Professor Greg Maio - BSc York, MA PhD Western Ontario
Overview
Research Group:
Social Psychology
Location: Tower Building, Park Place
Email: Maio@cardiff.ac.uk
Telephone: +44(0)29 208 76260
Research Summary
I am interested in social values (e.g., equality, freedom, helpfulness), attitudes, and emotional processes. My two principal interests at the moment are projects examining psychological connections between values and behaviour (including the adoption of a healthy lifestyle) and adult mental representations of children.
Teaching Summary
I am currently teaching introductory psychology (social component), introductory social psychology, and attitudes and attitude change. I have taught undergraduate and postgraduate statistics, social psychological theory, and personality.
Selected Publications (2008 onwards)
Greenland, K., Xenias, D., & Maio, G. R. (in press). Intergroup Anxiety From the Self and Other: Evidence From Self-Report, Physiological Effects, and Real Interactions. European Journal of Social Psychology.
Haddock, G. G., & Maio, G. R. (in press). Major Works: The Psychology of Attitudes and Attitude Change. London, UK: Sage.
Sedek, G., Piber-Dabrowska, K., Maio, G. R., & von Hecker, U. (in press). Individual differences in prejudice and associative versus rule-based forms of transitive reasoning. European Journal of Social Psychology. [pdf]
Gebauer, J., & Maio, G. R. (in press). The need to belong can motivate belief in God. Journal of Personality. [pdf]
Maio, G. R. (in preparation). The Psychology of Values. London, UK: Taylor & Francis.
chermer, J. A., Vernon, P. A., Maio, G. R., & Jang, K. L. (2011). A behavior genetic study of the connection between social values and personality. Twin Research and Human Genetics, 14, 233-239. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., Haddock, G., Spears, R., & Manstead, A. S. R. (2010). Attitudes and intergroup relations. In J. F. Dovidio, M. Hewstone, P. Glick, & V. M. Esses (Eds.), Handbook of Prejudice, Stereotyping, and Discrimination (pp. 261-275). London, UK: Sage.
Souchon, N., Cabagno, G., Traclet, A., Dousseville, F., Livingstone, A., Jones, M., & Maio, G. R. (2010). Referees’ decision making and player gender: The moderating role of the type of situation. Journal of Applied Sports Psychology, 22, 1-16. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., & Haddock, G. G. (2010). The Psychology of Attitudes and Attitude Change. London, UK: Sage.
Maio, G. R. (2010). Mental representations of social values. In Mark P. Zanna (Ed.), Advances in Experimental Social Psychology (Vol. 42, pp. 1-43). San Diego, CA: Academic Press. [pdf]
Cuddy, A. J. C., Fiske, S. T., Kwan, V. S. Y., Glick, P., Demoulin, S., Leyens, J., Bond, M. H., Croizet, J., Ellemers, N., Sleebos, E., Htun, T. T., Kim, H., Maio, G., Perry, J., Petkova, K., Todorov, V., Rodrıguez-Bailo, R., Morales, E., Moya, M., Palacios, M., Smith, V., Perez, R., Vala, J., & Ziegler, R. (2009). Stereotype content model across cultures: Towards universal similarities and some differences. British Journal of Social Psychology, 48, 1-33. [pdf]
Luke, M. A., & Maio, G. R. (2009). Oh the humanity! Humanity-esteem and its social importance. Journal of Research in Personality, 43, 586-601. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., Hahn, U., Frost, J., & Cheung, W. (2009). Applying the value of equality unequally: Effects of value instantiations that vary in typicality. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 97, 598-614. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., Pakizeh, A., Cheung, W., & Rees, K. J. (2009). Changing, priming, and acting on values: Effects via motivational relations in a circular model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 97, 699-715. [pdf]
Souchon, N., Cabagno, G., Rascle, O., Traclet, A., Dosseville, F., & Maio, G. R. (2009). Referees' decision making about transgressions: The influence of player gender at the highest national level. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 33, 445-452. [pdf]
Souchon, N., Cabagno, G., Traclet, A., Trouilloud, D., & Maio, G. R. (2009). Referees’ use of heuristics: The moderating impact of level of competition. Journal of Sports Sciences, 27, 695-700. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., & Haddock, G. G. (2008). Attitudes: Content, structure, and functions. In M. Hewstone, W. Stroebe, & K. Jonas (Eds.), Introduction to Social Psychology (4th ed., pp. 112-133). London, UK: Blackwell.
