Donal E. Carlston
Donal E. Carlston is a distinguished scholar who has made significant contributions to the field of social cognition, establishing himself as a prominent leader in the field for five decades. He received his B.A. magna cum laude in Social Relations at Harvard University where his advisor was Tom Pettigrew, and his PhD in 1977 from the University of Illinois-Champaign, where he worked with Harry Triandis until Robert Wyer Jr. became his advisor in his third year. Carlston held a faculty position at the University of Iowa from 1976-1989, serving as President of the Faculty Senate in 1984/5 and receiving the University's senior teaching award in 1987. In 1989 he left Iowa for Purdue University where he completed his career, becoming emeritus professor in 2017.
Carlston was a leader in the emerging area of social cognition almost from the start, winning the SESP dissertation award in 1978 for his thesis on trait and behavior contributions to impression formation and co-authoring two of the first books in the area, Social Cognition, Inference, and Attribution with Robert Wyer in 1979 and Person Memory: The Cognitive Basis of Social Perception with Reid Hastie, Tom Ostrom, Ebbe Ebbeson, Robert Wyer and David Hamilton in 1980. Virtually all of his empirical publications were with his own students and former students, with a majority appearing in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (JPSP), the flagship journal in the field. Most influential was his work with John Skowronski, including that on the diagnosticity of positive and negative impression cues (Skowronski & Carlston, 1987, 1989), which has amassed more than 3000 citations, and research on the spontaneity of impression formation (e.g., Carlston & Skowronski, 1986, 1994, 2005) which ultimately morphed into additional work on associative processes, spontaneous trait transference and spontaneous evaluative inferences.
In addition to his empirical work, Carlston wrote numerous books and chapters, most, though not all, dealing with impression formation and social cognition. In addition to the seminal books on social cognition, mentioned earlier, his most important of these may have been his target chapter on Associated Systems Theory for the Advances in Social Cognition series in 1994 and a twice-reprinted chapter on race differences in athletic performance that became influential in European sports psychology.
Carlston's service activities have also had a significant impact on the field. He was the Editor of the journal Social Cognition for 13 years (1993-2005), served a 14-year stint on four NIH grant panels that dealt with social psychology, stigma, and health (chairing one for 3 years and co-chairing another for one), edited the first Oxford Handbook of Social Cognition in 2013 and co-edited the second edition in 2023, organized the Duck Conference on Social Cognition for over 30 years, and served as President of the Midwestern Psychological Association in 2010. His contributions were recognized with the Ostrom Award for lifetime contributions to social cognition in 2009 and by the very first Midwestern Psychological Association award for service to the field of psychology in 2022.
Don has also been a thoughtful, influential, and caring mentor. He has mentored dozens of students at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. One former graduate student recalled Don's sage advice for how to be successful in the field: "Do your work and be nice." This philosophy has led to countless acts of support and generosity that Don has given to his students, his junior colleagues, and those anywhere in his vicinity. His mentoring and status as a connector are evident in his continued organizing of the Duck Conference on Social Cognition which has impacted hundreds of scholars, created an enduring network of "Duckees" in social psychology, and had multiplicative effects throughout the field. He is especially eager to foster connections across academic ranks, which he feels much benefited his career when he was first starting out and colleagues like Tom Ostrom, David Hamilton, Reid Hastie, and Tory Higgins took him under their wings.
Don has also had an impact outside of academia, serving for more than a decade on the board of a California teaching foundation, advising several organizations on investments, and inventing games. He published three games that were produced and sold commercially by five different companies. The most successful of these, a board game called Personal Preference is related to his interests in person perception, was first marketed in 1987, and has a second edition being brought onto the market this year (2023).
Tributes
Most social psychologists recognize Don Carlston as a leader in establishing the field of Social Cognition. But his influence goes well beyond that. He has been a valued mentor to so many scholars who are starting out in the field, providing support and bolstering their careers. His leadership and guidance at the Midwestern Psychological Association (MPA) directly steered the organization to great financial health and size. And personally, he has been a wonderful friend, office neighbor, home neighbor, and fearless leader of the Pawnee Scooter gang. Don, you're one of a kind!
