Projects

Congeniality Biases

We typically prefer information that is consistent with our current attitudes, beliefs, and behavior versus information that challenges what we currently think or do. This bias shows up not only in the information we choose for ourselves, but also how we evaluate information we agree (versus disagree) with.

Receptivity to Health Information

An implicit assumption in the design of health interventions is that the people who most need the information are the ones who actually receive it. However, there is a dearth of work examining who pays attention to health information, as well as the conditions that foster approach rather than avoidance of needed messages. 

Meta-analyses

One way of examining the immediate and long-term outcomes of health promotion interventions is through meta-analysis of extant studies. For instance, what are the immediate and longitudinal effects of fear appeals and counseling & testing in HIV-prevention? What features of intervention programs are the most successful at eliciting positive behavioral change?