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Imagining Alternatives
According to social comparison theory, people evaluate themselves, others, and even events and time-points by comparing the target of evaluation to another standard (e.g., Albert; 1977; Festinger, 1954). I am interested in the role that comparison standards and imaginations of alternatives to the status quo (e.g., utopias, dystopias) play in the evaluation of the status quo and subsequent system-supportive or system-challenging behaviors.
Related work:
Temporal comparison shape system justification processes [Publication]
Counterfactual thinking may attenuate polarization of COVID-19 prevention behavior [Publication]
Social Structures, Normalization and Collective (In)Action
Grassroots mobilization is key to producing social change. However, long-term organization is inherently a difficult task. I am interested in investigating the obstacles to collective organizing. In particular, my research focuses on how socio-political and economic structures and cultural narratives may block key antecedents of collective action.
Related Work:
Studying the normalization of collective resignation [SPSP 2024 Political Psychology Pre-Conference]
Right to Work laws and state-level material precarity inhibit new labor organizing efforts [SSSP 2024 Data Blitz]
Power Asymmetries and Class
Power asymmetries and changes in power differentials are at the core of perceptions of injustice and collective action (e.g., van Zomeren et al., 2008). Despite seeing steady increases in wealth inequality in the United States, the system creating such disparities remains mostly uncontested. I am interested in investigating how people perceive and navigate power imbalances in society. Specifically, I am interested in examining the development of class consciousness and the rise of populism.
Related work:
A descriptive study of anti-capitalist memes [SPSSI 2025 Talk]
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