معرفی
Kimberly Michelle Rios is a Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Illinois, with affiliations to the Gies College of Business as a Center for Professional Responsibility in Business and Society Faculty Scholar. Her research explores how individuals respond to threats to social and personal identities, focusing on majority-minority dynamics and religious stereotyping.
- Education: PhD in Organizational Behavior from Stanford University (2008 award).
Research Focus
Rios investigates identity threat in multicultural societies, analyzing why majority groups perceive diversity as threatening and how to mitigate these perceptions. Her work also examines religious prejudice, including stereotypes about Christians' scientific abilities and atheists' morality, across U.S. and cross-cultural contexts.
Recent publications highlight applications of cultural evolution theory to religious belief systems in Iran, symbolic threat dynamics in U.S. demographic shifts, and strategies for improving public trust in science through intellectual humility. She has contributed to foundational references in social psychology via entries in The Oxford Encyclopedia of Social Psychology.
Awards & Recognition
- SESP Diversity Science Award (2024)
Her work has garnered attention through 16 X (Twitter) mentions, 11 Mendeley readers, and collaborations with researchers like W. Gervais and Z.C. Roth. Rios continues to lead interdisciplinary research at the intersection of psychology, business ethics, and social policy.
