Graduate Students

Research Lab: The Baker Lab and The Adams Lab
Advisors: Dr. Tamara Baker and Dr. Glenn Adams
Research Interests: Understanding sociocultural determinants of health disparities, utilizing of community health related programs, and evaluating effectiveness of health programs.

Research Lab: Branscombe Lab
Advisor: Dr. Nyla Branscombe
Research Interests: My interests center broadly around issues concerning the marginalization of disadvantaged groups (from the advantaged-group perspective), the history of institutionalized and systematic oppression, and the built-in, legitimized structures that hold the system constant (e.g., tokenism effect).

Research Interests: Broadly, my research makes use of postcolonial feminism and intersectional feminist theory to understand racism and sexism, particularly within scientific discourse. One line of my research explores the ways in which psychological science can implicitly reinforce racist and gendered discourse. I am currently engaged in a project that frames evolutionary psychology's use of analogy within its sociocultural and historical context, and explores whether this could implicitly reinforce colonial stereotypes. Another area of research I am interested in is the interaction between gendered racism and perceptions of sexual violence. I am also interested in how psychology as a discipline “does” politics, either through implicitly reinforcing social oppression or through conducting research as a form of activism (as in feminist psychology). 

Research Lab: Branscombe Lab
Advisor: Dr. Nyla Branscombe
Research Interests: My research interests broadly encompass the social psychology of disability. Following from a Disability Studies perspective, I approach disability (and ability) as social, political, and cultural phenomena rather than an individualizing stigma. Working with Dr. Nyla Branscombe I examine the effects of social representations of disability (e.g. medical vs. social model) on able-bodied person's perceptions of disability, specifically their views on pro-disability policy support. Similarly I investigate how "diversity" representations at institutions of higher education include/exclude disability in their representations and the consequences such representations have on able-bodied students perceptions of disability on campus. I also investigate the factors that affect people with disabilities' positive identification with the Disabled minority group, including possible cues in the environment that communicate identity threat to people with disabilities. Closely related, I examine the connection between popular notions of diversity and their inclusion/exclusion of disability. Finally, following a critical psychological perspective, I work to problematize taken-for-granted notions of ability and to uncover the underlying assumptions psychology makes in able-bodiedness(mindedness) that result in privileging some bodies and minds and pathologizing others.   

Research Lab: The Adams Lab
Advisor: Dr. Glenn Adams
Research Interests: I am interested in the socio-cultural construction of the self and relationships, and in how those constructions are related to conceptions of interdependence across contexts. I am also interested in the processes of reproduction of social representations of national history and their relationship with attitudes towards public policy, with a particular focus on transitional justice.

Research Lab: Gillath Lab
Advisor: Dr. Omri Gillath
Research Interests: I am primarily interested in studying close relationships. Broadly speaking, I am interested in researching topics such as attraction, mating strategies, partner preferences, and overall relationship functioning. I am also interested in understanding the cultural differences in romantic relationships, particularly regarding attitudes on sex and extra-marital affairs. Finally, I am interested in using attachment theory to understand behaviors and goals in close relationships.

Research Interests: My research uses sociocultural approaches to understanding intergroup relations; my projects have focused on how different social psychological processes--such as identity, collective memory, and group-based emotions--hinder and promote peace and reconciliation. 

Research Lab: Lab of Existential Motivation, Metaphors and Authenticity (LEMMA)
Advisor: Dr. Mark Landau
Research interests: Broadly, I am interested in processes of stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination as it relates to stigma internalization and threats to existential motivations. Particularly, I am interested in how experiences of subtle, indirect forms of discrimination influence the self-concept. One line of my research examines why some women internalize and endorse sexist messages and engage in their own groups’ subordination. A second line of my research looks at how motivations for epistemic structure, self-presentation, and self-consistency lead to the dehumanization of out-groups. Ultimately, I am interested in examining how systems of inequality are perceived, maintained, and ultimately reduced. 

Research Interests: My research interests broadly focus on intergroup relations, national identity, and attitudes toward immigration policy. I am particularly interested in how different conceptions of national identity move people to support immigration policies, and how different collective memories and representations of history impact national identity. Generally, I want to explore how systems of privilege aid in intergroup conflict and impact those at the margins of society.

Research Lab: The Lemma Lab
Advisor: Dr. Mark Landau
Research Interests: My research is currently focused on understanding human motivation through the lens of existential psychology, with a particular interest in how concerns about mortality influence self-regulation. Alongside this work, I am studying the role of conceptual metaphors within language, with an emphasis on how metaphors provide content and structure to our understanding of abstract concepts and thus influence how we perceive the world. Additionally, I am interested in how different strategies of evaluative organization within the self-concept can serve as temporary adaptive solutions to situations of high stress and limited mental resources.

Research Lab: Crandall Lab
Advisor: Dr. Christian Crandall
Research Interests: I study how people justify their prejudicial attitudes to themselves and others. Prejudice is everywhere, yet expressing prejudice is taboo—the primary question I investigate is, "How do people deal with this contradiction?" My research has found that people can use ideologies (e.g., non-egalitarianism) and social norms (e.g., freedom of speech) to justify feeling negatively about groups and expressing these negative feelings. I have also done research concerning sports, dehumanization, historical nostalgia, and collective guilt.

Research Lab: Biernat Lab
Advisor: Dr. Monica Biernat
Research Interests: My primary research interest is how stereotypes influence judgment towards individuals from stereotyped groups. This includes topics such as intergroup threat and shifting standards, judgments of competence towards physically attractive females, and the relationship between subjective well-being and prejudice expression. My broader interests cluster around intergroup relations (e.g., race, social class, obesity, and gender) and culture.