How do our attitudes and beliefs shift in response
to those around us? My research examines the
cognitive and motivational mechanisms underlying the
tendency for people's views to align or contrast
with those of a salient individual, group, or social
system.
In the Jost lab, I am exploring the influence of
salient social relationships on ideological beliefs
and mindsets, based on the premise that ideologies
stem in part from a need to establish a shared view
of reality with significant people in our lives. In
a second line of research, we are examining the
effect of system justification motivation on
thoughts and behaviors that serve to protect and
maintain meritocratic beliefs.
