Meet the IDEA team!

Stylianos (Stelios) Syropoulos is the Director of  of the Intergenerational Decisions and Effective Action (IDEA) Lab. His work seeks to understand the human dimensions of sustainability, by studying individual differences and interventions to promote sustainable living. Broader interests include human morality, prosociality, intergenerational decisions and intergroup conflict. Prior to starting the IDEA lab, he was a postdoctoral researcher in the Morality Lab, the Social Influence and Social Change Lab, and the The Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society at Boston College. He obtained his Ph.D. in social psychology from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. 

Kyle is a social psychologist working at the intersection of moral psychology and ethical philosophy trying to better understand the outer limits of human cooperation and prosocial behavior. In particular, his research focuses on mapping the cognitive, affective, and moral architecture of exceptional altruism, driven by an underlying motivation to harness insights gleaned from the laboratory to help inspire real-world action. Prior to joining the IDEA Lab, Kyle worked as a postdoctoral researcher in The Morality Lab at Boston College under the mentorship of Dr. Liane Young. Before that, he earned his PhD in the Imagination and Cognition Lab at SUNY Albany under the supervision of Dr. Brendan Bo O'Connor.

Christina Jinhee (Jin) Capozzoli is a first year PhD student in the IDEA lab. She is interested in how the psychology of morality, affect, and prosocial behavior can be applied to solve pressing societal problems, such as sustainability. Previously, she has worked in social neuroscience and psychology labs at Columbia University and at NYU, before beginning a Master of Applied Statistics at Penn State. Her past research projects have spanned from developmental neuroscience to moral expansiveness to climate change risk perception. 

Dunca Ward received bachelor's degrees in Psychology and Economics from Grinnell College where he completed independent research examining the collective action of climate change from both psychological and political economic perspectives. Since graduating, Duncan has focused on individuals' behaviors and motivations as they pertain to energy efficiency and electrification. Currently, Duncan is a Senior Quantitative Analyst at Apex Analytics where his work ranges from evaluation support for the Inflation Reduction Act's HEAR and HOMES programs to statistical analyses of heat pump user's cold weather heating behaviors.

Zhaoquan (Harold) Wang received dual degrees in Psychology (B.S.) and Economics (B.A.) with honors from Boston College. Prior to joining the IDEA Lab, he completed two honors theses under the supervision of Dr. Liane Young in the Morality Lab and served as a summer research assistant under Dr. Laura Niemi and Dr. John Doris in the Cornell Applied Moral Psychology Lab. His broader research interests include moral judgment, social perception, justice, and punishment. After graduation, he plans to pursue graduate studies to further explore the cognitive mechanisms underlying contemporary social issues and moral dilemmas.

Kearney graduated from Georgetown University with a B.S. in Global Health, Psychology, and Philosophy. She currently works at Open Philanthropy supporting the Effective Giving and Business Operations Teams. At Georgetown, she researched under Abigail Marsh in the Laboratory on Social and Affective Neuroscience, in addition to being selected as a research fellow in Georgetown’s inaugural Global Health Institute. She also served as a summer research assistant at Yale University’s Affect Regulation and Cognition lab. Prior to joining Open Philanthropy, Kearney founded her university Effective Altruism Organization, interned at Giving What We Can and The Global Challenges Project, and worked as a Global Health Associate at Chemonics International. Her broader research interests include moral decision making, prosociality, and the psychological underpinnings of effective altruism. 

Mochi is a 6-year old calico female kitty who has been with Stelios and his research partner and wife Dr. Deborah Wu (fellow Assistant Professor at ASU) for 3 years now. During her tenure, she has definitely grown, well at least physically, as she gained 2 pounds. The vet says she is a happy kitty who is enjoying herself, so she is fine. Her research interests include finding treats, playing with her toys, and meowing excessively whenever she is hungry (which feels like it's all the time). Mochi's goal is to maintain her fluffiness at all costs, so she sleeps at least 12-15 hours a day, but when she is awake, she wants your attention.