With deep sadness we share the news that Lucia Mannetti, member of the EASP for many years, passed away after a long illness, facing it with extraordinary dignity and courage and without ever giving up the smile towards life, as shown by the photo of her 68th birthday, only a few days before the end of her suffering on May 29th.

In 1975, Lucia became one of the first graduates in Psychology at Sapienza University of Rome. After some years of field-work as a psychologist in socio-educational and health public services, Lucia’s career as experimental social psychologist started in 1984, as a research fellow at Sapienza University of Rome. After a period as a visiting research fellow at the University of Sussex from 1987 to 1988, in 1990 she returned to Sapienza, first as professor of Methodology for Social Psychological Research and then, from 1995, as Full Professor of Social Psychology. At Sapienza, she also served as the head of the department of Psychology of Development and Socialization Processes and as Coordinator of the PhD programs of both Social Psychology and of Psychology and Social Neurosciences.

Lucia, across about 40 years of teaching, has been a reference point for many students to whom she taught subjects that she was passionate about, such as Social Psychology Research Methodology, Social Psychology, and Economic Psychology. Her students remember her as a professional and profoundly human person. Lucia acted as a guide for many PhD students, researchers and collaborators who enjoyed of her intellectual energy, curiosity, humility, generosity, methodological rigour and knowledge of the field.

Very active at the level of international collaborations, Lucia made many contributions to the discipline beyond national borders. By means of her many writings at the international level, several of them published in prestigious journals in the field, such as JPSP, Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, Psychological Review, Lucia contributed to the comprehension of the social psychological processes by which individuals explain the causes of behaviour and events; the motivational and cognitive mechanisms underlying the formation and change of beliefs, attitudes, behavioural choices. Additionally, she focused on behavioural self-regulation in different domains such as health, political and economic decision-making.

Lucia showed an admirable strength and institutional passion, even during her long illness, that allowed her to succeed at her multiple responsibilities as Dean of Social Psychology at Sapienza University of Rome, and to teach until the last possible moment.

Her social psychologist colleagues remember her fondly.