Theory is not a storehouse of hypotheses on the course of particular events in society. It constructs a developing picture of society as a whole, an existential judgment with a historical dimension.
Max Horkheimer
Our lab is committed to revitalizing traditions of interdisciplinary theory and research in social psychology.
We believe that addressing pressing social problems and improving life in contemporary society through social science requires mixed methods, as well as maintaining an interplay between theoretical philosophy and empirical research.
Our work in this area includes the development of the theoretical perspective of cultural-existential psychology, which combines the approaches of experimental existential psychology and cultural psychology to explore the premise that culture is both a source of, and a solution to, experiences of psychological threat.
Additionally, we utilize the critical theory and research methodologies of the early Frankfurt School to investigate the political-economic roots of social problems. This work includes a forthcoming book project on how cultural individualism in the United States relates to systems of social control, such as financial debt and mass incarceration.