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Politics and Social Change Lab

@pascl-stanford.bsky.social
325 followers 2 following 83 posts

Research lab @stanford.edu studying persuasion, polarization, and social change. Director: @robbwiller.bsky.social

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Reposted by Politics and Social Change Lab
Robb Willer @robbwiller.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
🚨Come work with us! 🚨 We're hiring a postdoc for Stanford's AI for Public Benefit Lab (ai4pb.stanford.edu), in partnership with @stanfordhai.bsky.social Open to PhDs from psych, poli sci, sociology, CS, econ, HCI, data science, etc. Please share! Position: postdocs.stanford.edu/prospective/...
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
It was a pleasure having Sophia Pink back at PASCL. Her field experiment on the benefits of starting multiple goals at once vs. one at a time was ambitious, informative, and widely applicable. Thank you, Sophia!!!
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Reposted by Politics and Social Change Lab
davidbroska.bsky.social @davidbroska.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Americans favor predistributive policies over redistributive policies. Our new paper is now out in PNAS 🚨 Paper: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... We have also written a summary of the article for Kudos, a brief report on our brief report: link.growkudos.com/1eb04zt75ds
Americans favor predistributive over redistributive policies
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Ashwini Ashokkumar @ashwinia.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
New paper in @nature.com with @lukebeehewitt.bsky.social, @isaiasghezae.bsky.social, & @robbwiller.bsky.social: Can LLMs predict results of social science experiments? Across 70 experiments, we find a strong correspondence (r=.85) between predicted and observed effects. doi.org/10.1038/s415... 🧵
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Reposted by Politics and Social Change Lab
Robb Willer @robbwiller.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
Glad to see this WP from our lab out today, a labor of love over last year. Kudos to @davidbroska.bsky.social and @jonnekamphorst.bsky.social for their hard work on it! Please share any comments, suggestions, or criticisms of the research. All are welcome!
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
Thanks to Jonas Schoene for sharing his work on how people judge the immorality of organizations! @robbwiller.bsky.social
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Reposted by Politics and Social Change Lab
davidbroska.bsky.social @davidbroska.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
Americans say they want less inequality. Why don’t they support policies to reduce it? New paper: across 31 nationally representative survey waves (N=384,248) and a preregistered experiment (N=1,009), Americans favor PREdistributive over REdistributive policies 🧵 osf.io/preprints/so...
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
Thanks to @davidbroska.bsky.social for sharing his new methods for simulating social science experiments! Stay tuned for more in the coming months👀 @robbwiller.bsky.social
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Reposted by Politics and Social Change Lab
Robb Willer @robbwiller.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Climate change impacts are here, but public support for action remains polarized. Which climate messages move people? In a ~13,500-person megastudy, we tested 10 of the most-cited messages. Six increased pro-environmental attitudes in the U.S.—but only by 1–4 percentage points. 🧵
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Reposted by Politics and Social Change Lab
Robb Willer @robbwiller.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
Can AI voter guides help voters decide while remaining accurate, nonpartisan, and trustworthy? Very grateful to @stanfordimpactlabs.bsky.social for a new grant supporting our next work on this (building on work led by Joe Mernyk & Jonne Kamphorst): bsky.app/profile/robb...
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
Congrats to our own @robbwiller.bsky.social on being awarded the 2026 #GuggenheimFellowship for his outstanding and innovative work in #Sociology! Read more about the @guggfellows.bsky.social: www.gf.org/stories/anno...
gf.org
Announcing the 2026 Guggenheim Fellows — Guggenheim Fellowships: Supporting Artists, Scholars, & Scientists
Since 1925, the Guggenheim Foundation has given Fellowships to exceptional artists, writers, scholars, and scientists, empowering them to pursue meaningful work under the freest possible conditions.
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Reposted by Politics and Social Change Lab
Robb Willer @robbwiller.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
Very grateful to receive a Guggenheim Fellowship. I’ve been so lucky to have such incredible students, collaborators, and mentors. Above all, I feel very lucky that I get to work on topics I care so deeply about with collaborators who are also my friends.✊❤️ #guggfellows2026
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 13/04/2026
Thanks @austin-van-loon.bsky.social for sharing your creative work on how Americans' perceptions of the US influence their immigration policy attitudes!
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Reposted by Politics and Social Change Lab
Robb Willer @robbwiller.bsky.social · 03/04/2026
@nature.com has published three groundbreaking papers on reproducibility, analytical robustness, and replicability across the social sciences. Sincere thanks are due to the many folks who contributed to these projects. It’s painstaking work, and a great service to social science.
