Research
My research draws on theories of social cognition and judgment and decision-making to study two prominent concerns in workers’ personal and organizational lives: creativity and ethics. Workers want to flourish in their jobs and careers and they want to be good, ethical people. I seek to understand how people think about and navigate the creative and ethical challenges in their lives to achieve these goals.
Creativity & Performance
In this line of research I study beliefs about creativity. This work is guided by two general questions: What do people believe to be true about creativity? And how do those beliefs stack up against the reality of the creative process? For instance, work with Loran Nordgren finds that people tend to undervalue persistence in the creative process and, as a consequence, they underestimate their own ability to generate ideas (Lucas & Nordgren, 2015). Other work with Drew Carton finds that people overlook the power of experiential thinking when creating visions of the future, and that an intervention that prompts people to project themselves into the future and think experientially (e.g., imagining sights, sounds, smells) can increase the quality of their vision statements (Carton & Lucas, 2018).
In this line of research I study beliefs about creativity. This work is guided by two general questions: What do people believe to be true about creativity? And how do those beliefs stack up against the reality of the creative process? For instance, work with Loran Nordgren finds that people tend to undervalue persistence in the creative process and, as a consequence, they underestimate their own ability to generate ideas (Lucas & Nordgren, 2015). Other work with Drew Carton finds that people overlook the power of experiential thinking when creating visions of the future, and that an intervention that prompts people to project themselves into the future and think experientially (e.g., imagining sights, sounds, smells) can increase the quality of their vision statements (Carton & Lucas, 2018).
Morality & Ethical Behavior
What influences people's willingness to help and to harm one another? In this line of research I study how basic (non-moral) social cognitive processes (e.g., ideological beliefs, perspective-taking, affect regulation) influence outcomes central to morality and ethics (e.g., moral judgments, empathy, unethical behavior). For instance, work with Nour Kteily finds that the link between anti-egalitarianism and empathy depends on the status of the target, such that anti-egalitarianism reduces empathy toward disadvantaged targets but egalitarianism reduces empathy toward advantaged targets (Lucas & Kteily, 2018). As another example, work with Adam Galinsky and Keith Murnighan finds that perspective-taking (while typically beneficial for the target) with a moral transgressor increases condemnation and dislike when the perceiver assumes the target to have malicious intentions (Lucas, Galinsky, & Murnighan, 2016).
What influences people's willingness to help and to harm one another? In this line of research I study how basic (non-moral) social cognitive processes (e.g., ideological beliefs, perspective-taking, affect regulation) influence outcomes central to morality and ethics (e.g., moral judgments, empathy, unethical behavior). For instance, work with Nour Kteily finds that the link between anti-egalitarianism and empathy depends on the status of the target, such that anti-egalitarianism reduces empathy toward disadvantaged targets but egalitarianism reduces empathy toward advantaged targets (Lucas & Kteily, 2018). As another example, work with Adam Galinsky and Keith Murnighan finds that perspective-taking (while typically beneficial for the target) with a moral transgressor increases condemnation and dislike when the perceiver assumes the target to have malicious intentions (Lucas, Galinsky, & Murnighan, 2016).
Publications
Journal Articles
Lucas, B. J. & Nordgren, L F. (accepted). The creative cliff illusion. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117, 19830-19836. [pdf]
O’Connor, K., Effron, D. A., & Lucas, B. J. (accepted). Moral cleansing as hypocrisy: When private acts of charity make you feel better than you deserve. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 119, 540-559. [pdf]
Wilson, E. R., Thompson, L. L., & Lucas, B. J. (2020). Pride and pratfalls: Recounting embarrassing stories increases creativity. International Journal of Design Creativity and Innovation, 8, 21-30.
Lucas, B. J. & Kteily, N. S. (2018). (Anti-)Egalitarianism differentially predicts empathy for members of advantaged versus disadvantaged groups. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 114, 665-692. [pdf]
Carton, A. M. & Lucas, B. J. (2018). How can leaders overcome the blurry vision bias? An antidote to the paradox of vision communication. Academy of Management Journal, 61, 2106-2129. [pdf]
Effron, D. A., O’Connor, K., Leroy, H., & Lucas, B. J. (2018). From inconsistency to hypocrisy: When does “saying one thing but doing another” invite condemnation? Research in Organizational Behavior. [pdf]
Ruttan, R. L. & Lucas, B. J. (2018). Cogs in the machine: The prioritization of money and self-dehumanization. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 149, 47-58. [pdf]
Lucas, B. J., Galinsky, A. D., & Murnighan, J. K. (2016). An intentions-based account: Why perspective-taking can both decrease and increase moral condemnation. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 42, 1480-1489. [pdf]
Effron, D. A., Lucas, B. J., & O’Connor, K. (2015). Hypocrisy by association: When organizational membership increases condemnation for wrongdoing. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 130, 147-159. [pdf]
Lucas, B. J. & Nordgren, L. F. (2015). People underestimate the value of persistence for creative performance. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 109, 232-243. [pdf]
