Bio


Professor Miller’s research focuses on various aspects of social and group behavior. Long interested in social norms, he has investigated the processes underlying the development, transmission, and modification of group norms. He has been especially interested in the emergence and perpetuation of social norms that lack broad support. A second focus of his research is the origins of people’s commitment to social justice and the role that justice plays in social life. He has also studied and written on the sources and cures of cultural conflict.

Professor Miller has served on the editorial board of several scientific journals and currently serves on the editorial board of several scientific journals and currently serves on the editorial boards of the Social Justice Research, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, and Psychological Inquiry. He has received numerous awards and has been a Visiting Fellow at both the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (Stanford) and the Institute for Advanced Study (Princeton).

At Stanford University since 2002, he is the Class of 1968 / Ed Zschau Professor of Organizational Behavior. He currently teaches the MBA course on Critical Analytical Thinking. He also is the Faculty Director of Stanford’s Center of Social Innovation.

Academic Appointments


  • Professor, Organizational Behavior
  • Professor, Psychology

Administrative Appointments


  • Assistant Professor, University of Western Ontario (1974 - 1977)
  • Assistant to Associate Professor, University of British Columbia (1977 - 1981)
  • Fellow, Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University (1980 - 1981)
  • Visiting Professor, University of Michigan (1983 - 1983)
  • Visiting Professor, Princeton University (1984 - 1984)
  • Associate to Full Professor, Simon Fraser University (1981 - 1986)
  • Visiting Professor, New York University (1993 - 1993)
  • Professor, Princeton University (1986 - 2002)
  • Member, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton University (2001 - 2002)
  • Professor, Graduate School of Business, Stanford University (2002 - Present)
  • Professor, Psychology, Stanford University (2002 - Present)
  • Fellow, Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University (2008 - 2009)

Boards, Advisory Committees, Professional Organizations


  • Member, American Psychological Association
  • Member, American Psychological Society
  • Member, Law and Society Association
  • Member, Society for Experimental Social Psychology
  • Member, Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues
  • Member, Society for Personality and Social Psychology
  • Member, International Society for Justice Research
  • Member, Editorial Board, Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science (1982 - 1986)
  • Member, Editorial Board, Social Justice Research (2003)
  • Member, Editorial Board, Stanford Social Innovation Review (2002 - 2010)
  • Assistant Editor, Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science (1979 - 1980)
  • Consulting Editor, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (1978 - 1985)
  • Consulting Editor, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (1990 - 2005)
  • Reviewer, Psychological Inquiry (2002)
  • Advisory Editor, Contemporary Psychology (1990 - 1991)
  • Guest Co-Editor for Special Issue on "The self and the collective", Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin

Professional Education


  • Ph.D., University of Waterloo (1975)
  • M.A., York University (1972)
  • B.A., University of Victoria (1971)

2023-24 Courses


Stanford Advisees


All Publications


  • A dynamic perspective on moral choice: Revisiting moral hypocrisy ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR AND HUMAN DECISION PROCESSES Lin, S. C., Miller, D. T. 2021; 164: 203-217
  • From whom do we learn group norms? Low-ranking group members are perceived as the best sources ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR AND HUMAN DECISION PROCESSES Dannals, J. E., Reit, E. S., Miller, D. T. 2020; 161: 213–27
  • Being "Good" or "Good Enough": Prosocial Risk and the Structure of Moral Self-Regard JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Zlatev, J. J., Kupor, D. M., Laurin, K., Miller, D. T. 2020; 118 (2): 242–53

    Abstract

    The motivation to feel moral powerfully guides people's prosocial behavior. We propose that people's efforts to preserve their moral self-regard conform to a moral threshold model. This model predicts that people are primarily concerned with whether their prosocial behavior legitimates the claim that they have acted morally, a claim that often diverges from whether their behavior is in the best interests of the recipient. Specifically, it predicts that for people to feel moral following a prosocial decision, that decision need not have promised the greatest benefit for the recipient but only one larger than at least one other available outcome. Moreover, this model predicts that once people produce a benefit that exceeds this threshold, their moral self-regard is relatively insensitive to the magnitude of benefit that they produce. In 6 studies, we test this moral threshold model by examining people's prosocial risk decisions. We find that, compared with risky egoistic decisions, people systematically avoid making risky prosocial decisions that carry the possibility of producing the worst possible outcome in a choice set-even when this means avoiding a decision that is objectively superior. We further find that this aversion to producing the worst possible prosocial outcome leads people's prosocial (vs. egoistic) risk decisions to be less sensitive to those decisions' maximum possible benefit. We highlight theoretical and practical implications of these findings, including the detrimental consequence that people's desire to protect their moral self-regard can have on the amount of good that they produce. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

    View details for DOI 10.1037/pspa0000175

    View details for Web of Science ID 000506843600002

    View details for PubMedID 31718196

  • Behavioral Processes in Long-Lag Intervention Studies. Perspectives on psychological science Miller, D. T., Dannals, J. E., Zlatev, J. J. 2017; 12 (3): 454-467

    Abstract

    We argue that psychologists who conduct experiments with long lags between the manipulation and the outcome measure should pay more attention to behavioral processes that intervene between the manipulation and the outcome measure. Neglect of such processes, we contend, stems from psychology's long tradition of short-lag lab experiments where there is little scope for intervening behavioral processes. Studying process in the lab invariably involves studying psychological processes, but in long-lag field experiments it is important to study causally relevant behavioral processes as well as psychological ones. To illustrate the roles that behavioral processes can play in long-lag experiments we examine field experiments motivated by three policy-relevant goals: prejudice reduction, health promotion, and educational achievement. In each of the experiments discussed we identify various behavioral pathways through which the manipulated psychological state could have produced the observed outcome. We argue that if psychologists conducting long-lag interventions posited a theory of change that linked manipulated psychological states to outcomes via behavioral pathways, the result would be richer theory and more practically useful research. Movement in this direction would also permit more opportunities for productive collaborations between psychologists and other social scientists interested in similar social problems.

