Publications
Hall, Matthew E. K., Solomon, B.C., Voelkel, J. G., Stagnaro M. N., Chu, J., & Willer, R. In Press. “Durably Reducing Partisan Animosity through Multiple Scalable Treatments.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Grayson, S., Feinberg, M., Willer, R., & Zaki, J. 2025. Ironic Effects of Negative Gossip in Driving Inaccurate Social Perceptions. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology.
Voelkel, J. G., Stagnaro, M. N., Chu, J., Pink, S. L., Mernyk, J. S., Redekopp, C., Ghezae, I., Cashman, M., Adjodah, D., Allen, L., Allis, V., Baleria, G., Ballantyne, N., Van Bavel, J. J., Blunden, H., Braley, A., Bryan, C., Celniker, J., Cikara, M., Clapper, M. V., Clayton, K., Collins, H., DeFilippis, E., Dieffenbach, M., Doell, K. C., Dorison, C., Duong, M., Felsman, P., Fiorella, M., Francis, D., Franz, M., Gallardo, R., Gifford, S., Goya-Tocchetto, D., Gray, K., Green, J., Greene, J., Güngör, M., Hall, M., Hecht, C., Javeed, A., Jost, J. T., Kay, A., Kay, N. R., Keating, B., Kelly, J. M., Kirk, J., Kopell, M., Kteily, N., Kubin, E., Lees, J., Lenz, G., Levendusky, M., Littman, R., Luo, K., Lyles, A., Lyons, B., Marsh, W., Martherus, J., Maurer, L. A., Mehl, C., Minson, J., Moore, M., Moore-Berg, S. L., Pasek, M. H., Pentland, A., Puryear, C., Rahnama, H., Rathje, S., Rosato, J., Saar-Tsechansky, M., Santos, L. A., Seifert, C., Shariff, A., Simonsson, O., Siddiqi, S. S., Stone, D. F., Strand, P., Tomz, M., Yeager, D., Yoeli, E., Zaki, J., Druckman, J. N., Rand, D. G., & Willer, R. 2024. Megastudy Testing 25 Treatments to Reduce Anti-Democratic Attitudes and Partisan Animosity. Science.
Press Release, Stanford Press Release, project website, PBS Newshour segment, op-ed in the Washington Post, first coverage in the New York Times, second coverage in the New York Times, first coverage in The Atlantic, second coverage in The Atlantic, first coverage in the Washington Post, second coverage in the Washington Post, Nature, LA Times, Wall Street Journal, first coverage in Fast Company, second coverage in Fast Company, interviewed on Fox News, Morning Joe, C-SPAN, NPR Here and Now, The Gist podcast, Politicology podcast, Twitter thread
Named one of the Top 10 Experiments of 2023 (“Expy”), Analyst Institute
Kamphorst, J., & Willer, R. 2024. Correcting Misperceptions of the Material Benefits Associated with Union Membership Increases Americans’ Interest in Joining Unions. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Chu, J., Voelkel, J. G., Stagnaro, M. N., Kang, S., Druckman, J., Rand, D., & Willer, R. 2024. Academics Are More Specific, and Practitioners More Sensitive, in Forecasting Interventions to Strengthen Democratic Attitudes. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Voelkel, J. G., Chu, J. Y., Stagnaro, M. N., Druckman, J., & Willer, R. 2024. How to Design and Conduct a Megastudy. Nature Human Behavior.