– Chris Agnew and Ximena Arriaga
Don Carlston inspired multiple generations of social cognition researchers. He created an intellectual community open to anyone regardless of expertise, place in the field, years of experience, or other otherwise dividing lines. His humble style disguises his sharp wit in addition to his deep and profound thoughts. I am indebted to his multiple forms of service to our field.
– Emily Balcetis
Don was my grad student teaching assistant for the undergrad social psych class at Illinois in the mid-1970s. He was incredibly accessible and shared all the 'inside' stuff about who was doing what great research where, how you did experiments, and in my case, after I got into Michigan's grad program, how to pronounce my advisor's name (Zajonc) correctly. Then at SESP I hate to admit I didn't know anyone else and just tagged along behind him all over the hotel in the evenings. He tried to shake me several times and it was only later on I realized what a pest I'd been. And then of course there were the Nags Head conferences each May and he was the calm, droll, sometimes sarcastic guiding hand of the social cognition meetings. Thank you Don for being such a cool big brother and so generous with your time and helpful to me and so many others when we were just starting out.
– John A. Bargh
Don is one of the kindest, most generous, most thoughtful people in the field. The impact of his career could easily be defined through the deeply significant work he's conducted within social cognition. For me, and I suspect for many others, his impact is probably best defined by his dedication and thoughtfulness about connecting people in the field to each other. So much of the scholar I am now is a result of the opportunities—that he created—for me to make connections with others. I am a better scholar and member of the field by knowing him.
– Michael Bernstein
I first met Don when I was a second-year PhD student at my first Person Memory conference. I vividly remember the two of us sitting on a couch sipping red wine out of plastic cups and chewing on pretzels together. I was so excited to meet the "Carlston" from all of the STI papers that I had been reading. To my surprise, Don deftly steered the conversation to my own research interests. He listened attentively to me summarize a study on the categorization of Multiracial people (that didn't work), and he was quick to throw out ideas, predictions, and possible methods for my next studies. I was awed by this eminent scholar in my field, who seemed so down-to-earth and took the time to chat with me about my research. It was one of many ways that Don made me feel like I belonged in the field.
Fast forward 15 years, and I am proud to call Don my friend. Don has a multifaceted legacy in our field: his seminal research on spontaneous impressions sets the bar for rigorous methodology, and his decades-long organization of the Duck Social Cognition conference has built up the social cognition community in an unparalleled way. My own scholarship has benefited directly from these contributions, and I know many others who can say the same. The field of social psychology would surely not be the same without him.
– Jackie Chen
Don was my primary advisor in graduate school. He sparked my passion for social cognition, imparted invaluable wisdom, and was warm and patient. He was the perfect mentor for me, and I am forever grateful to him. Beyond training his own graduate students, he has been a mentor to so many others via his numerous contributions to the field (Duck Conference organizing, journal editing, etc.). Our field is better because he is in it.
– Heather M. Claypool
Don Carlston is the kind of scholar I would like to be: someone who not only studies social psychology, but puts it into practice every day, improving the lives of those around him. He is one of my heroes in the field.
– Elizabeth Dunn
Aside from his intellect and true passion for the field, Don has provided great contributions in the areas of support, mentorship, and community. Even post-retirement, he continues to have a positive impact on many researchers in the field, both new and seasoned. Thanks for doing what you do, Don!
– Amani El-Alayli
I've long felt that one of the most special aspects of our science is the sense of community that it generates. We all benefit from each other in terms of inspiring new ideas, research questions, and approaches. That is part of the joy of what we all do—the sharing and the discussion move the science forward. At the same time, that community promotes friendships—ones that remain invigorated and special over time despite crossing paths only once or twice a year at a conference. For me, Don is one of those very special friends. I first met Don in 1978 when I was interviewing at the University of Iowa and he was a new assistant professor. We immediately bonded, in no small part due to the kindness he showed me while escorting me to a Dean's office in what was one of the coldest days in Iowa's history. He had us duck into a building briefly to warm up even if it meant keeping the Dean waiting. Over the years, we interacted professionally on a regular basis, but also developed a personal relationship, always seeking each other out at conferences. We became fathers at about the same time and discovered that we had this amazing ability to clear a table of fellow attendees as we shared photos and stories of our daughters. I took great delight in hearing about Personal Preference as Don first marketed it and then actually playing the game regularly with family and friends. The creativity underlying that board game was so evident in Don's research. But, it was also evident in the insights that he offered to speakers, including me, at small group conferences. Don and I regularly attended the Rhodewalt Social Psychology Winter Conference, where we would ski, dine, and talk social psychology for days at a time. Indeed, it is at conferences, including his own Duck conference, where Don really shined, and continues to do so. I know of no one who has done more to support our science's sense of community. For that, your many significant advances to the field's understanding of social cognition processes, and your friendship, I thank you, Don. Congratulations on this well-deserved recognition.
– Russ Fazio
Social psychology has eminent scholars. And social psychology has community builders. But, Don, almost nobody has blended the two as you have. You are personally responsible for so many collaborations and so many friendships. As one of your many beneficiaries, I send you my gratitude and love.
– Eli Finkel
In addition to Don's many research contributions to social cognition, I believe one of his lasting legacies will always be in his mentoring the next generation of scholars—not just his own students, but in mentoring junior scholars across the field. Don always made a point to warmly welcome junior faculty in social psychology and invite them to discuss their work with more advanced scholars in the always friendly and intellectually stimulating environment of the Duck summer conference. I am so grateful for his mentoring and his friendship. The Duck summer conference improved my research while allowing me to meet new friends and collaborators across social psychology. Those summer days remain some of my most valuable professional experiences and very favorite memories of my early career.
– Wendi L. Gardner
Don is an amazing scholar and mentor! His academic achievements speak for themselves of course, but what I truly admire about Don is his passion for social cognition and his ability to bring people together. Don has spent years building a network of social psychologists who do work in, and adjacent to, social cognition. Don works tirelessly to organize annual Duck Conferences and he goes out of his way to make sure that scholars from different sub-disciplines, career stages, backgrounds, and identities are represented and feel welcome in these spaces. Don has always made me feel welcomed and supported and has created opportunities for me to connect with other scholars and contribute research ideas to the field. These opportunities have meant the world to me as an early career researcher. Don is also one of the most friendly, warm, and supportive people I know. Don has shown me that being a successful academic is not only about your research contributions, but equally about being a good citizen of the academic community. Thank you, Don, for all that you have done to support so many scholars in social psychology!!
– Yuthika Girme
October, 1977. Six social psychologists gathered to share information about their research. They had learned that each of them independently was using new conceptual frameworks and methodological techniques to study long-time social psychology topics—impression formation, memory for person information, and judgment. The conversations were lively, the ideas were new, and it was very exciting. So the group published a book called Person Memory: The Cognitive Basis for Social Perception (Hastie et al., 1980), which was among the first works laying the groundwork for the newly-emerging area of social cognition. That was when I first met Don Carlston, the youngest member of that group, having just completed his PhD We have been close friends ever since.
Don quickly became one of the key figures in social cognition. His research deepened and broadened our understanding of how social information is processed and used. I was continually impressed by the range of topics he published on (organization and use of mental representations, selective attention to and weighting of social information, and the relation between memory and judgment). Of course, the work Don and his students did on spontaneous trait inferences and spontaneous transference was groundbreaking. His long-time work with John Skowronski is a prime example of productive collaboration. It is no surprise that Don received the Thomas M. Ostrom Award for his career-long contributions to social cognition.
In his spare time, he was the editor of Social Cognition for more than a decade, chaired many NIH grant study panels, and edited the influential Oxford Handbook of Social Cognition. I sometimes wonder how he does it all. And I haven't even mentioned Personal Preference!
Don is a facilitator, best exemplified by his organizing (for more than two decades) the annual Duck Conference on Social Cognition. A week-long conference at the beach? Sounds great! But their real significance is that through them Don has facilitated interactions among social cognition researchers that have spawned many collaborative research enterprises. Moreover, those conferences have established that Don is the reigning King of Pool Volleyball!
Don loves talking with people. At conventions, he will occasionally go to a program session to hear a talk, but you're more likely to find him in the hallway talking one-on-one with someone about that person's research ideas, with Don providing feedback and suggestions. Don genuinely likes people and wants to know what makes them tick.
Don's contributions to social psychology have been hugely important. I am delighted that he will be on the Heritage Wall of Fame.
– Dave Hamilton
I met Don at SPSP in Savannah, over a boxed lunch of fried chicken. I was excited to match a person to the name I'd seen on so many papers. I didn't realize that he would significantly impact my career. In retrospect, the most important boxed lunch I ever had. When I was in the first year of my post-doc, I was invited to the Duck Conference. At the conference, I met more luminaries, and luminaries-to-be. More importantly, I found friends and colleagues that gave me a sense of belonging in the field. When my career hit rough patches, Don was the first one to call to check on me and then gracefully provided me with opportunities to stay connected and regain my balance. I'm not the only person with this story. A career is more than papers and impact is more than citations. Don's attention to the people behind the psychology and his genuine love of social cognition have been a gift to the field.
– Camille Johnson
We are thrilled to share our gratitude for all Don has done for the field of social psychology! Through his research contributions, mentorship, and community building Don is one of the best stewards our field has known. Thank you Don for all you've done to support the development of junior scholars and build community in our science!
– April Smith and Jonathan Kunstman
Don cares about social cognition research and the people doing it. I admire his long-standing commitment to bringing researchers together and creating the space for deep intellectual exchanges. He does so in various ways. He has been running the annual Duck Conference for years, which is by far one of my favourite things in our field. He has edited the Oxford Handbook of Social Cognition. And he simply, genuinely enjoys talking to people, hearing about their work, and bouncing off ideas with them. Don, congratulations on receiving this well-deserved honor. We're lucky to have you in our field.
– Spike Lee
I first met Don in 2007 as a graduate student in my second year of doctoral training while presenting some research at a poster session during the WPA annual conference. Don walked by my poster, wearing his trademark conference attire: a black suit and a smile. I cannot remember what we discussed, surely the poster and research, but I remember how warm that exchange was. That feeling was one that has prevailed through all of my interactions with Don. Whether engaged in discussions about research findings, current trends in the field, the history of social cognition, the intricacies of academic life, the balance between family and work commitments, or even matters related to financial markets, Don consistently brings an unparalleled authenticity and warmth to every conversation. While his scholarly contributions have garnered widespread recognition, what truly sets him apart, in my view, is the spirit of generosity and inclusivity he embodies through fostering connections and collaboration at the annual Duck conference he organizes and his welcoming demeanor in professional settings.
– Debbie Ma
Don Carlston was not my formal mentor when I began grad school at Purdue in the latter half of the 1990s but we, as graduate students, were encouraged to also work with two other professors and I chose Eliot Smith and Don Carlston. I first took Don's advanced Social Cognition class and then worked extensively in his lab. He was the opposite of a micromanager, seeming to intuit that I was my own most demanding boss, and it was not long before I had a cot stashed behind the lab door and started taking many morning showers at the co-rec because of late work hours. I soon realized that I was learning the most, producing the most research, and advancing the most in Don's lab, and asked our grad mediator if I could switch to Don as my formal mentor. I was confidentially advised to stay quiet and that this would resolve itself because, although my original mentor had not yet made it public, he was leaving Purdue. Thus, Don avoided any awkwardness between him and his colleague and, rather, was viewed as rescuing an "abandoned child."
Part of Don's legacy with his mentees is top-quality research methods and skilled writing. I received the strongest methods and writing training while working for Don, which I do my best to pass on to my students today. Perhaps most of all, I appreciate how Don taught me to value reviewers' comments and suggestions (after an appropriate amount of preliminary swearing, of course) in the peer-review process. He taught me how to view stronger suggestions as free expert advice and truly value how that advice strengthened my research. He taught me how to recognize weaker suggestions as needs for clarification in my own writing. Don was an exceptional mentor and his legacy lives on through his work and his students. I am grateful for this opportunity to acknowledge Don Carlston's significant contribution to his mentees and the field of Social Cognition.
