Felicia Pratto

Professor and Director of Social Psychology

Psychological Sciences

Education

M.A., 1987, New York University
Ph.D., 1988, New York University

Webpages

Media Coverage

Automatic Vigilance and Negativity Biases

News of the Weird
Newsweek (Search for Pratto)

Political Psychology

Power Relations Between Groups

Negotiations Between High and Low Power Groups: Why Can’t We Be Friends?
The Irony of Harmony: Why Positive Interactions May Sometimes Be Negative

Objectification and Sexism

Editorials

Social Injustice

Research Interests

Intergroup Relations
Dynamics of Power
Social Cognition

Teaching

Undergraduate

Social Psychology (2700)
The Social Psychology of Power (3770)
Research Methods in Social Psychology (3771)

Graduate

Experimental methods in social and I/ O psychology (5701)
Theories of Intergroup Relations (6771)
Social Cognition (6773)

Students in Research

Dr. Pratto is taking inquiries from current UConn undergraduate students who wish to participate in her research program.
She IS consider admitting a new PhD student for matriculation fall, 2022.

Research Synopsis

Prof. Pratto’s research addresses the processes and consequences of inequality. Thus, her work is known in social psychology, political psychology, and related disciplines. Her research has addressed a variety of real-world issues, including race- and sex- discrimination in hiring, prejudice against lesbians, gay men, and immigrants, violations of International Humanitarian Law in war-time, terrorism and counter-terrorism, and the Arab uprisings. She uses a wide variety of research methods, from interactive games, to lab and field experiments, to international surveys and comparative studies (which compare different societies systematically). She is co-author of the book Social Dominance, and more recently, of Power Basis Theory.
Mentoring PhD students brings Dr. Pratto great joy and pride. Among her illustrious former students are Dr.s Lisa A. Stallworth, Peter J. Hegarty, Christie L. Cathey, Anthony F. Lemieux, Angela L. Walker, Demis E. Glasford, I-Ching Lee, Judy Y. Tan, Eileen V. Pitpitan, Kristin E. Henkel, Andrew L. Stewart, Fouad Bou Zeineddine, Leah B. Pound and Aerielle M. Allen.

Publications

Recent

Please look under Resources for scales, stimulus materials, etc. All SDO scales are free for research use and do not require any permissions to use.

Publications since 2014, indexed on Google Scholar

Huet, S., Gargiulo, F. & Pratto, F.( 2020). Potential origins of gender stratification: Gender differences in openness can produce gender strateification and glass ceiling effects. PLOS One. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0236840

Pratto, F. & Stewart, A. L. (June, 2020). Power Dynamics in Intergroup Relations. Current Opinion in Psychology, 33, 250-255. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2019.10.006

Pratto, F. (2020). Power and Social Inequality. Public Teaching Website for high school and college students, with original orientations to theories of power and problems of social inequality, suggested readings, free web-based resources, discussion questions, and tutorials about research methods and statistics. https://draft.psychofpower.uconn.edu/

Tesi, A., Aiello, A., Pratto, F. & Pierro, P. (2020). Group dominance in hierarchy-attenuating and hierarchy-enhancing organizations: The role of social dominance orientation, need for cognitive closure, and power tactics in a person-environment (mis)fit perspective. Group Dynamics, 124, 102-114.

Tesi, A., Aiello, A., Morselli, D., Giannetti, E., Pierro, A., & Pratto, F. (On-line May 10, 2019). Which people are willing to maintain their subordinated position? Social dominance orientation as antecedent to compliance to harsh power tactics in a higher education setting. Personality and Individual Differences. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2019.04.045

Tan, J. Y., Pratto, F., Conroy, A. A. & Lee, I. (2019). Leveraging power in intimate partner relationships: A Power Basis perspective. In C. R. Agnew & J. Harman (Eds.), Power in close relationships. New York: Cambridge, 72-85.

Moscatelli, S., Menegatti, M., Albarello, F., Pratto, F. and Rubini, M. (2019). Can We Identify with a Nation Low in Morality? The Heavy Weight of (Im)Morality in International Comparison. Political Psychology, 40, 93-110. doi:10.1111/pops.12504

Aiello, A., Passini, S., Tesi, A., Morselli, D., & Pratto, F. (2019). Measuring Support For Intergroup Hierarchies: Assessing The Psychometric Proprieties Of The Italian Social Dominance Orientation7 Scale. Testing, Psychometrics, and Measurement, 26, 373-383. doi:10.4473/ 26.3.4

Lee, I. & Pratto, F. (2018). In Nancy K. Dess, J. Maracek & L.C. Bell (Eds)., Gender, Sex, and Sexualities: Psychological Perspectives. New York: Oxford. 149-170.

Vargas-Salfate, S., Paez, D., Liu, J., Pratto, F. & Gil de Zúñiga, H. (2018). A comparison of social dominance theory and system justification: The role of social status in 19 nations. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, March, 1-17. DOI: 10.1177/0146167218757455

Liu, J. L. & Pratto, F. (2018). Colonization, Decolonization, and Power: Ruptures and Critical Junctures out of Dominance. In Phillip L. Hammack, Editor, Oxford Handbook of Social Psychology and Justice. New York: Oxford (pp. 261-280). DOI: 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199938735.013.11

Žeželj, I., Pratto, F., Maloku, E., Robaj, S., Turjačanin, V., & Branković, M. (Eds.) (2017). Shaping social identities after violent conflict: Youth in the Western Balkans. London: Palgrave.

