معرفی
Nicholas Epley is the John Templeton Keller Professor of Behavioral Science and Director of the Roman Family Center for Decision Research at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. His work focuses on understanding social cognition and human connections through rigorous experimental research.
Epley's research explores how people think about other people's minds, with particular emphasis on perspective taking, intuitive human judgment, and social connection. His work reveals systematic miscalibrations in social cognition that lead people to misunderstand others, avoid social interactions with strangers, and underestimate the positive impact of prosocial behaviors like expressing gratitude or giving compliments. He argues that humans possess a 'sixth sense' for understanding others but often overestimate their accuracy in doing so.
His publications consistently examine barriers to social connection, showing how people routinely underestimate how positively others will respond to social overtures. This pattern appears across multiple contexts - from talking to strangers on public transportation to expressing gratitude to friends and colleagues. His research has identified what he terms 'undersociality' - the tendency for people to engage in fewer social interactions than would maximize their well-being.
- 2008 Theoretical Innovation Award from the Society for Personality and Social Psychology
- 2011 Distinguished Scientific Award for Early Career Contribution to Psychology from the American Psychological Association
- 2015 Book Prize for the Promotion of Social and Personality Science
- 2018 Career Trajectory Award from the Society for Experimental Social Psychology
- Named 'professor to watch' by the Financial Times
- One of the 'World's Best 40 under 40 Business School Professors' by Poets and Quants
- One of the 100 Most Influential in Business Ethics in 2015 by Ethisphere
Epley has secured significant research funding from the National Science Foundation and the Templeton Foundation to support his investigations into social cognition. His teaching includes the popular MBA course 'Designing a Good Life,' which focuses on ethics and wellbeing. His research has been featured extensively in major media outlets including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, CNN, Wired, and National Public Radio.
As Faculty Director of the Roman Family Center for Decision Research, Epley oversees one of Booth's premier research centers dedicated to understanding human decision-making processes through interdisciplinary research that combines insights from psychology, economics, and neuroscience.
