Research
The lab investigates processes that underlie social connection, morality, and prosocial behavior. These processes can be shaped by structural factors (eg. economic inequality) and socio-cognitive factors (eg. experiences of awe and self-transcendence). Much of our work is dedicated to experimentally manipulating these factors — in the lab and in naturalistic field settings — to understand how they shape cognition and social behavior.
Below is an overview of our areas of research with key publications for each.
Overview of Research
Morality and social connection
What causes people to be kind and moral to one another? In a primary line of research, I study the drivers of human kindness and social connection.
Bridging me to we: Awe is a conduit to cohesive collectives: View Article
The Social Effects of an Awesome Solar Eclipse: View Article
The geography of goodwill: Recreational engagement with nature predicts prosociality: View Article
Having less, giving more: The influence of social class on prosocial behavior: View Article
Inequality, social class, and mobility
How does inequality shape social life? My research seeks to understand how social hierarchies of different kinds shape people's lives and social tendencies. We study the psychology of social class and privilege, social mobility, and psychological pathways toward egalitarianism and societal fairness.
Higher social class predicts increased unethical behavior: View Article
Shifting attributions for poverty motivates opposition to inequality and enhances egalitarianism: View Article
Unpacking the Inequality Paradox: The Psychological Roots of Inequality and Social Class: View Article
Social emotion
How do emotions shape the way we see ourselves and relate to one another? A focus of our research is awe–the sense of wonder felt in the presence of something vast. We find that awe encourages people to prioritize the collective good over strict self-interest, leading to increased prosocial behaviors like generosity and helpfulness.
Awe, the small self, and prosocial behavior: View Article
Be here now: Perceptions of uncertainty enhance savoring: View Article
Wealth, poverty, and happiness: Social class is differentially associated with positive emotions: View Article
Publications
We support open science and reproducibility. As standard practice we share all of our materials, measures, and data (when possible) with researchers. Interested parties should email Dr. Paul Piff with inquiries.
2023-current
Piff, P. K., Singhal, I., & Bai, Y. (in press). Bridging me to we: Awe is a conduit to cohesive collectives. Current Opinion in Psychology, 101979.
Koo, H. J., Piff, P. K., Moskowitz, J. P., & Shariff, A. F. (in press). System circumvention: Dishonest‐illegal transgressions are perceived as justified in non‐meritocratic societies.British Journal of Social Psychology.
Koo, H. J., Piff, P. K., & Shariff, A. F. (2023). If I could do it, so can they: Among the rich, those with humbler origins are less sensitive to the difficulties of the poor.Social Psychology and Personality Science, 14, 333-341.
Celniker, J. B., Ditto, P. H., Piff, P. K., & Shariff, A. F. (2023). Signals of discipline and puritanical challenges to liberty. Behavioral & Brain Sciences, 46.
Celniker, J. B., Gregory, A., Koo, H. J., Piff, P. K., Ditto, P. H., & Shariff, A. F. (2023). The moralization of effort. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 152, 60-79.
Gregory, A. L., Quoidbach, J., Haase, C. M., & Piff, P. K. (2023). Be here now: Perceptions of uncertainty enhance savoring.Emotion, 23, 30-40.
2022
Goldy, S. P., & Piff, P. K. (2022). Imaginary worlds are awesome: Awe provides a key to understanding the individual and social functions of imaginary worlds. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 45, e284.
Joye, Y., Brosnahan, D., & Piff, P. K. (2022). The geography of goodwill: Recreational engagement with nature predicts prosociality across US states. Current Research in Ecological and Social Psychology, 3, 100067
Goldy, S. P., Jones, N. M., & Piff, P. K. (2022). The social effects of an awesome solar eclipse. Psychological Science, 9567976221085500.
Piff, P. K., Dietze, P., & Ceballos, R. M. (2022). Personal and social means can be (but need not be) opposing: The case of social class.Psychological Inquiry, 33(1), 30–34.
Thomas, A. J., Mitchell, V., Sumner, E., Terrizzi, B. F., Piff, P. K., & Sarnecka, B. W. (2022). Intuitive Sociology: Children Recognize Decision-Making Structures and Prefer Groups With Less-Concentrated Power.Open Mind, 6, 25–40.
2021
Martherus, J. L., Martinez, A. G., Piff, P. K., & Theodoridis, A. G. (2021). Party animals? Extreme partisan polarization and dehumanization.Political Behavior, 43(2), 517–540.
Gregory, A. L., & Piff, P. K. (2021). Finding uncommon ground: Extremist online forum engagement predicts integrative complexity. Plos One, 16(1), e0245651.
Wiwad, D., Mercier, B., Piff, P. K., Shariff, A., & Aknin, L. B. (2021). Recognizing the Impact of Covid-19 on the Poor Alters Attitudes Towards Poverty and Inequality.Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 93, 104083.
