Social Evaluations
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Causes and Consequences of Dehumanization
When and why do people infer that others have weaker mental capacities than they themselves have, thereby “dehumanizing” others? Considering other minds is an effortful process that requires motivational triggers (Epley, Schroeder, & Waytz, 2014). In such a way, dehumanization may stem not only from antipathy but also from apathy or egocentrism (e.g., Waytz & Schroeder, 2014). This research seeks to understand the form and function of everyday dehumanization.
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Mind Perception and Conversation
Conversation is a mechanism by which humans communicate what is on their minds to others. One means by which people convey their mental experiences is through their voices (e.g., in spoken conversation). A person’s voice is a conduit for expressing sophisticated thoughts, beliefs, and knowledge using both semantic and paralinguistic information. How does hearing a person’s thoughts via their own speech change beliefs about that person’s mental capacities, compared with reading the same thoughts? More broadly, how can the act of conversing in different ways (e.g., via talking, writing, video-chatting, and so on) affect social inferences?
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Objectifying Interactions and Instrumental Relationships
Much of daily interaction occurs in instrumental contexts, whereby the interaction is driven by a goal other than becoming closer to one’s interaction partner. For example, interactions with waitresses, physicians, or employees are primarily instrumental in nature. These interactions may be governed by a particular form of social cognition in which the interaction-partner is perceived primarily as a means to an end; this can lead the perceiver to egocentrically overlook currently unnecessary characteristics of their partner. Some scholars have called this a form of “objectification,” in the sense that the target becomes a tool or object to satisfy the perceiver’s goals.
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Social Judgment
This work examines how people come to understand others. This includes how people come to understand others based on their behavior in morally relevant situations.
Causes and Consequences of Dehumanization
When and why do people infer that others have weaker mental capacities than they themselves have, thereby “dehumanizing” others? Considering other minds is an effortful process that requires motivational triggers (Epley, Schroeder, & Waytz, 2014). In such a way, dehumanization may stem not only from antipathy but also from apathy or egocentrism (e.g., Waytz & Schroeder, 2014). This research seeks to understand the form and function of everyday dehumanization.
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
When “Enemies” Become Close: Relationship Formation Among Palestinians and Jewish Israelis at a Youth Camp
White, S. M., Schroeder, J., & Risen. J. L. (2020). When “enemies” become close: Relationship formation among Palestinians and Jewish Israelis at a youth camp. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
Demeaning: Dehumanizing Others by Minimizing the Importance of Their Psychological Needs
Schroeder, J., & Epley, N. (2020). Demeaning: Dehumanizing others by minimizing the importance of their psychological needs. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 119(4), 765-791.
Two Social Lives: How Differences Between Online and Offline Interaction Influence Social Outcomes
Lieberman, A., & Schroeder, J. (2019). Two social lives: How differences between online and offline interaction influence social outcomes. Current Opinion in Psychology, 31, 16-21.
The Preference for Distributed Helping
Sharps, D., & Schroeder, J. (2019). The preference for distributed helping. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 117, 954-977.
Endorsing Help for Others That You Oppose for Yourself: Mind Perception Alters the Perceived Effectiveness of Paternalism
Schroeder, J., Waytz, A., & Epley, N. (2017). Endorsing help for others that you oppose for yourself: Mind perception alters the perceived effectiveness of paternalism. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 146, 1106-1125.
Befriending the Enemy: Outgroup Friendship Longitudinally Predicts Intergroup Attitudes in a Co-Existence Program for Israelis and Palestinians
Schroeder, J., & Risen, J.L. (2016). Befriending the enemy: Outgroup friendship longitudinally predicts intergroup attitudes in a co-existence program for Israelis and Palestinians. Group Processes and Intergroup Relations, 19, 72-93.
Overlooking Others: Dehumanization by Commission and Omission
Waytz, A., & Schroeder, J. (2014). Overlooking others: Dehumanization by commission and omission. Testing, Psychometrics, Methodology in Applied Psychology, 21, 1-16.
The Lesser Minds Problem
Waytz, A., Schroeder, J., & Epley, N. (2014). The lesser minds problem. In Bain, P., Vaes, J., & Leyens, J. P. (Eds.) Humanness and Dehumanization (pp. 49-67). New York, NY: Psychology Press.
