Studying social factors related to conflict and aggression

In much of my work, I study social factors related to conflict and aggression. I am especially interested in understanding how people choose between vengefulness and forgiveness when they feel they have been wronged.

To answer these questions, I conduct surveys that measure how people think and feel about conflict, revenge, and forgiveness. I also conduct laboratory studies that measure what people actually do when placed in a situation that allows them to behave in forgiving or vengeful ways (for example, when playing a game with a partner who behaves cooperatively or uncooperatively). My recent work in this area appears in journals such as Social Psychology Quarterly, Rationality & Society, and Social Science Research.