Lucas, B. J. & Galinsky, A. D. (2015). Is Utilitarianism risky? How the same antecedents and mechanism produce both utilitarian and risky choices. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 10, 541-548. [pdf]
Lucas, B. J. & Livingston, R. W. (2014). Feeling socially connected increases utilitarian choices in moral dilemmas. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 53, 1-4. [pdf]
Yap, A. J., Wazlawek, A. S., Lucas, B. J., Cuddy, A. J. C., & Carney, D. R. (2013). The incidental ergonomics of life and work can lead to stealing, cheating, and traffic violations. Psychological Science, 24, 2281-2289. [pdf]
Lucas, B. J., Schubert, E., & Halpern, A. R. (2010). Perception of emotion in sounded and imagined music. Music Perception, 27, 399-412. [pdf]
Gais, S., Lucas, B. & Born, J. (2006). Sleep after learning aids memory recall. Learning & Memory, 13, 259-262. [pdf]
Popular Articles
Lucas & Nordgren (Dec 1, 2015). Giving up is the enemy of creativity. Harvard Business Review. [link]
Chapters & Other Publications
Thompson, L. & Lucas, B. J. (2014). Judgmental biases in conflict resolution and how to overcome them. In P. T. Coleman, M. Deutsch, & E. C. Marcus (eds.). Handbook of Conflict Resolution, (pp. 255-282). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. [pdf]
Thompson, L., Lucas, B. J., & Hall, E.V. (2014). Negotiation bandwidth. In N. M. Ashkanasy, O. B. Ayoko, & K. Jehn (eds.). Handbook of Research in Conflict Management, (pp. 461-479).UK: Edward Edgar Publishing. [pdf]
Thompson, L. Lucas, B., & Hall, E.V. (2012). Upstream and downstream negotiation research. In R. Croson & G. Bolton (eds.). Oxford Handbook of Economic Conflict Resolution, (pp. 372-388). New York: Oxford University press. [pdf]
Thompson, L., Richardson, E.V., & Lucas, B. (2012). Integrating Negotiation Research with Team Dynamics. In Goldman and D. Shapiro (eds.). The Psychology of Negotiations in the 21st Century workplace. SIOP Frontiers Series. [pdf]
Lucas, B. J. & Nordgren, L F. (accepted). The creative cliff illusion. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117, 19830-19836. [pdf]
O’Connor, K., Effron, D. A., & Lucas, B. J. (accepted). Moral cleansing as hypocrisy: When private acts of charity make you feel better than you deserve. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 119, 540-559. [pdf]
Wilson, E. R., Thompson, L. L., & Lucas, B. J. (2020). Pride and pratfalls: Recounting embarrassing stories increases creativity. International Journal of Design Creativity and Innovation, 8, 21-30.
Lucas, B. J. & Kteily, N. S. (2018). (Anti-)Egalitarianism differentially predicts empathy for members of advantaged versus disadvantaged groups. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 114, 665-692. [pdf]
Carton, A. M. & Lucas, B. J. (2018). How can leaders overcome the blurry vision bias? An antidote to the paradox of vision communication. Academy of Management Journal, 61, 2106-2129. [pdf]
Effron, D. A., O’Connor, K., Leroy, H., & Lucas, B. J. (2018). From inconsistency to hypocrisy: When does “saying one thing but doing another” invite condemnation? Research in Organizational Behavior. [pdf]
Ruttan, R. L. & Lucas, B. J. (2018). Cogs in the machine: The prioritization of money and self-dehumanization. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 149, 47-58. [pdf]
Lucas, B. J., Galinsky, A. D., & Murnighan, J. K. (2016). An intentions-based account: Why perspective-taking can both decrease and increase moral condemnation. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 42, 1480-1489. [pdf]
Effron, D. A., Lucas, B. J., & O’Connor, K. (2015). Hypocrisy by association: When organizational membership increases condemnation for wrongdoing. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 130, 147-159. [pdf]
Lucas, B. J. & Nordgren, L. F. (2015). People underestimate the value of persistence for creative performance. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 109, 232-243. [pdf]
Lucas, B. J. & Galinsky, A. D. (2015). Is Utilitarianism risky? How the same antecedents and mechanism produce both utilitarian and risky choices. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 10, 541-548. [pdf]
Lucas, B. J. & Livingston, R. W. (2014). Feeling socially connected increases utilitarian choices in moral dilemmas. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 53, 1-4. [pdf]
Yap, A. J., Wazlawek, A. S., Lucas, B. J., Cuddy, A. J. C., & Carney, D. R. (2013). The incidental ergonomics of life and work can lead to stealing, cheating, and traffic violations. Psychological Science, 24, 2281-2289. [pdf]
Lucas, B. J., Schubert, E., & Halpern, A. R. (2010). Perception of emotion in sounded and imagined music. Music Perception, 27, 399-412. [pdf]
Gais, S., Lucas, B. & Born, J. (2006). Sleep after learning aids memory recall. Learning & Memory, 13, 259-262. [pdf]
Popular Articles
Lucas & Nordgren (Dec 1, 2015). Giving up is the enemy of creativity. Harvard Business Review. [link]
Chapters & Other Publications
Thompson, L. & Lucas, B. J. (2014). Judgmental biases in conflict resolution and how to overcome them. In P. T. Coleman, M. Deutsch, & E. C. Marcus (eds.). Handbook of Conflict Resolution, (pp. 255-282). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. [pdf]
Thompson, L., Lucas, B. J., & Hall, E.V. (2014). Negotiation bandwidth. In N. M. Ashkanasy, O. B. Ayoko, & K. Jehn (eds.). Handbook of Research in Conflict Management, (pp. 461-479).UK: Edward Edgar Publishing. [pdf]
Thompson, L. Lucas, B., & Hall, E.V. (2012). Upstream and downstream negotiation research. In R. Croson & G. Bolton (eds.). Oxford Handbook of Economic Conflict Resolution, (pp. 372-388). New York: Oxford University press. [pdf]
Thompson, L., Richardson, E.V., & Lucas, B. (2012). Integrating Negotiation Research with Team Dynamics. In Goldman and D. Shapiro (eds.). The Psychology of Negotiations in the 21st Century workplace. SIOP Frontiers Series. [pdf]
