Lawrence's Research

Dr. Williams studies the ways in which subtle cues in the environment influence judgments, decisions, and behaviors without people's awareness. His research program features three lines. In the first line, Dr. Williams examines the effects of people's experiences with fundamental aspects of the physical world (e.g., the temperature of objects or the space between objects) on people's subsequent thoughts and actions. These effects are the result of the associations between physical and psychological concepts people develop early in life. The second line of his research program examines factors that contribute to people's paradoxical enjoyment of violent, fear-inducing, and/or socially awkward forms of entertainment. His third line of research examines how subtle cues, presented outside of awareness, can prompt people to exercise more self-control. Taken together, these three lines of research provide a clearer profile of nonconscious consumer behavior.

Publications

Williams, L.E., Bargh, J.A., Nocera, C., & Gray, J.R (in press). On the unconscious regulation of emotion: Nonconscious reappraisal goals modulate emotional reactivity. Emotion.

Williams, L.E., Huang, J.Y. & Bargh, J.A. (in press). The scaffolded mind: Higher mental processes are gounded in early experience of the physical world. European Journal of Social Psychology.

Huang, J.Y., Williams, L.E. & Bargh, J.A. (in press). Conceptual scaffolding: Further thoughts on the relation between the physical and social worlds. European Journal of Social Psychology.

Williams, L.E., & Bargh, J.A. (2008). Experiencing physical warmth promotes interpersonal warmth. Science, 322, 606-607.

Williams, L.E., & Bargh, J.A. (2008). Keeping one's distance: The influence of spatial distance cues on affect and evaluation. Psychological Science, 19, 302-308.

Bargh, J.A., & Williams, L.E. (2007). The nonconscious regulation of emotion. In J. Gross (Ed.), Handbook of emotion regulation (pp. 429-445). New York: Guilford.

Litz, B.T., Williams, L., Wang, J., Bryant, R., & Engel, C. C., Jr. (2004). A therapist-assisted Internet self-help program for traumatic stress. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 35, 628-634.

Under Review

Williams, L.E., Stein, R., & Galguera, L. (2009). When distance does not equal construal: The dissociable impact of psychological distance and abstraction on charity. Initial submission.

Williams, L.E., Hennessey, S.R., & Bargh, J.A. (2007). Finding pleasure in the unpleasant: Social context moderates the enjoyment of aversive media. Invited revision.

Williams, L.E., Poehlman, T. A., Morsella, E., & Bargh, J.A. (2007). Pleasure can be good for you: The nonconscious impact of hedonic experiences on self-regulation. Invited revision.

Work in Progress

Sedlovskaya, A., Williams, L., Purdie-Vaughns, V., & Bargh, J.A. (in prep). Spatial distance and the separation of public and private life. Unpublished Manuscript, Yale University.