About
Hanna Reichelt is a PhD candidate in the Department of Political Science and the Department of Geography at the University of Southampton. She is fascinated by how people form ideas about systems they can only ever experience partially. Her research explores how everyday people make sense of complex political systems, how these interpretations shape political judgments and democratic commitment, and how they ultimately influence the resilience of democratic systems. Her work draws on mixed methods, including focus groups, survey experiments, and intervention-oriented research designs.
Her broader research interests lie at the intersection of political psychology, political behavior, political theory, and complexity science. She is particularly interested in how perceptions, narratives, identities, and power asymmetries shape collective decision-making and political outcomes.
Hanna holds an academic background in psychology and migration studies. She has professional experience in a think tank focusing on European politics, as well as prior fieldwork in refugee camps in Germany and Iraq. These experiences continue to inform her engagement with questions of migration, human rights, European governance, and humanitarian practice.