    View details for DOI 10.1177/1745691616681645

    View details for PubMedID 28544860

  • Selfishly benevolent or benevolently selfish: When self-interest undermines versus promotes prosocial behavior ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR AND HUMAN DECISION PROCESSES Zlatev, J. J., Miller, D. T. 2016; 137: 112-122
  • Changing Norms to Change Behavior. Annual review of psychology Miller, D. T., Prentice, D. A. 2016; 67: 339-61

    Abstract

    Providing people with information about the behavior and attitudes of their peers is a strategy commonly employed by those seeking to reduce behavior deemed harmful either to individuals (e.g., high alcohol consumption) or the collective (e.g., high energy consumption). We review norm-based interventions, detailing the logic behind them and the various forms they can take. We give special attention to interventions designed to decrease college students' drinking and increase environment-friendly behaviors. We identify the conditions under which norm information has the highest likelihood of changing the targeted behavior and discuss why this is the case.

    View details for DOI 10.1146/annurev-psych-010814-015013

    View details for PubMedID 26253542

  • Changing Norms to Change Behavior ANNUAL REVIEW OF PSYCHOLOGY, VOL 67 Miller, D. T., Prentice, D. A. 2016; 67: 339-361

    Abstract

    Providing people with information about the behavior and attitudes of their peers is a strategy commonly employed by those seeking to reduce behavior deemed harmful either to individuals (e.g., high alcohol consumption) or the collective (e.g., high energy consumption). We review norm-based interventions, detailing the logic behind them and the various forms they can take. We give special attention to interventions designed to decrease college students' drinking and increase environment-friendly behaviors. We identify the conditions under which norm information has the highest likelihood of changing the targeted behavior and discuss why this is the case.

    View details for DOI 10.1146/annurev-psych-010814-015013

    View details for Web of Science ID 000368344500015

  • Do as I say, not as I've done: Suffering for a misdeed reduces the hypocrisy of advising others against it ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR AND HUMAN DECISION PROCESSES Effron, D. A., Miller, D. T. 2015; 131: 16-32
  • The unhealthy road not taken: Licensing indulgence by exaggerating counterfactual sins JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Effron, D. A., Monin, B., Miller, D. T. 2013; 49 (3): 573-578
  • Psychological levers of behavior change Behavioral foundations of policy Miller, D. T., Prentice, D. A. edited by Shafir, E. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. 2013: 301–309
  • Inventing Racist Roads Not Taken: The Licensing Effect of Immoral Counterfactual Behaviors JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Effron, D. A., Miller, D. T., Monin, B. 2012; 103 (6): 916-932

    Abstract

    Six experiments examined how people strategically use thoughts of foregone misdeeds to regulate their moral behavior. We tested 2 hypotheses: 1st, that people will feel licensed to act in morally dubious ways when they can point to immoral alternatives to their prior behavior, and 2nd, that people made to feel insecure about their morality will exaggerate the extent to which such alternatives existed. Supporting the 1st hypothesis, when White participants could point to racist alternatives to their past actions, they felt they had obtained more evidence of their own virtue (Study 1), they expressed less racial sensitivity (Study 2), and they were more likely to express preferences about employment and allocating money that favored Whites at the expense of Blacks (Study 3). Supporting the 2nd hypothesis, White participants whose security in their identity as nonracists had been threatened remembered a prior task as having afforded more racist alternatives to their behavior than did those who were not threatened. This distortion of the past involved overestimating the number of Black individuals they had encountered on the prior task (Study 4) and exaggerating how stereotypically Black specific individuals had looked (Studies 5 and 6). We discuss implications for moral behavior, the motivated rewriting of one's moral history, and how the life unlived can liberate people to lead the life they want.

    View details for DOI 10.1037/a0030008

    View details for Web of Science ID 000311769800002

    View details for PubMedID 23002956

  • Compensatory nonconformity: Self-uncertainty and low implicit self-esteem increase adoption and expression of minority opinions JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Rios, K., Wheeler, S. C., Miller, D. T. 2012; 48 (6): 1300-1309
  • How the Moralization of Issues Grants Social Legitimacy to Act on One's Attitudes PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY BULLETIN Effron, D. A., Miller, D. T. 2012; 38 (5): 690-701

    Abstract

    Actions that do not have as their goal the advancement or protection of one's material interests are often seen as illegitimate. Four studies suggested that moral values can legitimate action in the absence of material interest. The more participants linked sociopolitical issues to moral values, the more comfortable they felt advocating on behalf of those issues and the less confused they were by others' advocacy (Studies 1 and 2). Crime victims were perceived as being more entitled to claim special privileges when the crime had violated their personal moral values (Studies 3 and 4). These effects were strongest when the legitimacy to act could not already be derived from one's material interests, suggesting that moral values and material interest can represent interchangeable justifications for behavior. No support was found for the possibility that attitude strength explained these effects. The power of moralization to disinhibit action is discussed.