2019-2020
Piff, P. K., Wiwad, D., Robinson, A. R., Aknin, L. B., Mercier, B., & Shariff, A. (2020). Shifting attributions for poverty motivates opposition to inequality and enhances egalitarianism.Nature Human Behaviour, 4(5), 496-505.
Keltner, D., & Piff, P. K. (2020). Self-Transcendent Awe as a Moral Grounding of Wisdom.Psychological Inquiry, 31(2), 160-163.
Joye, Y., Bolderdijk, J. W., & Piff, P. K. (2020). A diminishment of desire: Exposure to nature relative to urban environments dampens materialism.Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 54, 126783.
Park, L. E., Jung, H. Y., Lee, K. S., Ward, D. E., Piff, P. K., Whillans, A. V., & Naragon-Gainey, K. (2020). Psychological pathways linking income inequality in adolescence to well-being in adulthood.Self and Identity, 1-33.
Mercier, B., Wiwad, D., Piff, P. K., Aknin, L. B., Robinson, A. R., & Shariff, A. (2020). Does Belief in Free Will Increase Support for Economic Inequality? Collabra: Psychology, 6(1).
Goldy, S. P., & Piff, P. K. (2020). Toward a social ecology of prosociality: Why, when, and where nature enhances social connection.Current Opinion in Psychology, 32, 27-31.
Martherus, J. L., Martinez, A. G., Piff, P. K., & Theodoridis, A. G. (2019). Party animals? Extreme partisan polarization and dehumanization.Political Behavior, 1-24.
Wiwad, D., Mercier, B., Maraun, M. D., Robinson, A. R., Piff, P. K., Aknin, L. B., & Shariff, A. F. (2019). The Support for Economic Inequality Scale: Development and adjudication.PLOS ONE, 14(6), e0218685.
Hamilton, R., Thompson, D., Bone, S., Chaplin, L. N., Griskevicius, V., Goldsmith, K., ... Piff, P. K.,, Roux, C., Shah, A., & Zhu, M. (2019). The effects of scarcity on consumer decision journeys. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Sciences, 47, 532-550.
2016-2018
Piff, P. K., & Moskowitz, J. (2018). Wealth, poverty, and happiness: Social class is differentially associated with positive emotions. Emotion, 18(6), 902-905.
Piff, P. K., Kraus, M. W., & Keltner, D. (2018). Unpacking the inequality paradox: Psychological roots of inequality and social class. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 57, 53-124.
Stellar, J. E., Gordon, A., Anderson, C. L., Piff, P. K., McNeil, G. D., & Keltner, D. (2018). Awe and humility. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 114(2), 258-269.
Venhoeven, L., Taufik, D., Steg, L., Bonaiuto, M., Bonnes, M., Ariccio, S., ... Piff, P. K., Zhang, J. W., & Keltner, D. (2018). The role of nature and environment in behavioural medicine. In Oxford Textbook of Nature and Public Health: The role of nature in improving the health of a population (pp. 89-94). Oxford University Press.
Piff, P. K., & Robinson, A. R. (2017). Social class and prosocial behavior: Current evidence, caveats, and questions. Current Opinion in Psychology, 18, 6-10.
Piff, P. K., & Moskowitz, J. (2017). The class-compassion gap: How socioeconomic factors influence compassion. In E. Seppala, J. Doty, M. Worline, D. Cameron, S. Brown, & E. Simon-Thomas (Eds.), Oxford Handbook of Compassion Science (pp. 317-330). Oxford University Press.
Côté, S., Kraus, M. W., Carpenter, N. C., Piff, P. K., Beermann, U., & Keltner, D. (2017). Social affiliation in same-class and cross-class interactions. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 146(2), 269-285.
Stellar, J. E., Gordon, A. M., Piff, P. K., Cordaro, D., Anderson, C. L., Bai, Y., Maruskin, L. A., & Keltner, D. (2017). Self-transcendent emotions and their social functions: Compassion, gratitude, and awe bind us to others through prosociality. Emotion Review, 9(3), 200-207.
Robinson, A. R., & Piff, P. K. (2017). Deprived, but not depraved: Prosocial behavior is an adaptive response to lower socioeconomic status. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 40, 40-41.
Piff, P. K., Stancato, D. M., & Horberg, E. J. (2016). Wealth and wrongdoing: Social class differences in ethical reasoning and behavior. In J.-W. Van Prooijen & P.A.M. van Lange (Eds.), Cheating, Corruption, and Concealment: The Roots of Dishonest Behavior (pp. 185-207). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Cardel, M. I., Johnson, S. L., Beck, J., Dhurandhar, E., Keita, A. D., Tomczik, A. C., Pavela, G., Huo, T., Janicke, D. M., Muller, K., Piff, P. K., Peters, J. C., Hill, J. O., & Allison, D. B. (2016). The effects of experimentally manipulated social status on acute eating behavior: A randomized, crossover pilot study. Physiology & Behavior, 162(1), 93-101.