Maio, G. R., Haddock, G. G., Watt, S. E., & Hewstone, M. (2008). Implicit measures in applied contexts: An illustrative examination of antiracism advertising. In R. E. Petty, R. H. Fazio, and P. Brinol (Eds.), Attitudes: Insights from the new wave of implicit measures (pp. 327-357). New York, USA: Psychology Press.
Thomas, G., & Maio, G. R. (2008). Man, I feel like a woman: When and how gender-role motivation helps mind-reading. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 95, 1165-1179. [pdf]
Watt, S. E., Maio, G. R., Haddock, G., & Johnson, B. T. (2008). Attitude functions in persuasion: A motives approach to attitude change. In R. Prislin & B. Crano (Eds.), Attitudes and Attitude Change (pp.189-211). Frontiers of Social Psychology Series. Psychology Press: New York.
Gebauer, J. E., Riketta, M., Broemer, P., & Maio, G. R. (2008) “How much do you like your name?" An implicit measure of global self-esteem. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 44, 1346-1354. [pdf]
Gebauer, J. E., Riketta, M., Broemer, P., & Maio, G. R. (2008). Pleasure-based and pressure-based pro-social motivation: Divergent relations with subjective well-being. Journal of Research in Personality, 42, 399-420. [pdf]
Haddock, G., Maio, G. R., Arnold, K., & Huskinson, T. L. (2008). Should persuasion be affective or cognitive? The moderating effects of need for affect and need for cognition. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 34, 769-778. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., Thomas, G., Fincham, F. D., & Carnelley, K. B. (2008). Unraveling the role of forgiveness in families. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 94, 307-319. [pdf]
Publications
Online Publications
Online information about my publications can be obtained via Google Scholar or ResearcherID:
Full List of Publications
Forthcoming
Greenland, K., Xenias, D., & Maio, G. R. (in press). Intergroup Anxiety From the Self and Other: Evidence From Self-Report, Physiological Effects, and Real Interactions. European Journal of Social Psychology.
Haddock, G. G., & Maio, G. R. (in press). Major Works: The Psychology of Attitudes and Attitude Change. London, UK: Sage.
Sedek, G., Piber-Dabrowska, K., Maio, G. R., & von Hecker, U. (in press). Individual differences in prejudice and associative versus rule-based forms of transitive reasoning. European Journal of Social Psychology. [pdf]
Gebauer, J., & Maio, G. R. (in press). The need to belong can motivate belief in God. Journal of Personality. [pdf]
Maio, G. R. (in preparation). The Psychology of Values. London, UK: Taylor & Francis.
2011
Schermer, J. A., Vernon, P. A., Maio, G. R., & Jang, K. L. (2011). A behavior genetic study of the connection between social values and personality. Twin Research and Human Genetics, 14, 233-239. [pdf]
2010
Maio, G. R., Haddock, G., Spears, R., & Manstead, A. S. R. (2010). Attitudes and intergroup relations. In J. F. Dovidio, M. Hewstone, P. Glick, & V. M. Esses (Eds.), Handbook of Prejudice, Stereotyping, and Discrimination (pp. 261-275). London, UK: Sage.
Souchon, N., Cabagno, G., Traclet, A., Dousseville, F., Livingstone, A., Jones, M., & Maio, G. R. (2010). Referees’ decision making and player gender: The moderating role of the type of situation. Journal of Applied Sports Psychology, 22, 1-16. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., & Haddock, G. G. (2010). The Psychology of Attitudes and Attitude Change. London, UK: Sage.
