Affect

Our research in Affect studies how different emotional states impact oneself, their behavior, and the behavior of those around them. In particular, we study practical situations with tangible results, such as how the positive feelings of awe and embarrassment create prosocial behavior in subjects. Displaying negative emotions, in turn, affects others' perceptions of oneself, leading to undesirable consequences. In our studies, we witnessed how intensely high or low levels of leader unpleasantness in locker rooms is associated with lower effort from team members, and how displaying anger at accusations of guilt makes accused individuals appear more guilty, despite this anger actually being indicative of innocence. Finally, our most recent research seeks to reconcile want/should conflicts by leveraging people's curiosity to nudge them away from unhealthy "want" options and towards healthier "should" options, such as taking the stairs instead of the elevator or eating vegetables rather than junk food. Here, we are testing the practical, everyday applications of understanding Affect and our emotional states.

Sample Publications

Using curiosity to incentivize the choice of “should” options.

Polman, E., Ruttan, R. L., & Peck, J. (2022). Using curiosity to incentivize the choice of “should” options. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes 173, 104192

 Anger damns the innocent.

DeCelles, K. A., Adams, G. S., Howe, H. S., & John, L. K. (2021). Anger damns the innocent. Psychological science, 32(8), 1214-1226.

Leadership in the locker room: How the intensity of leaders’ unpleasant affective displays shapes team performance. 

Staw, B. M., DeCelles, K. A., & de Goey, P. (2019). Leadership in the locker room: How the intensity of leaders’ unpleasant affective displays shapes team performance. Journal of Applied Psychology 104 (12), 1547

Awe, the small self, and prosocial behavior. 

Piff, P. K., Dietze, P., Feinberg, M., Stancato, D. M., & Keltner D. (2015). Awe, the small self, and prosocial behavior. Journal of personality and social psychology 108 (6), 883

Flustered and faithful: Embarrassment as a signal of prosociality. 

Feinberg, M., Willer, R., & Keltner, D. (2012). Flustered and faithful: Embarrassment as a signal of prosociality. Journal of personality and social psychology 102 (1), 81