    View details for DOI 10.1177/0146167211435982

    View details for Web of Science ID 000302914700011

    View details for PubMedID 22337765

  • The Association of Religiosity and Political Conservatism: The Role of Political Engagement POLITICAL PSYCHOLOGY Malka, A., Lelkes, Y., Srivastava, S., Cohen, A. B., Miller, D. T. 2012; 33 (2): 275-299
  • Religiosity and Social Welfare: Competing Influences of Cultural Conservatism and Prosocial Value Orientation JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY Malka, A., Soto, C. J., Cohen, A. B., Miller, D. T. 2011; 79 (4): 763-792

    Abstract

    This research examines the hypothesis that religiosity has two competing psychological influences on the social welfare attitudes of contemporary Americans. On the one hand, religiosity promotes a culturally based conservative identity, which in turn promotes opposition to federal social welfare provision. On the other hand, religiosity promotes a prosocial value orientation, which in turn promotes support of federal social welfare provision. Across two national samples (Ns = 1,513 and 320) and one sample of business employees (N = 710), reliable support for this competing pathways model was obtained. We argue that research testing influences of nonpolitical individual differences on political preferences should consider the possibility of competing influences that are rooted in a combination of personality processes and contextual-discursive surroundings.

    View details for DOI 10.1111/j.1467-6494.2011.00705.x

    View details for Web of Science ID 000292460400004

    View details for PubMedID 21682729

  • Diffusion of entitlement: An inhibitory effect of scarcity on consumption JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Effron, D. A., Miller, D. T. 2011; 47 (2): 378-383
  • Expressing deviant opinions: Direction matters Rebels in groups: Dissent, difference, deviance, and defiance Morrison, K. R., Miller, D. T. edited by Jetten, J., Hornsey, M. J. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing. 2011: 219–237
  • Reducing exposure to trust-related risks in order to avoid self-blame Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin Effron, D. A., Miller, D. T. 2011; 37: 181-192
  • PSYCHOLOGICAL LICENSE: WHEN IT IS NEEDED AND HOW IT FUNCTIONS ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, VOL 43 Miller, D. T., Effron, D. A. 2010; 43: 115-155
  • From moral outrage to social protest: The role of psychological standing The psychology of justice and legitimacy: The Ontario Symposium Miller, D. T., Effron, D. A., Zak, S. edited by Bobocel, R., Kay, A. C., Zanna, M. P., Olson, J. M. Philadelphia, PA: Psychological Press. 2010: 103–123
  • On first versus false instincts The uncertain self: A handbook of perspectives from social and personality psychology Wirtz, D., Kruger, J., Miller, D. T., Mathur, P. edited by Arkin, R. M., Oleson, K. C., Carroll, P. J. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum. 2010: 160–175
  • Expressing deviant opinions: Believing you are in the majority helps JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., Morrison, K. R. 2009; 45 (4): 740-747
  • Ethical standards in gains versus loss frames Psychological perspectives on ethical behavior Cameron, J. S., Miller, D. T. edited by DeCremer, D. New York: Information Age Publishing. 2009: 91–106
  • Distinguishing between silent and vocal minorities: Not all deviants feel marginal JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Morrison, K. R., Miller, D. T. 2008; 94 (5): 871-882

    Abstract

    People's opinions can deviate from that of the average group member in two ways. Descriptive deviants diverge from the average group attitude in a direction consistent with the desirable group attitude; prescriptive deviants diverge from the average group attitude in a direction inconsistent with the desirable group attitude. Three studies tested the hypothesis that descriptive deviants are more willing to express their opinions than either nondeviants or prescriptive deviants. Study 1 found that college students reported more comfort in expressing descriptive deviant opinions because descriptive deviance induced feelings of superior conformity (i.e., being "different but good"). Study 2 found that descriptive deviants reported more pride after expressing their opinions, were rated as more proud by an observer, and were more willing to publicize their opinions. Study 3 showed that political bumper stickers with descriptive deviant messages were displayed disproportionately more frequently than were those with prescriptive deviant messages.

    View details for DOI 10.1037/0022-3514.94.5.871

    View details for Web of Science ID 000255293700009

    View details for PubMedID 18444744

  • Social categories and group preference disputes: The aversion to winner-take-all solutions GROUP PROCESSES & INTERGROUP RELATIONS Garcia, S. M., Miller, D. T. 2007; 10 (4): 581-593
  • Psychological essentialism of human categories CURRENT DIRECTIONS IN PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE Prentice, D. A., Miller, D. T. 2007; 16 (4): 202-206
  • Inferring the popularity of an opinion from its familiarity: A repetitive voice can sound like a chorus 32nd Annual Meeting of the Association-for-Consumer-Research Weaver, K., Garcia, S. M., Schwarz, N., Miller, D. T. AMER PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOC. 2007: 821–33

    Abstract

    Despite the importance of doing so, people do not always correctly estimate the distribution of opinions within their group. One important mechanism underlying such misjudgments is people's tendency to infer that a familiar opinion is a prevalent one, even when its familiarity derives solely from the repeated expression of 1 group member. Six experiments demonstrate this effect and show that it holds even when perceivers are consciously aware that the opinions come from 1 speaker. The results also indicate that the effect is due to opinion accessibility rather than a conscious inference about the meaning of opinion repetition in a group. Implications for social consensus estimation and social influence are discussed.

