My research investigates the psychology of punishment and its role as a tool for teaching and norm enforcement. Specifically, I explore how punishment shapes behavior, how people interpret it as a signal of values and goals, and how cognitive and social factors influence its success or failure.

My work is organized around two key themes: understanding how we learn from punishments and how we can use punishments to teach effectively. In one line of work, I investigate the cognitive processes that shape how people interpret punishments, whether as a cost for undesirable behavior or as a signal of the punisher’s values and intentions. In another line of work, I explore how teachers can structure punishment and rewards to influence beliefs and shape behavior to promote cooperation and learning. Using behavioral experiments and computational models, I examine the conditions under which punishment reinforces shared norms and goals, aligns individual and collective interests, and maintains trust within social and organizational settings.

Some questions of central interest to me include: How do people infer the motives behind punishments, and how does that shape their responses? What role does power and authority play in the interpretation and effectiveness of punishment in institutions? How can we design fair and effective punitive systems that maintain cooperation while minimizing resentment or retaliation?

By examining the answers to these questions, my aim is to provide insights that can guide how punishment is used in various settings, from education to organizational management and criminal justice. Ultimately, my goal to uncover how punishment can foster cooperation and uphold institutional norms without causing harm or division.