Social Psychology; Uncertainty; Radicalism; Cognitive psychology; Sympathy; Fear
Kees van den Bos presents his research on attitudes toward radicalism and terrorism among adolescents in the Netherlands. He focuses on the social-psychological processes that lead people to defend their own cultural values rigorously and, in doing...
Uncertainty; Globalization; Languages; Fundamentalism; Fear
Dr. Fathali M. Moghaddam states that collective uncertainty has a central role in terrorism as emanating from Islamic communities. To examine this, he developed a macro, cultural-evolutionary analysis of Islamic terrorism. Fractured globalization...
Social Psychology; Terrorism; Genocide; Uncertainty; Fear; Threat; Anxiety; Humiliation; Security
Dr. Staub explores the roots of altruism, the origins of violence including genocide and mass killing, as well as prevention, and psychological recovery and reconciliation. Dr. Staub discusses various conditions that can create uncertainty on...
Religion; Frustration; Uncertainty; Panic; Anxiety; Psychology; Threat; Hate
Dr. Ian McGregor’s most recent research investigates personality and social psychological causes of religious extremism. Based on over a dozen laboratory experiments he has found that various psychological threats cause people to go to extremes....
Social psychology; Social deviance; Uncertainty; Social exclusion; Morality; Loyalty
Dr. Dominic Abrams presents his research on the way people react to extreme, or 'deviant' members of their own and other groups. Group psychology has long established that deviants tend to be rejected within groups, but there are many times when...
Social psychology; Terrorism; Uncertainty; Threat; Leadership; September 11 Terrorist Attacks, 2001; Counterterrorism
Arie Kruglansky presents his theoretical and empirical work on the need for assured knowledge and the central role it plays in human social behavior, on individual and group levels of analysis. The need for assured knowledge labeled more...
Social Psychology; Adolescent behavior., Uncertainty; Individual differences; Popularity; Sensation seeking
Dr. Siegel discusses adolescent substance use, adolescents’ willingness to accept physical harm to achieve popularity, and the role of socio-personal sensitivity and expectations in decision-making and risky behavior. According to Dr. Siegel not...
Social Psychology; Uncertainty; Threat; Patriotism; Leadership; Authoritarianism; Security; Terrorism; Immigration
Dr. Merolla discusses how different types of threats can make individuals come to feel anxious, insecure, and uncertain about the world around them. There are many studies predicting that citizens may exert control over such uncontrollable...
Social psychology; Intergroup relations; Bigotry; Tolerance; Prejudice; Hate
Dr. Todd Pittinsky’s research investigates the social psychology of positive intergroup attitudes: the conditions under which they develop, and how they shape the ways people think, feel, and behave. He discusses the three forms of his research:...
