Cognitive Neuroscience of Communication–Connecticut: CNC-CT

Assistant Professor in Residence. Yale, School of Management.

The Cognitive Science Colloquium Series is proud to present Richard Ashby Wilson, Professor of Law and Anthropology and Gladstein Chair of Human Rights at UConn.

Friday, February 22nd, 4pm, Oak 117

Title: The Psychology of Incitement and Hate Speech: A Dialogue Between Law and Social Science

We live in an era of nativist populism, characterized by speech that incites violence on social media, and an escalation in hate crimes. Recent social science research has identified a correlation between online incitement and offline hate crimes in the United States and Europe. What kinds of speech are the most likely to instigate acts of violence? The current research identifies revenge propaganda as the most likely type to instigate atrocities. We coded 242 speeches by a Serbian politician for references to revenge, nationalism, stereotyping, dehumanization, justice, victimization, past atrocities, political institutions and direct threats. After reading one speech or a control, participants answered questions about empathy, intentionality, and whether violence is morally justifiable. Only speeches focusing on revenge and past atrocities intensified justifications of violence. Only revenge speech increased overall negative attitudes towards the out-group. On the level of personality, those who are more politically conservative, feel the world is unjust, engage more in violent media and are male are more likely to justify violence. These findings have implications for the elusive goal of preventing atrocities. The regulatory framework established fifty years ago in the United States is showing signs of severe strain, and this research draws upon behavioral research to construct a systematic evidence-based framework for analyzing the risk that inciting speech will result in imminent lawless action.

If you are interested in meeting with Professor Wilson on 2/22, please contact Dr. Xygalatas: dimitris.xygalatas@uconn.edu

Graduate Student. UConn, Social Psychology.

Brian Hitsman, PhD
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

Thursday, February 28, 2019
12:30 – 1:30pm

"Population health management for smoking cessation in low income smokers"

**About the Speaker**

Dr. Brian Hitsman is Associate Professor of Preventive Medicine & Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, Illinois, and a member of the Robert H Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center. He received his BS in psychology from Alma College (Michigan) and MS and PhD in clinical health psychology from the Chicago Medical School, finishing his psychology internship in health/psychology behavioral medicine at Brown University's Clinical Psychology Training Consortium. He completed a two-year fellowship in tobacco dependence and treatment in 2004 in the Transdisciplinary Tobacco Use Research Center at Brown, and was on the faculty until leaving for Northwestern in 2008. Dr. Hitsman’s work focuses on the causes and treatment of tobacco use and dependence among disadvantaged and underserved adult populations.

InCHIP will send requests for RSVPs and updates through the CHIP-L listserv. To subscribe, visit: http://chip.uconn.edu/chip-business-office/listserv/.

Visit our webpage to view the 2018-2019 InCHIP Lecture Series lineup, access the live web stream (when available), view the archives, and learn more about the lecture series: https://chip.uconn.edu/lecture-series/2018-2019-lecture-series/.

The Meaning Group will have a special meeting Wednesday, March 6, at 9:30am in Oak Hall 338. We will have a guest speaker, Chris Tancredi (Keio University, Japan). Title to be announced.

The UConn Meaning Group meets on a regular (mostly weekly) basis throughout the academic year to discuss recent and ongoing work in the areas of Semantics, Pragmatics, and Philosophy of Language.

Follow the link below for details and contact information.

Lehigh University, Psychology and Africana Studies.