David Sherman’s research examines the role of the self in responding to threats and stressful events. In one line of research, he examines the psychology of self-defense, that is, why people often respond defensively to threats to the self, and how this defensiveness can be eliminated. In particular, he examines how self-affirmation can make people less defensive and more open to personally threatening events (e.g., negative health information), as well as group threatening events (e.g., the defeat of one’s team).

A second line of research examines the phenomenon of perceived intergroup polarization, the tendency of individuals and partisans (e.g., political partisans) to accentuate the differences between their own and opposing groups. He examines factors that contribute to polarization (e.g., the threat of uncertainty) as well as the implications of polarization for negotiation and political attitudes.

A third line of research examines cultural differences in how people use social support in times of stress and the implications of these cultural differences for relationships, health, and well-being.

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