People

Michael Hogg

Dr. Hogg’s research focuses on intergroup relations, group processes and the self-concept. It is closely associated with social identity theory. He has researched solidarity and cohesion; group structure and processes of marginalization and deviance; group fragmentation and the pursuit of subgroup autonomy; attitudes and norms; influence and leadership; communication, language and social identity; social identity motivations; and identity-uncertainty and extremist identities and groups.

Matthew Burt (goes by MattB) focuses, through the lens of social identity theory and contact theory, on the use of funny language and humor in bias reduction. He is interested in how witnessing or imagining a humorous interaction between in- and out-group members (or leaders) can lead uncertain individuals to reach across the aisle and encourage meaningful contact with others, as well as how funny individuals can use humor to place themselves in leader positions within their groups.

Michael Baum is broadly interested in group processes, intergroup relations, and social identity. Specifically, he is exploring how religiosity, political affiliation, and other social identity related phenomena predict attitudes toward science and scientific expertise.

Alex Beccari explores the impacts of culture on negative affect and beliefs about racism, suffering, and compassion. Her research interests include the intersection of clinical and organizational psychology; personal relationships; and resilience.

Koopmann-Holm, B., Beccari, A., & Oosthuizen, M. (2024). Individual and cultural differences in compassion, noticing suffering, and well-being: Consequences of wanting to avoid feeling negative. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, e70000. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.70000

Michelle Blaya-Burgo focuses on the psychology of radicalization, identity, and belonging. Her research examines how identity and uncertainty contribute to polarization and violent extremism in various contexts, with a focus on prevention, community resilience, and peacebuilding.

Bélanger, J. J., Robbins, B. G., Muhammad, H., Moyano, M., Nisa, C. F., Schumpe, B. M., & Blaya, M. (2020). Supporting political violence: The role of ideological passion and social network. Group Processes and Intergroup Relations, 23(8), 1187-1203. https://doi.org/10.1177/1368430220933954

Annika Galvin is interested in understanding the social psychological underpinnings of ideology, particularly in the context of religion and morality, and ideology’s connection to conflict, especially international conflict.

Harmony Frederick focuses on academic and social identities related to higher education, specifically how these identities impact student retention and continued connection to institutions following graduation.

Samantha Gardner is researching social identity, uncertainty, language, identity threat, and the polarization of attitudes.

Virginia Gary is interested in investigating how the intersection of lived experience, identity, and intergroup relations affects perceptions of injustice and inequality, specifically among advantaged groups, and how this can inform pathways for motivating collective action.

Wendy (Siwei) He studies ethnolinguistic identity, uncertainty, and social identity. Specifically, the impact of uncertainty on the evaluation of various ethnolinguistic groups and their members.

Ciara Hernandez studies the social psychological underpinnings of international conflict. Specifically, she focuses on intergroup relations, attribution biases, threat perceptions, and their potential to shape the tone of American foreign policy.

Quinn J Hundgen works with Dr. Wesley Schultz. He is researching how to harness relationship with nature and identity to encourage pro-environmental behavior and sustainable fashion consumption.

Isabella Lopez is broadly interested in researching social identity, religion, prosocial behaviors, intergroup relationships, social cognition, and emotional regulation.

Bliss Paik is interested in intercultural communication, identity-uncertainty motivation, and communication accommodation.

Mary Peterson researches how factors such as self-uncertainty, group entitativity, and resource appraisals influence the ways people relate to their groups. Her work examines these processes in everyday contexts, including the experiences of students and career professionals.

James Shih has an interest in political aspects of social identity processes – for example leadership in social identity formation and politicization, and how social identities are formed, maintained, and utilized under different political systems and ideologies.

Akshay Sharan’s research lies at the intersection of social and political psychology. His general focus is on the study of social identities and morality in intergroup conflict, and specifically he studies identity uncertainty and its social and political implications.

Austin Shockley focuses broadly on how self- and identity-uncertainty may underpin zealotry and societal extremism.

Timothy Silva is interested in examining how technological change impacts social identity dynamics. Tim is currently Head of Research at Bank of the West in San Francisco.

Dejah Yansen is broadly interested in how intergroup attitudes and behaviors are affected by the impact of relative group status, identity complexity, and subjective identity threat.

