People
Jennifer K. Bosson
Professor, Associate Chair, and Graduate Program Director
CONTACT
Office: PCD 4128
Email
LINKS
EDUCATION
Ph.D. in Social Psychology from The University of Texas at Austin, 2000
RESEARCH
Research Interests
Self and identity; stereotypes; targets of stigma; social roles; coping; interpersonal
relationships
Research Synopsis
My research addresses questions concerning the self and social functioning. In my
ongoing work on identity misclassification, my students and I investigate the social-cognitive
mechanisms that underlie rigid adherence to social role norms. This work demonstrates
that behaviors relevant to people’s valued identities (e.g., gender, political orientation)
often reflect powerful needs for interpersonal and intrapsychic harmony. In other
lines of research, I study factors that promote interpersonal closeness, the links
between self-esteem and interpersonal functioning, and the effects of different types
of social feedback on people’s recovery from self-threats.
SPECIALTY AREA
CNS (Social Psychology)