Maio, G. R. (2010). Mental representations of social values. In Mark P. Zanna (Ed.), Advances in Experimental Social Psychology (Vol. 42, pp. 1-43). San Diego, CA: Academic Press. [pdf]
2009
Cuddy, A. J. C., Fiske, S. T., Kwan, V. S. Y., Glick, P., Demoulin, S., Leyens, J., Bond, M. H., Croizet, J., Ellemers, N., Sleebos, E., Htun, T. T., Kim, H., Maio, G., Perry, J., Petkova, K., Todorov, V., Rodrıguez-Bailo, R., Morales, E., Moya, M., Palacios, M., Smith, V., Perez, R., Vala, J., & Ziegler, R. (2009). Stereotype content model across cultures: Towards universal similarities and some differences. British Journal of Social Psychology, 48, 1-33. [pdf]
Luke, M. A., & Maio, G. R. (2009). Oh the humanity! Humanity-esteem and its social importance. Journal of Research in Personality, 43, 586-601. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., Hahn, U., Frost, J., & Cheung, W. (2009). Applying the value of equality unequally: Effects of value instantiations that vary in typicality. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 97, 598-614. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., Pakizeh, A., Cheung, W., & Rees, K. J. (2009). Changing, priming, and acting on values: Effects via motivational relations in a circular model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 97, 699-715. [pdf]
Souchon, N., Cabagno, G., Rascle, O., Traclet, A., Dosseville, F., & Maio, G. R. (2009). Referees' decision making about transgressions: The influence of player gender at the highest national level. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 33, 445-452. [pdf]
Souchon, N., Cabagno, G., Traclet, A., Trouilloud, D., & Maio, G. R. (2009). Referees’ use of heuristics: The moderating impact of level of competition. Journal of Sports Sciences, 27, 695-700. [pdf]
2008
Maio, G. R., & Haddock, G. G. (2008). Attitudes: Content, structure, and functions. In M. Hewstone, W. Stroebe, & K. Jonas (Eds.), Introduction to Social Psychology (4th ed., pp. 112-133). London, UK: Blackwell.
Maio, G. R., Haddock, G. G., Watt, S. E., & Hewstone, M. (2008). Implicit measures in applied contexts: An illustrative examination of antiracism advertising. In R. E. Petty, R. H. Fazio, and P. Brinol (Eds.), Attitudes: Insights from the new wave of implicit measures (pp. 327-357). New York, USA: Psychology Press.
Thomas, G., & Maio, G. R. (2008). Man, I feel like a woman: When and how gender-role motivation helps mind-reading. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 95, 1165-1179. [pdf]
Watt, S. E., Maio, G. R., Haddock, G., & Johnson, B. T. (2008). Attitude functions in persuasion: A motives approach to attitude change. In R. Prislin & B. Crano (Eds.), Attitudes and Attitude Change (pp.189-211). Frontiers of Social Psychology Series. Psychology Press: New York.
Gebauer, J. E., Riketta, M., Broemer, P., & Maio, G. R. (2008) “How much do you like your name?" An implicit measure of global self-esteem. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 44, 1346-1354. [pdf]
Gebauer, J. E., Riketta, M., Broemer, P., & Maio, G. R. (2008). Pleasure-based and pressure-based pro-social motivation: Divergent relations with subjective well-being. Journal of Research in Personality, 42, 399-420. [pdf]
Haddock, G., Maio, G. R., Arnold, K., & Huskinson, T. L. (2008). Should persuasion be affective or cognitive? The moderating effects of need for affect and need for cognition. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 34, 769-778. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., Thomas, G., Fincham, F. D., & Carnelley, K. B. (2008). Unraveling the role of forgiveness in families. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 94, 307-319. [pdf]
2007
Haddock, G. G., & Maio, G. R. (2007). Attitudes. In R. F. Baumeister & K. D. Vohs (Eds.), Encyclopedia of social psychology (Vol. 1, pp. 67-69). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Haddock, G. G., & Maio, G. R. (2007). Attitude-behavior consistency. In R. F. Baumeister & K. D. Vohs (Eds.), Encyclopedia of social psychology, (Vol. 1, pp. 1, 59-61). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Maio, G. R., & Haddock, G. G. (2007). Attitude change. In A .W. Kruglanski & E. T. Higgins (Eds.), Social psychology: Handbook of basic principles (2nd ed., pp. 565-586). New York, NY: Guilford Press.