    View details for DOI 10.1037/0022-3514.92.5.821

    View details for Web of Science ID 000246130300005

    View details for PubMedID 17484607

  • Political-economic values and the relationship between socioeconomic status and self-esteem JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY Malka, A., Miller, D. T. 2007; 75 (1): 25-41

    Abstract

    Values concerning the distribution of wealth are an important aspect of identity for many Americans, and such values may therefore influence how Americans experience their own socioeconomic status (SES). Based on this proposition, the present research examines political-economic values as a moderator of the relationship between SES and self-esteem. Results supported the hypothesis that there is a stronger relationship between SES and self-esteem among individuals who report relatively inegalitarian values than among individuals who report relatively egalitarian values. This result was replicated using both objective and subjective measures of SES. Implications of the present findings for the study of values and well-being, psychological conflict, and the influence of economic factors on self-esteem are discussed.

    View details for DOI 10.1111/j.1467-6494.2006.00431.x

    View details for PubMedID 17214590

  • Essentializing differences between women and men PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE Prentice, D. A., Miller, D. T. 2006; 17 (2): 129–35

    Abstract

    People represent many social categories, including gender categories, in essentialist terms: They see category members as sharing deep, nonobvious properties that make them the kinds of things they are. The present research explored the consequences of this mode of representation for social inferences. In two sets of studies, participants learned (a) that they were similar to a member of the other gender on a novel attribute, (b) that they were different from a member of the other gender on a novel attribute, or (c) just their own standing on a novel attribute. Results showed that participants made stronger inductive inferences about the attribute in question when they learned that it distinguished them from a member of the other gender than in the other conditions. We consider the implications of these results for the representation of social categories and for everyday social inference processes.

    View details for DOI 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2006.01675.x

    View details for Web of Science ID 000234801000007

    View details for PubMedID 16466420

  • An invitation to social psychology: Expressing and censoring the self Miller, D. T. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth-Thomson. 2006
  • Inferences about differences that cross social category boundaries Psychological Science Prentice, D. A., Miller, D. T. 2006; 17: 129-135
  • How surveillance begets perceptions of dishonesty: The case of the counterfactual sinner JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., VISSER, P. S., Staub, B. D. 2005; 89 (2): 117-128

    Abstract

    Three studies support the hypothesis that observers' impressions of actors reflect not only what actors do but also what they can easily be imagined doing. Participants in Studies 1 and 2 observed a 10-year-old boy take a math test in a context in which the incentive to cheat and the constraints against cheating varied. When the incentive to cheat was high but the likelihood of getting caught was also high, observers perceived a target who resisted the temptation to cheat as less honest than the average boy. This effect was not found when the incentive to cheat was low, which suggests that its occurrence under high temptation resulted from observers in that condition generating the counterfactual thought that the target would have cheated had the likelihood of detection been low. Study 3 further supported the link between spontaneous counterfactual thought and inferences of dishonesty. The implications of the counterfactual correspondence bias are discussed.

    View details for DOI 10.1037/0022-3514.89.2.117

    View details for PubMedID 16162048

  • Profit maximization versus disadvantageous inequality: The impact of self-categorization JOURNAL OF BEHAVIORAL DECISION MAKING Garcia, S. M., Tor, A., Bazerman, M. H., Miller, D. T. 2005; 18 (3): 187-198

    View details for DOI 10.1002/bdm.494

    View details for Web of Science ID 000230828300003

  • Counterfactual thinking and the first instinct fallacy JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Kruger, J., Wirtz, D., Miller, D. T. 2005; 88 (5): 725-735

    Abstract

    Most people believe that they should avoid changing their answer when taking multiple-choice tests. Virtually all research on this topic, however, has suggested that this strategy is ill-founded: Most answer changes are from incorrect to correct, and people who change their answers usually improve their test scores. Why do people believe in this strategy if the data so strongly refute it? The authors argue that the belief is in part a product of counterfactual thinking. Changing an answer when one should have stuck with one's original answer leads to more "if only . . ." self-recriminations than does sticking with one's first instinct when one should have switched. As a consequence, instances of the former are more memorable than instances of the latter. This differential availability provides individuals with compelling (albeit illusory) personal evidence for the wisdom of always following their 1st instinct, with suboptimal test scores the result.

    View details for Web of Science ID 000229109300001

    View details for PubMedID 15898871

  • Psychologically naïve assumptions about the perils of conflicts of interest Conflicts of interest: Problems and solutions in law, medicine, and organizational settings Miller, D. T. edited by Moore, D. A., Cain, D., Loewenstein, G., Bazerman, M. New York: Cambridge University Press. 2005: 126–129
  • Seeing approach motivation in the avoidance behavior of others: Implications for an understanding of pluralistic ignorance JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., Nelson, L. D. 2002; 83 (5): 1066-1075

    Abstract

    Four studies tested the hypothesis that observers tend to interpret others' actions as approach motivated even when they recognize that their own identical choices were motivated by avoidance. Study 1 found that voters in the 2000 U.S. Presidential election who chose a candidate primarily because of their aversion to the alternative thought that others who voted for the same candidate liked him more than they themselves did. In Studies 2, 3, and 4 participants who learned that others made the same choice as themselves between 2 unappealing flavors of soda orjelly beans estimated that the others would pay more than they would for their common choice. The relevance of these findings for an understanding of pluralistic ignorance is discussed.

    View details for DOI 10.1037//0022-3514.83.5.1066

    View details for Web of Science ID 000178792900003

    View details for PubMedID 12416912

  • The emergence of homegrown stereotypes AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGIST Prentice, D. A., Miller, D. T. 2002; 57 (5): 352-359

    Abstract

    Homegrown stereotypes are generalizations that groups develop about their own typical characteristics. They are a distinct class of in-group stereotypes in the contexts and processes that give rise to them, as well as in their consequences for individual group members. The authors develop the concept of homegrown stereotypes and locate the origins of these stereotypes in self-presentation processes. They discuss the accuracy of these stereotypes and consider their similarities to and differences from a number of related phenomena. An examination of homegrown stereotypes highlights the importance of taking into account the impact of in-group, as well as intergroup, dynamics on the production of stereotypes.

