Dr. Wendy Mendes

Biography

Wendy Berry Mendes is the Chris Argyris Professor of Psychology at Yale University. She received her PhD in 2003 from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Her research focuses on the intersection of emotion, stress, and physiological responses, employing a variety of approaches, including autonomic nervous system physiology and neuroendocrinology. Mendes' recent work examines how emotions influence decision-making and the processes of discrimination and stigmatization, as well as how these affect both physical and mental health. She investigates how dyads and groups can influence a process known as affect contagion and how stress impacts physiology and cognition throughout the lifespan. Her lab conducts research in multiple contexts, including daily life, classroom settings, and operating rooms, with the primary goal of understanding the bidirectional influences between the mind and body through a social psychological lens.

Research Interests