Maio, G. R., & Thomas, G. (2007). The epistemic-teleological model of self-persuasion. Personality and Social Psychological Review, 11, 1-22. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., Haddock, G. G., & Jarman, H. (2007). Social psychological factors in tackling obesity. Obesity Reviews, 8, 124-127. [pdf]
Pakizeh, A., Gebauer, J. E., & Maio, G. R. (2007). Basic human values: Inter-value structure in memory. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 43, 458-465. [pdf]
Tam, T., Hewstone, M., Cairns, E., Tausch, N., Maio, G. R., Kenworthy, J. (2007). The impact of intergroup emotions on forgiveness in Northern Ireland. Group Processes and Intergroup Relations, 10, 119-136.
Watt, S. E., & Maio, G. R. (2007). Functions of attitudes toward ethnic groups: Effects of level of abstraction. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 43, 441-449. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., Verplanken, B., Manstead, A. S. R., Stroebe, W., Abraham, C., Sheeran, P., & Conner, M. (2007). Social Psychological Factors in Lifestyle Change and Their Relevance to Policy. Journal of Social Issues and Policy Review, 1, 99-137. [pdf]
2006
Bernard, M., Gebauer, J., & Maio, G. R. (2006). Cultural estrangement: The role of personal and social value discrepancies. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 32, 78-92. [pdf]
2005
Ashton, M. C., Danso, H. A., Maio, G. R., Esses, V. M., Bond, M. H., & Keung, D. K. Y. (2005). Two dimensions of political attitudes and their individual difference correlates: A cross-cultural perspective. In R. M. Sorrentino, D. Cohen, J. M. Olson, & M. P. Zanna (Eds.), Culture and Social Behavior: The Ontario Symposium (Vol. 10, pp. 1-29). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Hahn, U., Frost, J. M., & Maio, G. R. (2005). What’s in a heuristic? Commentary on C. R. Sunstein, “Moral Heuristics.” Behavioural and Brain Sciences, 28, 551.
Hoyt, W. T., Fincham, F. D., McCullough, M. E., Maio, G. R., & Davila, J. (2005). Responses to interpersonal transgressions in families: Forgivingness, forgivability, and relationship-specific effects. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 89, 375-394. [pdf]
Johnson, B. T., Maio, G. R., & Smith-McLallen, A. (2005). Communication and attitude change: Causes, processes, and effects. In D. Albarracín, B. T. Johnson, & M. P. Zanna (Eds.), The handbook of attitudes (pp. 617-669). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Maio, G. R., & Augoustinos, M. (2005). Attitudes, attributions and social cognition. In M. Hewstone, F. D. Fincham, & J. Foster (Eds.), Introduction to psychology (pp. 360-382). London, UK: Blackwell.
2004
Haddock, G., & Maio, G. R. (Eds.) (2004). Contemporary perspectives on the psychology of attitudes. New York, NY: Psychology Press.
Luke, M. A., Maio, G. R., & Carnelley, K. B. (2004). Attachment models of the self and others: Relations with self-esteem, humanity-esteem, and parental treatment. Personal Relationships, 11, 281-304. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., Esses, V. M., Arnold, K. H., & Olson, J. M. (2004). The function-structure model of attitudes: Incorporating the need for affect. In G. Haddock & G. R. Maio (Eds.), Contemporary perspectives on the psychology of attitudes (pp. 9-33). London, UK: Psychology Press.
