Dr. William Pedersen
Associate Professor
Department of Psychology
California State University, Long Beach
Dr. William Pedersen
Associate Professor |
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| Education | Research | Publications | Courses | Affiliations | Other Interests |
Dr. Pedersen's research has focused on two separate and distinct
interests:
(1) displaced aggression and
(2) an evolutionary perspective on gender differences in mating strategies.
Each of these areas is described below.
I. Displaced Aggression
Imagine a college student who spent weeks preparing a presentation for a class. After her presentation, her professor harshly criticizes her performance, implying that she was unprepared.
For the entire day, the student silently fumes about her professor's remarks.
When she returns to her apartment at the end of the day, she screams at her roommate for leaving dirty dishes in the sink.
This hypothetical situation is an example of displaced aggression, which is conceptually defined as an
aggressive action directed (displaced) towards a person or object that is not the original source of the provocation or negative feelings.
In the example above, the student aggressed against her roommate even though she
was really upset at her professor. Dr. Pedersen and his colleagues have developed a theoretical framework of social and personality factors
that moderate and mediate displaced aggression. This theoretical model serves
as the basis of much of Dr. Pedersen's work.
II. Gender Differences in Mating Strategies: An Evolutionary Approach
The second research focus is concentrated in the broad area of evolutionary psychology. Evolutionary-based theories are increasingly
offered as psychological explanations for a wide range of topics. Dr. Pedersen and his colleagues have developed a new theoretical and
empirical program of research that evaluates evolutionary approaches in explaining
human behavior with a particular focus on gender differences in mating strategies.
Evolutionary accounts are apt to offer considerable insight into human behavior. But, there are numerous additional conceptual and
methodological roadblocks that must be overcome. For example, if we are to develop useful evolutionary models of psychological phenomena, our
psychological models must be compatible with human biological and chemical systems. That is,
our evolutionary approaches to human mating psychology must fit with our knowledge of sexual functioning, fertility, and
related systems. Our models must also take into account the data of primatologists regarding the behavior and functioning of primates and
the relationship of human and primate biological systems.
Dr. Pedersen plans to use this overall evolutionary framework to launch future studies investigating a wide variety of topics including sex
differences in aggressive behavior, intra-sexual competition, and responses to sexual stimuli.
PSY 110
Introduction to Statistics
PSY
350I
Psychology and Contemporary
Social Issues
PSY 411/511
Statistical Design and Analysis of Experiments
Awards and Fellowships
Outstanding Faculty Mentor for Student Engagement in
Research, Scholarly or Creative Activities,
California State University, Long
Beach, 2008
Most Valuable Professor Award, California State University,
Long Beach, 2007
Outstanding Faculty Achievement Award, California State University,
Long Beach, 2001
Valentine Dissertation Fellow, University of Southern California,
2001
University Pre-Doctoral Fellow, University of Southern California,
1997-1999; 2000-2001
Haynes Endowment Fellow, University of Southern California, 1996-1997;
1999-2000
Presidents Award, Seattle University, 1994
Gaffney Award, Department of Psychology, Seattle University, 1994
Cousineau Award, Seattle University, 1994
Outstanding Senior Award, Seattle University, 1994
Student Life Award, Matteo Ricci College, Seattle University, 1993
Naef Scholar, Seattle University, 1992-1994
Presidential Scholar, Seattle University, 1990-1994
Basketball
Hiking
Movies
Water skiing
| Education | Research | Publications | Courses | Affiliations | Other Interests |