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Carolina de Barros

Kingston, Ontario

📧 [email protected]

Education

Ph.D. Candidate, Psychology

Queen’s University, Department of Psychology, Kingston, ON — 2022–Present

  • Dissertation: “Navigating Norms in Non-Normative Relationships”
  • Program: Social-Personality Psychology
  • Supervisor: Dr. Sari van Anders

M.A., Psychology

University of Saskatchewan, Department of Psychology and Health Studies, Saskatoon, SK — 2020–2022

  • Thesis: “The Relationships Among Gender, Bipositive Events, and Psychological Outcomes”
  • Program: Culture, Health, and Human Development
  • Supervisor: Dr. Todd Morrison

B.A. Honours, Psychology (Minor in Mathematics)

University of Saskatchewan, Department of Psychology and Health Studies, Saskatoon, SK — 2015–2020

  • Thesis: “Development and Initial Validation of the Positive Bisexual Identity (PBI) Measure”
  • Supervisor: Dr. Todd Morrison

Research Interests

  • Romantic relationships, particularly non-normative/diverse forms (e.g., queer; ethically non-monogamous; involving BDSM/kink)
  • Sexual and gender diversity
  • Mixed-methods research and approaches
  • Minoritized identities and experiences

Honours and Grants

  • Ontario Graduate Research Scholarship, Government of Ontario - $15,000 CAD / 1 year
    • Awarded on the basis of academic excellence, research potential and experience, and leadership experience
  • Barrie Frost Graduate Student Research Award, Queen's University — $1,500 CAD
    • Awarded (with Bianca Wilhelm, Ph.D. Candidate, Queen’s University) to conduct a study on predicting compersion using inclusion of other in the self.
  • Ruthellen Josselson Student Research Grant, Society for Qualitative Inquiry in Psychology — $500 USD
    • Supports graduate students conducting qualitative psychology research.
  • Canada Graduate Scholarship – Doctoral, SSHRC — $105,000 CAD / 3 years
    • Awarded for academic excellence, research potential, and leadership.
  • Canada Graduate Scholarship – Master’s, SSHRC — $17,500 CAD / 1 year
    • Awarded for academic excellence, research potential, and leadership.

Awards and Accolades

  • Certificate of Academic Excellence, Canadian Psychological Association, 2023 — Best Master’s thesis, University of Saskatchewan
  • Certificate of Academic Excellence, Canadian Psychological Association, 2020 — Best undergraduate thesis, University of Saskatchewan
  • Haslam Medal, University of Saskatchewan, 2020 — Most distinguished graduate, College of Arts & Sciences
  • Copland Prize in Social Sciences , University of Saskatchewan, 2020 — Most distinguished graduate in social sciences
  • Gordon A. McMurray Prize in Psychology, University of Saskatchewan, 2020 — Most distinguished graduate in Psychology, USASK

Publications

Peer-Reviewed

  1. de Barros, A. C., Lackie, E. R. L., & van Anders, S. M. (2025). Sex, attraction, and social norms: Distinguishing romantic and non-romantic relationships in non-sexual contexts. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 54, 2517-2538. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-025-03163-w
  2. Wilhelm, B., de Barros, A.C., Connolly, S., van Anders, G., & van Anders, S. M. (in press). Visualizing plurisexuality via sexual configurations theory. Archives of Sexual Behavior.
  3. Horwitz, S., Gelech, J., Wellsch, J., de Barros, A. C., Croteau, T., Bergen, J., Forrester, S., & Bradford, L. (2025). Postsecondary instructors’ disclosures of mental illness to students. Teaching in Higher Education, 1-23. https://doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2025.2521377
  4. Mathi, L. V. K., Wilhelm, B., de Barros, A. C., Cardoso, D., Connolly, S., van Anders, G., & van Anders, S. M. (2025). Diversity in partner number sexuality via sexual configurations theory. Archives of Sexual Behavior., 54, 997-1021 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-024-03072-4
  5. de Barros, A. C., Sadika, B., Croteau, T., Morrison, T. G., & Morrison, M. (2023). Associations between subcategories of disgust sensitivity and homonegativity: Examining intergroup contact as a moderator. Psychology & Sexuality, 14(3), 453–473. https://doi.org/10.1080/19419899.2022.2090270
  6. de Barros, A. C., & Morrison, T. G. (2023). Development and validation of the Positive Bisexual Identity (PBI) scale. Psychology & Sexuality, 14(1), 73–93. https://doi.org/10.1080/19419899.2022.2057868
  7. Katz, J. M., de Barros, A. C., & Morrison, T. G. (2021). Ambiguous sex in critical receptions to Ari Aster’s Midsommar. Sexuality & Culture, 25, 2035–2051. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-021-09863-4
  8. de Barros, A. C. (2020). “Gay now”: Bisexual erasure in supernatural media from 1983 to 2003. Journal of Bisexuality, 20(1), 104–117. https://doi.org/10.1080/15299716.2020.1732258

Non–Peer-Reviewed

  • Bergen, J., de Barros, A. C., et al. (2021). Should university instructors disclose mental health conditions? It’s complicated. The Conversation. Read Online
  • de Barros, A. C. (2021, September). Information for pregnant queer and trans people. Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada. Read Online

Under Review

  • de Barros, A. C., Croteau, T., et al. (2024). Post-secondary instructors who disclose mental illness in the classroom: Implications for student attitudes and behavioral intentions (Revised and Resubmitted).Journal of Education.
  • Silberberg, M. I., de Barros, A. C., & van Anders, S. M. (2025). Understanding sexual attraction via sexual configurations theory (Submitted). Archives of Sexual Behavior.
  • Matthews, E., Gelech, J., de Barros, A. C., Al-Ja’afreh, S., & Godwin, O. (2025). The meaning of childhood disability among immigrant and refugee parents: An integrative review and lifeworld approach (Submitted). Disability and Rehabilitation.