Maio, G. R., & Haddock, G. (2004). Introduction and overview to the volume. In G. Haddock & G. R. Maio (Eds.), Contemporary perspectives on the psychology of attitudes (pp. 425-453). London, UK: Psychology Press.
Maio, G. R., & Haddock, G. (2004). Theories of attitude: Creating a witches’ brew. In G. Haddock & G. R. Maio (Eds.), Contemporary perspectives on the psychology of attitudes (pp. 425-453). London, UK: Psychology Press.
2003
Bernard, M., Maio, G. R., & Olson, J. M. (2003). Effects of introspection about values: Extending research on values as truisms. Social Cognition, 21, 1-25. [pdf]
Bernard, M., Maio, G. R., & Olson, J. M. (2003). The vulnerability of values to attack: Inoculation of values and value-relevant attitudes. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 29, 63-75. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., Fincham, F. D., Regalia, C., & Paleari, G. (2003). Ambivalence and attachment in relationships. In K. Pillemer and K. Luscher (Eds.), Intergenerational ambivalences: New perspectives on parent-child relations in later life (Vol. 4, pp. 285-312). Elsevier/JAI.
Maio, G. R., Olson, J. M., Bernard, M., & Luke, M. A. (2003). Ideologies, Values, Attitudes, and Behavior. In J. DeLamater (Ed.), Handbook of Social Psychology (pp. 283-308). New York, NY: Kluwer Academic.
Maio, G. R., Willis, H., Hewstone, M., & Esses, V. M. (2003). Intergroup attitudes and attitudes toward devolution: Field and laboratory experiments. British Journal of Social Psychology, 42, 477-493.
Olson, J. M., & Maio, G. R. (2003). Attitudes in social behavior. In T. Millon & M. J. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of psychology: Volume 5 - Personality and social psychology (pp. 299-325). Wylie Press.
2002
Esses, V. M., & Maio, G. R. (2002). Expanding the assessment of attitude components and structure: The benefits of open-ended measures. European Review of Social Psychology, 12, 71-102.
Maio, G. R. (2002). Values: truth and meaning. The Psychologist, 15, 296-299.
2001
Hodson, G., & Maio, G. R., & Esses, V. M. (2001). The role of attitudinal ambivalence in susceptibility to consensus information. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 23, 197-205. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., & Esses, V. M. (2001). The need for affect: Individual differences in the motivation to approach or avoid emotions. Journal of Personality, 69, 583-616. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., Greenland, K., Bernard, M., & Esses, V. M. (2001). Effects of intergroup ambivalence on information processing: The role of physiological arousal. Group Processes and Intergroup Relations, 4, 355-372.
Maio, G. R., Olson, J. M., Allen, L., & Bernard, M. M. (2001). Addressing discrepancies between values and behavior: The motivating effect of reasons. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 37, 104-117. [pdf]
2000
Maio, G. R., & Olson, J. M. (Eds.) (2000). Why we evaluate: Functions of attitudes. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Inc.
Maio, G. R., Esses, V. M., & Bell, D. W. (2000). Ambivalence and inconsistency are distinct constructs. Canadian Journal of Behavioral Science, 32, 71-83. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., Fincham, F. D., & Lycett, E. J. (2000). Attitudinal ambivalence toward parents and attachment style. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 26, 1451-1464. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., & Olson, J. M. (2000). Emergent themes and potential approaches to attitude function: The function-structure model of attitudes. In G. R. Maio & J. M. Olson (Eds.), Why we evaluate: Functions of attitudes (pp. 417-442). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Inc. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., & Olson, J. M. (2000). Preface to the volume. In G. R. Maio & J. M. Olson (Eds.), Why we evaluate: Functions of attitudes (pp. vii-xi). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Inc.
