Mitch Callan

Mitch Callan is a Professor of Psychology at the University of Bath, where he has held this position since transitioning from the University of Essex (8-year tenure). His research focuses on justice motivation, belief in a just world, immanent justice reasoning, and responses to victimization, with recent emphases on relative deprivation and its implications for mental health and societal well-being. He holds a PhD from the University of Western Ontario, following undergraduate and postgraduate studies at the University of Calgary.

Callan’s work contributes to UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through studies on equity, mental health, and environmental attitudes. He leads or collaborates on projects funded by major organizations like the Leverhulme Trust and Economic and Social Research Council, including investigations into relative deprivation’s health impacts, online autism research methodologies, and mindfulness’s role in buffering mental health difficulties.

His research spans experimental psychology, social cognition, and clinical applications. Notable themes include the psychological underpinnings of victim blaming, agency attribution in human-robot interactions, and the interplay between autism traits and creativity. His articles frequently explore mechanisms linking social comparison processes to behavior and well-being, with a focus on marginalized groups and neurodivergent populations.

Callan has supervised three doctoral students and maintains an active grant portfolio. His lab’s current projects emphasize neurodiversity, demand avoidance in adulthood, and the ethical implications of technological advancements in psychological assessment.