CV

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SCOTT A. AKALIS

 

Email:

Webpage: www.aboutscott.com

Phone: (312) 795-7367

 

Office Address:

21 S. Clark St., Suite 2900

Chicago, IL 60603

 

 

Education

 

Ph.D., Harvard University, 2007

Social Psychology

 

M.A., Harvard University, 2004

Social Psychology

 

B.A., Northwestern University, summa cum laude, 2002

Dual Majors: Psychology (honors) & Multidisciplinary Models of the Mind (ad hoc)

 

Academic Honors & Fellowships

 

2006                       Society for Personality & Social Psychology Runner-Up Poster Award

2003-06                  George W. Goethals Teaching Prize

2002 (2004-07)        National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowship

2002 (2002-04)        Harvard University Graduate Fellowship

2002                       Jacob K. Javits Graduate Fellowship (declined)

2002                       Northwestern University “MayCourt” Member, Scholarship Category

2001-02                  Northwestern Honors Program in Psychology

2001                       Rhodes Scholarship Competition, Semi-Finalist

2001                       Phi Beta Kappa (as junior)

2001                       Golden Key International Honour Society (declined)

1998-02                  Northwestern University College Scholar

1998                       National Merit Scholar

 

Academic Leadership Activities

 

2005-07                  Harvard Psychology Department Study Pool Committee member

2005-06                  Harvard Social Psychology Research Workshop Committee member

2004                       Research Fellow at the Mind & Life Summer Institute for Meditation Research

2002-03                  Graduate Student Council Representative for the Harvard Psychology Department

2000-02                  Student Activities Board Representative for the Northwestern Psychology Department

2000-01                  President of Northwestern Undergraduate Psychology Association

2000                       Graduate of Northwestern Undergraduate Leadership Program

1999-01                  Justice on the Northwestern Associated Student Government Judicial Board

1996, 97                  Odyssey of the Mind State Championship Team Member (creative problem-solving competition)

 

Teaching & Advising Experience

 

2005-07                  Undergraduate Honors Thesis Co-Supervisor at Harvard (5 students)

2003-07                  Undergraduate Research (Psy 910r) Co-Supervisor at Harvard (2-6 students each year)

2003-07                  Academic Advisor for Harvard Psychology Concentrators (~25 students each year)

2003-06                  Instructor of Sophomore Tutorial: “The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly of Psychology”

Self-designed, year-long undergraduate seminar course at Harvard

2003-06                  Non-resident Tutor of Psychology for Kirkland House at Harvard

Advising and taking part in house activities with undergraduates

2000                       Faculty Instructor for the Leadership division of the National High School Institute at Northwestern

2000                       Teaching Assistant for Northwestern’s Undergraduate Leadership Program

1995-97; 1999         Mathematics and Reading Tutor for National Honors Society & the America Reads Program

 

Research Publications

 

Akalis, S. A., Nannapaneni, J., & Banaji, M. R. (under review). Manual shifts in automatic preferences: The

      effect of self-generated associations on implicit attitudes.

 

Akalis, S. A., Banaji, M. R., & Kosslyn, S. M. (2008). Crime alert!: How thinking about a single suspect automatically

      shifts stereotypes toward an entire group. Du Bois Review, 5.

 

Akalis, S. A. (2008). A new spin on losses looming larger than gains: Asymmetric implicit associations

from slot machine experience. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 21, 378-398.

 

Epley, N., Waytz, A., Akalis, S., & Cacioppo, J. T. (2008). When we need a human: Motivational determinants

      of anthropomorphism. Social Cognition, 26, 143-155.

 

Epley, N., Akalis, S., Waytz, A., & Cacioppo, J. T. (2008). Creating social connection through inferential

      reproduction: Loneliness and perceived agency in gadgets, gods, and greyhounds. Psychological Science, 19,

114-120.

 

Research Presentations

 

Akalis, S. A. (May, 2007). A new spin on losses looming larger than gains: Asymmetric implicit associations from slot machine experience. Oral defense of

dissertation at the Harvard Psychology Department, Cambridge, MA.

 

Adams, R., Akalis, S., Banaji, M. R., & Pittinsky, T.L. (January, 2007). The effects of implicit attitude awareness on mock juror decision-making. Poster

presentation at the Society of Personality and Social Psychology, Memphis, TN.

 

Akalis, S. A. (January, 2007). Las Vegas in the lab: Implicit experiences of losses looming larger than gains. Poster presentation at the Society of Personality and

Social Psychology, Memphis, TN.

 

Akalis, S. A., Nannapaneni, J., & Banaji, M. R. (January, 2006). Do-it-yourself mental makeovers: How self-generated thoughts shift implicit attitudes. Poster

presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Palm Springs, CA.

 

Akalis, S. A., Nannapaneni, J., & Banaji, M. R. (June, 2005). Implicit attitude change: Can do-it-yourself debiasing work? Poster presented at the Association for

 the Scientific Study of Consciousness, Pasadena, CA.

 

Epley, N., & Akalis, S. A. (February, 2005). Detecting versus enhancing anthropomorphic agents: The divergent effects of fear and loneliness. Paper presented in

“Other minds? How people perceive non-human agents,” T. Chartrand (Chair), Society for Personality and Social Psychology, New Orleans, LA.

 

Akalis, S. A., Nannapaneni, J., & Banaji, M. R. (February, 2005). Meditating on malleability: Implicit attitude change via concentration. Poster presented at the

Society for Personality and Social Psychology, New Orleans, LA.

 

Akalis, S. A., & Banaji, M. R. (November, 2004). Compassion & context-independent implicit attitude change. Paper presented at the Harvard Social Psychology

Research Workshop, Cambridge, MA.

 

Akalis, S. A., & Banaji, M. R. (May, 2004). Buddha, big bellies, & blizzards: Implicit attitude malleability via concentration. Paper presented to the Harvard

Psychology Department, Cambridge, MA.

 

Akalis, S. A., & Banaji, M. R. (January, 2004). Prime & prejudice: Exploratory studies on eliciting tolerance. Poster presented at the Society for Personality and

Social Psychology, Austin, TX.

 

Akalis, S. A., & Banaji, M. R. (April, 2003). God & groups: A divine perspective on social cognition. Paper presented at the Harvard Social Psychology Research

Workshop, Cambridge, MA.

 

Research Grants

 

2005                       Tom Slick Research Award in Consciousness to M. R. Banaji, S. A. Akalis, & J. Nannapaneni

2004, 2005              Gordon Allport Restricted Funds Grants

2001                       Benton J. Underwood Summer Research Fellowship

2001                       Northwestern University Grant for Undergraduate Summer Research (declined)

1998-02                  Northwestern University College Scholar Research Stipend

 

Research Experience

 

2002-03                  Akalis, S. A., & Banaji, M. R. (unpublished). Prime & prejudice: Exploratory studies on eliciting tolerance.

2001-02                  Akalis, S. A., & Gardner, W. (unpublished honors thesis). Play-Doh & perseverance: Exploring the positive consequences of creative

experience.

2001                       Akalis, S. A., & Gardner, W. (unpublished undergraduate project). Denying death by affirming stereotypes.

2000-02                  Research Assistant for Dr. Wendi Gardner at Northwestern University

1999-00                  Research Assistant for Dr. Neal Roese at Northwestern University

 

Research Interests

 

Implicit Attitude Dynamics:

Change, Mental Control

Formation

Applications for social cognition, economics, & marketing

Economics & Risk

Anthropomorphism & Zoomorphism

Physical Attraction & Sexuality

Creativity

Religion