Maio, G. R., & Olson, J. M. (2000). What is a value-expressive attitude? In G. R. Maio & J. M. Olson (Eds.), Why we evaluate: Functions of attitudes (pp. 249-270). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Inc. [pdf]
1999
Olson, J. M., Maio, G. R., & Hobden, K. (1999). The (null) effects of disparagement humor on attitudes and stereotypes. International Journal of Humor, 12, 195-219. [pdf]
1998
Maio, G. R., & Esses, V. M. (1998). The social consequences of affirmative action: Deleterious effects on perceptions of groups. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 24, 65-74. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., & Olson, J. M. (1998). Attitude dissimulation and persuasion. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 34, 182-201. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., & Olson, J. M. (1998). Values as truisms: Evidence and implications. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74, 294-311. [pdf]
1997
Maio, G. R., Olson, J. M., & Bush, J. (1997). Telling jokes that disparage social groups: Effects on the joke teller’s stereotypes. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 27, 1986-2000. [pdf]
1996
Bell, D. W., Esses, V. M., & Maio, G. R. (1996). The utility of open-ended measures to assess intergroup ambivalence. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, 28, 12-18. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., Bell, D. W., & Esses, V. M. (1996). Ambivalence and persuasion: The processing of messages about immigrant groups. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 32, 513-536. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., Roese, N. J., Seligman, C., & Katz, A. (1996). Ratings, rankings, and the measurement of values: Evidence for the superior validity of ratings. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 18, 171-181. [pdf]
1995
Maio, G. R., & Olson, J. M. (1995). Involvement and persuasion: Evidence for different types of involvement. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, 27, 64-78. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., & Olson, J. M. (1995). Relations between values, attitudes, and behavioral intentions: The moderating role of attitude function. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 31, 266-285. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., & Olson, J. M. (1995). The effect of attitude dissimulation on attitude accessibility. Social Cognition, 13, 127-144. [pdf]
1994
Maio, G. R., Esses, V. M., & Bell, D. W. (1994). The formation of attitudes toward new immigrant groups. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 24, 1762-1776. [pdf]
Maio, G. R., & Olson, J. M. (1994). Value-attitude-behaviour relations: The moderating role of attitude functions. British Journal of Social Psychology, 33, 301-312. [pdf]
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Research
Research Topics and Related Papers
Numerous psychological theories ascribe vital roles to social values, but define them vaguely. Examples of prominent social values include equality, freedom, and helpfulness; they are abstract ideals that people consider to be important guiding principles in their lives. The abstract nature of values gives them an amazing ability to make diverse situations look similar, which can help us decide how to react to the tremendous variety of situations we encounter. But this abstract nature makes their actual psychological functioning very complex. Research in my lab has found that these complexities can be tackled by conceptualizing values as mental representations that operate at three levels: a system level, (abstract) value level, and an instantiation level (Maio, 2010).
At the level of the value system, values reflect motivational tensions described within Schwartz’s (1992) circular model of values. According to this model, people experience tension between values that promote personal well-being (e.g., achievement, power) and values that focus on the welfare of others (e.g., helpfulness, forgiveness) ; people also experience tension between values that that promote conservation of the status quo (e.g., national security, tradition) and values that pursue intellectual and emotional interests in novel directions (e.g., creativity, freedom). Our research has highlighted important implications of this model for understanding the accessibility of values from memory, judgments of political rhetoric, feelings of ambivalence toward others, value change, and effects of value priming on behaviour.
For example, one experiment tested whether these value tensions affect curiosity (Maio, Pakizeh, Gebauer, & Cheung, 2009. Participants were asked to study tables of words, some of which were self-direction-promoting values, stimulation-seeking values, or mere objects of clothing (as a control task). Participants then responded to 48 quiz questions about various topics, including history, movies, sports, music, science, geography, celebrities, politics, literature, myths, and legend. After each response, participants indicated whether they knew the answer and whether they would like to receive further information about the answer. Analyses indicated that participants who had previously thought briefly about self-direction values exhibited greater curiosity than participants who had thought about security values, who exhibited less curiosity than participants in the control group. This effect supports the hypothesis that an underlying motivational conflict between self-direction and security values affects curiosity-driven behavior, and it is congruent with results from many similar experiments examining different values and actions (Maio et al., 2009).