Presentations (Selected)

  • de Barros, A. C., & van Anders, S. M. (2025, Nov.). The role of social norms in defining diverse romantic relationships. Talk presented at the 5th Non-Monogamies and Contemporary Intimacies Conference, Online.
  • de Barros, A. C., Lackie, E. R. L, & van Anders, S. M. (2025, Jul). Romantic and non-romantic relationships in non-sexual contexts. Poster presented at the International Association for Relationship Research Mini-Conference on Gender, Sexuality, and Relationships, London, England.
  • de Barros, A. C., Wilhelm, B., & Morrison, T. G. (2023, Aug). Bisexual microaffirmations, internalized binegativity, and gender. Poster presented at the International Academy of Sex Research Annual Meeting, Montreal, QC, Canada.
  • de Barros, A. C., & Bergen, J. (2023, Jun). Mentor, teacher, advocate, academic: The roles academics with mental illnesses play. Talk presented at the Canadian Psychological Association National Convention, Toronto, ON, Canada.
  • de Barros, A. C., Gelech, J., Bergen, J., & Croteau, T. (2023, Mar). Mental illness in academia: Current understandings and future directions. Talk presented at the Society for Applied Anthropology Annual Meeting, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA.

Teaching experience

Honours Theses Supervision

  • Silberberg, M. (2024). Understanding sexual attraction via sexual configurations theory. Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Psychology, Queen’s University. Co-advised with Dr. Sari van Anders.

Research Assistant Supervision

  • 10+ research assistants in the van Anders Lab, Queen's University
  • 3 research assistants in the Disability and Culture Lab, University of Saskatchewan

Teaching Assistantships

  • Research Methods in Psychology — Winter 2025
  • Advanced Statistical Inference — Fall 2024
  • Aggression — Winter 2024
  • Gender/Sex, Hormones, and Behaviour — Fall 2024
  • Principles of Psychology — Fall 2022 / Winter 2023
  • Research in Qualitative Study of Lives and Social Practices — Winter 2022
  • Advanced Social Psychology II — Winter 2022
  • Social Psychology — Fall 2021
  • Effective Professional Communication — Summer 2021
  • Personality — Winter 2020

Guest Lectures

  • Queer Intimacies, presented to PSYC 443: Intimate Relationships, Queen's University - Winter 2024
  • Motivation and Emotion, presented to PSYC 100: Principles of Psychology, Queen's University - Winter 2024
  • Ethics and Instruments in Qualitative Research, presented to PSY 324: Research in the Qualitative Study of Lives and Social Practices, University of Saskatchewan - Winter 2022
  • Health, Sex, and Gender, presented to HLST 110: Introduction to Health Studies, University of Saskatchewan - Fall 2021

Editorial Activities

  • Peer Reviewer: Psychology & Sexuality, Journal of Sex Research, Archives of Sexual Behavior

Service

  • Graduate Representative, Department Graduate Committee - Sept 2025-Apr 2026
  • Graduate Representative, Department EDI Committee — Sep 2023–Feb 2024
  • Graduate Representative, Department Meetings — Sep 2023–Apr 2024

Professional Experience

Research Software Engineer - SAGE Lab, Queen's University, Kingston, ON - Sept 2025 - Dec 2025

  • Developed and tested HTML/CSS/JavaScript code to use in conjunction with Qualtrics to collect visual data on sexual scripts.

Consultant — Wellness Together, Toronto, ON — Jun 2022 – Aug 2022

  • Authored report on best practices for demographic data collection on gender/sex and sexual identity.

Research Coordinator — Academic Mental Illness Project, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK — Jul 2021 – Aug 2022

  • Led literature review, interviews, surveys, and collaborative autoethnography on mental illness in academia.

Board Member — Saskatoon Abortion Support Network, Saskatoon, SK — Jan 2021 – Aug 2023

  • Created resources for queer and trans patients seeking abortions; coordinated volunteers and training.

Research Assistant — College of Nursing, University of Regina, Regina, SK — Oct 2020 – Dec 2021

  • Synthesized literature on experiences of refugee and immigrant parents of children with disabilities.

Summer Student — Saskatoon Sexual Health, Saskatoon, SK — Jun 2020 – Aug 2020

  • Updated environmental scans on LGBTQ+ health education; created educational materials on STIs and relationships.

Writing Centre Tutor — University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK — Sep 2019 – May 2022

  • Assisted students with writing, referencing, and workshops on writing anxiety and gender-neutral language.

Research Assistant — Disability & Culture Lab, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK — Nov 2018 – Jun 2022

  • Contributed to multiple literature reviews on coping, family dynamics, and gap-year experiences.

Professional Development & Training

  • Qualitative Research Training, Fielding Graduate University — Feb 2025

Professional Affiliations

  • Canadian Sex Research Forum
  • International Association for Relationship Research
  • International Academy of Sex Research
  • Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality
  • American Psychological Association — Div. 5, 8, 44

Technical Expertise

  • Programming Languages: Python, R, JavaScript
  • Software: SPSS, NVivo, QualCoder

Languages

  • Fluent in English
  • Fluent in Portuguese
  • Proficient in Spanish