Dr. Skinner has been an assistant professor at the University of Georgia since the fall of 2019. Her research examines how biases are established, maintained, and facilitated through subtle messages present in everyday life. She is particularly interested in how situational cues in our social environments shape our perceptions, attitudes, and biases against other individuals and groups. These cues range from nonverbal signals demonstrated in interpersonal interactions (e.g., warmth and friendliness) to explicit messages that may appear to be positive but are actually ironically negative (heightening intergroup bias). She utilizes correlational and experimental approaches and employs multiple methods (including physiological, behavioral, and self-report measures) to identify the basic cognitive, affective, and perceptual processes that lead to the establishment, maintenance, and activation of attitudes and biases.
Dr. Skinner may be considering applications for PhD students in the 202r application cycle (to begin PhD studies in Fall 2025).
Dr. Skinner is the director of the study abroad in Togo (West Africa) program, where the Psychology of Attitudes, Biases, and Culture is periodically taught during Maymester.
The University of Georgia is located on the ancestral lands of the ᏣᎳᎫᏪᏘᏱ Tsalaguwetiyi (Cherokee, East), S’atsoyaha (Yuchi), and Mvskoke (Muscogee / Creek) people. Click here to learn more.
Education
2015 Ph.D., University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Experimental Psychology (emphasis Social Cognitive Neuroscience), Minor: Quantitative Psychology
2009 M.A., California State University, Chico, Psychological Science
2005 B.A., California State University, Chico, Psychology
Other Information
Postdoctoral Scholar, Northwestern University (emphasis Social Psychology and Psychophysiology), June 2017 – July 2019
Postdoctoral Scholar, University of Washington Institute of Learning and Brain Sciences (emphasis Social and Developmental Psychology), May 2015 – May 2017
