Liz Quinn-Jensen

Developing Intuitions That Close Friends Know the Content of Each Other’s Minds Abstract. To maintain and develop close relationships, people need to accurately represent the minds of their social partners. Although studies have characterized many aspects of children’s intuitive ...

New paper in Open Mind, with @emmayu23.bsky.social, Megan Richardson, and @ashleyjthomas.bsky.social! We find that by 6 years of age, children think that close friends know the content of each other’s minds.

direct.mit.edu/opmi/article...

@openmindjournal.bsky.social

My former advisor is recruiting a grad student. I can't suggest her or my former lab mates enough! Happy to answer any questions about UCSB or the lab.

Seems like a particularly cruel change to make without warning given the stress that reviewers often put on applicants' publication record. Presumably many strong students waited based on this apparent criterion, not because they didn't already have great ideas to propose.

Bi+ Reality: An Investigation on Filipinos’ Attitude Regarding Bisexuality - Sexuality & Culture Bisexuality challenges the often rigid, binary understanding of sexuality prevalent in many societies, but it often remains invisible. Despite its inclusion within the diverse spectrum of human sexuality, it continues to face erasure—often fueled by biphobia and prejudice both within society at large and the LGBTQ+ community itself. This study sheds light on the attitudes of gender and sexual orientation toward bisexuality and provides significant empirical data within the Filipino context. The Attitudes Regarding Bisexuality Scale—Female/Male Form, the Attitudes Regarding Bisexuality Scale—Female Form, and the Attitudes Regarding Bisexuality Scale—Male Form were used to gather different perspectives among 453 Filipinos. Results revealed that cisgender heterosexual Filipinos, particularly heterosexual men, display the highest levels of biphobia. In contrast, bisexual individuals, especially bisexual women, exhibit the least biphobic tendencies. This study also allows for nuanced comparisons among the LGBTQ+ community, which highlights intra-community biases such as lesbian women harboring biphobia toward bisexual women but not toward bisexual men. Additionally, bisexual men face more negative attitudes compared to bisexual women in our Filipino sample. These findings contributed to addressing the knowledge gaps in Southeast Asian cultural contexts as well as underscore the need for further research and strategies to combat biphobia and foster inclusivity within and beyond the LGBTQ+ community.

#MorningReads Bisexuality remains stigmatized even within LGBTQ+ spaces. A study of 453 Filipinos finds cishet men show the most biphobia while bi women show the least. Results reveal intra-community bias—lesbian women hold more negative views of bi women than bi men #Biphobia #BiAwarenessWeek

Interesting new study on friendships across political divide

journals.sagepub.com/doi/epub/10....

In our research (onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....), relationship satisfaction was an important moderator of cross-political-divide relationship outcomes.

The Self & Identity Preconference provides a forum for discussion and investigation of the complexity of the individual and the collective self. This year's preconference introduces a special focus on activism and allyship, highlighting factors facilitating the formation of activist and ally identities and barriers to identifying as activists or allies. This preconference will explore the impact of context in shaping activist identification and consider the role of the current socio-political climate on our ability to advocate for our "selves" and for others. In addition to several speakers, the preconference will also include presentations by scholarly award winners, a poster session, an early-career data blitz, and a mentoring/networking session.

Announcing SPSP's 2026 Self & Identity precon (bit.ly/4mn2WDT), which will have a timely focus on activist and ally identities. We have a phenomenal set of speakers (Linda Tropp! Kim Rios! Lucy De Souza! Teri Kirby! Dan McAdams!) and are accepting data blitz and poster submissions until Oct 23!

Princeton is running its Presidential Postdoctoral Program again this year. If you are interested in applying to work with me, please reach out by October 10 so that I can consider all interested applicants and support a candidate for my lab this year.
dof.princeton.edu/faculty-deve...

Title page of the paper "Merging in Close Relationships"

Excited to share a new paper in Current Directions on the theme of merging in close relationships, with @emmamcgorray.bsky.social, @erinhughes.bsky.social , and @abdoe.bsky.social! In the paper, we discuss merging in the domains of selves, goals, processing, and reality. tinyurl.com/ynbedzys (1/4)

Job alert: I'm hiring a postdoc for my lab at CU Boulder starting Fall 2026!

We study person perception, stereotyping & prejudice, and intervention science using behavioral & neuroimaging methods.

Link: jobs.colorado.edu/jobs/JobDeta...

Review starts Nov 1 and continues until filled.

Three students sitting on grass outdoors, studying with notebooks and a laptop on a cool day in casual fall clothing.

🤝Mentorship opportunity for grad students: SPSP is accepting applicants for mentors (3rd year grad students and beyond) to connect with fellow psych students as part of our Peer Advising program!

