RESEARCH AREAS
We study how kids think about people, groups, and society! We are interested in how children discover their similarities and differences with others, learn how to treat people fairly, and begin to think about social issues such as inequality, exclusion, and mobility.
CURRENT PROJECTS
Social Class Identity Project: Explores social class identity, family functioning, and beliefs about society in the U.S. and the U.K.
Inclusive Parents Project: Investigates how parents make decisions about their children's interactions with peers who differ in gender, race, and social class.
New Americans Project: Examines U.S. children's thinking about peers from immigrant backgrounds and the circumstances that promote fair treatment.
Social Mobility Project: Explores young children's evaluations of fair and unfair ways that people gain status and move up social hierarches.
Friendship Stories Project: Tests how U.S. children learn about the experiences of immigrant families through stories about friendship.
Family Responsibilities Project: Examines how young children think about sharing household chores as a part of fairness in everyday life.
Disability Inclusion Project: Tests how children's social experiences with people with disabilities shape their decisions about peer inclusion.
Inner Conflict Project: Measures children's, adolescents', and adults' affective and cognitive experiences when faced with challenging ethical decisions.
Sharing Stories Project: Tests how young children learn mathematical and moral strategies for fair sharing through picture books.
Identity and Creativity Project: Explores how children's social identity development builds important cognitive skills like creativity and persistence.
COLLABORATORS
Like our research? You'll love our collaborators! Check out who we're working with on these projects: Hanna Beißert's Project MORAL; Christia Spears Brown's Social Inequality in Development Research Group; Aline Hitti's Social Reasoning in Childhood Lab; Luke McGuire's Developmental Intergroup Processes Lab; Rashmita Mistry's Children's Understanding of Economic and Social Inequality Lab; Kelly Lynn Mulvey's Social Development Lab; David Purpura's Science and Stories Collaborative.
FUNDING
Thank you to our current funders: The Clifford B. Kinley Trust and the American Psychological Foundation.