Motivated Mind Perception: Treating Pets as People and People as Animals
Epley, N., Schroeder, J., & Waytz, A. (2013). Motivated mind perception: Treating pets as people and people as animals. In Gervais, S. (Ed.), Nebraska Symposium on Motivation (Vol. 60, pp 127–152). Springer: New York.
Mind Perception and Conversation
Conversation is a mechanism by which humans communicate what is on their minds to others. One means by which people convey their mental experiences is through their voices (e.g., in spoken conversation). A person’s voice is a conduit for expressing sophisticated thoughts, beliefs, and knowledge using both semantic and paralinguistic information. How does hearing a person’s thoughts via their own speech change beliefs about that person’s mental capacities, compared with reading the same thoughts? More broadly, how can the act of conversing in different ways (e.g., via talking, writing, video-chatting, and so on) affect social inferences?
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
Keep Talking: (Mis)understanding The Hedonic Trajectory of Conversation
Kardas, M., Schroeder, J., & O’Brien, E. (in press). Keep talking: (Mis)understanding the hedonic trajectory of conversation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
Hello, Stranger? Pleasant Conversations are Preceded by Concerns About Starting One
Schroeder, J., Lyons, D., & Epley, N. (in press). Hello, stranger? Pleasant conversations are preceded by concerns about starting one. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General.
Ending Conversation is a Fraught Endeavor
Schroeder, J. (2021). Ending conversation is a fraught endeavor. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 25(7), 552-553.
Tell it Like it is: When Politically Incorrect Language Promotes Authenticity
Rosenblum, M., Schroeder, J., & Gino, F. (2020). Tell is like it is: When politically incorrect language promotes authenticity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 119(1), 75–103
Consumer Decisions with Artificially Intelligent Voice Assistants
Dellaert, B., Shu, S., Arentze, T., Baker, T., Diehl, K., Donkers, B., Haeubl, G., Johnson, H., Karmarkar, U., Oppewal, H., Schmitt, B., Schroeder, J., Spiller, S., & Steffel, M. (2020). Consumer decisions with artificially intelligent voice assistants. Marketing Letters, 31(4), 335-347.
The Humanizing Voice: Speech Reveals, and Text Conceals, a More Thoughtful Mind in the Midst of Disagreement
Schroeder, J., Kardas, M., & Epley, N. (2017). The humanizing voice: Speech reveals, and text conceals, a more thoughtful mind in the midst of disagreement. Psychological Science, 28, 1745-1762.
Mistaking Minds and Machines: How Speech Affects Dehumanization and Anthropomorphism
Schroeder, J., & Epley, N. (2016). Mistaking minds and machines: How speech affects dehumanization and anthropomorphism. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 145, 1427-1437.
The Sound of Intellect: Speech Reveals a Thoughtful Mind, Increasing a Job Candidate’s Appeal
Schroeder, J., & Epley, N. (2015). The sound of intellect: Speech reveals a thoughtful mind, increasing a job candidate’s appeal. Psychological Science, 26, 877-891.
Mistakenly Seeking Solitude
Epley, N., & Schroeder, J. (2014). Mistakenly seeking solitude. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 143, 1980-1999.
Objectifying Interactions and Instrumental Relationships
Much of daily interaction occurs in instrumental contexts, whereby the interaction is driven by a goal other than becoming closer to one’s interaction partner. For example, interactions with waitresses, physicians, or employees are primarily instrumental in nature. These interactions may be governed by a particular form of social cognition in which the interaction-partner is perceived primarily as a means to an end; this can lead the perceiver to egocentrically overlook currently unnecessary characteristics of their partner. Some scholars have called this a form of “objectification,” in the sense that the target becomes a tool or object to satisfy the perceiver’s goals.
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
Human “Resources”? Objectification at Work
Belmi, P., & Schroeder, J. (2020). Human “resources”? Objectification at work. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 120(2), 384.