Ruggeri, K., Stock, F., Haslam, S.A., Capraro, V., Boggio, P., Ellemers, N., Cichocka, A., Douglas, K. M., Rand, D. G., van der Linden, S., Cikara, M., Finkel, E. J., Druckman, J. N., Wohl, M. J. A., Petty, R. E., Tucker, J. A., Shariff, A., Gelfand, M., Packer, D., Jetten, J., Van Lange, P. A. M., Pennycook, G., Peters, E., Baicker, K., Crum, A., Weeden, K. A., Napper, L. E., Tabri, N., Zaki, J., Skitka, L., Kitayama, S., Mobbs, D., Sunstein, C., Ashcroft-Jones, S., Todsen, A. L., Hajian, A., Verra, S. E., Buehler, V., Friedemann, M., Hecht, M., Mobarak, R. S., Karakasheva, R., Tünte, M., T., Yeung, S. K., Rosenbaum, R. S., Lep, Ž., Yamada, Y., Hudson, S. T. J., Macchia, L., Soboleva, I., Dimant, E., Geiger, S. J., Jarke, H., Wingen, T., Berkessel, J. B., Mareva, S., McGill, L., Papa, F., Većkalov, B., Afif, Z., Buabang, E. K., Landman, M., Tavera, F., Andrews, J. L., Bursalıoğlu, A., Zupan, Z., Wagner, L., Navajas, J., Vranka, M., Kasdan, D. O., Chen, P., Hudson, K. R., Novak, L. M., Teas, P. E., Rachev, N. R., Galizzi, M.M., Milkman, K. L., Petrović, M.B., Van Bavel, J. J., & Willer, R. 2024. A Synthesis of Evidence for Policy from Behavioural Science During COVID-19. Nature, 625, 134–147.
Landry, A., Druckman, J., & Willer, R. 2024. Need for Chaos and Dehumanization Are Robustly Associated with Support for Partisan Violence. Political Behavior.
Santos, L., Voelkel, J., Willer, R., & Zaki, J. 2024. Positive Beliefs About Cross-Partisan Empathy Can Strengthen Americans’ Support for Democracy. PNAS Nexus.
Zimmerman, F., Bailey, D., Muric, G., Ferrara, E., Schöne, J., Willer, R., Halperin, E., Navajas, J., Gross, J., & Goldenberg, A. 2024. Attraction to Politically Extreme Users on Social Media. PNAS Nexus.
Ghezae, I., Jordan, J., Gainsburg, I., Mosleh, M., Pennycook, G., Willer, R., & Rand, D. G. 2024. Partisans Neither Expect nor Receive Reputational Rewards for Sharing Falsehoods Over Truth Online. PNAS Nexus.
Hasan-Aslih, S., Idan, O., Willer, R., & Halperin, E. 2023. Disadvantaged Group Members are Prouder of Their Group When Using the Language of the Dominant Group Compared to Their Native Language. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Druckman, J., Kang, S., Chu, J., Stagnaro, M. N., Voelkel, J. G., Mernyk, J., Pink, S., Redekopp, C., Rand, D., & Willer, R. 2023. Correcting Misperceptions of Out-partisans Decreases American Legislators’ Support for Undemocratic Practices. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Goldenberg, A. & Willer, R. 2023. Amplification of emotion on social media. Nature Human Behaviour.
Gainsburg, I., & Lee Cunningham, J. 2023. Compassion Fatigue as a Self-Fulfilling Prophecy: Believing Compassion Is Limited Increases Fatigue and Decreases Compassion. Psychological Science, 34(11), 1206-1219.
Stagnaro, M. N., Pink, S., Rand, D., & Willer, R. 2023. Increasing accuracy motivations using moral reframing does not reduce Republicans’ belief in false news. Harvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review.
Voelkel, J. G., Mernyk, J. S., & Willer, R. 2023. Moral Reframing Increases Support for Economically Progressive Candidates. PNAS Nexus.
Op-Ed in the New York Times; Press Release; Coverage in Slate, Salon; Interviewed on Third Way podcast
Clayton, K. & Willer, R. 2023. Endorsements from Republican Politicians Can Increase Confidence in U.S. Elections. Research and Politics.
Op-Ed at CNN
Pink, S. L., Stagnaro, M. N., Chu, J., Mernyk, J. S., Voelkel, J. G., & Willer, R. 2023. The effects of short messages encouraging prevention behaviors early in the COVID-19 pandemic. Plos one, 18(4), e0284354.
Baumgartner, H. A., Alessandroni, N., Byers-Heinlein, K., Frank, M. C., Hamlin, K., Soderstrom, M., Voelkel, J.G., Willer, R., Yuen, F., Coles, N. A. 2023. How to build up big team science: A practical guide for large-scale collaborations. Royal Society Open Science.
