BIG(SSS) success
Michele Gelfand, a soon-to-be visiting professor to the Bremen International Graduate School of Social Sciences (BIGSSS), is one of seven humanities scholars and social scientists to be honored with the inaugural Anneliese Maier Research Award by the internationally renowned Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. The awardees receive an endowment of €250,000 each to fund their collaborative research with German colleagues. BIGSSS is a joint “Excellence Initiative” graduate school by Jacobs University and the University of Bremen.
November 28, 2011Following a nomination by Klaus Boehnke, BIGSSS’ Jacobs Vice Dean and Professor of Social Science Methodology at Jacobs University, the 43-year-old social psychologist from the University of Maryland was chosen out of 90 candidates from 20 countries.
Professor Boehnke has worked closely with Michele Gelfand for the last 15 years. He says: “I am absolutely enthusiastic that my nomination has led to such a prestigious award being bestowed upon my esteemed colleague, further allowing us to intensify our joint research to the benefit of BIGSSS.”
Over the course of the next five years Michele Gelfand will be a visiting professor to BIGSSS. Based on a joint recent publication in Science, her research collaboration with Professor Boehnke and other colleagues from BIGSSS’ Field C will predominantly be concerned with the “tightness vs. looseness” of cultures and societies and their impact on human behavior.
Tightness vs. looseness refers to the density and behavioral relevance of norms in a culture posing questions such as: Are there many or few rules in a culture? Do people generally adhere to them? What happens if they do not?
Professor Gelfand has worked in the fields of cross-cultural psychology, intercultural management, and peace psychology (forgiveness). She is the co-editor of ‘Advances in Culture and Psychology’ (Oxford University Press) and of the ‘Handbook of Negotiation and Culture’ (Stanford University Press).
She has published in essentially all major journals of her field, including Science, the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Psychological Science, Psychological Bulletin, or the Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology.
About the Anneliese Maier Research Award by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation:
The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation is awarding the very first Anneliese Maier Research Award to seven humanities scholars and social scientists. The new collaboration award is designed to promote the internationalization of the humanities and social sciences in Germany and is to be awarded annually to outstanding researchers from abroad who are active in one of the relevant fields. The award amount of €250,000 can be used to finance research collaboration with specialist colleagues in Germany for a period of five years. Researchers are nominated by collaborative partners at German universities and research institutions.
For more information and a complete list of awardees please visit: www.humboldt-foundation.de/web/press-release-2011-36.html
ABOUT BIGSSS
The Bremen International Graduate School of Social Sciences (BIGSSS) was opened in 2008 and is a joint ”Excellence Initiative” project by Jacobs University and the University of Bremen. As a provider of excellent international doctoral education BIGSSS aims to integrate outstanding areas of graduate education and research at both higher education institutions. BIGSSS is founded upon the core disciplines of political science, sociology, and psychology, and supported by a solid foundation in social-science methods. It also integrates neighboring disciplines such as law, economics, history, and business administration.
For more information, please visit: www.bigsss-bremen.de