2013-2015
Piff, P. K., Dietze, P., Feinberg, M., Stancato, D. M., & Keltner, D. (2015). Awe, the small self, and prosocial behavior. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 108, 883-899.
Piff, P. K., & Keltner, D. (2015). Why do we experience awe?The New York Times, p. SR10.
Yearwood, M. H., Cuddy, A., Lamba, N., Youyou, W., van der Lowe, I., Piff, P. K., Gronin, C., Fleming, P., Simon-Thomas, E., Keltner, D., & Kogan, A. (2015). On wealth and the diversity of friendships: High social class people around the world have fewer international friends. Personality and Individual Differences, 87, 224-229.
Piff, P. K. (2014). Wealth and the inflated self: Class, entitlement, and narcissism. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 40, 34-43.
Keltner, D., Kogan, A., Piff, P. K., & Saturn, S. (2014). The sociocultural appraisals, values, and emotions (SAVE) framework of prosociality: Core processes from gene to meme. Annual Review of Psychology, 65, 425-460.
Zhang, J. W., Piff, P. K., Keltner, D., Iyer, R., & Koleva, S. (2014). An occasion for unselfing: Beautiful nature leads to prosociality. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 37, 61-72.
Côté, S., Piff, P. K., & Willer, R. (2013). For whom do the ends justify the means? Social class and utilitarian moral judgment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 104, 490-503.
Saslow, L. R., John, O. P., Piff, P. K., Willer, R., Wong, E., Impett, E. A., Kogan, A., Antonenko, O., Clark, K., Feinberg, M., Oveis, C., Keltner, D., & Saturn, S. R. (2013). The social significance of spirituality: New perspectives on the compassion-altruism relationship. Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, 5, 201-218.
2011-2012
Piff, P. K., Stancato, D. M., Martinez, A. G., Kraus, M. W., & Keltner, D. (2012). Class, chaos, and the construction of community. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 103, 949-962.
Piff, P. K., Stancato, D. M., Côté, S., Mendoza-Denton, R., & Keltner, D. (2012). Higher social class predicts increased unethical behavior. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 109, 4086-4091.
Piff, P. K., Stancato, D. M., Côté, S., Mendoza-Denton, R., & Keltner, D. (2012). Reply to Francis: Cumulative power calculations are faulty when based on observed power and a small sample of studies. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 109, E1588.
Piff, P. K., Purcell, A., Gruber, J., Hertenstein, M. J., & Keltner, D. (2012). Contact high: Mania proneness and positive perception of emotional touches. Cognition and Emotion, 26, 1116-1123.
Piff, P. K., Martinez, A. G., & Keltner, D. (2012). Me against we: Ingroup transgression, collective shame, and ingroup-directed hostility. Cognition & Emotion, 26, 634-649.
Kraus, M. W., Piff, P. K., Mendoza-Denton, R., Rheinschmidt, M. L., & Keltner, D. (2012). Social class, solipsism, and contextualism: How the rich are different from the poor. Psychological Review, 119, 546-572.
Saslow, L. R., Willer, R., Feinberg, M., Piff, P. K., Clark, K., Keltner, D., Saturn, S. (2012). My brother’s keeper? Compassion predicts generosity more among less religious individuals. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 4, 31-38.
Piff, P. K., & Mendoza-Denton, R. (2012). Mixed signals: Culture and construal in the provision of feedback across group boundaries. In R. M. Sutton, M. J. Hornsey, & K. M. Douglas (Eds.), Feedback: Handbook of Praise, Criticism, and Advice (pp. 89-104). New York: Peter Lang.
Kraus, M. W., Rheinschmidt, M. L., & Piff, P. K. (2012). The intersection of rank and resources: Signaling social class in face-to-face encounters. In S. T. Fiske & H. R. Markus (Eds.), Facing Social Class (pp. 152-172). New York: Russell Sage.
Keltner, D., & Piff, P. K. (2012). Greed prevents good. The New York Times. The Opinion Page.
Kraus, M. W., Piff, P. K., & Keltner, D. (2011). Social class as culture: The convergence of resources and rank in the social realm. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 20, 246-250.
Martinez, A. G., Piff, P. K., Mendoza-Denton, R., & Hinshaw, S. P. (2011). The power of a label: Mental illness diagnoses, ascribed humanity, and social rejection. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 30, 1-23.
2010 and earlier
Piff, P. K., Kraus, M. W., Côté, S., Cheng, B. H., & Keltner, D. (2010). Having less, giving more: The influence of social class on prosocial behavior. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 99, 771-784.
Kraus, M. W., Piff, P. K., & Keltner, D. (2009). Socioeconomic status, the sense of control, and social explanation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 97, 992-1004.
Neuringer, A., Jensen, G., & Piff, P. K. (2007). Stochastic matching and the voluntary nature of choice. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 88, 1-28.