Research
Racial Diversity
The racial landscape in North America is drastically changing: Racial diversity is increasing in many Western countries. While most of the previous theorizing and research has assumed a homogeneous society with low levels of diversity, our research examines the impact of diversity on social cognitive processes related to racial attitudes, behaviors, and categorization.
Publications:
Meyers, C., Williams, A., Pauker, K., & Weisbuch, M. (2023). Bias contagion across racial group boundaries. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10919-023-00439-4 | PDF
Meyers, C., Thai, S., & Pauker, K. (2022). Navigating race in a racially diverse environment: An experience sampling study on the daily use of race in Hawai‘i. The Journal of Social Psychology. http://doi.org/10.1080/00224545.2022.2159783 | PDF
Meyers, C., Aumer, K., Schoniwitz, A., Janicki, C., Pauker, K., Chang, E. C., Gaither, S. E., & Williams, A. (2020). Experiences with microaggressions and discrimination in racially diverse and homogeneously white contexts. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 26(2), 250–259. https://doi.org/10.1037/cdp0000293 | PDF
Pauker, K., Carpinella, C., Meyers, C., Young, D., & Sanchez, D. (2017). The role of diversity exposure in Whites’ reduction in race essentialism over time. Social Psychology and Personality Science, 9(8), 944–952. https://doi.org/10.1177/1948550617731496 | PDF
Race-related Norms
A wealth of research demonstrates that social norms are critical in determining behavior. In our second line of research, we examine how features of a context (like racial diversity) drive race-related norms and behaviors. Understanding the factors that influence race-related norms provides a unique opportunity to predict and even change behavior.
Publications:
Meyers, C., Williams, A., Pauker, K., & Apfelbaum, E. (2021). The impact of social norms on navigating race in a racially diverse context. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations. https://doi.org/10.1177/1368430220984228 | PDF
Meyers, C., Leon, A., & Williams, A. (2020). Aggressive confrontation shapes perceptions and attitudes toward racist content online. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 23(6), 845-862. https://doi.org/10.1177/1368430220935974 | PDF
Social Perception
In our third line of work, we investigate social perception processes of typically underrepresented groups. For example, we examine multiracial individuals, one of the fastest growing populations across North America. We examine the malleable nature of racial categorization.
Publications:
Meyers, C., Garay, M. M., & Pauker, K. (2024). Hawai‘i face database: a racially and ethnically diverse set of facial stimuli. Self and Identity. https://doi.org/10.1080/15298868.2024.2417664 | PDF
Kawakami, K., Meyers, C., & Friesen, J. P. (2024). Impact of Duchenne and non-Duchenne smiles on perceived trustworthiness of Black and White faces: A Black perspective. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0001597 | PDF
Chen, J. M., Meyers, C., Pauker, K., Gaither, S. E., Hamilton, D. L., & Sherman, J. W. (2023). Intergroup context moderates the impact of White Americans’ identification on racial categorization of ambiguous faces. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. https://doi.org/10.1177/01461672231190264 | PDF
Meyers, C., Gaither, S. E., Remedios, J., & Pauker, K. (2023). Detecting Biracial identity: Perceived phenotypicality is inaccurate. Self and Identity. https://doi.org/10.1080/15298868.2022.2146742 | PDF
Garay, M., Meyers, C., Remedios, J. & Pauker, K. (2019). Looking like vs. acting like your race: Social activism shapes perception of multiracial individuals. Self and Identity. https://doi.org/10.1080/15298868.2019.1659848 | PDF
Pauker, K., Meyers, C., Sanchez, D. T., Gaither, S. E., & Young, D. M. (2018). A review of Multiracial malleability: Identity, categorization, and shifting racial attitudes. Social and Personality Psychology Compass. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12392 | PDF
Other areas of interest
We also conduct research on other related areas on the topic of bias, essentialism, and racial discourse online.
Publications:
Kawakami, K., Vingilis-Jaremko, L., Friesen, J. P., Meyers, C., & Fang, X. (2022). Impact of similarity on recognition of faces of Black and White targets. British Journal of Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjop.12589 | PDF
Wilton, L., Bell, A., Young, D., Carpinella, C., Meyers, C., & Clapham, R. (2018). Lay theories of gender influence support for Women and Transgender people’s legal rights. Social Psychology and Personality Science. 10(7), 883–894. https://doi.org/10.1177/1948550618803608 | PDF
Williams, A., Oliver, C., Aumer, K., & Meyers, C. (2016). Racial microaggressions and perceptions of internet memes. Computers in Human Behavior, 63, 424-432. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2016.05.067 | PDF