SSA Keynote Speaker

Dr. Brian Nosek, Associate Professor of Psychology, University of Virginia

Mind Bugs: The Ordinary Origins of Bias

Conscious experience provides an immediate, compelling, and incomplete account of mental life. Much of perception, thinking, and action is shaped by mental activity that occurs outside of conscious awareness or conscious control. Because of that, judgment and action can be unintentionally influenced by factors that we do not recognize and may not value. There will be two parts to this lecture: (1) demonstrations of perceptual and cognitive illusions illustrating that we don't have complete access to or control over our own minds, and (2) examples of how this can translate to social judgment of ourselves and others.

About Dr. Nosek

Nosek received his B.S. in Psychology with minors in Computer Science and Women’s Studies from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, and his Ph.D. in Psychology from Yale University in 2002.  His research suggests that people are more biased that they think because biases can exist outside of conscious awareness or conscious control.  Nosek has published more than 40 scholarly articles, and is Principal Investigator on an R-01 grant from National Institutes of Health for “A Virtual Laboratory in the Social and Behavioral Sciences” that serves as the primary funding for the academic research of Project Implicit (http://projectimplicit.net/), a collaborative partnership with Anthony Greenwald and Mahzarin Banaji.  Nosek is also Principal Investigator on a grant from the National Science Foundation for longitudinal study of the development of implicit attitudes and stereotypes about math and science and their influence on participation.  This grant is the primary funding mechanism for the Full Potential Initiative (http://fullpotentialinitiative.org/) that he leads with Fred Smyth.  Nosek is also a junior fellow of the Max Planck International Research Network on Aging.

In addition to academic research efforts investigating thoughts and feelings outside of conscious awareness or control, Nosek’s laboratory includes a software development team that builds and maintains the Project Implicit infrastructure.  In its 10 years of operation, the websites has administered more than 6 million Implicit Association Tests, is served in 18 languages through its international collaborative network, and promotes strong ties between basic research, education, and application.  Project Implicit works with academics and practitioners in law, business, public policy, health, medicine, and education.

Nosek is the 2007 recipient of the Michele Alexander Early Career Award for scholarship and service from the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI), the 2007 recipient of the early career award from the International Social Cognition Network (ISCON), the 2006 recipient of the Division of Experimental Psychology Young Investigator Award in Experimental Psychology: General, and the 2006 University of Virginia Department of Psychology Outstanding Professor award.  His research has been featured in most major media outlets and has even infiltrated pop-culture.  For example, the Project Implicit website was featured in an episode of “King of the Hill,” and Nosek received a Wag of the Finger from Stephen Colbert for his research.