Carey’s research examines the fundamental question of how humans construct knowledge through processes such as face processing, social cognition, numerical representation, word learning, counting, and explanation. Her studies in all of these areas have culminated in a grand theory of conceptual change, which she detailed in her book, The Origins of Concepts. This theory has revolutionized our understanding of how humans construct an understanding of objects, number, living kinds, and the physical world.  Individually and with her collaborators, Carey’s work has given also rise to numerous new programs of research, including “fast-mapping,” “extended mapping” and “folk theories.”

Throughout her career, Carey has tirelessly served as a mentor to the next generations of scientists. She has guided hundreds of students, dozens of whom have gone on to full tenure tracks and their own influential careers.

Professor James Sidanius and colleagues have won The Society of Experimental Social Psychology’s Scientific Impact Award for their 1994 paper in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology paper titled Social dominance orientation: A personality variable predicting social and political attitudes.

Matthew K. Nock, Edgar Pierce Professor of Psychology, was recently named a Harvard College Professor.  The Harvard College Professorships were launched in 1997 through a gift from John and Frances Loeb. 

Assistant Professor Talia Konkle is the winner of the Vision Sciences Society's 2019 Young Investigator Award.  The Young Investigator Award is an award given to an early stage researcher who has already made a significant contribution to their field. The award is sponsored by Elsevier, and the awardee is invited to submit a review paper to Vision Research highlighting this contribution.

Steven Pinker wins the 2018 Carl Sagan Award for Public Appreciation of Science from the Council of Scientific Society Presidents.  The award is given annually by the society to recognize an individual for outstanding achievement in improving the public understanding and appreciation of science. 

Past winners include Carl Sagan, E. O. Wilson, Bill Nye, Phil Zimbardo, and Thomas Friedman.