Alysson Light is an Associate Instructional Professor in the Department of Psychology and the College. She teaches in the College’s Mind sequence and classes in Psychology such as Research Methods, Close Relationships, and Stereotyping and Prejudice. In addition, she is the Principal Investigator for the Undergraduate Social Psychology Lab.

Alysson received her PhD from the University of Chicago in 2013, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at Duke University, and six years as an Assistant Professor at the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia (now part of St. Joseph’s University.) Her research focuses on the self-concept, especially self-concept clarity and self-certainty. Her work considers why people sometimes value certainty and internal consistency over accuracy in self-knowledge. She especially explores negative impacts of self-uncertainty for goal pursuit and self-control. Finally, she is interested in how support from others can scaffold goal pursuit for people who feel uncertain about themselves.

In addition to her personal research program, Alysson mentors undergraduates in independent research in social psychology through the Undergraduate Social Psychology lab. She collaborates with students on projects across the spectrum of social/personality psychology, including social perception, stereotyping/prejudice, personality traits like narcissism, and intergroup relations.