    View details for DOI 10.1037//0003-066X.57.5.352

    View details for Web of Science ID 000175513800002

    View details for PubMedID 12025765

  • Committing altruism under the cloak of self-interest: The exchange fiction JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Holmes, J. G., Miller, D. T., LERNER, M. J. 2002; 38 (2): 144-151
  • Moral credentials and the expression of prejudice 71st Annual Meeting of the Midwestern-Psychological-Association Monin, B., Miller, D. T. AMER PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOC. 2001: 33–43

    Abstract

    Three experiments supported the hypothesis that people are more willing to express attitudes that could be viewed as prejudiced when their past behavior has established their credentials as nonprejudiced persons. In Study 1, participants given the opportunity to disagree with blatantly sexist statements were later more willing to favor a man for a stereotypically male job. In Study 2, participants who first had the opportunity to select a member of a stereotyped group (a woman or an African American) for a category-neutral job were more likely to reject a member of that group for a job stereotypically suited for majority members. In Study 3, participants who had established credentials as nonprejudiced persons revealed a greater willingness to express a politically incorrect opinion even when the audience was unaware of their credentials. The general conditions under which people feel licensed to act on illicit motives are discussed.

    View details for DOI 10.1037//0022-3514.81.1.33

    View details for Web of Science ID 000170456400003

    View details for PubMedID 11474723

  • The norm of self-interest and its effects on social action JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Ratner, R. K., Miller, D. T. 2001; 81 (1): 5-16

    Abstract

    Four studies investigated whether people feel inhibited from engaging in social action incongruent with their apparent self-interest. Participants in Study 1 predicted that they would be evaluated negatively were they to take action on behalf of a cause in which they had no stake or in which they had a stake but held stake-incongruent attitudes. Participants in Study 2 reported both surprise and anger when a target person took action on behalf of a cause in which he or she had no stake or in which he or she held stake-incongruent attitudes. In Study 3, individuals felt more comfortable engaging in social action and expected others to respond more favorably toward their actions if the issue was described as more relevant to their own sex than to the opposite sex. In Study 4, the authors found that providing nonvested individuals with psychological standing rendered them as likely as vested individuals to undertake social action. The authors discuss the implications of these results for the relationship between vested interest, social action, and attitude-behavior consistency.

    View details for Web of Science ID 000170456400001

    View details for PubMedID 11474725

  • The justice motive in everyday life edited by Ross, M., Miller, D. T. New York: Cambridge University Press. 2001
  • Disrespect and the Psychology of Injustice Annual Review of Psychology Miller, D. T. Palo Alto, CA: Annual Reviews Inc.. 2001: 527–553
  • The effects of in-group versus out-group social comparison on self-esteem in the context of a negative stereotype JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Blanton, H., Crocker, J., Miller, D. T. 2000; 36 (5): 519-530
  • Pluralistic ignorance and inconsistency between private attitudes and public behaviors Attitudes, behavor, and social context: The role of norms and group membership Miller, D. T., Monin, B., Prentice, D. A. edited by Terry, D. J., Hogg, M. A. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum. 2000: 95–113
  • The norm of self-interest AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGIST Miller, D. T. 1999; 54 (12): 1053-1060

    Abstract

    The self-interest motive is singularly powerful according to many of the most influential theories of human behavior and the layperson alike. In the present article the author examines the role the assumption of self-interest plays in its own confirmation. It is proposed that a norm exists in Western cultures that specifies self-interest both is and ought to be a powerful determinant of behavior. This norm influences people's actions and opinions as well as the accounts they give for their actions and opinions. In particular, it leads people to act and speak as though they care more about their material self-interest than they do. Consequences of misinterpreting the "fact" of self-interest are discussed.

    View details for Web of Science ID 000084593600001

    View details for PubMedID 15332526

  • The psychology of cultural contact Cultural Divides: Understanding and overcoming group conflict Prentice, D. A., Miller, D. T. edited by Prentice, D. A., Miller, D. T. New York: Russell Sage Foundation. 1999: 1–19
  • Cultural Divides: Understanding and overcoming group conflict edited by Prentice, D. A., Miller, D. T. New York: Russell Sage Foundation. 1999
  • Some consequences of a belief in group essence: The category divide hypothesis Cultural Divides: Understanding and overcoming group conflict Miller, D. T., Prentice, D. A. edited by Prentice, D. A., Miller, D. T. New York: Russell Sage Foundation. 1999: 213–238
  • Minimal conditions for the creation of a unit relationship: The social bond between birthdaymates EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., Downs, J. S., Prentice, D. A. 1998; 28 (3): 475-481
  • The disparity between the actual and assumed power of self-interest Annual Convention of the Eastern-Psychological-Association Miller, D. T., Ratner, R. K. AMER PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOC. 1998: 53–62

    Abstract

    Five studies examined the hypothesis that people overestimate the influence of self-interest on attitudes and behaviors. The results strongly supported the hypothesis. In Study 1, participants overestimated the impact that financial reward exerted on their peers' willingness to donate blood. In 4 subsequent studies, participants overestimated the impact that group membership had on their peers' attitudes (Studies 2, 3, and 4) and behaviors (Study 5). The tendency to overestimate the impact of self-interest on others was largely unrelated to the impact that it had on participants' own attitudes and behaviors. Implications of the lay person's belief in the power of self-interest are discussed.