Lang, D., Esbenshade, L., Willer, R. 2023. Did Ohio's Vaccine Lottery Increase Vaccination Rates? A Pre-Registered, Synthetic Control Study. Journal of Experimental Political Science.
Coverage in Science
Mernyk, J. S., Pink, S. L., Druckman, J., & Willer, R. 2022. Correcting Inaccurate Metaperceptions Reduces Americans’ Support for Partisan Violence. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Op-Ed in the Washington Post; Coverage in the New York Times; the Washington Post; AP News
Corbett, C.*, Voelkel, J.*, Cooper, M., Willer, R., 2022. Pragmatic Bias Impedes Women's Access to Political Leadership. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Press Release; Op-Ed in the LA Times; Coverage in Stanford Social Innovation Review, Greater Good Magazine; Twitter thread
Voelkel, J.G., Chu, J., Stagnaro, M. N., Mernyk, J. S., Redekopp, C., Pink, S., Druckman, J., Rand, D., Willer, R. 2022. Interventions Reducing Affective Polarization Do Not Necessarily Improve Anti-Democratic Attitudes. Nature Human Behaviour.
First coverage in the New York Times; Second coverage in the New York Times
Hartman, R., Blakey, W., Womick, J., Bail, C. A., Finkel, E., Han, H., Sarrouf, J., Schroeder, J., Sheeran, P., Van Bavel, J., Willer, R., Gray, K. 2022. Interventions to Reduce Partisan Animosity. Nature Human Behaviour.
Santos, L. A., Voelkel, J. G., Willer, R., & Zaki, J. 2022. Belief in the Utility of Cross-Partisan Empathy Reduces Partisan Animosity and Facilitates Political Persuasion. Psychological Science.
Op-Ed in the Washington Post
Frimer, J., Aujla, H., Feinberg, M., Skitka, L., Eichstaedt, J., & Willer, R. 2022. Incivility is Rising Among American Politicians on Twitter. Social Psychological and Personality Science.
Press Release; Short video explainer; Coverage in the New York Times, LA Times; Twitter thread
Landry, A., Schooler, J., Willer, R., & Seli, P. 2022. Reducing Explicit Blatant Dehumanization by Correcting Exaggerated Meta-Perceptions. Social Psychological and Personality Science.
Simpson, B., Feinberg, M., & Willer, R. 2022. Radical Flanks of Social Movements Can Increase Support for Moderate Factions. PNAS Nexus.
Coverage in The Guardian
Voelkel, J. G., Malik, M., Redekopp, C., & Willer, R. 2022. Changing Americans’ Attitudes about Immigration: Using Moral Framing to Bolster Factual Arguments. The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science.
Chu, J., Pink, S. L., & Willer, R. 2021. Religious Identity Cues Increase Vaccination Intentions and Trust in Medical Experts among American Christians. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Pink, S., Chu, J., Druckman, J., Rand, D., & Willer, R. 2021. Elite party cues increase vaccination intentions among Republicans. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Op-Ed in the Washington Post, Op-Ed in the LA Times; Coverage in the New York Times, US News & World Report, Salon; Twitter thread
Stewart, S., & Willer, R. 2021. The Effects of Racial Status Threat on White Americans’ Support for Donald Trump: Results of Five Experimental Tests. Group Processes and Intergroup Relations.
Leong, Y. C., Chen, J., Willer, R., & Zaki, J. 2020. Conservative and liberal attitudes drive polarized neural responses to political content. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117(44), 27731-27739.
Press Release; Coverage in the New York Times
Van Bavel, J. J., Baicker, K., Boggio, P. S., Capraro, V., Cichocka, A., Cikara, M., Crockett, M. J., Crum, A. J., Douglas, K. M., Druckman, J. N., Drury, J., Dube, O., Ellemers, N., Finkel, E. J., Fowler, J. H., Gelfand, M., Han, S., Haslam S. A., Jetten, J., Kitayama, S., Mobbs, D., Napper, L. E., Packer, D. J., Pennycook, G., Peters, E., Petty, R. E., Rand, D. G., Reicher, S. D., Schnall, S., Shariff, A., Skitka, L. J., Smith, S. S., Sunstein, C. R., Tabri, N., Tucker, J. A., van der Linden, S., van Lange, P., Weeden , K. A., Wohl, M. J. A., Zaki, J., Zion, S. R., and Willer, R. 2020. Using social and behavioural science to support COVID-19 pandemic response. Nature Human Behaviour.
