doi.org/10.1093/esr/jcaf039.
• C. Lavest, M. Ferry, M. Ichou, P. Präg (2025) "Who do they think you are? Inconsistencies in self- and proxy-reports of education within families", Social Science Research, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2025.103225.
• C. Landais, D. Bounie, Y. Camara, E. Fize, J. Galbraith, C. Lavest, T. Pazem, & B. Savatier. (2020). "Consumption dynamics in the COVID crisis: Real-time insights from French transaction & bank data." CEPR Discussion Paper, 15474. https://doi.org/10.3386/w27431

Ongoing Research

• Growing up Disillusioned? With Lucas Drouhot, Meta van der Linden and Frank van Tubergen, R&R at the International Migration Review
  Minority youth exhibit high educational expectations across multiple European countries. Previous research has focused on how this contributes to reducing inequalities between second-generation children and children of natives through higher grades and enrollment rates in tertiary education, overlooking that high educational expectations might have negative consequences when unfulfilled. We address this gap by investigating how unmet educational expectations influence perceptions of discrimination among youth exiting school in Spain. We utilize a three-wave panel of second-generation children living in Spain, interviewed between the ages of 14 and 22. Using detailed information on their educational expectations and achieved educational levels, we assess whether unmet expectations correlate with increased perceptions of discrimination. We examine the heterogeneity in the impact of unmet expectations, hypothesizing that children with highly educated parents are more likely to perceive discrimination. Our findings indicate that children who exit the educational system earlier exhibit heightened perceptions of discrimination when their exit does not meet their expectations. Although we find that parental education is positively associated with discrimination perceptions among children, we find no evidence for interaction effects with unmet expectations. Children of highly educated parents thus appear more attuned to discrimination in general, but not more likely to frame their experiences of failure as discriminatory. | Slides
• Let's disentangle the Integration Paradox With Nella Geurts and Andreas Genoni
  In many immigration societies, researchers and policymakers continue to assess migrant “integration” through so-called objective indicators such as length of residence, country of birth, or educational attainment. However, a growing body of research highlights the limitations of focusing solely on these socio-structural measures and the concept of "integration" as an evaluative lens in general. Such approaches not only risk reinforcing systemic inequalities but also overlook migrants’ own perspectives and experiences with discrimination and inclusion. Research on the so-called integration paradox underscores these limitations. Counterintuitively, migrants with a higher socio-economic position often report stronger feelings of social exclusion and a weaker sense of belonging to their country of residence. This disconnect between migrants’ embeddedness in societal structures and their experiences of recognition raises important questions about how integration is often conceptualized. Although evidence of this paradox has been documented across diverse migration societies, the underlying mechanisms driving it and its broader consequences remain underexplored. After ogranizing a workshop on the topic of the integration paradox at Utrecht University in June 2025, we are working on panels on the IP at the IMISCOE conference 2026, a podcast to be aired by the BiB and editing a Special Issue.
• What Am I Discriminated For? Discrimination awareness spillover effects for multiply disadvantaged groups. With Merlin Schaeffer, Under review at Social Psychology Quarterly
  In recent years, perceptions of discrimination have risen sharply, even as legal protections against discrimination have expanded. Previous research has investigated explanations focused on ethno-racial discrimination, such as the integration paradox, overlooking the idea that different grounds for discrimination might correlate. This paper examines an alternative explanation of why reports of discrimination are increasing. Using a survey experiment, we test how exposure to news articles about either ingroup or outgroup discrimination affects minority individuals’ reports of ethno-racial and gender discrimination, and whether these reports lead to increased support for anti-discrimination policies. We hypothesize two competing patterns: a spillover effect, where increased salience of one type of discrimination heightens perceptions of discrimination on other grounds, and a switching effect, where information about a specific type of discrimination diverts attention toward that ground alone. Participants - minority men and women - read an article about discrimination against women in the workplace, discrimination against ethnic minorities in hiring, or a neutral control (phosphane on Venus). Following the intervention, we measure their discrimination perceptions, allowing respondents to mention multiple grounds for discrimination. Results show that minority men report increased discrimination in both treatment conditions, i.e., when exposed to information about in- and outgroup discrimination, while women’s reports remain unchanged. Exposure to discrimination news does not increase support for anti-discrimination policies targeting either ethno-racial or gender equality. Our results highlight both commonalities and differences in discrimination perceptions based on different grounds. In the conclusion, we reflect on the implications of our results for other grounds of discrimination. | Slides