    View details for Web of Science ID 000071543400005

    View details for PubMedID 9457775

  • Failure to recognize the effect of implicit social influence on the presentation of self JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Vorauer, J. D., Miller, D. T. 1997; 73 (2): 281-295

    Abstract

    Two studies demonstrated that individuals can fail to detect changes in their actions that are induced by implicit social influence. In both studies, observers' impressions indicated that actors matched the positivity of their remarks about themselves to the positivity of another person's self-description. However, actors' own judgments of the types of impressions they conveyed revealed that they did not perceive the effect of the other's self-description on their self-presentation. Study 1 suggested that actors' relatively poor access to their own nonverbal behavior could not fully account for their failure to perceive how they were influenced. Study 2 indicated that actors' metaperceptions were connected to actors' general beliefs about themselves, whereas observers' impressions were not. The "blindness" effect was driven primarily by actors low in self-esteem. Implications for self-presentation and other social phenomena are discussed.

    View details for Web of Science ID A1997XM66500005

    View details for PubMedID 9248050

  • The power of the myth of self-interest Current societal concerns about justice Miller, D. T., Ratner, R. K. edited by Montada, L., Lerner, M. New York: Plenum Press. 1996: 25–48
  • Self-referent versus other-referent information processing in dysphoric, clinically depressed, and remitted depressed subjects PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY BULLETIN Moretti, M. M., Segal, Z. V., MCCANN, C. D., Shaw, B. F., Miller, D. T., Vella, D. 1996; 22 (1): 68-80
  • The construction of social norms and standards Social Psychology: Handbook of basic principles Miller, D. T., Prentice, D. A. edited by Higgins, E. T., Kruglanski, A. W. New York: Guilford. 1996: 799–829
  • Pluralistic ignorance and the perpetuation of social norms by unwitting actors ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Prentice, D. A., Miller, D. T. 1996; 28: 161-209
  • THE DISTINCTIVENESS EFFECT IN SOCIAL CATEGORIZATION - YOU ARE WHAT MAKES YOU UNUSUAL PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE Nelson, L. J., Miller, D. T. 1995; 6 (4): 246-249
  • Counterfactual thought, regret, and superstition: How to avoid kicking yourself What might have been: The social psychology of counterfactual thinking Miller, D. T., Taylor, B. R. edited by Roese, N. J., Olson, J. M. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. 1995: 305–331
  • COLLECTIVE ERRORS AND ERRORS ABOUT THE COLLECTIVE PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY BULLETIN Miller, D. T., Prentice, D. A. 1994; 20 (5): 541-550
  • ASYMMETRIES IN ATTACHMENTS TO GROUPS AND TO THEIR MEMBERS - DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN COMMON-IDENTITY AND COMMON-BOND GROUPS PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY BULLETIN Prentice, D. A., Miller, D. T., Lightdale, J. R. 1994; 20 (5): 484-493
  • THE SELF AND THE COLLECTIVE PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY BULLETIN Miller, D. T., Prentice, D. A. 1994; 20 (5): 451-453
  • THE FRAMING OF RELATIVE PERFORMANCE FEEDBACK - SEEING THE GLASS AS HALF EMPTY OR HALF FULL JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY McFarland, C., Miller, D. T. 1994; 66 (6): 1061-1073
  • Reactions to incongruous negative life events Social Justice Research Buck, M. L., Miller, D. T. 1994; 7: 29-46
  • SUSPICION AND DISPOSITIONAL INFERENCE PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY BULLETIN Hilton, J. L., Fein, S., Miller, D. T. 1993; 19 (5): 501-512
  • PLURALISTIC IGNORANCE AND ALCOHOL-USE ON CAMPUS - SOME CONSEQUENCES OF MISPERCEIVING THE SOCIAL NORM JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Prentice, D. A., Miller, D. T. 1993; 64 (2): 243-256

    Abstract

    Four studies examined the relation between college students' own attitudes toward alcohol use and their estimates of the attitudes of their peers. All studies found widespread evidence of pluralistic ignorance: Students believed that they were more uncomfortable with campus alcohol practices than was the average student. Study 2 demonstrated this perceived self-other difference also with respect to one's friends. Study 3 traced attitudes toward drinking over the course of a semester and found gender differences in response to perceived deviance: Male students shifted their attitudes over time in the direction of what they mistakenly believed to be the norm, whereas female students showed no such attitude change. Study 4 found that students' perceived deviance correlated with various measures of campus alienation, even though that deviance was illusory. The implications of these results for general issues of norm estimation and responses to perceived deviance are discussed.

    View details for Web of Science ID A1993KK27400007

    View details for PubMedID 8433272

  • WHEN SMALL EFFECTS ARE IMPRESSIVE PSYCHOLOGICAL BULLETIN Prentice, D. A., Miller, D. T. 1992; 112 (1): 160-164
  • GENDER GAPS - WHO NEEDS TO BE EXPLAINED JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., Taylor, B., Buck, M. L. 1991; 61 (1): 5-12

    Abstract

    The hypothesis that explanations for differences between prototypical and nonprototypical members of categories would focus more on attributes of the latter than on those of the former was examined. Explanations for alleged gender differences in the behavior of voters, elementary school teachers, and college professors were elicited. As predicted, explanations for gender differences within the 3 categories emphasized the qualities of the "deviant" member. Ss' explanations of alleged gender gaps in the behavior of voters and college professors focused more on qualities of women than on qualities of men. In contrast, Ss' explanations of an alleged gender gap in the behavior of elementary school teachers focused more on qualities of men than on qualities of women. The results are interpreted in terms of Kahneman and Miller's (1986) norm theory.

