Professor Fein's primary research interests include: (1) suspicion and attributional processes (including issues such as the correspondence bias; cross-cultural issues; jury decision making); (2) stereotypes and prejudice (including issues such as self-image maintenance processes; the interactions of motivational, cognitive, and sociocultural factors); and (3) media influences on women's self-image and performance and on men's attitudes and behaviors toward women. Other interests include social influence and perceptions of political candidates, and self-affirmation.

Primary Interests:

Applied Social Psychology
Attitudes and Beliefs
Causal Attribution
Culture and Ethnicity
Gender Psychology
Interpersonal Processes
Law and Public Policy
Person Perception
Persuasion, Social Influence
Prejudice and Stereotyping
Self and Identity
Social Cognition

Applied Social Psychology
Attitudes and Beliefs
Causal Attribution
Culture and Ethnicity
Gender Psychology
Interpersonal Processes
Law and Public Policy

Person Perception
Persuasion, Social Influence
Prejudice and Stereotyping
Self and Identity
Social Cognition

Books:

Journal Articles:

Ben-Zeev, T., Fein, S., & Inzlicht, M. (2005). Arousal and stereotype threat. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 41, 174-181.
Fein, S. (1996). Effects of suspicion on attributional thinking and the correspondence bias. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 70, 1164-1184.
Fein, S., Lomore, C., & Spencer, S. J. (2001). Maintaining one's self-image vis-à-vis others: The role of self-affirmation in the social evaluation of the self. Motivation and Emotion, 25, 41-68.
Fein, S., McCloskey, A. L., & Tomlinson, T. M. (1997). Can the jury disregard that information? The use of suspicion to reduce the prejudicial effects of pretrial publicity and inadmissible testimony. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 23, 1215-1226.
Fein, S., Morgan, S. J., Norton, M. I., & Sommers, S. R. (1997). Hype and suspicion: Effects of pretrial publicity, race, and suspicion on jurors' verdicts. Journal of Social Issues, 53, 487-502.
Fein, S., & Spencer, S. J. (1997). Prejudice as self-image maintenance: Affirming the self through derogating others. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 73, 31-44.
Fein, S., von Hippel, W. H., & Spencer, S. J. (1999). To stereotype or not to stereotype: Motivation and stereotype activation, application, and inhibition. Psychological Inquiry, 10, 49-54.
Lord, C. G., Desforges, D. M., Fein, S., Pugh, M. A., & Lepper, M. R. (1994). Typicality effects in attitudes toward social policies: A concept mapping approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 66, 658-673.
Spencer, S. J., Fein, S., Wolfe, C. T., Fong, C., & Dunn, M. A. (1998). Automatic activation of stereotypes: The role of self-image threat. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 24, 1139-1152.

Courses Taught:

Advanced Research in Social Psychology
Experimentation and Statistics
Social Psychology
Stereotypes, Prejudice and Discrimination

Advanced Research in Social Psychology
Experimentation and Statistics

Social Psychology
Stereotypes, Prejudice and Discrimination

Steven Fein
Department of Psychology
Bronfman Science Center, Room 376
Williams College
Williamstown, MA 01267
United States

Phone: (413) 597-2445
Fax: (413) 597-2085