🗓️Applications due September 16

Learn more and apply here: ow.ly/wbik50WLkWc

New paper accepted at JEP:G with @sakierahudson.bsky.social, Brandon Kinsler, & former students Ian Davis and Alissa Vandenbark!

Come for the opening Aladdin quote, stay for a developmental perspective on SDO!

osf.io/preprints/ps...

Newly accepted in PSPB! We examined whether Asian and Black Americans perceived one another through a zero-sum lens. Inspired by the SCOTUS affirmative action decisions, I wanted to know if Asians thought they were losing to Black people and how this mindset affects coalition
osf.io/preprints/ps...

A new piece - well, almost a whole book! - by our team, reflecting more than a decade of work.

As Trump closes LGBTQ+ hotline, here’s where you can still find help As of Thursday, July 17, a federal program that provides emergency crisis support to LGBTQ+ youth at risk of suicide will be shut down.

As Trump closes LGBTQ+ suicide prevention hotline, here’s where you can still find help

You're a rockstar! ✨

a cartoon of homer simpson and bart simpson sitting on a couch with the words join us above them . Alt: a cartoon of homer simpson and bart simpson sitting on a couch with the words join us above them .

Just found out I can put this gif on my lab website so this is gonna be a game changer 😂 Anyway I will be reviewing PhD applications for UIC social-personality psych area to start in Fall 2026, so please let your students know. More info on my website: www.pbandjlab.com/team

Junior Specialist-Lab for Infant Learning And Cognition (LILAC), Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences University of California Santa Barbara is hiring. Apply now!

I'm hiring a full-time #labmanager for my new Lab for Infant Learning and Cognition (LILAC) at UCSB! The start date is flexible, but could be as early as August 1, 2025. Application review begins July 17th and will continue until the position is filled 👶🪴

recruit.ap.ucsb.edu/JPF02992

#academicjobs

New paper with past honors student Vanessa Chao and @zoeliberman.bsky.social in press at JECP:

“Children can consider social relationships when evaluating liars”

By the early elementary school years, people judge it as worse and meaner for a friend (vs. classmate) to lie.

doi.org/10.1016/j.je...

In three studies, we show that White U.S. adults were more likely to infer that a target had faced discrimination when the target’s competitor highlighted a lower status aspect of the target’s identity.

We argue that because people hold multiple social identities, which vary in their perceived status, the identity of a target’s competitor (i.e., the person who benefits from the outcome) can change how likely the same target is to be seen as a victim.

The Comparative Status Hypothesis: Inferences About Discrimination Vary Based on Identity Salience - Elizabeth A. Quinn-Jensen, Anh L. K. Tran, Sara E. Burke, Brenda Major, Zoe Liberman, 2025 Past research examining when people label an outcome as discrimination has largely ignored contextual factors beyond the victim–perpetrator dyad. We contend tha...

Excited that this paper is finally out (in collaboration with @zoeliberman.bsky.social @saraburke.bsky.social & Brenda Major) in PSPB!

journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

Remember that Trump’s assault on queer and trans people is not a “distraction” from his fascist takeover of our democratic institutions. On the contrary, gender and sexual policing is foundational to fascism and they will not stop until they impose the hetero-patriarchal nuclear family on everybody.

Proud to have been co-awarded the UCSB PBS Charles G. McClintock Award (with Connor Gibbs) for Research, Education, & Service. It’s an honor to share this award with all the amazing researchers that came before me! 🌟

Photo credit: @corabaron.bsky.social

Tagged: @zoeliberman.bsky.social

Thanks!!!

Officially Dr. Quinn-Jensen! 🌟🙌🎉

Grateful every day for the people who helped get here, especially my advisors & committee members: @zoeliberman.bsky.social , Brenda Major, @kyleratner.bsky.social , & @saraburke.bsky.social.

Donate Stand Up for Science is fiscally sponsored by the Coalition for the Advancement & Application of Psychological Science, a 501(c)3 nonprofit. Donations can be accepted through Paypal at Keep you…

Just donated to @standupforscience.bsky.social to help this massive organizing effort.

If you have the means and inclination, you can donate at standupforscience2025.org/donate/

I'll also be presenting research with @zoeliberman.bsky.social & @saraburke.bsky.social on when people make attributions to discrimination. We show that the social identity of the person who benefits from an outcome changes how likely the same person is to be seen as a victim of discrimination.

I'll be presenting some of my dissertation research with @zoeliberman.bsky.social on judgements of contextual racial presentation tomorrow at the #spsp2025 self & identity preconference poster session tomorrow. Stop by!

❤️