Loran F Nordgren
Biographic Data
| ID | 123265 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Loran F Nordgren |
| GIVEN NAMES | Loran F |
| FAMILY NAME | Nordgren |
| SIGNATURE | NORDGREN L F |
| AFFILIATIONS | Northwestern University |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-3123-5908 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 21 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 133 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 21 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2005 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 6 |
Unnecessarily divided: Civil conversations reduce attitude polarization more than people expect
People with opposing attitudes can learn from one another through civil discourse and debate. Yet, people routinely avoid discussing their differences of opinion, preferring instead to discuss their attitudes with like-minded others. We propose that people lack interest in discussing their differences of opinion, in part, because they expect such conversations are unlikely to change their own and others' attitudes. Importantly, we find these expe…
Instrumental use erodes sacred values
hypothesis. Following exposure to the instrumental use of a sacred value, observers held that value as less sacred (Studies 1-6), were less willing to donate to value-relevant causes (Studies 3 and 4), and demonstrated reduced tradeoff resistance (Study 7). We reconcile the current effect with previously documented value protection effects by suggesting that instrumental use decreases value sacredness by shifting descriptive norms regarding value…
Mass-scale emotionality reveals human behaviour and marketplace success
Emotionally Numb: Expertise Dulls Consumer Experience
Expertise provides numerous benefits. Experts process information more efficiently, remember information better, and often make better decisions. Consumers pursue expertise in domains they love and chase experiences that make them feel something. Yet, might becoming an expert carry a cost for these very feelings? Across more than 700,000 consumers and 6 million observations, developing expertise in a hedonic domain predicts consumers becoming mor…
Safety in Numbers: Why the Mere Physical Presence of Others Affects Risk‐taking Behaviors
As social mammals, being in a group signals a state of relative security. Risk‐taking behavior in other social mammals formed the basis for our prediction that the mere physical presence of others, absent any social interaction, would create a psychological state of security that, in turn, would promote greater risk‐taking behavior. We investigated whether, why, and when the mere physical presence of others affects risk‐taking behaviors in three …
Paying for performance: Performance incentives increase desire for the reward object
The current research examines how exposure to performance incentives affects one's desire for the reward object. We hypothesized that the flexible nature of performance incentives creates an attentional fixation on the reward object (e.g., money), which leads people to become more desirous of the rewards. Results from 5 laboratory experiments and 1 large-scale field study provide support for this prediction. When performance was incentivized with…
The Music of Power: Perceptual and Behavioral Consequences of Powerful Music
Music has long been suggested to be a way to make people feel powerful. The current research investigated whether music can evoke a sense of power and produce power-related cognition and behavior. Initial pretests identified musical selections that generated subjective feelings of power. Experiment 1 found that music pretested to be powerful implicitly activated the construct of power in listeners. Experiments 2–4 demonstrated that power-inducing…
People underestimate the value of persistence for creative performance
Across 7 studies, we investigated the prediction that people underestimate the value of persistence for creative performance. Across a range of creative tasks, people consistently underestimated how productive they would be while persisting (Studies 1-3). Study 3 found that the subjectively experienced difficulty, or disfluency, of creative thought accounted for persistence undervaluation. Alternative explanations based on idea quality (Studies 1…
Having “been there” doesn’t mean I care: When prior experience reduces compassion for emotional distress
The current research found that participants who had previously endured an emotionally distressing event (e.g., bullying) more harshly evaluated another person's failure to endure a similar distressing event compared with participants with no experience enduring the event or those currently enduring the event. These effects emerged for naturally occurring (Studies 1, 3, and 4) and experimentally induced (Study 2) distressing events. This effect w…
Vividness of the Future Self Predicts Delinquency