    View details for Web of Science ID A1991FW17900001

    View details for PubMedID 1890588

  • When social comparison goes awry: The case of pluralistic ignorance Social Comparison: Contemporary theory and research Miller, D. T., McFarland, C. edited by Suls, J., Wills, T. A. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. 1991: 287–313
  • When dispositional inferences are suspended: Diagnosing and calibrating traits Revue Internationale de Psychologie Sociale Hilton, J., Miller, D. T., Fein, S., Darley, J. M. 1991; 4: 519-537
  • TEMPORAL-ORDER AND THE PERCEIVED MUTABILITY OF EVENTS - IMPLICATIONS FOR BLAME ASSIGNMENT JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., Gunasegaram, S. 1990; 59 (6): 1111-1118
  • COMBINING SOCIAL CONCEPTS - THE ROLE OF CAUSAL REASONING COGNITIVE SCIENCE Kunda, Z., Miller, D. T., Claire, T. 1990; 14 (4): 551-577
  • JUDGMENTS OF SELF-OTHER SIMILARITY - JUST LIKE OTHER PEOPLE, ONLY MORE SO PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY BULLETIN McFarland, C., Miller, D. T. 1990; 16 (3): 475-484
  • SUSPICION OF ULTERIOR MOTIVATION AND THE CORRESPONDENCE BIAS JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Fein, S., Hilton, J. L., Miller, D. T. 1990; 58 (5): 753-764

    Abstract

    Three studies examined the hypothesis that when perceivers learn of the existence of multiple, plausibly rival motives for an actor's behavior, they are less likely to fall prey to the correspondence bias than when they learn of the existence of situational factors that may have constrained the actor's behavior. In the first 2 studies, Ss who learned that an actor was instructed to behave as he did drew inferences that corresponded to his behavior. In contrast, Ss who were led to suspect that an actor's behavior may have been motivated by a desire to ingratiate (Study 1), or by a desire to avoid an unwanted job (Study 2), resisted the correspondence bias. The 3rd study demonstrated that these differences were not due to a general unwillingness on the part of suspicious perceivers to make dispositional inferences. The implications that these results have for understanding attribution theory are discussed.

