Department of Psychology

Since the 1980s, psychology professor Harry Reis has been putting human relationships under a microscope. Over the years his research has led to insights into matters of the heart—both figuratively and literally.

Harry Reis, a leading researcher in the field of social psychology credited with helping to launch the field of relationship science, was jointly appointed as Dean’s Professor in Arts, Sciences and Engineering effective December 1.

Mt. Hope Family Center researchers Melissa Sturge-Apple and Patrick Davies have been awarded a $2.9 million grant to research how conflicts and stress between parents spill over to influence interactions between parent and child.

New research indicates that there are ways that couples can sustain—or relight—their passion. The study suggests that when men and women perceive their partners as responsive, they feel special and think of their partner as a valuable mate, which in turn boosts sexual desirability.

A new study finds that what might have been described as "maladapted" behavior or a lack of self control may actually be beneficial and thoughtful behavior for children who have been raised in resource-poor environments.

A new study shows that values of social responsibility and caring for others decrease between the ages of 10 to 16. These decreases, however, are in concert with feelings of decreasing support from their parents, schools, and friends.

Psychology professor Harry Reis has been awarded the 2015 Career Contribution Award by the Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP). The award honors scholars who have made major theoretical, methodological, or empirical contributions to the field.

A new 30-year longitudinal study shows that the quantity of social interactions a person has in their 20s—and the quality of the social relationships they have in their 30s—can benefit his or her well-being later in life. The study participants, now in their 50s, took part in the Rochester-Interaction Record (RIR) study as college students in the 1970s and again as 30-year-olds in the 1980s.

Children living in low-income households who endure family instability and emotionally distant caregivers are at risk of having impaired cognitive abilities according to new research from Rochester's Mt. Hope Family Center.

Recent studies have showed that the color red tends to increase our attraction toward others, feelings of jealousy, and even reaction times. Now, new research shows that female monkeys also respond to the color red, suggesting that biology, rather than our culture, may play the fundamental role in our “red” reactions.