All meetings take place on Thursdays, 3.30-5.30 pm in HJ Patterson Building (HJP) room 2124, unless otherwise noted.
Note: some links may require you to open a new tab.
Sept 10 — Andrei Cimpian (Psychology, NYU).
Title: The Cost of Genius Myths: How Beliefs About Intelligence Perpetuate Inequities in Education and Careers
Abstract: I argue that the segregation and inequities observed worldwide in many fields of study (and subsequent careers) can be explained in part by the combination of two "genius myths." The first myth concerns what's required for success: Some fields more than others embrace the belief that exceptional intellectual talent, above all else, is the key to success. The second myth concerns who possesses such talent: Pervasive cultural stereotypes associate genius and brilliance primarily with (White) men.
Together, these myths (a) often lead women and marginalized racial/ethnic groups to opt out of educational and career paths that emphasize genius (including many science and technology fields), and (b) foster environments in genius-oriented fields that are unwelcoming to people with these identities. This argument is supported by observational and experimental evidence from a wide range of fields, countries, and career stages, as well as by developmental data that reveal these genius myths take hold in childhood.
Sept 24 — Nour Kteily (Management & Organizations, Northwestern).
Title: “Darker Demons of our Nature: The Prevalence and Potency of Blatant Forms of Dehumanization.”
Abstract: "Although dehumanization research first emerged following the overt and conscious denials of humanity present during war and genocide, modern dehumanization research largely examines more subtle and implicit forms of dehumanization in more everyday settings. I argue for the need to re-orient the research agenda towards understanding when and why individuals blatantly dehumanize others. I review recent research in a range of contexts suggesting that blatant dehumanization is surprisingly prevalent and potent, uniquely predicting aggressive intergroup attitudes and behavior beyond subtle forms of dehumanization and outgroup dislike, and promoting vicious cycles of conflict. I also discuss recent intervention efforts aimed at reducing blatant dehumanization and improving intergroup relations."
Oct 15 — Melissa Kibbe (Psychological & Brain Sciences, Boston University).
Title: Minimal, abstract object representations in the infant mind
Abstract: Prelinguistic infants' object representations are often characterized either as image-like icons or as file-like representations containing rich physical information. In this talk, I will argue that infants have access to a sparse, abstract structure for object representations. I will describe work from my lab that shows that infants' object representations can contain no descriptive information about an object, can be enriched with abstract contents, can arise from non-perceptual inputs, and can support logical operators. I will argue that this minimal object representation operates within infants' language of thought, and forms the basis from which richer representations can develop .
Nov 12 — Brian Scholl (Psychology, Yale).
Title:
Abstract:
Dec 3 — Wilka Carvalho (Cog Sci & AI, Harvard). Jointly sponsored with AIM. Venue to be announced.
Title:
Abstract: