Gerben van Kleef

Biographical Sketch

Gerben van Kleef (1977) is associate professor of social psychology. He conducted his dissertation research at the department of Work and Organizational Psychology of the University of Amsterdam (PhD in 2004, cum laude). He then moved to the department of Social Psychology. In 2005 he received the bi-annual Best Dissertation Award of the International Association for Conflict Management (IACM) and the Best Dissertation Award of the Dutch Association for Social Psychology (ASPO) for his dissertation on the role of emotions in social conflict. In 2006 he received a 3-year research grant ("Veni") from the Innovational Research Incentives Scheme of the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO), which enabled him to work at the University of California, Berkeley. In 2008 he received the early career award of the European Association of Social Psychology (EASP). Back in Amsterdam, his research is currently supported by a "Vidi" grant from the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (2010-2015).

Research interests

Gerben van Kleef's primary research interests revolve around emotion, power, and conflict. In studying these topics he looks at basic social psychological processes and effects, and explores their implications for organizational behavior and society. His research on emotion centers around the interpersonal effects of discrete emotions in various social and organizational contexts, including conflict, negotiation, leadership, and persuasion. His research on power focuses on the consequences of elevated power for social information processing, interpersonal sensitivity, and pro-social versus egoistic behavior. His work on conflict addresses different levels of analysis, including negotiation dynamics at the dyadic level, issues of diversity at the group level, and social identity processes at the intergroup level.

Selected Publications (see Publications page for full list)

Van Kleef, G. A., Homan, A. C., Beersma, B., & Van Knippenberg, D. (2010). On angry leaders and agreeable followers: How leaders' emotions and followers' personalities shape motivation and team performance. Psychological Science, 21, 1827-1834.

Van Kleef, G. A., De Dreu, C. K. W., & Manstead, A. S. R. (2010). An interpersonal approach to emotion in social decision making: The emotions as social information model. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 42, 45-96.

DeDreu, C. K. W., Greer, L.L., Handgraaf, M. J. J., Shalvi, S., Van Kleef, G. A., Baas, M., Ten Velden, F. S., Van Dijk, E., & Feith, S. W. W. (2010). The neuropeptide oxytocin regulates parochial altruism in intergroup conflict among humans. Science, 328, 1408-1411.

Van Kleef, G. A., Oveis, C., Van der Löwe, I., LuoKogan, A., Goetz, J., & Keltner, D. (2008). Power, distress, and compassion: Turning a blind eye to thesuffering of others. Psychological Science, 19, 1315-1322.

Van Kleef, G. A., De Dreu, C. K. W.,& Manstead, A. S. R. (2004). The interpersonal effects of anger and happiness in negotiations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 86, 57-76.

Van Kleef, G. A. (2009). How emotions regulate social life: The emotions as social information (EASI) model. Current Directions in Psychological Science,18, 184-188.

Van Kleef, G. A., & Côté, S. (2007). Expressing anger in conflict: When it helps and when it hurts. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92, 1557-1569.

Keltner, D., Van Kleef, G. A., Chen, S., & Kraus, M. (2008). A reciprocal influence model of social power: Emerging principles and lines of inquiry. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 40, 151-192.

Van Kleef, G. A., Homan, A. C., Beersma, B., van Knippenberg, D., van Knippenberg, B., & Damen, F. (2009). Searing sentiment or cold calculation: The effects of leader emotional displays on team performance depend on follower epistemic motivation. Academy of Management Journal, 52, 562-580.

Van Kleef, G. A., De Dreu, C. K. W., & Manstead, A. S. R. (2006). Supplication and appeasement in conflict and negotiation: The interpersonal effects of disappointment, worry, guilt, and regret. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 91, 124-142.

Homan, A. C., van Knippenberg, D., Van Kleef, G. A., & De Dreu, C.K.W. (2007). Bridging faultlines by valuing diversity: Diversity beliefs, information elaboration, and performance in diverse work groups. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92, 1189-1199.

Van Kleef,G. A., De Dreu, C. K. W., & Manstead, A. S. R. (2004). The interpersonal effects of emotions in negotiations: A motivated information processing approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 87,510-528.