Lisa Williams

Professor Lisa Williams is a social psychologist at the University of New South Wales' School of Psychology. She holds a Ph.D. in Social Psychology from Northeastern University (2009), an M.A. in Social Psychology from the same institution (2006), and a B.A. in Psychology from Lewis and Clark College (2004). Her research program examines how emotions shape and are shaped by social processes, with particular focus on positive social emotions like pride and gratitude across intrapersonal, interpersonal, and intergroup contexts.

Dr. Williams' research explores:

• The adaptive functions of emotions in social interactions
• Applications of affective science to blood donation motivation
• Emotional influences on wellbeing and prosocial behavior
• Intergroup emotional dynamics and social accord

She employs diverse methodologies including interpersonal emotion inductions, experience sampling, and psychophysiology.

Analysis of recent publications shows strong emphasis on:

• Gender equity in academic research funding
• Psychological aspects of blood donation and donor retention
• Social perception and group dynamics
• Methodological innovations in psychological research

Honors include:

• 2017 UNSW Faculty of Science June Griffith Fellowship for Women in Leadership
• 2014 Australian Psychological Society UNSW Lecturer of the Year

She currently supervises postgraduate and Honours students and has led major research grants including:

• ARC Linkage Project (LP140100034, 2014-2016): Emotional psychology of blood donors
• ARC Discovery Project (DP103102110, 2013-2015): Pride in intergroup settings
• ARC Discovery Project (DP130104468, 2013-2015): Emotional responses in romantic relationships

Dr. Williams collaborates extensively with national and international colleagues across psychology and health science domains.