What are the basic mechanisms that allow people to regulate their thoughts, feelings and behaviors?

People usually think of emotion regulation and self-control as deliberate processes that require effort. We’re interested in identifying routes to these processes that are easier to implement and hidden in plain sight. 

• In one line of work, we examine how the structure of language itself may support emotion regulation and self-control, by allowing people to seamlessly shift from their default, immersed perspective to a more distanced one. 
• For example, instead of reflecting on the self from a first-person perspective (using “I” or “me”), people can adopt a more distanced one, either using “you” to address themselves directly (“Ariana, you can do better next time”) or using “you” to refer to people in general, even as they reflect on their own experiences (“You win some, you lose some”).
• In another line of ongoing work, we study when, why and to what effect people can lean on others to help them reframe negative experiences.

Can people’s ability to regulate their thoughts, feelings or behaviors to meet their goals be meaningfully improved?

We know that self-control and emotion regulation are important for thriving in multiple domains of life. Yet, one of the most important insights from this body of research is that self-control and emotion regulation can be learned. How can we teach people to regulate their emotions and behavior in ways that are beneficial for them?

We study this question using a variety of methods including lab studies, that examine causal mechanisms and short-term outcomes; ecological momentary assessment, which provides insight into how tools that are commonly studied in the lab translate to daily life; and interventions, that examine the implications of teaching people specific emotion regulation and self-control strategies.

How do subtle shifts in perspective shape the way we make sense of our social world?

Pronouns are ubiquitous in written and spoken language, but often overlooked in their power.  Words like “I”, “you” and “we” are small but mighty, communicating important information beyond who is speaking or being addressed: they also signal or shift perspective. 

One linguistic mechanism we’re interested in is the generic use of the pronoun “you”, that is, “you” that is used to refer to people in general rather than a specific person (e.g. “You never know until you try”). We’ve found that generic “you” is tightly linked with norms in English and other languages. What are the implications of this functionality for how people make sense of the self and their social worlds? 

We’re interested in understanding the role of generic-you in the expression and interpretation of norms, persuasion, perceived resonance, person perception, the transmission of morals, and other domains as means to understand how subtle shifts in perspective influence our construal of the world.