CURRENT RESEARCH PROJECTS

Cultural Variation in Affect Valuation

These studies examine how culture shapes the affective states that people ideally want to feel (their "ideal affect") and the behavioral choices that people make to achieve those desired states in the United States, Beijing, and Hong Kong (in collaboration with Drs. Xiulan Zhang of Beijing Normal University, and Helene Fung of Chinese University of Hong Kong).

Culture, Age, and Affect Valuation

These studies examine how the affective states that people ideally want to feel (their "ideal affect") changes across the life span in a sample of European Americans and Chinese Americans between the ages of 18-80.

Socialization of Affect Valuation

These studies examine how children and adults learn to value specific states through interpersonal interaction, religion, and exposure to popular media.

Cultural Variation in Emotional Response

These studies examine how culture shapes the physiological, subjective, and behavioral (facial and verbal) aspects of emotional responding during emotional events (e.g., while watching emotional films, reliving emotional episodes, discussing an area of conflict with a romantic partner).

Depression and Emotion Across Cultures

These studies examine the effects of depression on emotional responding in European Americans and Asian Americans.

The Effects of Health Improvement Programs on Mental Health

These studies examine whether participation in different health improvement programs (e.g., meditation, improvisation) impact mental health.

Ideal Affect and Emotional Responding

These studies examine whether people’s ideal affect (i.e., the affective states that people ideally want to feel) influence their perceptions of and responses to emotional events that match (or don’t match) their ideal affect.

Ideal Affect and Health-Related Decision Making

These studies examine whether people’s ideal affect (i.e., the affective states people ideally want to feel) influence their health care choices and health-promotion behaviors (e.g., choosing a physician, participation in an exercise program).

Cultural Variation in Avoided Affect

These studies examine how culture shapes the affective states that people want to avoid feeling (their "avoided affect") and the behavioral implications of such cultural differences.