Coverage in Science, Wired; Interviewed on Two Psychologists, Four Beers podcast
Feinberg, M., Willer, R., & Kovacheff, C . 2020. The activist’s dilemma: Extreme protest actions reduce popular support for social movements. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
Op-Ed in the Washington Post; Coverage in the New York Times, First Coverage in the Washington Post, Second Coverage in the Washington Post, The Atlantic, Hidden Brain
Côté, S., Stellar, J. E., Willer, R., Forbes, R. C., Martin, S. R., & Bianchi, E. C. 2020. The psychology of entrenched privilege: High socioeconomic status individuals from affluent backgrounds are uniquely high in entitlement. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 47(1), 70-88.
Op-Ed in the Washington Post
Feinberg, M., & Willer, R. 2019. Moral reframing: A technique for effective and persuasive communication across political divides. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 13(12), e12501.
First Coverage in The Atlantic, Second Coverage in The Atlantic
Wetts, R., & Willer, R. 2018. Privilege on the precipice: Perceived racial status threats lead white Americans to oppose welfare programs. Social Forces, 97(2), 793-822.
Press Release, UC Berkeley Press Release; Op-Ed in the New York Times; First Coverage in the The Atlantic, Second Coverage in The Atlantic, First Coverage in the Washington Post, Second Coverage in the Washington Post, New York Magazine, Salon
Stellar, J. E., & Willer, R. 2018. Unethical and inept? The influence of moral information on perceptions of competence. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 114(2), 195.
Voelkel, J. G., & Brandt, M. J. 2019. The effect of ideological identification on the endorsement of moral values depends on the target group. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 45(6), 851-863.
Voelkel, J. G., Brandt, M. J., & Colombo, M. 2018. I know that I know nothing: Can puncturing the illusion of explanatory depth overcome the relationship between attitudinal dissimilarity and prejudice?. Comprehensive Results in Social Psychology, 3(1), 56-78.
Simpson, B., Willer, R., & Feinberg, M. 2018. Does violent protest backfire? Testing a theory of public reactions to activist violence. Socius, 4, 2378023118803189.
Voelkel, J. G., & Feinberg, M. 2018. Morally reframed arguments can affect support for political candidates. Social Psychological & Personality Science, 9 (8), 917-924.
Boutyline, A., & Willer, R. 2017. The social structure of political echo chambers: Variation in ideological homophily in online networks. Political Psychology, 38(3), 551-569.
Feinberg, M., & Willer, R. 2015. From gulf to bridge: When do moral arguments facilitate political influence? Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 41(12), 1665-1681. Supplementary Material.
TED Talk; Press Release; Op-Ed in the New York Times; Coverage in the New York Times, First Coverage in The Atlantic, Second Coverage in The Atlantic, Vox, The Gist podcast, The Guardian, First coverage in New York Magazine, Second coverage in New York Magazine, Salon; Interviewed on TED Radio Hour; You are not So Smart podcast
Willer, R., Rogalin, C. L., Conlon, B., & Wojnowicz, M. T. 2013. Overdoing gender: A test of the masculine overcompensation thesis. American Journal of Sociology, 118(4), 980-1022. Press Release.
Press Release; Coverage in the New York Times, First Coverage in the Washington Post, Second Coverage in the Washington Post, The Atlantic, Science, LA Times
Côté, S., Piff, P. K., & Willer, R. 2013. For whom do the ends justify the means? Social class and utilitarian moral judgment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 104(3), 490.
Coverage in the New York Times, New York Magazine
Feinberg, M., & Willer, R. 2013. The moral roots of environmental attitudes. Psychological Science, 24(1), 56-62. Supplementary Material.
TED Talk; Press Release; Op-Ed in the New York Times
Simpson, B., Harrell, A., & Willer, R. 2013. Hidden paths from morality to cooperation: Moral judgments promote trust and trustworthiness. Social Forces, 91(4), 1529-1548.