"If you want to change the behaviors and outcomes associated with social identity don't focus on changing the internal manifestations of the identity. Focus instead on changing the contingencies to which all of that internal stuff is an adaptation."

Claude Profile

Claude M. Steele

Professor of Psychology | Stanford University

Claude M. Steele is an American social psychologist and a Professor of Psychology at Stanford University.

He is best known for his work on stereotype threat and its application to minority student academic performance. His earlier work dealt with research on the self (e.g., self-imageself-affirmation) as well as the role of self-regulation in addictive behaviors. In 2010, he released his book, Whistling Vivaldi and Other Clues to How Stereotypes Affect Us, summarizing years of research on stereotype threat and the underperformance of minority students in higher education.

He holds B.A. in Psychology from Hiram College, an M.A. in Social Psychology from Ohio State University, and a Ph.D. in Social Psychology and Statistical Psychology from Ohio State University.

He is elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the National Academy of Sciences, the National Science Board, the National Academy of Education, and the American Philosophical Society. Read More


“Prof. Claude Steele is much more than a very distinguished academic psychologist. Claude has consistently endeavored to translate your unique and notable research breakthroughs into improved policies, most notably in the realm of education, high stakes testing and removing artificial barriers to the mobility and success of stigmatized groups.”

- James S. Jackson

Books:

Whistling Vivaldi: How Stereotypes Affect Us and What We Can Do

Claude M. Steele, who has been called “one of the few great social psychologists,” offers a vivid first-person account of the research that supports his groundbreaking conclusions on stereotypes and identity. He sheds new light on American social phenomena from racial and gender gaps in test scores to the belief in the superior athletic prowess of black men, and lays out a plan for mitigating these “stereotype threats” and reshaping American identities Read More

Publication Date: 2010 | Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Whistling Vivaldi Book

Video:

Diversity & Inclusion Lecture Series: Claude Steele

Brown University | November 9, 2016