The tendency to live in the here and now, and the failure to think through the delayed consequences of behavior, is one of the strongest individual-level correlates of delinquency. We tested the hypothesis that this correlation results from a limited ability to imagine one’s self in the future, which leads to opting for immediate gratification. Strengthening the vividness of the future self should therefore reduce involvement in delinquency. We t…
A Devil On Each Shoulder: When (and Why) Greater Cognitive Capacity Impairs Self-Control
This article examines how cognitive capacity influences self-control. Two studies demonstrated a cognitive capacity by visceral state interaction. Study 1 found that cognitive load impaired self-control for satiated smokers but increased self-control for craved smokers. Study 2 replicated this effect in the context of dieting. Hungry dieters who were given the opportunity to deliberate selected more unhealthy snacks compared to hungry dieters who…
The Scope-Severity Paradox: Why Doing More Harm Is Judged to Be Less Harmful
Punishment should be sensitive to the severity of the crime. Yet in three studies the authors found that increasing the number of people victimized by a crime actually decreases the perceived severity of that crime and leads people to recommend less punishment for crimes that victimize more people. The authors further demonstrate the process behind the scope-severity paradox—the victim identifiability effect—and test a strategy for overcoming thi…
Empathy gaps for social pain: Why people underestimate the pain of social suffering
In 5 studies, the authors examined the hypothesis that people have systematically distorted beliefs about the pain of social suffering. By integrating research on empathy gaps for physical pain (Loewenstein, 1996) with social pain theory (MacDonald & Leary, 2005), the authors generated the hypothesis that people generally underestimate the severity of social pain (ostracism, shame, etc.)--a biased judgment that is only corrected when people activ…
The best of both worlds: Integrating conscious and unconscious thought best solves complex decisions
The Devil Is in the Deliberation: Thinking Too Much Reduces Preference Consistency
In five experiments we found that deliberation reduces preference consistency. In experiments 1 and 2, participants who deliberated on their preferences were less consistent in their evaluations compared to those who did not deliberate. Experiment 3 demonstrated that this effect is due to the impediment of deliberation and not to the benefit of nondeliberation. We hypothesized that deliberation leads to the inconsistent weighting of information, …
Ambivalence and decisional conflict as a cause of psychological discomfort: Feeling tense before jumping off the fence
Ambivalence and decisional conflict as a cause of psychological discomfort: Feeling tense before jumping off the fence
Unpacking perceived control in risk perception: The mediating role of anticipated regret
Perception of control has been a fundamental construct in research on risk‐taking behavior. It has been shown, for example, that people tend to underestimate risks that are under their control. Despite its importance, surprisingly, little attention has been paid to what is actually meant by control. In three studies, we argue that the common conceptualization of perceived control is too broad as it fails to distinguish between two distinct aspect…
Evaluating Eve: Visceral states influence the evaluation of impulsive behavior
Impulsive behavior is a common source of stigma. The authors argue that people often stigmatize impulsive behavior because they fail to appreciate the influence visceral impulses have on behavior. Because people tend to underestimate the motivational force of cravings for sex, drugs, food, and so forth, they are prone to stigmatize those who act on these impulses. In line with this reasoning, in 4 studies, the authors found that participants who …
On Making the Right Choice: The Deliberation-Without-Attention Effect
Contrary to conventional wisdom, it is not always advantageous to engage in thorough conscious deliberation before choosing. On the basis of recent insights into the characteristics of conscious and unconscious thought, we tested the hypothesis that simple choices (such as between different towels or different sets of oven mitts) indeed produce better results after conscious thought, but that choices in complex matters (such as between different …
A Theory of Unconscious Thought
We present a theory about human thought named the unconscious-thought theory (UTT). The theory is applicable to decision making, impression formation, attitude formation and change, problem solving, and creativity. It distinguishes between two modes of thought: unconscious and conscious. Unconscious thought and conscious thought have different characteristics, and these different characteristics make each mode preferable under different circumsta…
Ambivalence, discomfort, and motivated information processing
Ambivalence, discomfort, and motivated information processing
Ambivalence and decisional conflict as a cause of psychological discomfort: Feeling tense before jumping off the fence