At the level of single abstract values, values are more strongly connected to feelings than to past behavior or beliefs, and the type of emotion depends on the values’ roles as ideal versus ought self-guides. Another way of putting this is that values function as truisms (Maio & Olson, 1998): they are so widely shared that people never feel a need to defend them. As a result, we rarely bother to form arguments supporting them. Instead, we build a strong emotional attachment to values, and the exact emotions connected to a particular value depend on whether we regard a value as something we would ideally follow or as something we ought to follow. This feature of values at an abstract level may help to explain why people often fail to perform actions that promote their values when situations press against values. This is one question that Dr. Katy Tapper, Dr. Geoff Haddock, and I are exploring in a current ESRC-funded project looking at people’s struggle to live healthily (Lifestyle change: Values and volition).
At the level of value instantiations, the way in which people have previously thought about instantiating values in specific, concrete situations affects their subsequent perceptual readiness to detect and apply the value. For example, in a series of experiments, participants who were asked to think about concrete examples of the importance of equality subsequently exhibited less discrimination against people from another (arbitrarily designated) group than participants who had merely thought about equality at an abstract level or who had thought about atypical (but equally valid) examples of the importance of equality (Maio, Hahn, Frost, and Cheung, 2009). The prior instantiations did not cause equality to change in importance, but they did affect the process of applying the abstract value.
All three levels of value representation are important for addressing key puzzles in the role of values in social psychological processes, but they also reveal pernicious difficulties that would emerge if we try to improve mutual understanding by finding common or shared values between people. This task may seem impossible because of the emotional tensions between values, the reliance on strong emotions, and the diverse ways of instantiating them. Yet, this goal remains an important project. Indeed, the United Nations claims this goal as one of its founding aims: “The United Nations must provide a framework of shared values and understanding . . .” (Kofi Anan’s Speech to the United Nations General Assembly, New York, September 24, 2001).
One potential long-term solution to this problem may emerge if start gaining a lot more knowledge about one value-laden interest that humans have had in common throughout our evolution: the protection of children. Societies wouldn’t survive if they didn’t love their children, make sacrifices for them, and evolve a set of moral principles that can help to keep children safe until adulthood. But this does not mean that attitudes toward children are uniformly positive or that they immediately provide a foundation for developing common values. The situation is more complicated than this.
For example, in a recent report, the United Nations singled out the UK for failing to address legal and social shortcomings in the treatment of children (UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, September, 2008). Perhaps this is not a coincidence, given that children are institutionally segregated from adults and have little voice in decision processes. Indeed, we have obtained evidence that people’s attitudes toward children are ambivalent, particularly when implicit measures of attitude are utilized (Economic and Social Research Council Project: The detection of ambivalence toward children using implicit measures). (These measures tend to detect spontaneous evaluations before people can cognitively censor them.) We are currently pursuing several interesting questions about the role of children in adult social cognition – questions that may eventually help to discover social values priorities that bridge gaps between diverse groups.
Funding
Economic and Social Research Council (2009-2012). Lifestyle change: Values and volition.
Research Group
Caroline Leygue (Research Associate, Psychology, Cardiff University)
Gabriella Jiga-Boy (Research Associate, Psychology, Swansea University)
Wing-yee Cheung (PhD Student, Psychology, Cardiff University)
Alex Nolan (PhD Student, Psychology, Cardiff University)
Colin Foad (PhD Student, Psychology, Cardiff University)
Research Collaborators
Geoff Haddock (Psychology, Cardiff University)
Dimitrios Xenias (Psychology, Cardiff University)
Tony Manstead (Psychology, Cardiff University)
Russell Spears (Psychology, Cardiff University)
Ulrike Hahn (Psychology, Cardiff University)
Ulrich von Hecker (Psychology, Cardiff University)
Lorraine Whitmarsh (Psychology, Cardiff University)
Adam Corner (Psychology, Cardiff University)
Elspeth Webb (Medicine, Cardiff University)
Katy Tapper (Human Sciences, Swansea University)
Katy Greenland (Social Sciences, Cardiff University)
Johan Karremans (Psychology, Radboud University Nijmegen)
Prof. Frank D. Fincham (Psychology, Florida State University)
Dr. Kathy Carnelley (Psychology, Southampton University)
Geoff Thomas (Psychology, Aston University)
Nicolas Souchon (Paris 10, laboratoire CeRSM)
Postgraduate Students
Postgraduate Research Interests
I am interested in social values (e.g., freedom, equality, helpfulness), attitudes, and emotional processes. My two biggest interests at the moment are projects examining psychological connections between values and behaviour and adult mental representations of children.
