Brittany Hanson, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Psychology
About Dr. Hanson
I am a social psychologist that specializes in the study of moral and political psychology. I received my B.S. in psychology from the University of Arizona. I then lived in Chicago for seven years while completing my graduate training in social and personality psychology at the University of Illinois at Chicago. I started as an assistant professor at 麻豆视频’s University in 2018.
“My primary goal as a teacher is to pass my enthusiasm for the field of psychology to my students. This includes fostering excitement about psychological theories and an appreciation of the power of the scientific process both in the classroom and through engaging students in research. As a first generation and minority college student myself, I feel passionate about passing on positive research engagement opportunities to the next generation of diverse scholars.”
“My primary goal as a teacher is to pass my enthusiasm for the field of psychology to my students. This includes fostering excitement about psychological theories and an appreciation of the power of the scientific process both in the classroom and through engaging students in research. As a first generation and minority college student myself, I feel passionate about passing on positive research engagement opportunities to the next generation of diverse scholars.”
Research Interests
Does morality matter? Intuitively, it seems the answer is yes. However, one could argue that there are many attitudes people feel strongly about 鈥 ones that have considerable impact on our everyday lives 鈥 that are not morally relevant such as attitudes that reflect self-interest, matters of taste, or group memberships.
My research focuses on investigating the antecedents and consequences of this moral/non-moral distinction. Specifically, I study what causes people to imbue some attitudes with moral relevance and whether seeing one鈥檚 attitudes 鈥 political, social, interpersonal, etc. 鈥 as morally relevant makes them any more impactful than other strong, but non-moral attitudes.
Career & Accomplishments
Degrees
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•University of Illinois at Chicago, Ph.D.
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•University of Illinois at Chicago, M.A.
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•University of Arizona, B.S.
Publications
L.J. Skitka, B.E. Hanson, A.N. Washburn, A.B. Mueller – PloS one, 2018
A.N. Washburn, B.E. Hanson, M.Motyl, L.J. Skitka, C.Yantis, K.M. Wong, J.Sun, J.P. Prims, A.B. Mueller, Z. J. Melton, T.S. Carsel – Advances in Methods and Practices in Psychological Science, 2018
M. Motyl, A.P. Demos, T.S. Carsel, B.E. Hanson, Z.J. Melton, A.B. Mueller, J.P. Prims, J. Sun, A.N. Washburn, K.M. Wong, C. Yantis, L.J. Skitka – Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 2017
L.J. Skitka, B.E. Hanson, D.C. Wisneski – Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 2017
W. Tierney, M. Schweinsberg, J. Jordan, D.M. Kennedy, I. Qureshi, S.A. Sommer,… & B.E. Hanson – Scientific Data, 2016
B.E. Hanson, M. Schweinsberg, N.Madan, M. Vianello, S.A. Sommer, J. Jordan, W. Tierney – Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 2016
Presentations
What if the sky doesn鈥檛 fall? Forecasting failures and attitude change in the context of political policy upheaval.
B.E. Hanson, L.J. Skitka, The Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Portland OR, 2019.
The 鈥渃ulture wars鈥 in everyday movement: Investigating moral conflict using joint recurrence analysis on body movement.
B.E. Hanson, A.P. Demos, L.J. Skitka, The Annual Meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Atlanta, GA, 2018
Is moralization authority independent? A same-sex marriage case study.
B.E. Hanson, L.J. Skitka, D. Wiseneski, The Attitudes & Social Influence Pre-conference of the annual meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Washington DC, 2017
SPSP members鈥 perceptions of non-academic internships
T. Carsel, B.E. Hanson, and A.B. Muller, The Annual Meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, San Antonio, TX, 2017
Moral convictions limit on Supreme Court legitimacy: A natural experiment involving same-sex marriage.
B.E. Hanson, L.J. Skitka, D.C. Wiseneski, The Annual Meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, San Diego, CA,2016
Exploring affective, familial, social, and religious contributions to moral convictions.
T. Carsel, B.E. Hanson, L.J. Skitka, The Annual Meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, San Diego, CA, 2016
Investigating moral conflict in anticipated and real social interactions
B.E. Hanson, L.J. Skitka, The Annual Meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, 2014.
The 鈥渃ulture wars鈥 in everyday life: Investigating moral conflict in anticipated social interactions.
B.E. Hanson, L.J. Skitka, The Annual Meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, 2013
Understanding regulatory fit’s role in morally motivated collective action
R. Aguilera, B. Hanson, L.J. Skitka, The Annual Meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, New Orleans, LA, 2013.
Approaching good or avoiding bad? Understanding morally motivated collective action
B.E. Hanson, L.J. Skitka, The Annual Meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago, IL, 2013