On May 13-14, 2010 the University of Warsaw celebrated the scientific achievements of Professor Robert B. Zajonc, one of the most creative and influential social psychologist of the XXth century. Born and raised in Poland, he immigrated to the US in 1948 but his ties to his motherland remained strong throughout his scholarly career. Not only was Professor Zajonc a member of the Polish Academy of Sciences and the recipient of an honorary doctorate from the University of Warsaw, he was also instrumental in establishing the Institute for Social Studies (ISS) at the University of Warsaw in 1991 as a sister institution of the Institute for Social Research (ISR) at the University of Michigan.
To commemorate Professor Zajonc’s role in its founding, ISS was proudly renamed the Robert B. Zajonc Institute of Social Studies.
As part of the commemoration there was the joint ISS-ISR conference in which several of his fellow scientists discussed Professor Zajonc’s work and its impact on their own thinking and research. The list of speakers include: T. Antonucci, E. Burnstein, J. Cacioppo, B. Gomes de Mesquita, J. Grzelak, R. Huesmann, J. S. Jackson, M. Jarymowicz, S. Kitayama, M. Kofta, H. Markus, S. Murphy, P. Niedenthal, A. Nowak, R. Ohme, J. Reykowski, Y. Schul, R. Siemieńska, G. Wieczorkowska-Wierzbińska, F. Winkielman.
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May, 13 , 2010 (Thursday)
- Opening address by: Professor Katarzyna Chałasińska-Macukow, Rector of the University of Warsaw,
Professor James S. Jackson, Director of the Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, VIDEO
Professor Renata Siemienska, Director of the Institute for Social Studies, University of Warsaw, PDF
and Professor Rowell Huesmann, Director of the Research Center for Group Dynamics, University of Michigan.
- Presentations:
- Hazel Markus, “Culture, Class and Zajonc”, VIDEO
- Eugene Burnstein, “The Social Mind and a Scientist from Łódź”, PDF, VIDEO
- Batja Gomes de Mesquita, “Emotional Change: Bob, me, and other immigrants”, PDF, VIDEO
- John Cacioppo, “Human nature and the need for social connection”, PPTX VIDEO
- Toni Antonucci, “Mere Exposure to People, Places and Cultures”, PDF, VIDEO
- Rowell Huesmann, “Cold Aggression and Exposure to Violence: Evidence from America, Poland, and Germany”, PDF, VIDEO
May, 14, 2010 (Friday)
- Robert Zajonc’s Impact on Polish psychology.
Joint presentation chaired by Janusz Reykowski.
Presentations:
- Janusz Grzelak, “Control preferences. Ten years after….” PDF
- Maria Jarymowicz, “Understanding human emotions – Zajonc’s 1979 fundamental distinctions” PDF,
- Mirosław Kofta & Władysław Narkiewicz-Jodko, “Control Deprivation and Intergroup Attitudes: The Role of Cognitive and Affective Deficits” PDF,
- Rafal Ohme, “Bob’s idea of the unconscious affect and its >>Polish extension<<” PDF,
- Andrzej Nowak, “A model of affect cumulating with and without awareness”
- Janusz Reykowski, “Bob was also interested in the role of psychologists in solving the social conflicts” PDF,
- Grazyna Wieczorkowska, “Intervality, birth order and genocide” PDF.
- Presentations:
- Shinobu Kitayama, “Cultural Neuroscience of the Self: Understanding the Social Grounding of the Brain”, PDF, VIDEO
- Yaacov Schul, “The cost of trust: Lessons from social cognition research”, PDF, VIDEO
- Sheila Murphy, “Feeling without thinking : Affective Primacy and the Nonconscious Processing of Emotion”, PDF, VIDEO
- Paula Niedenthal, “Embodying Smiles”, VIDEO
- Piotr Winkielman, “Emotion and Cognition”, PDF, VIDEO
- Closing Celebration. A VIDEO of Bob [1989] followed by comments from members of his family and close friends.
- Toasts and speeches VIDEO