– Lynda Mae
In honor of Don Carlston. Because, Spontaneous Trait (and evaluative, and biased) Inferences. Because, Associated Systems Theory. Because, mentorship. Because, Duck. Because, Personal Preference. Thanks so much, and thanks for all your great work on helping SPSP go from strength to strength.
– Diane Mackie
The greatest joy of being an academic is building meaningful relationships with others. Some colleagues are great mentors, others are good friends, while others are inspirational servants. For me and many others, Don Carlston exemplifies all of these qualities in one wonderful person. Don's scholarship is first-rate, and he is an important founding leader in social cognition. However, his greatest contributions come from service that celebrates and supports others. For three decades, Don has organized the Duck Conference on Social Cognition, which embodies the platonic ideal of an academic meeting that inspires intellectual curiosity, builds friendships and community, and uplifts scholars and our science. Don is thoughtful, caring, egoless, and decent, and he is an avid supporter of junior faculty, underrepresented people, and scholars from all types of institutions. It is so satisfying to have a friend and colleague like Don who always supports others and elevates our field.
– Allen R. McConnell
Besides his pioneering contributions to social cognition and our understanding of person perception, Don is a community builder. I first met Don as a brand new assistant professor when I was invited to Purdue to give a colloquium talk. Don was warm, interested, and made me feel like my ideas were important. A few months later, he invited me to attend the Duck Conference on Social Cognition and that gathering opened the door to lifelong friends, coauthors, and collaborators. It helped me feel connected to the field in a way I hadn’t before. Don has done this for generations of social psychologists and he has built a field—not only with his own original scientific contributions but also by the many scholars he has brought together and created community with across decades. Our field would not be the same without him. I am grateful to have the opportunity to honor Don and his contributions in this way.
– Mary Murphy
Don's impact in the field is immense. Yes, he has done outstanding work as a social cognition researcher, making important contributions to the field over many decades of his career. But his impact goes far beyond his seminal research contributions. He is one of the key people who helped to create a sense of community and connection among scholars in the field. As a fledgling junior faculty member, I was invited to the Duck Social Cognition Conference that Don organizes every year, wondering whether I even belonged in a room full of social cognition researchers. The friendships and connections I formed through this evolving group that Don has helped to facilitate and grow over the years have stayed with me throughout my career. Every time I've attended the Duck conference I'm reminded of how much I love social psychology, the people in it, and how thankful we all feel to be part of something that Don created. Don made us feel like family, and one of the most memorable things he said to me was something to the effect of, when you retire you realize it's not about adding another line to your CV that's important, but the people in your life—the relationships you form throughout your life and career—that ultimately matters. I couldn't agree more.
Don, I want to thank you for all that you have done for the field. You have touched so many people's lives with your kindness, warmth, care, and concern. You care about us as researchers and push us to think deeper about what we're studying; you've provided a forum for us to discuss our work with curiosity and excitement. Even more so, you have shown us what it feels like to be part of an academic family that cares about each other and supports one another. That is your legacy and for that, I and so many others are truly and forever grateful to you.
– Lora Park
We have been fortunate to get to know Don Carlston over the years first at the annual meeting of the Person Memory Interest Group and then at the Duck Social Cognition conference. In addition to being an excellent scientist, the thing that stands out about Don is how much he cares about the field of Social Cognition and the people in it. We are so appreciative of how, since the time we were young graduate students, he has always made us feel a sense of comfort and belonging in settings that otherwise could be very intimidating. The spaces we construct are important to our science and they take constant work to maintain. Don is a caretaker of the highest order and we're so happy to see his efforts acknowledged.
