David DeSteno
Degrees/Education
Ph.D. Social Psychology, Yale University, 1996
M.Phil. Social Psychology, Yale University, 1994
M.S. Social Psychology, Yale University, 1993
A.B. Psychology, Vassar College, 1990
Area(s) of Expertise
Social Psychology
Research Interests
Dr. DeSteno’s research centers on the role of emotion in social cognition and social behavior. His lab takes a multilevel and multiprocess approach to examining the psychological functions, phenomenologies, and sequelae that are associated with discrete emotional states. Current projects focus on the effects of emotions on several types of social judgment (e.g., moral decision making, risk assessment, prejudice) as well as on behaviors fundamental to social living (e.g., trust and cooperation, prosocial action, organizational behavior, altruism, aggression).
Location
125 Nightingale Hall
Can Meditation Make You a More Compassionate Person?
Scientists have mostly focused on the benefits of meditation for the brain and the body, but a recent study by Northeastern University’s David DeSteno, published in Psychological Science, takes a look at what impacts meditation has on interpersonal harmony and compassion. Several religious traditions have suggested that mediation does just that, but there has been no scientific proof—until now.