Partial listing of topics currently being investigated by our lab:
Political psychology, broadly defined
- Factors that induce “shift to the right” effects—which would include the tendency for liberals to temporarily respond in a more conservative manner
- Rally ‘round the flag effects (e.g. after the 9-11 attacks)
- Consequences of mortality salience for political judgment
- Cognitive and affective biases surrounding choices for political candidates
- The psychology of the “undecided voter”
Biases in Judgment and Decision Making
- “Wishful thinking” effects
- The role of expertise in increasing and decreasing judgment bias
- Personality dynamics behind “conspiracy theories” (e.g. what type of person tends to hold such beliefs?)
“The justice motive”
- The role of “just world beliefs” in driving judgment and behavior
- Emotional consequences of revenge
- “Sins of the father effects”; how and why people transfer blame across generations
- Perceptions of fairness
- Distribution of wealth and resources across ethnic groups (e.g. Whites vs. Blacks vs. Hispanics)
al of Personality and Social Psychology, 59, 676-691. PDF