Aiello, A., Tesi, A., Pierro, A., Pratto, F. (2017). Social dominance and interpersonal power: Asymmetrical relationships within Hierarchy-enhancing and Hierarchy-attenuating work environments. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 48, 35-45. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jasp.12488/full

Prati, F., Moscatelli, S., Pratto, F., & Rubini, M. (2017). Multiple and counter-stereotypic categorization of immigrants: The moderating role of political orientation on interventions to reduce prejudice. Political Psychology. doi: 10.1111/pops.12445

Stewart, A. L., Pratto, F., Bou Zeineddine, F., Sweetman, J., Eicher, V., Licata, L., … & Cichocka, A. (2016). International support for the Arab uprisings: Understanding sympathy protests using theories of Social Identity and Social Dominance. Group Processes and Intergroup Relations, 19, 6-26. DOI: 10.1177/1368430214558310

Bou Zeineddine, F. & Pratto, F. (February, 2017). The Need for Power and the Power of Need: Towards a universalist political psychology. Advances in Political Psychology, 38, 3-35. DOI: 10.1111/pops.12389

Levin, S., Kteily, N., Pratto, F., Sidanius, J., & Matthews, M. (2016). Muslims’ emotions toward Americans predict support for Hezbollah and Al Qaeda for threat-specific reasons. Motivation and Emotion, 40, 162-177. DOI 10.1007/s11031-015-9510-1

Pratto, F. (Dec. 22, 2015 on line). On power and empowerment. British Journal of Social Psychology. DOI: 0.1111/bjso.12135

Prati, F., Moscatelli, S., Rubini, M., & Pratto, F. (2015). Predicting Support for Arabs’ Autonomy from Social Dominance: The Role of Identity Complexity and Dehumanization. Political Psychology. DOI: 10.1111/pops.12274

Ho, A. K., Sidanius, J. Kteily, N., Sheehy-Skeffington, J. Pratto, F. Henkel, K. E., Foels, R., Stewart, A. L. (2015). The Nature of Social Dominance Orientation: Theorizing and Measuring Preferences for Intergroup Inequality Using the New SDO7 Scale. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 109, 1003-1038.

Sidanius, J., Kteily, N., Levin, S., Pratto, F. & Obaidi, M. (2015). Support for Asymmetric Violence among Arab Populations: The Clash of Cultures, Social Identity, or Counter-Dominance? Group Processes and Intergroup Relations, 19(3), 343-359. doi:10.1177/1368430215577224 Paper is here

LaCroix, J. & Pratto, F. (2015). Instrumentality and the denial of personhood: The social psychology of objectifying others. International Review of Social Psychology, 28, 183-212. Paper is here

Paper is here Levi

n, S., Roccas, S., Sidanius, J. & Pratto, F. (2015). Personal values and intergroup outcomes of concern for group honor. Personality and Individual Differences, 86, 374-384. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2015.06.047

Pratto, F., Saguy, T., Stewart, A.L., Morselli, D., Foels, R., Aranda, M., Aiello, A., Chryssochoou, X., Cichocka, A., Çidam, A., Cohrs, C., Durrheim, K., Eicher, V., Górska, P., Lee, I., Licata, L., Li, L., Liu, J., Meyer, I., Muldoon, O., Muluk, H., Petrovic, N., Prati, F., Papastamou, S., Petrovic, I., Prodromitis, G., Rubini, M., van Stekelenburg, J., Sweetman, J., Zheng, W., Henkel, K.E. (2014). Attitudes towards Arab ascendancy: Israeli and global perspectives. Psychological Science, 25, 85-94.

Glasford, D. E. & Pratto, F. (2014). When extraordinary injustice leads to ordinary response: How perpetrator power and size of an injustice event affect bystander efficacy and collective action. European Journal of Social Psychology. Online DOI: 10.1002/ejsp.2051.

Tan, J. Y., Earnshaw, V. A., Pratto, F., Rosenthal, L. & Kalichman, S. (2014). Social-structural indices correspond to between-nations differences in HIV prevalence. International Journal of Sexually Transmitted Diseases and AIDS. doi:10.1177/0956462414529264

Older Favorites

Lee, I., Pratto, F., & Johnson, B. T. (2011). Support of social hierarchy: Individualistic cultures, liberal political environments, and decreased power increase intergroup dissension. Psychological Bulletin, 137, 1029-1064.
Pratto, F., Sidanius, J., Bou Zeineddine, F., Kteily, N., & Levin, S. (2013). When domestic politics and international relations intermesh: Subordinated publics’ factional support within layered power structures. Foreign Policy Analysis, 1-22. doi: 10.1111/fpa.12023

Pratto, F., Stewart, A. L., & Bou Zeineddine, F. (2013). When inequality fails: Power, group dominance, and societal change. Journal of Social and Political Psychology. doi: 10.1177/0956797613497021 Link

Pratto, F. & Pitpitan, E. V. (2008). Ethnocentrism and sexism: How stereotypes legitimize six types of power relations. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 2/6, 2159-2176.

Pratto, F., Pearson, A. R., Lee, I., & Saguy, T. (2008). Power dynamics in an experimental game. Social Justice Research, 21,377-407.

Pratto, F., & Glasford, D. E. (2008). Prospect theory, ethnocentrism, and the value of a human life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 95, 1141-1428.

Pratto, F., Korchmaros, J., & Hegarty, P. (2007). When race and gender go without saying. Social Cognition, 25, 241-247.

Pratto, F., Sidanius, J., & Levin, S. (2006). Social dominance theory and the dynamics of intergroup relations: Taking stock and looking forward. In W. Stroebe & M. Hewstone (Eds)., European Review of Social Psychology, 17, 271-320.

Email	felicia.pratto@uconn.edu
Phone	860.486.4772
Mailing Address	Unit 1020
Office Location	Bousfield 177
Campus	Storrs
Link	Intergroup Relations Social Psychology

Department of Psychological Sciences