– Kate A. Ratliff & Colin Tucker Smith
I never worked with Don on research or even shared an institutional affiliation with him, yet his impact on my career has been numerous. Early on, I benefited greatly from his insightful editorial feedback when Dave Amodio and I contributed a chapter to the first edition of his Oxford Handbook of Social Cognition. In subsequent years, he was so generous with his time and always willing to talk with me about my half-baked ideas at Person Memory and Duck. Don's Associated Systems Theory strongly influenced my understanding of how people cognitively represent the social information they encounter, and to me, is one of the most underappreciated theoretical works in social psychology. White and Carlston (1983) is a paper I teach in depth in my social cognition course because it so nicely illustrates how schemas help people decide which pieces of information they should attend to when trying to learn about multiple people simultaneously. The work of Don and his colleagues on spontaneous inferences related to traits, evaluations, and transference always impressed me with its methodological rigor and clever experimental approaches. As more and more social psychologists borrowed social cognitive theory and techniques over the years, social cognition research in many ways became indistinguishable from the broader field of social psychology. However, a distinguishing feature of social cognition was always supposed to be the focus on process and representation. Don's research continually kept process and representation in the foreground and the field is better because of this. The field is also better because of how welcoming he was during his career to emerging scholars like myself and how he modeled the value of curiosity and collegiality. I often find myself channeling Don when I am mentoring students or designing studies. I am so grateful for the many opportunities I had to cross paths with him.
– Kyle G. Ratner
Don Carlston has had an incredible influence on the field of social psychology not only through his own ground-breaking work in person perception and social cognition, but in taking an active, intentional role in fostering the careers of others, particularly junior scholars. Certainly, Don played an outsized role in helping me feel that I belonged in this field—no trivial thing—and I am confident that many others would agree. By fostering connections among scholars, and by creating a true community and a culture of belonging, Don has influenced multiple generations of scholars.
– Abigail Scholer
Don has been an enormous influence on my and many others' academic lives and careers. Intellectually, his work on person perception has been foundational, literally. His work on social inferences was some of the first I learned more than 30 years ago and continues to influence my thinking. As important, Don has always been a welcoming figure for young scientists. He treats people like they belong. In doing so, they come to believe it. As a newbie grad student, he asked me about my research and actually listened! His ongoing organization of the Duck Social Cognition conference also has contributed substantially to both the social and intellectual well-being of our field. Many close and dear friendships and collaborations have sprung from Duck. Many research projects were hatched or improved in the warm and supportive atmosphere that Don created and nurtured. Congratulations to Don on this well-deserved recognition!
– Jeffrey Sherman
The trajectory of my life changed for the better when Don Carlston took me under his wing. He was the role model I desperately needed. As my mentor, he provided needed lessons in scholarship, research, and life. In doing, so, he exhibited a seemingly infinite reservoir of patience, kindness, generosity, and tolerance. These qualities continued to be exhibited by Don during our lifelong friendship and research collaboration. Moreover, working with him was fun, intellectually stimulating, and productive. I am deeply grateful that he chose to enter and to stay in, my life.
– John J. Skowronski
Don Carlston and I were close colleagues at Purdue University for over a decade. We had many similarities in our backgrounds and interests, from our research focus on social cognition to our membership in the same undergraduate class at Harvard (although we did not know each other at that time). Discussing research, we repeatedly found that we agreed to an unusual extent on matters of theoretical principle, research style, and even "taste"—sharing enthusiasm about certain lines of research that we found especially compelling. Many of Don's major contributions to our field, beyond his own seminal publications, have helped guide the trajectory of social cognition research, based on that well-honed "taste" and his deep knowledge of the field of which he has been part virtually from its beginning. His contributions include time as Editor of the journal Social Cognition, as the long-time organizer of the Duck Conference on Social Cognition, and more recently as Editor of the Oxford Handbook of Social Cognition. Congratulations, Don, on this recognition from the field you have done so much to shape.
– Eliot Smith
Don's been a champion of social cognition and impression formation, as a research field and as a community of scholars, for his whole career. He was the second editor of Social Cognition (after Dave Schneider), and the founder and organizer of the Duck Conference on Social Cognition on the Outer Banks (after Bibb Latané). He always encouraged younger scholars and stimulated older ones, in both these roles. At other conferences, he spent more time in lobbies and corridors than at talks, meeting old friends, making new ones, and talking ideas. I'm proud to have served as his associate editor for 12 years at SC, and pleased that he found spontaneous inferences of enough interest that he made significant contributions to that work. Finally, his counter-balanced designs were unrivaled.
– Jim Uleman