Miriam Schwarzenthal

Miriam Schwarzenthal serves as a Junior Professor at the Institute for Educational Research within the School of Education at the University of Wuppertal in Germany. Her research examines how adolescents navigate cultural diversity and social inequality across school, peer, and family contexts, with particular focus on developing intercultural competence and critical consciousness.

Dr. Schwarzenthal earned her PhD in Psychology from Friedrich Schiller University Jena (2012-2014) following undergraduate studies at the University of Cologne (2008-2012). She previously held postdoctoral and doctoral positions at Universität Potsdam (2014-2021). Her educational background in psychology informs her interdisciplinary approach to educational research.

Her research program investigates multiple dimensions of cultural diversity in educational settings, with particular emphasis on classroom diversity climate, ethnic-racial identity development, and critical consciousness among German adolescents. She examines how teachers develop competencies to prepare students for culturally diverse societies and how school environments can either perpetuate or challenge systemic inequities. Her work often employs large-scale survey methods and longitudinal designs to track developmental trajectories.

Analysis of her recent publications reveals a cohesive research trajectory examining the relationships between cultural diversity approaches in schools and adolescent outcomes. Her work increasingly focuses on critical consciousness development, exploring how experiences of discrimination, classroom climate, and national identity conceptions relate to adolescents' engagement with social justice issues in the German context.

Dr. Schwarzenthal maintains active research collaborations, particularly with Linda Juang's research group, and disseminates her work through the "Researching Diversity Podcast" and ResearchGate, where her 53 publications have garnered over 25,959 reads and 971 citations. Her scholarship bridges theoretical insights with practical implications for creating more inclusive educational environments.