James M. Jones
Cultural psychology, temporal orientation; prejudice & racism, coping and stress
Professor Jones' major interests concern psychosocial mechanisms for adapting to and coping with the chronic accessibility of racism as a potential explanation for life’s experiences. This “Universal context of racism” (UCR), has motivational consequences that include both self-protection (reducing the negative effects of stigma and discrimination) and self-enhancement (social comparative and individual mechanisms for maintaining self-worth). Research in our lab focuses on the cognitive, emotional and behavioral responses to activation of the UCR for both targets of racism and members of groups historically viewed as the perpetrators of racism.
The second major area of work explores the implication of TRIOS, a psychological worldview that combines African-inspired processes of Time, Rhythm Improvisation, Orality and Spirituality as an individual differences construct that predicts overall positive psychological states, and effective coping with challenging circumstances. A self-report measure of TRIS has been developed and is to assess individual variations in TRIOS level and their effects on responses to and coping with the UCR.
The third area of research is the social psychology of time. That interest is concerned with individual orientations toward the past, present and future, and how those differences in temporal perspective may influence the development of achievement motivations and personal expressive styles. The Temporal Orientation Scale (TOS) shows reliable differences between Past (high neuroticism, pessimism and depression), Present(optimism, extraversion, and impulsivity and lack of concern with future consequences) and Future (conscientiousness, concern with future consequences, goal-directed behavior and optimism). This interest also involves determining how cognitive and emotional factors influence the perception of the passage of time.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Jones, J.M. (in press) Any time is Trinidad Time!: Cultural variations in the value and function of time. In A. Strathman and J. Joireman (eds.) Understanding behavior in the context of time. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Publishers.
Jones, J.M. (in press) Mechanisms for Coping with Victimization: Self-Protection Plus Self-Enhancement. In J.F. Dovidio, P. Glick, L. Rudman (Eds.) (2004) Reflecting on the Nature of Prejudice. New York: Blackwell Publishers.
Jones, J.M. (2004) TRIOS: A Model for Coping with the Universal Context of racism. In G. Philogene (Ed.) Kenneth B. Clark: Essays in honor of a Social Activist and scholar(161-190). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Chang, M., Witt-Sandis, D., Jones, J.M. & Hakuta, K. (Eds.) (2003) A Compelling Interest: Weighing the evidence on racial dynamics in higher education. Palo Alto, CA: Stanford University Press.
Jones, J.M. (1997) Prejudice and racism, Second edition. New York: McGraw-Hill.
REPRESENTATIVE PUBLICATIONS
Brown, W.T. & Jones, J.M. (2004) The substance of things hoped for: A study of the future orientation, minority status perceptions, academic engagement, and academic performance of Black high school students. Journal of Black Psychology, 30(2), 248-273.
Jones, J.M. (2003) TRIOS: A Psychological Theory of African Legacy in American Culture. Journal of Social Issues, 59, 217-241.
Jones, J.M. , Lynch, P.D., Tenglund, A.A. & Gaertner , S.G. (2000) Toward a Diversity Hypothesis: Multidimensional Effects of Intergroup Contact. Applied and Preventive Psychology, 9(1), 53-62.
Lasane, T.P. & Jones, J.M. (2000) When socially induced temporal myopia interferes with academic goal-setting. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 15(5), 75-86.
Jones, J.M. (1998) Psychological Knowledge And the New American Dilemma of Race.Journal of Social Issues, 54, 638-652.