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Reposted by Politics and Social Change Lab
Robb Willer @robbwiller.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
Are you Chicago-bound for SPSP 2026? Quick plug to the Politics & Social Change Lab affiliates presenting talks & posters on coalitions, issue advocacy, media framing, inequality, social media & well-being, and other topics. Very proud of them and their work! 😀 Details below 👇
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
🎉 Congratulations 🎉 to our lab director @robbwiller.bsky.social who has been honored by @spspnews.bsky.social for his work applying social/behavioral science to public policy through collaborations w/ @whitehouse-47.bsky.social COVID response team, US DOJ, & @natlgovsassoc.bsky.social, among others!
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 19/02/2026
Thanks @pnasnexus.org for sharing our new work on AI authorship labeling and persuasion...check out their post to learn more! Paper link: ow.ly/KXeE50YhHag Isabel O. Gallegos, Chen Shani, @shi-weiyan.bsky.social, Federico Bianchi, Izzy Gainsburg, @jurafsky.bsky.social, @robbwiller.bsky.social
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 09/02/2026
Check out this super exciting work showing that AI-supported voter guides can be designed to be trustworthy and have a host of pro-democratic outcomes! @jsmernyk.bsky.social @jonnekamphorst.bsky.social @adambonica.bsky.social @robbwiller.bsky.social
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 28/01/2026
Thanks @gsb.stanford.edu for covering our work in their piece "How to Talk About Climate Change Across Political Divides" stanford.io/4jQi2Ct Amazing work from Jan Voelkel @nmalhotra.bsky.social @robbwiller.bsky.social & many others! Original article in Nature Climate Change: rdcu.be/e1cbZ
stanford.io
How to Talk About Climate Change Across Political Divides
A “tournament” of common climate messaging strategies finds which are more likely to sway opinions.
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 19/12/2025
Honored that our field experiment w Nat'l Governors Assoc won a 2025 Expy Award from Analyst Institute! Congrats to @chagaiweiss.bsky.social @robbwiller.bsky.social and Don Green! WP: osf.io/preprints/os... Join Analyst Group to build more effective strategies for greater impact bit.ly/ExpyJoin
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
Huge thanks to @cydneydupree.bsky.social for an insightful presentation of her work investigating how White Americans’ use of values-based language shapes cross-racial affiliation! @robbwiller.bsky.social
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 05/12/2025
Big thanks to Sarah Constantino for sharing her exciting research on social tipping points and climate change solutions with the lab this past Tuesday! @robbwiller.bsky.social
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 26/11/2025
Thank you to @myra.bsky.social for her recent insightful presentation on how sycophantic AI can reduce people’s willingness to take responsibility and repair interpersonal conflicts! @robbwiller.bsky.social
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
Thank you to Kasey Rhee for an exciting recent presentation on her work analyzing how party registration has shifted across demographic groups using an unprecedented dataset of six billion voter records! @robbwiller.bsky.social
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 22/11/2025
Proud to have our very own Ben Kinder present his undergraduate thesis research in our lab, focusing on pragmatic biases and strategic discrimination in American voting preferences. Excited to see where this work goes!
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
Thank you to @joshcjackson.bsky.social and Dan Medvedev for a fascinating recent lab presentation on how attitudes toward the rich vary globally! Innovative methods and fascinating findings, all around. @robbwiller.bsky.social
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 10/11/2025
Big thanks to @kobihackenburg.bsky.social for sharing his comprehensive research program on the capacity of AI-Human conversation to facilitate attitude change. Really exciting stuff!
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 05/11/2025
Awesome work by Jiayi Geng leading this preprint investigating then question, "Do LM assistants change their beliefs as context accumulates?"
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 23/10/2025
Thanks to Paul Lendway for presenting his work on sermon rhetoric and what it tells us about Evangelical alignment with the Republican Party. Looking forward to reading the book that comes out of this research! @robbwiller.bsky.social
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Reposted by Politics and Social Change Lab
Robb Willer @robbwiller.bsky.social · 07/10/2025
🚨New WP!🚨 Structured AI Dialogues Can Increase Happiness and Meaning in Life In a preregistered RCT, four psychology-grounded #AI chatbots improved well-being across several outcomes. Co-authors: Jonas Schoene, Johannes Eichstaedt, Aadesh Salecha, Sonja Lyubomirsky 🧵👇
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 06/10/2025
Very cool to see @robbwiller.bsky.social quoted in the @wsj.com talking about our work (led by @chagaiweiss.bsky.social) testing the effects testing the #DisagreeBetter ads: www.wsj.com/politics/min...
wsj.com
Meet the Lawmakers Trying to Bring Civility Back to Politics
In a growing movement, state legislators in Minnesota, Arkansas, Kansas and beyond are taking on America’s political rage. Opponents are “not the devil.”
