Broadly speaking, my work examines how people’s attitudes form, how they generalize, and ultimately how they shape behavior across a variety of domains. In my primary line of research, I have developed a theoretical model in which individual differences in attitude generalization tendencies–referred to as people’s valence weighting bias–interact with assessments afforded by the goal-pursuit situation (e.g., “have I done enough?” when studying for a test) to shape self-regulatory behavior (e.g., amount of time spent studying for a test). This program of research is complemented by theoretical contributions in which I explore the most appropriate definition of implicit bias and empirical work examining the consequences of different conceptualizations of implicit bias on the motivation to control prejudiced reactions and discriminatory behavior. Most recently, I have collaborated on a project focused on understanding the attitudes and beliefs that predict responses to the COVID-19 pandemic (e.g., social distancing behavior) and how those attitudes and beliefs change over time.
Email: granadossamayoa.1@osu.edu