PhD Studentship - The Effects of Recognising our Shared Values

This advertised project builds on robust evidence that people across the world agree on the importance of values like freedom, helpfulness, or wealth. However, we often fail to recognise these shared values, and instead incorrectly assume that other people's values are fundamentally different from ours. And worryingly, such misperceptions have a range of negative effects, including higher prejudice and lower well-being (i.e., due to feeling more isolated).

Importantly, when these misperceptions are corrected, people feel more connected with others and report greater hope about the future. This happens even between polarised groups, such as US Republicans and Democrats. Correcting people's misperceptions of value differences is particularly important in the face of growing threats from societal crises (e.g., climate change) that urgently require citizens to see past their differences and coordinate their efforts around a common purpose.

A PhD project within this broader research area could explore different types of similarity (e.g., between the self and one’s in-group; between different societal groups), explore the mechanism, and explore different outcomes (e.g., environmental protection, openness in debate).

We are looking for candidates who:

• Hold (or expect to receive) a First Class or high Upper Second Class UK Honours degree (or equivalent) in a relevant subject.
• Have a strong interest in social psychology or related areas.
• Have experience with quantitative research methods and analyses.
• Have experience with academic write-ups

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