Rumble, A. C., Willcox, K., Imada, H., & Yansen, D. (2022). Beyond reciprocity: Forgiveness, generosity, and punishment in continuing dyadic interactions. Journal of Theoretical Social Psychology, article 7259257. https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/7259257

Xiang Ao is a former Social Identity lab member, and is currently an assistant professor at Adams State University in Colorado. He investigates how group members respond towards various types of ingroup deviance, how identity threats trigger group members’ negative sentiment towards immigrants and outgroups, and the role of social identities in collective mobilization and protest in culturally diverse regions (e.g., Hong Kong).

Sucharita Belavadi is a former Social Identity Lab member and postdoc, and is currently an Assistant Professor at Flame University in Pune, India (https://flame.edu.in/faculty/sucharita-belavadi/). She investigates self-uncertainty processes in intergroup conflicts, especially in the context of Indian religious and language-based groups. Of particular interest is how groups perceive marginal ingroup members within the context of language and social identity. She also examines how groups engage in a narrative of competitive victimhood during intergroup conflict.

Kaiyuan (KY) Chen, a former social identity lab manager, is currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Salzburg, Austria. He studies how uncertainty affects trust in elections and institutions, and how essentialist attributions of ingroup and outgroup characteristics can help reduce self-and identity-uncertainty in intergroup contexts.

Amber Gaffney is a former Social Identity Lab member and postdoc and currently an Associate Professor of Social Psychology at California Polytechnic University Humboldt. She is also an Associate Editor for Group Processes and Intergroup Relations and for the Journal of Applied Social Psychology. She studies how prototypical and non-prototypical group members create and manage uncertainty to enact social change. Amber is also interested in social comparison processes and in social identity and uncertainty dynamics in the political sphere.

Fiona Grant, a former Social Identity Lab member and postdoc, is an Associate Professor of Social Psychology at the University of Mauritius. She studies social identity processes in health contexts, specifically the role of group membership in health promotion and exercise behavior. She also conducts research on social identity complexity and how people cope with multiple identities during times of uncertainty.

Justin Hackett is a former member of the lab and currently Professor of Psychology and Chair of the Psychology Department at Pennsylvania Western University. His research focuses primarily on social engagement and sense of community.

Zachary Hohman is a former lab member and currently an Associate Professor of Experimental Psychology at Texas Tech University. His research focuses on group processes, intergroup relations and the self-concept, and also the role played by attitudes and persuasion. Zach is also interested in how these processes play out in health contexts.

Jiin Jung is a former Social Identity Lab member and postdoc, and is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at Lehigh University. She researches the impact of identity-uncertainty on group identification, intergroup perceptions, and group integration and schism. She has collected data in the context of Korean reunification and Scottish independence. Jiin also examines computational models of social influence, and uncertainty-related determinants of depersonalization and projection.

Norbert L. Kerr was a visiting professor at Claremont Graduate University for the 2016-2017 academic year. He is an Emeritus Professor of Psychology at Michigan State University and an Honorary Professor of Social Psychology at the University of Kent in Canterbury. His primary research interests are group performance and decision making, social dilemmas, psychology and the law, social influence, and HARKing (Hypothesizing After the Results are Known).

Jeff Ramdass is a former social identity lab member and is currently Project Director for the Center for Social Development and Education at the University of Massachusetts, Boston. He studies reactions to in-group and outgroup members’ unethical behavior and violation of moral principles, mainly in academic and political contexts.

David Rast is a former lab member and is currently an Associate Professor of social psychology at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada. He is a former Associate Editor of the Journal of Applied Social Psychology. He examines when non-prototypical leaders become influential and how leaders transcend conflict-charged intergroup relations.

Viviane Seyranian is a former lab member and an Associate Professor of Psychology at California Polytechnic State University, Pomona. Her research examines the role of communication tactics and source types (e.g., majorities-minorities) on attitudes, emotions, and behaviors. Viviane is testing a theory called social identity framing, which outlines communication tactics related to social identity change.

Joey Wagoner, a former lab member and postdoc, is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs. Joey studies the dynamics of subgroup autonomy and independence within a larger group, and the ultimate possibility of schism. He also investigates the role of group-level warmth and competence perceptions in resolving identity-uncertainty.