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Robb Willer @robbwiller.bsky.social · 29/09/2025
Last night's @60minutes.bsky.social with Governor Spencer Cox offers a great chance to learn about the #DisagreeBetter campaign, an effort to encourage respectful and constructive political disagreement: www.cbsnews.com/video/928202...
cbsnews.com
9/28/2025: A Lonely Voice; The Mystery of the Eagle S; Dana White
First, a message from Utah Gov. Cox after the Charlie Kirk murder. Then, a report on undersea cable cutting in the Baltic Sea. And, UFC head Dana White: The 60 Minutes Interview.
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 20/09/2025
Many wise insights from Gov Spencer Cox & @ezraklein.bsky.social Gov Cox rightly notes his 2020 video w Chris Peterson was among most impactful in Strengthening Democracy Challenge, a striking example of cross-party engagement. Grateful for their commitment. Hear it: 👇 youtu.be/WJB87niNCk0
youtu.be
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Robb Willer @robbwiller.bsky.social · 12/09/2025
It is great to see Gov Spencer Cox stepping up to turn the temperature down and focus ppl on grieving the tragic killing of Charlie Kirk. Gov Cox has long promoted civility across party lines. Our research finds that his messages are persuasive when Americans see it. 👇
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Stanford HAI @stanfordhai.bsky.social · 31/07/2025
Does labeling AI content affect its persuasiveness? Our latest policy brief evaluates the impact of authorship labels on how people perceive AI-written policy messages. @jurafsky.bsky.social @robbwiller.bsky.social @federicobianchi.bsky.social hai.stanford.edu/policy/label...
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Reposted by Politics and Social Change Lab
Hidden Brain @hiddenbrain.bsky.social · 24/06/2025
We live in a world that feels more divided than ever. This week, we revisit an episode with sociologist Robb Willer and discuss how to bridge even the greatest divides. hiddenbrain.org/podcast/us-2...
hiddenbrain.org
Win Hearts, Then Minds + Your Questions Answered on Identity and "Covering" - Hidden Brain Media
This week, we bring you a favorite episode with sociologist Robb Willer. We discuss the common mistakes we make in trying to persuade others of our point of view — and how to break out of our echo cha...
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 17/06/2025
Fantastic piece from @robbwiller.bsky.social and @owasow.bsky.social on nonviolent resistance published in the @nytimes.com. Bravo! www.nytimes.com/2025/06/17/o...
nytimes.com
Opinion | This Is What Makes Protests Successful
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 12/06/2025
Congratulations to lab alumn @maxhuibai.bsky.social on the release of his academic party game, Publish or Perish! Very excited to have received our copies in the mail – thanks, Max! You can check out Max's game here 👇 publishorperish.games
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 05/06/2025
Thank you to @jonnekamphorst.bsky.social and David Broska for an engaging presentation on their work on support for predistributive and redistributive policies! @robbwiller.bsky.social @stanfordpacs.bsky.social
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 30/05/2025
Big thanks to Ariel Malka for a fascinating presentation in the lab this week on how cultural and economic ideologies shape anti-democratic sentiment across partisan lines! @robbwiller.bsky.social @stanfordpacs.bsky.social
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 22/05/2025
Compelling evidence in this new WP that AI can do "deep canvassing" and durably reduce prejudice and change policy attitudes. Very cool stuff from @tomcostello.bsky.social @gordpennycook.bsky.social @robbwiller.bsky.social @dgrand.bsky.social
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 21/05/2025
Very cool to see this research developed into a policy brief! Impactful work from a superstar team: @joon-s-pk.bsky.social @cqzou.bsky.social ‬ @aaronshaw.bsky.social @mako.cc Carrie Cai, Meredith Ringel Morris, @robbwiller.bsky.social Percy Liang, @mbernst.bsky.social
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 20/05/2025
‬Big thanks to @devorahmanekin.bsky.social for an engaging talk on how affective polarization may shape nonviolent resistance!
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 09/05/2025
Thank you Kylie Fuller for presenting your work on how extreme protest tactics affect legislators' support for climate activists and climate action. We look forward to seeing this project develop!
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 09/05/2025
Thank you to Minjae Kim for an engaging and insightful talk on cross-cutting ties among divided political elites last Tuesday!
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 24/04/2025
Big thanks to @simine.com for a thoughtful and engaging discussion on open science practices and strengthening trust in peer-reviewed research during her visit to the lab last week!
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 10/04/2025
Thanks to Ryan Liu for sharing his exciting work on simulating and predicting people using generative AI agents! We are looking forward to seeing how this project develops.
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 03/04/2025
A big thank you to Michael N. Stagnaro for sharing his compelling research addressing the ongoing challenge of distinguishing Bayesian from motivated reasoning. We look forward to seeing this project develop!
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Politics and Social Change Lab @pascl-stanford.bsky.social · 19/03/2025
Thanks to @chagaiweiss.bsky.social for sharing his recent RCT with us, which showed that receiving investment portfolios in energy markets—especially green energy—can increase belief in climate change, support for climate action, and pro-environmental behavior. Exciting and encouraging results!
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