Ambivalence and decisional conflict as a cause of psychological discomfort: Feeling tense before jumping off the fence
Unpacking perceived control in risk perception: The mediating role of anticipated regret
Perception of control has been a fundamental construct in research on risk‐taking behavior. It has been shown, for example, that people tend to underestimate risks that are under their control. Despite its importance, surprisingly, little attention has been paid to what is actually meant by control. In three studies, we argue that the common conceptualization of perceived control is too broad as it fails to distinguish between two distinct aspect…
The Devil Is in the Deliberation: Thinking Too Much Reduces Preference Consistency
In five experiments we found that deliberation reduces preference consistency. In experiments 1 and 2, participants who deliberated on their preferences were less consistent in their evaluations compared to those who did not deliberate. Experiment 3 demonstrated that this effect is due to the impediment of deliberation and not to the benefit of nondeliberation. We hypothesized that deliberation leads to the inconsistent weighting of information, …
Empathy gaps for social pain: Why people underestimate the pain of social suffering
In 5 studies, the authors examined the hypothesis that people have systematically distorted beliefs about the pain of social suffering. By integrating research on empathy gaps for physical pain (Loewenstein, 1996) with social pain theory (MacDonald & Leary, 2005), the authors generated the hypothesis that people generally underestimate the severity of social pain (ostracism, shame, etc.)--a biased judgment that is only corrected when people activ…
People underestimate the value of persistence for creative performance
Across 7 studies, we investigated the prediction that people underestimate the value of persistence for creative performance. Across a range of creative tasks, people consistently underestimated how productive they would be while persisting (Studies 1-3). Study 3 found that the subjectively experienced difficulty, or disfluency, of creative thought accounted for persistence undervaluation. Alternative explanations based on idea quality (Studies 1…
Having “been there” doesn’t mean I care: When prior experience reduces compassion for emotional distress
The current research found that participants who had previously endured an emotionally distressing event (e.g., bullying) more harshly evaluated another person's failure to endure a similar distressing event compared with participants with no experience enduring the event or those currently enduring the event. These effects emerged for naturally occurring (Studies 1, 3, and 4) and experimentally induced (Study 2) distressing events. This effect w…
Emotionally Numb: Expertise Dulls Consumer Experience
Expertise provides numerous benefits. Experts process information more efficiently, remember information better, and often make better decisions. Consumers pursue expertise in domains they love and chase experiences that make them feel something. Yet, might becoming an expert carry a cost for these very feelings? Across more than 700,000 consumers and 6 million observations, developing expertise in a hedonic domain predicts consumers becoming mor…
Safety in Numbers: Why the Mere Physical Presence of Others Affects Risk‐taking Behaviors
As social mammals, being in a group signals a state of relative security. Risk‐taking behavior in other social mammals formed the basis for our prediction that the mere physical presence of others, absent any social interaction, would create a psychological state of security that, in turn, would promote greater risk‐taking behavior. We investigated whether, why, and when the mere physical presence of others affects risk‐taking behaviors in three …
Evaluating Eve: Visceral states influence the evaluation of impulsive behavior
Impulsive behavior is a common source of stigma. The authors argue that people often stigmatize impulsive behavior because they fail to appreciate the influence visceral impulses have on behavior. Because people tend to underestimate the motivational force of cravings for sex, drugs, food, and so forth, they are prone to stigmatize those who act on these impulses. In line with this reasoning, in 4 studies, the authors found that participants who …
The best of both worlds: Integrating conscious and unconscious thought best solves complex decisions
Instrumental use erodes sacred values
hypothesis. Following exposure to the instrumental use of a sacred value, observers held that value as less sacred (Studies 1-6), were less willing to donate to value-relevant causes (Studies 3 and 4), and demonstrated reduced tradeoff resistance (Study 7). We reconcile the current effect with previously documented value protection effects by suggesting that instrumental use decreases value sacredness by shifting descriptive norms regarding value…
Mass-scale emotionality reveals human behaviour and marketplace success
Paying for performance: Performance incentives increase desire for the reward object
