Sonia Yanovsky

PhD Candidate in Social Psychology, Department of Psychology, Rutgers University

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Sonia Yanovsky

I am a PhD candidate in Social Psychology at Rutgers University–New Brunswick. My research focus is on political extremism and authoritarianism.

Research

My research examines the psychological and social forces that contribute to political extremism, authoritarianism, prejudice, and threats to democratic norms. A major focus of my work is the conceptualization and measurement of authoritarianism. At the center of my research is a fundamental question: What underlying psychological mechanisms lead people to embrace authoritarian beliefs and behaviors, regardless of whether those commitments originate on the political left or right?

My broader research also investigates religious prejudice, including antisemitism and Hinduphobia, as well as the relationship between social media use, political radicalization, and support for extremist ideas.

I am committed to scientific integrity, open inquiry, and viewpoint diversity. I am particularly interested in how political bias and weak research practices can distort the questions scholars ask, the data they interpret, and the conclusions they draw. Ultimately, my work seeks to produce more rigorous and ideologically balanced psychological science while contributing to a clearer understanding of the attitudes and social processes that threaten pluralism, free inquiry, and democratic society.

I first discovered my love for social psychology research while I was getting my B.S. in psychology at the University of West Florida. I pursued political psychology at Stony Brook University (M.S. in political science, 2022) and realized there are still some unanswered questions about the conceptualization and measurement of psychological authoritarianism. From there, I went to Rutgers University to be advised by Lee Jussim, social scientist extraordinaire. I received my M.S. in social psychology in 2025, and continue to conduct research on authoritarianism and other forms of political extremism.

I frequently collaborate with the Network Contagion Research Institute, and our work has been featured in such outlets as The New York Times, The Free Press, and Bloomberg.

I enjoy teaching and mentoring students, especially when helping them engage thoughtfully and critically with scientific research. I emphasize that science is not a fixed body of unquestionable facts, but a provisional and probabilistic process that requires continual evaluation, replication, and refinement, as well as careful scrutiny of the methodological weaknesses and ideological biases that can shape research questions, methods, and conclusions. Ultimately, this philosophy guides my own research.

Education

  1. Current

    PhD Candidate, Social PsychologyRutgers University

  2. 2025

    MS, Social PsychologyRutgers University

  3. 2022

    MA, Political ScienceStony Brook University

  4. 2019

    BS, PsychologyUniversity of West Florida