Power and Decision Making: New Directions for Research in the Age of Artificial Intelligence
Fast, N., & Schroeder, J. (2020). Power and decision making: new directions for research in the age of artificial intelligence. Current Opinion in Psychology, 33, 172-176
Functional Intimacy: Needing—But Not Wanting—the Touch of a Stranger
Schroeder, J., Fishbach, A., Schein, C., & Gray, K. (2017). Functional intimacy: Needing—but not wanting—the touch of a stranger. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 113, 910-924.
Many Hands Make Overlooked Work: Overclaiming of Responsibility Increases With Group Size
Schroeder, J., Caruso, E., & Epley, N. (2016). Many hands make overlooked work: Overclaiming of responsibility increases with group size. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, 22, 238-246.
How to Motivate Yourself and Others? Intended and Unintended Consequences
Schroeder, J., & Fishbach, A. (2015). How to motivate yourself and others? Intended and unintended consequences. Research in Organizational Behavior, 35, 123-141.
The “Empty Vessel” Physician: Instrumentality Makes Physicians Seem Personally Empty
Schroeder, J., & Fishbach, A. (2015). The “empty vessel” physician: Instrumentality makes physicians seem personally empty. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 6, 940-949.
Mistakenly Seeking Solitude
Epley, N., & Schroeder, J. (2014). Mistakenly seeking solitude. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 143, 1980-1999.
Social Judgment
This work examines how people come to understand others. This includes how people come to understand others based on their behavior in morally relevant situations.
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
Responsibility Amplifies Empathic Forecasts
Gonzalez, F. J., Jung, M. H., & Critcher, C. R. (2021). Responsibility amplifies empathic forecasts. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 150, 956-971.
The Costs Of Not Disclosing
Baum, S. M., & Critcher, C. R. (2020). The costs of not disclosing. Current Opinion in Psychology, 31, 72-75.
Moral Character Evaluation: Testing Another’S Moral-Cognitive Machinery
Critcher, C. R., Helzer, E., & Tannenbaum, D. (2020). Moral character evaluation: Testing another’s moral-cognitive machinery. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 87, 103906.
Feeling Is Believing: Inspiration Encourages Belief In God
Critcher, C. R., & Lee, C. J. (2018). Feeling is believing: Inspiration encourages belief in God. Psychological Science, 29, 723-737.
What Do We Evaluate When We Evaluate Moral Character?
Helzer, E. G., & Critcher, C. R. (2018). What do we evaluate when we evaluate moral character? In K. Gray & J. Graham (Eds.), Atlas of moral psychology (pp. 99-107). New York: Guilford Press.
Thinking About Others vs. Another: Three Reasons Judgments about Collectives And Individuals Differ
Critcher, C. R., & Dunning, D. (2014). Thinking about others vs. another: Three reasons judgments about collectives and individuals differ. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 8, 687-698.
The Involuntary Excluder Effect: Those Included by An Excluder Are Seen as Exclusive Themselves
Critcher, C. R., & Zayas, V. (2014). The involuntary excluder effect: Those included by an excluder are seen as exclusive themselves. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 107, 454-474.
Predicting Persons’ Versus A Person’S Goodness: Forecasts Diverge for Populations Versus Individuals
Critcher, C. R., & Dunning, D. (2013). Predicting persons’ versus a person’s goodness: Forecasts diverge for populations versus individuals. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 104, 28-44.
When Does Impulsivity Exculpate vs. Incriminate?
Critcher, C. R., & Inbar, Y. (2013). When does impulsivity exculpate vs. incriminate? The Jury Expert, 25(5), 19-24. (invited target article, with commentaries and reply)
How Quick Decisions Illuminate Moral Character
Critcher, C. R., Inbar, Y., & Pizarro, D. A. (2013). How quick decisions illuminate moral character. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 4, 308-315.
Egocentric Pattern Projection: How Implicit Personality Theories Recapitulate The Geography of The Self
Critcher, C. R., & Dunning, D. (2009). Egocentric pattern projection: How implicit personality theories recapitulate the geography of the self. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 97, 1-16.
Paying for Someone Else's Mistake: The Effect of Bystander Negligence on Perpetrator Blame
Critcher, C. R., & Pizarro, D. A. (2008). Paying for Someone Else’s Mistake: The Effect of Bystander Negligence on Perpetrator Blame. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 34(10), 1357–1370.