The current research examines how exposure to performance incentives affects one's desire for the reward object. We hypothesized that the flexible nature of performance incentives creates an attentional fixation on the reward object (e.g., money), which leads people to become more desirous of the rewards. Results from 5 laboratory experiments and 1 large-scale field study provide support for this prediction. When performance was incentivized with…
Ambivalence, discomfort, and motivated information processing
On Making the Right Choice: The Deliberation-Without-Attention Effect
Contrary to conventional wisdom, it is not always advantageous to engage in thorough conscious deliberation before choosing. On the basis of recent insights into the characteristics of conscious and unconscious thought, we tested the hypothesis that simple choices (such as between different towels or different sets of oven mitts) indeed produce better results after conscious thought, but that choices in complex matters (such as between different …
A Theory of Unconscious Thought
We present a theory about human thought named the unconscious-thought theory (UTT). The theory is applicable to decision making, impression formation, attitude formation and change, problem solving, and creativity. It distinguishes between two modes of thought: unconscious and conscious. Unconscious thought and conscious thought have different characteristics, and these different characteristics make each mode preferable under different circumsta…
Unpacking perceived control in risk perception: The mediating role of anticipated regret
Perception of control has been a fundamental construct in research on risk‐taking behavior. It has been shown, for example, that people tend to underestimate risks that are under their control. Despite its importance, surprisingly, little attention has been paid to what is actually meant by control. In three studies, we argue that the common conceptualization of perceived control is too broad as it fails to distinguish between two distinct aspect…
Evaluating Eve: Visceral states influence the evaluation of impulsive behavior
Impulsive behavior is a common source of stigma. The authors argue that people often stigmatize impulsive behavior because they fail to appreciate the influence visceral impulses have on behavior. Because people tend to underestimate the motivational force of cravings for sex, drugs, food, and so forth, they are prone to stigmatize those who act on these impulses. In line with this reasoning, in 4 studies, the authors found that participants who …
Ambivalence and decisional conflict as a cause of psychological discomfort: Feeling tense before jumping off the fence
Ambivalence and decisional conflict as a cause of psychological discomfort: Feeling tense before jumping off the fence
The Devil Is in the Deliberation: Thinking Too Much Reduces Preference Consistency
In five experiments we found that deliberation reduces preference consistency. In experiments 1 and 2, participants who deliberated on their preferences were less consistent in their evaluations compared to those who did not deliberate. Experiment 3 demonstrated that this effect is due to the impediment of deliberation and not to the benefit of nondeliberation. We hypothesized that deliberation leads to the inconsistent weighting of information, …
The best of both worlds: Integrating conscious and unconscious thought best solves complex decisions
The Scope-Severity Paradox: Why Doing More Harm Is Judged to Be Less Harmful
Punishment should be sensitive to the severity of the crime. Yet in three studies the authors found that increasing the number of people victimized by a crime actually decreases the perceived severity of that crime and leads people to recommend less punishment for crimes that victimize more people. The authors further demonstrate the process behind the scope-severity paradox—the victim identifiability effect—and test a strategy for overcoming thi…
Empathy gaps for social pain: Why people underestimate the pain of social suffering
In 5 studies, the authors examined the hypothesis that people have systematically distorted beliefs about the pain of social suffering. By integrating research on empathy gaps for physical pain (Loewenstein, 1996) with social pain theory (MacDonald & Leary, 2005), the authors generated the hypothesis that people generally underestimate the severity of social pain (ostracism, shame, etc.)--a biased judgment that is only corrected when people activ…
Vividness of the Future Self Predicts Delinquency
The tendency to live in the here and now, and the failure to think through the delayed consequences of behavior, is one of the strongest individual-level correlates of delinquency. We tested the hypothesis that this correlation results from a limited ability to imagine one’s self in the future, which leads to opting for immediate gratification. Strengthening the vividness of the future self should therefore reduce involvement in delinquency. We t…
A Devil On Each Shoulder: When (and Why) Greater Cognitive Capacity Impairs Self-Control
