My Story
A native of North Dakota, I received a BA from Yale University and a PhD from Cornell University on my path to a career studying consumer behavior and decision making. I am interested in how consumers make judgments and decisions in social contexts. This interest has led me to study a wide variety of behaviors, topics, and ideas. An example of the kind of issue I am interested in is my focus on the question of why people fail to learn. Consumers have access to their own past failures as well as those of others, and yet they too rarely use that information to help them make better future choices.
My research on this and related topics has encompassed work on differences in assessments of self and others, how our intentions for the future can influence our decisions and judgments in the present, the effect of physical states and emotions on memory and behavior, and the ways subjective experience can differ from objective reality.
If you have questions about me or my research, don’t hesitate to explore this site or contact me directly.