Faculty

Eduardo J. Rivera Pichardo (Bayamón, Puerto Rico) is an Assistant Professor of Social Psychology (CSD) and Director of RED(es): Decolonial & Political Psychology Research Group at The New School for Social Research. RED(es) officially launched in Spring 2026 (full website) and is currently recruiting graduate students.

His research focuses on the social-psychological effects of colonialism and coloniality, with an emphasis on intergroup relations, acculturation, and the ideological legitimation of neo-colonial practices and global inequalities. He also investigates left- and right-wing populism, social representations of history in the Global South, and broader system-justifying ideological processes. Before joining The New School, he was an NSF Postdoctoral Associate at Rutgers University, where he collaborated (and continues to serve as co-PI) with colleagues at the University of Puerto Rico and Rutgers on a multi-study research project examining how colonialism shapes social identities, historical knowledge, and ideological beliefs.

BA, Social Sciences, 2015, Universidad de Puerto Rico, Río Piedras

MA, Political Philosophy, 2017, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona

MPhil, Social Psychology, 2022, New York University

PhD, Social Psychology, 2024, New York University

Jost, J. T.*, Rivera Pichardo, E. J*.,  Bertin, J. A, Armange, R. & Kerber, I. (revise and resubmit; under review). Frantz Fanon’s sociogenic principle: The internalization of prejudice, its consequences for mental health, and prospects for psychological liberation. Social Issues and Policy Review (SIPR).

Politi, E., Albzour, M., Rivera Pichardo, E. J., Vitali, M. M., Sankaran, S., Roblain, A., & Durrheim, K. (2025). Exploring double standards in ethnicity, migration, and intercultural relations: An introduction to the special issue / Explorando los dobles estándares en materia de etnicidad, migración y relaciones interculturales: Introducción al número monográfico. International Journal of Social Psychology: Revista de Psicología Social, 40(2–3), 185–204. https://doi.org/10.1177/02134748251377251

Osborne, D., Bahamondes, J., Clarke, E., Hill Cone, D., Kimberly, C., Lilly, K. J., Lizzio-Wilson, M., Rivera Pichardo, E. J., Satherley, N., Simionato, N., Thomas, E. F., Zubielevitch, E., & Sibley, C. G. (2024). My body, my choice? Examining the distinct profiles underlying attitudes toward abortion and COVID-19 mandates. Sex Roles, 1807–1827. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-024-01533-7

Rivera Pichardo, E. J., Custodi, J., & Jost, J. T. (2024). Political and psychological processes contributing to European populisms of the left and right. In G. Sensales (Ed.), Political psychology perspectives on populism (pp. 25–47). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-44073-1_2

Rivera Pichardo, E. J., Parihar, S. A., & Jost, J. T. (2024). Polarizing effects of the coronavirus pandemic on system justification: A natural experiment involving New York City college students. Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy, 1–32. https://doi.org/10.1111/asap.12412

Jost, J. T., Bertin, J. A., Javeed, A., Liaquat, U., & Rivera Pichardo, E. J. (2023). Ideology is not accuracy; identity is not everything; and the social identity model of social attitudes does not explain system justification—it presupposes it. European Review of Social Psychology, 34(2), 244–267. https://doi.org/10.1080/10463283.2022.2122319

Rivera Pichardo, E. J., Vargas Salfate, S. E., & Knowles, E. D. (2023). The psychology of colonial ideologies: Decoupling pro-egalitarian and neo-colonial sources of support for Puerto Rico statehood. British Journal of Social Psychology, 62, 743–767. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjso.12591

Rivera Pichardo, E. J., Vargas Salfate, S., & Jost, J. T. (2022). Political psychology in the Global South: Collective memory, intergroup relations, ideology, and political participation. In D. Osborne & C. Sibley (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of political psychology (pp. 601–623). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108779104.04

Rivera Pichardo, E. J., Jost, J. T., & Benet-Martínez, V. (2022). Internalization of inferiority and colonial system justification: The case of Puerto Rico. Journal of Social Issues, 78(1), 79–106. https://doi.org/10.1111/josi.12437