Alan Lambert
Associate Professor of Psychological & Brain Sciences
Somers Family Hall 319B
Undergraduate Research Assistants
Molly Ruttenberg
Molly is a senior studying Psychology and Brain Sciences with a minor in Computer Science and Pre-Med. Her interests in how empathy plays a role in our daily lives influences her research in the lab. Specifically, she is working on an undergraduate thesis project which is interested in investigating in-group and out-group biases as well as perceived fault of a target as moderating variables of empathy.
Lawrence Chen
Lawrence Chen is a sophomore pursuing a double major in Philosophy-Neuroscience-Psychology and Healthcare Management on a pre-health track. His research interests surround the factors that lead to increased polarization between political and racial groups in America. He is interested in learning more about the role media and other environmental factors can play in leading to increased/decreased polarization. By better understanding these causes, he hopes to develop strategies for responding to rising levels of polarization in America.
Ben Hirsch
Ben is a junior who is majoring in Psychology and minoring in American Culture Studies and Religion and Politics. Currently, he is engaging in research centered around exploring and gaining a deeper understanding into individuals’ Belief in a Just World. After college, he is hoping to pursue a career in medicine.
Julia Herzig
Julia Herzig is a senior majoring in Psychology and minoring in Spanish. She is interested in just world theory and how it relates to different racial and religious identities, especially as moderated by mental health issues such as depression. She hopes research the intersection of these identities with empathy and outlook on life and the world.
Rupa Ballamudi
Rupa is a sophomore who is majoring in Philosophy-Neuroscience-Psychology and minoring in Anthropology on the pre-med track. Her personal interests in empathy, human nature, and moral ethics play a role in the research she does. Currently, she is working on a project investigating how happiness and perception of locus of control relate to the Belief-In-Just-World measures, alongside race, socioeconomic status, and other identities. After college, she’s hoping to go to medical school.
Ishan Gupta
Ishan is a sophomore studying economics and political science rejoining the lab for a second year. His research is fueled by his interest in how people think about politics and how they view the economic systems that guide our lives. Ishan’s most recent work involved research into Americans’ views on the wealth gap between different races and why certain groups prefer the system as it is compared to a more equitable distribution.
Libby Spera
Libby is a sophomore from Cincinnati Ohio and is majoring in Political Science and Psychology. She is interested in the intersection of social psychology, political decision making, and the legal system. These interest areas influence her involvement in the lab,where she is currently researching the influence of ingroup-outgroup effects on empathy. When she graduates from WashU, Libby hopes to pursue a degree in law.
Kyle Caudill
Kyle is a junior studying Philosophy, Neuroscience, and Psychology with minors in Spanish and Jazz studies. Kyle is interested in social and clinical psychology, specifically research pertaining to the connection between personal psychology and the influence of political systems on the individual both in the social and clinical fields.
Lab Alumni
Previous graduate students supervised/current position
Allison Chasteen—Associate professor of psychology, University of Toronto
Saera Khan: Associate Professor of psychology, University of San Francisco
Stephanie Cronen: Principal research scientist, American Institute for Research
Keith Payne: Professor of psychology, University of North Carolina
Alison Hinkamper: Human Resources Generalist, Talisen Technologies
Laura Scherer: Assistant Professor of psychology, University of Denver
John Paul Schott: Project Director, Maritz (Marketing Research Firm)
Fade Eadeh: Assistant Professor, Seattle University
Stephanie Peak: Battelle Research Group
Emily Hanson: Research analyst, Library of Congress
Undergraduate honor theses supervised
Wells, Jennifer (1992-1993)
Rosenkoetter, Lauren. (1993-1994)
Raichle, Katherine. (1994-1995)
Etzel, Julie. (1995-1996)
Geers, Ben. (1995-1996)
Ellson, Sara. (1995-1996)
Lang, Adam. (1998-1999)
Bromberg, Laura. (1999-2000)
Ramsey, Suzanne (2000-2001)
Shaffer, Lara (2002-2003)
Olson, Kristina (2002-2003)
Chan, Quasar (2003-2004; co-supervised with Randy Larsen)
Zisser, Alison (2004-2005)
Lehavot, Keren (2004-2005)
O’Brien, Thomas (2008-2009)
Andrews, Rick (2008-2009)
Smith, Julia (2010-2011)
Phi, Jannina (2012-2013)
Dorison, Charlie (2014-2015)
Jackson, Katie (2020-2021)
Ruttenberg, Molly (2021-present)
Mind Brain Behavior Scholars program
Shaffer, Lara (2000-2001)
Rodriguez, Sam (2001-2002)
Malnove, Ashley (2002-2003)
Andrews, Rick (2006-2007)
Harsh, Mohit (2010-2011)
Steindam, Chloe (2010-2011)
Rubino, Stephen (2011-2012)
Matelene, William (2012-2013)
Silberman, Jason (2012-2013)
Kim, Jenny (2013-2014)
Pitcher, Taylor (2014-2015)
Calandara, Ansley (2016-2017)
Gabbard, Kati (2017-2018)
Terry, Maya (2017-2018)
Gisser, Giselle (2018-2019)
Jain, Nandini (2020-2021)
Chen, Lawrence (2021-present)
PNP honors (capstone) theses
Abiose, Ola (2013-2014)
Grossman, Carolyn (2014-2015)
Chang, Katy (2017-2018)
Mellon Fellows
Hill, Diana (2002-3003)
Doctoral thesis committees
Galt, David. (1992-1993).
Janer, Kevin. (1994-1995).
Haven, Julie. (1994-1995)
Powers, David. (1995-1996)
Norton, Barbara. (1996-1997).
Burroughs, Thomas. (1997-1998)
Chasteen, Allison. (1997-1998)
Khan, Saera. (1997-1998) (Chair)
Cronen, Stephanie. (1997-1998) (Chair)
Scott, Chris. (2001-2002)
Braman, Amie. (2002-2003)
Payne, Keith (2001-2002; Chair)
Hinkamper Alison. (2003-2004; Chair)
Mislin, Alison. (2006; doctoral candidate in business school)
Shimizu, Yuge. (2006-2007)
Callendar. Amie. (2008-2009)
Szpunar, Karl. (2009-2010)
Scherer, Laura. (2009-2010; Chair)
Schott, J.P. (2011-2012; Chair)
Christner, John (2016-2017; co-Chair)
Eadeh, Fade (2016-2017; Chair)
Peak, Stephanie (2016-2017; Chair)
Merz, Caroline (2018-2019)
Hanson, Emily (2019-2020; Chair)
Masters thesis committees
Chasteen, Alison. (1994; Chair)
Khan, Saera. (1995; Chair).
Geers, Ben. (1997; Chair)
Manier, Jeremy. (1998; Chair)
Meade, Michelle. (1999)
Hoy, Sandra. (2000; Chair)
Watts, Allison. (2001; Chair)
Scherer, Laura. (2007; Chair)
Schott, J.P. (2009; Chair)
Eadeh, Fade (2014, Chair)
Peak, Stephanie (2014, Chair)
Hanson, Emily (2017, Chair)