    View details for Web of Science ID A1990DE49600001

    View details for PubMedID 2348368

  • POPULATION-DISTINCTIVENESS, IDENTITY, AND BONDING 6TH ONTARIO SYMP ON PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY : SELF-INFERENCE PROCESSES Turnbull, W., Miller, D. T., McFarland, C. LAWRENCE ERLBAUM ASSOC PUBL. 1990: 115–133
  • COUNTERFACTUAL THINKING AND SOCIAL-PERCEPTION - THINKING ABOUT WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., Turnbull, W., McFarland, C. 1990; 23: 305-331
  • The counterfactual fallacy: Confusing what might have been with what ought to have been Social Justice Research Miller, D. T., Turnbull, W. 1990; 4: 1-19
  • WHEN A COINCIDENCE IS SUSPICIOUS - THE ROLE OF MENTAL SIMULATION JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., Turnbull, W., McFarland, C. 1989; 57 (4): 581-589
  • PARTICULARISTIC AND UNIVERSALISTIC EVALUATION IN THE SOCIAL-COMPARISON PROCESS JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., Turnbull, W., McFarland, C. 1988; 55 (6): 908-917
  • The causal attributions of depressives: Self-serving or self-disserving? Cognitive Processes in Depression Miller, D. T., Moretti, M. M. edited by Alloy, L. New York: Guilford Press. 1988: 266–286
  • Errors and biases in the attribution process Social-personal inference in Clinical Psychology Miller, D. T., Porter, C. A. edited by Abramson, L. New York: Guilford Press. 1988: 3–29
  • PLURALISTIC IGNORANCE - WHEN SIMILARITY IS INTERPRETED AS DISSIMILARITY JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., McFarland, C. 1987; 53 (2): 298-305
  • COUNTERFACTUAL THINKING AND VICTIM COMPENSATION - A TEST OF NORM THEORY PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY BULLETIN Miller, D. T., McFarland, C. 1986; 12 (4): 513-519
  • NORM THEORY - COMPARING REALITY TO ITS ALTERNATIVES PSYCHOLOGICAL REVIEW Kahneman, D., Miller, D. T. 1986; 93 (2): 136-153
  • EXPECTANCIES AND INTERPERSONAL PROCESSES ANNUAL REVIEW OF PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., Turnbull, W. 1986; 37: 233-256
  • Introduction Stigma, The dilemma of difference Scott, R. A., Miller, D. T. edited by Ainlay, S., Becker, G., Coleman, L. New York: Plenum Press. 1986
  • Altruism and aggression Handbook of Social Psychology Krebs, D., Miller, D. T. edited by Lindzey, G., Aronson, E. New York: Random House. 1985; 3rd: 1–71
  • Social stigma: The psychology of marked relationships Jones, E. E., Farina, A., Hastorf, A., Markus, H., Miller, D. T., Scott, R. A. San Francisco: W. Freeman. 1984
  • WHY NOT WAIT - A COGNITIVE MODEL OF SELF-IMPOSED DELAY TERMINATION JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Karniol, R., Miller, D. T. 1983; 45 (4): 935-942
  • SELF-BLAME IN VICTIMS OF VIOLENCE JOURNAL OF SOCIAL ISSUES Miller, D. T., Porter, C. A. 1983; 39 (2): 139-152
  • Social psychological motives underlying punishment reactions Social Psychology Vidmar, N., Miller, D. T. edited by Hiebsch, H., Brandstatter, H., Kelley, H. H. Amsterdam: North Holland Publishers. 1982: 195–202
  • The role of justice in punishment reactions: A social psychological analysis The Justice Motive in Social Behavior Miller, D. T., Vidmar, N. edited by Lerner, M. J., Lerner, S. New York: Plenum Press. 1981: 145–172
  • The development of self-control in children Developmental Social Psychology Karniol, R., Miller, D. T. edited by Brehm, S., Kassin, S., Gibbons, F. X. New York: Oxford University Press. 1981: 32–50
  • Morality and the development of conceptions of justice The Justice Motive in Social Behavior Karniol, R., Miller, D. T. edited by Lerner, M. J., Lerner, S. New York: Plenum Press. 1981: 73–89
  • EFFECTS OF TEMPORAL PERSPECTIVE ON THE ATTRIBUTION PROCESS JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., Porter, C. A. 1980; 39 (4): 532-541
  • SOCIAL-PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESSES UNDERLYING ATTITUDES TOWARD LEGAL PUNISHMENT LAW & SOCIETY REVIEW VIDMAR, N., Miller, D. T. 1980; 14 (3): 565-602
  • Children's reactions to the victims and perpetrators of injustices Child Development Miller, D. T., McCann, D. C. 1979; 50: 861-868
  • LOCUS OF CONTROL AND ABILITY TO TOLERATE GRATIFICATION DELAY - WHEN IT IS BETTER TO BE AN EXTERNAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN PERSONALITY Miller, D. T. 1978; 12 (1): 49-56
  • EFFECTS OF AGE AND SELF-VERBALIZATION ON CHILDRENS ABILITY TO DELAY GRATIFICATION DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., Weinstein, S. M., Karniol, R. 1978; 14 (5): 569-570
  • JUST WORLD RESEARCH AND ATTRIBUTION PROCESS - LOOKING BACK AND AHEAD PSYCHOLOGICAL BULLETIN LERNER, M. J., Miller, D. T. 1978; 85 (5): 1030-1051
  • WHAT CONSTITUTES A SELF-SERVING ATTRIBUTIONAL BIAS - REPLY TO BRADLEY JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T. 1978; 36 (11): 1221-1223
  • DISTORTION IN PERSON PERCEPTION AS A CONSEQUENCE OF NEED FOR EFFECTIVE CONTROL JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., Norman, S. A., Wright, E. 1978; 36 (6): 598-607
  • PERSONAL DESERVING VERSUS JUSTICE FOR OTHERS - EXPLORATION OF JUSTICE MOTIVE JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T. 1977; 13 (1): 1-13
  • The effects of own deservingness and deservingness of others on children's helping behavior Child Development Miller, D. T., Smith, J. 1977; 48: 617-620
  • ALTRUISM AND THREAT TO A BELIEF IN A JUST WORLD JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T. 1977; 13 (2): 113-124
  • Deserving and the emergence of forms of justice Advances in Experimental Social Psychology Lerner, M. J., Miller, D. T., Holmes, J. G. edited by Berkowitz, L., Walster, E. New York: Academic Press. 1976: 134–160
  • EGO INVOLVEMENT AND ATTRIBUTIONS FOR SUCCESS AND FAILURE JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T. 1976; 34 (5): 901-906
  • ROLE OF REWARDS IN EXTERNALLY AND SELF-IMPOSED DELAY OF GRATIFICATION JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., Karniol, R. 1976; 33 (5): 594-600
  • Interpersonal conflict Contemporary Topics in Social Psychology Holmes, J. G., Miller, D. T. edited by Thibaut, J. W., Spence, J. T., Carson, R. C. Morristown, NJ: General Learning Press.. 1976: 265–307
  • COPING STRATEGIES AND ATTENTIONAL MECHANISMS IN SELF-IMPOSED AND EXTERNALLY IMPOSED DELAY SITUATIONS JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., Karniol, R. 1976; 34 (2): 310-316
  • ACTOR-OBSERVER DIFFERENCES IN PERCEPTIONS OF EFFECTIVE CONTROL JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., Norman, S. A. 1975; 31 (3): 503-515
  • EFFECT OF DIALECT AND ETHNICITY ON COMMUNICATOR EFFECTIVENESS SPEECH MONOGRAPHS Miller, D. T. 1975; 42 (1): 69-74
  • SELF-SERVING BIASES IN ATTRIBUTION OF CAUSALITY - FACT OR FICTION PSYCHOLOGICAL BULLETIN Miller, D. T., Ross, M. 1975; 82 (2): 213-225
  • ROLE OF SITUATIONAL RESTRICTIVENESS ON SELF-FULFILLING PROPHECIES - THEORETICAL AND EMPIRICAL EXTENSION OF KELLEY AND STAHELSKIS TRIANGLE HYPOTHESIS JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Miller, D. T., HOLMES, J. G. 1975; 31 (4): 661-673
  • PERCEPTION OF SITUATIONAL CONSISTENCY IN BEHAVIOR - ASSESSING ACTOR-OBSERVER BIAS CANADIAN JOURNAL OF BEHAVIOURAL SCIENCE-REVUE CANADIENNE DES SCIENCES DU COMPORTEMENT Lay, C., Ziegler, M., HERSHFIE, L., Miller, D. 1974; 6 (4): 376-384
  • The effect of regional similarity-dissimilarity on communicator credibility. Language and speech Miller, D. T., Hoppe, R. A. 1973; 16 (3): 211-217

    View details for PubMedID 4768189