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Ewa Kochanowska recently defended her doctoral dissertation, “With Feelings in Mind: The Role of Affect in Social Perception, Decision Making, and Choice,” a groundbreaking exploration into the intertwined nature of affect and cognition. This thesis is a significant contribution to our understanding of how emotions influence our cognitive processes, challenging long-held distinctions between affective and cognitive functions.

Ewa’s research, articulated in three insightful chapters, demonstrates how our feelings impact person perception, decision-making, and preferences. Through innovative experimental methods, Ewa shows that incidental affect—emotions unrelated to the immediate context—can shape how we view others and make choices, highlighting the pervasive influence of emotions in our daily lives. Her work also reveals that our preferences and decisions vary with the fluctuations of our emotional states throughout the day, adding a dynamic dimension to the study of decision-making.

The Library is proud to have played a supportive role in Ewa’s academic journey, granting her access to an extensive collection of articles and journals. Congratulations to Ewa on her Ph.D. and look forward to seeing how her work influences future research on human behavior and beyond.