If you are interested in applying for a PhD, or for further information regarding my postgraduate research, please contact me directly (contact details available on the 'Overview' page), or submit a formal application here.
Current Students
Colin Foad
Eleni Lemonaki
Alex Nolan
Previous Students
Dr Mark Bernard (Birmingham University)
Dr Karin Buschenfeld (Community Mental Health Team for Older People in South Gloucestershire)
Dr Wing-yee Cheung (School of Psychology, University of Southampton)
Dr Maria Doria (Medicine, Health Policy and Practice, University of East Anglia)
Dr John-Mark Frost (Office for National Statistics)
Dr Jochen Gebauer (Psychology, University of Southampton)
Dr Michelle Luke (School of Management, University of Southampton)
Dr Ali Pakizeh (Vice Chancellor for Education Affairs and Higher Education, Persian Gulf University)
Dr Kerry Rees (Natural and Social Sciences, University of Gloucestershire)
Biography
Undergraduate Education
1991: Honours BSc, York University
Postgraduate Education
1993: MA, University of Western Ontario
1997: PhD, University of Western Ontario
External posts/Awards
2010: Change4Life: One Year On
2008-2009: Member of Expert Reviewer Group for the Change4Life Marketing Programme, Department of Health
2006-2008: Senior Associate Editor, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin
2006-2008: Editorial Board for the Group Process and Intergroup Relations
2006-2007: Psychology Expert for the Foresight Tacking Obesities Project, Department of Trade and Innovation
2005: Associate Editor, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin
2002-2005: Editorial Board for the Group Process and Intergroup Relations
2002-2004: Editorial Board for the European Journal of Social Psychology
2000-2002: Editorial Board for the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin
2001: British Psychological Society Spearman Medal
1999-2005: Editorial Board for the British Journal of Social Psychology
1997: Canadian Governor-General’s Gold Medal, University of Western Ontario
1993-1997: Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Doctoral Fellowship
1996: American Psychological Association Student Travel Award
1996: American Psychological Association Dissertation Research Award
1995-1996: University of Western Ontario Graduate Tuition Scholarship
1993-1994: University of Western Ontario Doctoral Studies Scholarship
1991-1992: Ontario Graduate Scholarships
1991: York University Departmental Essay Prize
1991: University of Western Ontario Graduate Studies Scholarship
1990: Natural Science and Engineering Research Council Summer Research Fellowship
1987-1991: York University Full-Tuition Scholarships
Employment
2004 - Present: Professor, Psychology, Cardiff University
2000-2004: Reader, Psychology, Cardiff University
2000: Senior Lecturer, Psychology, Cardiff University
1997-1999: Lecturer, Psychology, Cardiff University
1996: Course Instructor, Part-time and Continuing Education, University of Western Ontario
1991-1995: Teaching Assistant, Psychology, University of Western Ontario
1990: Research Assistant, Biology, York University
1988: Research Assistant, Psychology, York University
Professional Affiliations
American Psychological Society
Centre for Research on the Self and Identity (International Associate)
European Association of Social Psychology
International Society of Self and Identity
Society of Experimental Social Psychology
Society for Personality and Social Psychology
Social Psychology Network