This article examines how cognitive capacity influences self-control. Two studies demonstrated a cognitive capacity by visceral state interaction. Study 1 found that cognitive load impaired self-control for satiated smokers but increased self-control for craved smokers. Study 2 replicated this effect in the context of dieting. Hungry dieters who were given the opportunity to deliberate selected more unhealthy snacks compared to hungry dieters who…
The Music of Power: Perceptual and Behavioral Consequences of Powerful Music
Music has long been suggested to be a way to make people feel powerful. The current research investigated whether music can evoke a sense of power and produce power-related cognition and behavior. Initial pretests identified musical selections that generated subjective feelings of power. Experiment 1 found that music pretested to be powerful implicitly activated the construct of power in listeners. Experiments 2–4 demonstrated that power-inducing…
People underestimate the value of persistence for creative performance
Across 7 studies, we investigated the prediction that people underestimate the value of persistence for creative performance. Across a range of creative tasks, people consistently underestimated how productive they would be while persisting (Studies 1-3). Study 3 found that the subjectively experienced difficulty, or disfluency, of creative thought accounted for persistence undervaluation. Alternative explanations based on idea quality (Studies 1…
Having “been there” doesn’t mean I care: When prior experience reduces compassion for emotional distress
The current research found that participants who had previously endured an emotionally distressing event (e.g., bullying) more harshly evaluated another person's failure to endure a similar distressing event compared with participants with no experience enduring the event or those currently enduring the event. These effects emerged for naturally occurring (Studies 1, 3, and 4) and experimentally induced (Study 2) distressing events. This effect w…
Safety in Numbers: Why the Mere Physical Presence of Others Affects Risk‐taking Behaviors
As social mammals, being in a group signals a state of relative security. Risk‐taking behavior in other social mammals formed the basis for our prediction that the mere physical presence of others, absent any social interaction, would create a psychological state of security that, in turn, would promote greater risk‐taking behavior. We investigated whether, why, and when the mere physical presence of others affects risk‐taking behaviors in three …
Paying for performance: Performance incentives increase desire for the reward object
The current research examines how exposure to performance incentives affects one's desire for the reward object. We hypothesized that the flexible nature of performance incentives creates an attentional fixation on the reward object (e.g., money), which leads people to become more desirous of the rewards. Results from 5 laboratory experiments and 1 large-scale field study provide support for this prediction. When performance was incentivized with…
Instrumental use erodes sacred values
hypothesis. Following exposure to the instrumental use of a sacred value, observers held that value as less sacred (Studies 1-6), were less willing to donate to value-relevant causes (Studies 3 and 4), and demonstrated reduced tradeoff resistance (Study 7). We reconcile the current effect with previously documented value protection effects by suggesting that instrumental use decreases value sacredness by shifting descriptive norms regarding value…
Mass-scale emotionality reveals human behaviour and marketplace success
Emotionally Numb: Expertise Dulls Consumer Experience
Expertise provides numerous benefits. Experts process information more efficiently, remember information better, and often make better decisions. Consumers pursue expertise in domains they love and chase experiences that make them feel something. Yet, might becoming an expert carry a cost for these very feelings? Across more than 700,000 consumers and 6 million observations, developing expertise in a hedonic domain predicts consumers becoming mor…
Unnecessarily divided: Civil conversations reduce attitude polarization more than people expect
People with opposing attitudes can learn from one another through civil discourse and debate. Yet, people routinely avoid discussing their differences of opinion, preferring instead to discuss their attitudes with like-minded others. We propose that people lack interest in discussing their differences of opinion, in part, because they expect such conversations are unlikely to change their own and others' attitudes. Importantly, we find these expe…
Psychology (20 works) · Social Psychology (20 works) · Cognitive psychology (10 works) · Developmental psychology (8 works) · Decision-Making and Behavioral Economics (7 works) · Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment (7 works) · Social Psychology (6 works) · Behavioral Health and Interventions (5 works) · Social and Intergroup Psychology (5 works) · Cognition (4 works)