My research investigates psychological processes that sustain inequalities between different social groups and people’s divided attitudes towards policies that aim to make organizations as well as broader society more equitable, diverse, and inclusive. I examine this general research question from different theoretical vantage points across three streams.

Stream 1: How does motivated reasoning fuel backlash against proponents of social change?

Past work shows people are motivated to defend and justify existing systems because of their needs for certainty, predictability, order, and social harmony. In a set of connected projects, I ask how this system justification motivation influences expectations for other people and groups to defend the status quo and the psychological and behavioral reactions that result when these expectations are unmet. I also probe a number of situational factors that raise expectations that others should support the status quo. Thus far, I have conducted this work in two different contexts: organizational change and antipathy towards immigrants.

Stream 2: How does intuitive reasoning sustain social inequalities between groups?

Under this stream I have several projects that investigate how everyday reasoning or “gut feelings” shape perceptions about inequality and resistance to change. In one project, I find that framing the gender gap in political leadership as men’s overrepresentation rather than women’s underrepresentation makes women angrier and more likely to take actions to redress the disparity. This may be because a focus on men’s overrepresentation draws more attention to systemic biases. In another line of work, I am investigating whether people generally assume that hierarchies are more congruent with human nature than more egalitarian structures, and whether this fuels perceptions that it is hard to transition out of a hierarchy.

Stream 3: What role do social identities play in perpetuating unfair systems?

In this emerging line of work, I ask how managing multiple social identities (e.g., race, gender, occupation) influences people’s inclinations to support or resist social change. I am particularly interested in how people with multiple stereotypically conflicting identities resolve these identity conflicts and the implications of this on their support for diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.