Daphna Oyserman
- Media Contact
- SPN Mentor
My research interests are at the interface of social, cultural and developmental psychology. Broadly speaking, I am interested in understanding how the self-concept (including social identities, such as racial identity, and personal identities. such as possible selves) functions to influence judgment, decision-making and real world behaviors. I term this model "identity-based motivation" and am interested in understanding both the process of identity-based motivation as well as contextual cues of identity.
Questions that interest me include: How does racial-ethnic identity influence the sense individuals make of themselves, others, and social situations? How do cultural frame and self-focus influence thinking more generally? Why do some individuals engage in risky behaviors while others stay in school, do their homework, floss their teeth, eat healthy and so on? How are these decisions influenced by their identities and the social comparisons they make--the successes and failures of similar others? Who volunteers or feels obligated to help? For whom is inter-group conflict intensely personal and chronically salient?
My interest in all of these specific questions stems from my interest in the interplay between self-concept, motivation and cognition as applied to social issues or real world problems, taking into account the ways that race-ethnicity, minority status and culture frame the sense we make of ourselves and others. I am particularly interested in the implications of culture and stigma on goal choice, motivational persistence and preferred cognitive style and understanding how these processes can be cued without conscious awareness.
Primary Interests:
- Culture and Ethnicity
- Health Psychology
- Intergroup Relations
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Motivation, Goal Setting
- Prejudice and Stereotyping
- Self and Identity
- Social Cognition
Research Group or Laboratory:
Journal Articles:
- Oyserman, D., Smith, G. C., & Elmore, K. (in press) Identity‐based motivation: Implications for health and health disparities. Journal of Social Issues.
- Destin, M., & Oyserman, D. (2009). From assets to school outcomes: How finances shape children’s perceived possibilities and intentions. Psychological Science.
- Elmore, K. & Oyserman, D. (2012). If ‘we’ succeed, ‘I’ can too: Identity‐based motivation and gender in the classroom. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 37, 176-185.
- Oyserman, D. (2013). Not just any path: Implications of identity-based motivation for disparities in school outcomes. Economics of Education Review, 33, 179-190.
- Oyserman, D. (2011). Culture as situated cognition: Cultural mindsets, cultural fluency and meaning‐making. European Review of Social Psychology, 22, 164‐214.
- Oyserman, D. (2009). Identity-based motivation: Implications for action-readiness, procedural-readiness, and consumer behavior. Target Article in Journal of Consumer Psychology, 19, 250-260.
- Oyserman, D., Brickman, D., Bybee, D., & Celious, A. (2006). Fitting in matters: Markers of in-group belonging and academic outcomes. Psychological Science, 17, 854-861.
- Oyserman, D., Bybee, D., & Terry, K. (2006). Possible selves and academic outcomes: How and when possible selves impel action. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 91, 188-204.
- Oyserman, D., Bybee, D., Terry, K., & Hart-Johnson, T. (2004). Possible selves as roadmaps. Journal of Research in Personality, 38, 130-149.
- Oyserman, D., Coon, H., & Kemmelmeier, M. (2002). Rethinking individualism and collectivism: Evaluation of theoretical assumptions and meta-analyses. Psychological Bulletin, 128, 3-73.
- Oyserman, D., & Destin, M. (2010). Identity-based motivation: Implications for intervention. The Counseling Psychologist, 38(7), 1001-1043.
- Oyserman, D., Fryberg, S., & Yoder, N. (2007). Identity-based motivation and health. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 93, 1011-1027.
- Oyserman, D., Kemmelmeier, M., & Coon, H. (2002). Cultural psychology, a new look: Reply to Bond (2002), Fiske (2002), Kitayama (2002), and Miller (2002). Psychological Bulletin, 128, 110-117.
- Oyserman, D., & Lee, S. W. S. (2008). Does culture influence what and how we think? Effects of priming individualism and collectivism. Psychological Bulletin, 134, 311-342.
- Oyserman, D., Sorensen, N., Reber, R., & Chen, S. X. (2009). Connecting and separating mind-sets: Culture as situated cognition. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 97, 217-235.
- Wang, C., Oyserman, D., Liu, Q., Li, H., Han, S. (2013). Accessible cultural mindset modulates default mode neural activity: Evidence for the culturally situated brain. Social Neuroscience. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17470919.2013.775966
- Williams, D. R., John, D., Oyserman, D., Sonnega, J., Mohammed, S. A., & Jackson, J. (2012). Unresolved measurement issues in research on discrimination and health: An exploratory study. American Journal of Public Health, 102, 975-978.
Other Publications:
- Oyserman, D. (2007). Social identity and self-regulation. In A. Kruglanski & T. Higgins (Eds.), Handbook of social psychology (2nd ed., pp. 432-453). New York: Guilford Press.
- Oyserman, D., & James, L. (2008). Possible selves: From content to process. In K. Markman, Klein & Suhr (Eds.), The handbook of imagination and mental stimulation. New York: Psychology Press.
- Oyserman, D., & Sorensen, N. (2009). Understanding cultural syndrome effects on what and how we think: A situated cognition model. In R. Wyer, Y-y. Hong, & C-y. Chiu (Eds.), Understanding Culture: Theory, Research and Application (pp. 25-52). New York: Psychology Press.
Daphna Oyserman
Institute for Social Research
University of Michigan
426 Thompson Avenue
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106-1248
United States
- Phone: (734) 647-7622
- Fax: (734) 647-3652