Biography
Prof. Dr. Elke U. Weber
Gerhard R. Andlinger Professor in Energy and the Environment,
Professor of Psychology and Public Affairs,
Princeton University
1980 – 1984 Harvard University: M.A., Ph.D. (Cognitive Psychology)
1976 – 1980 York University: B.A., Summa cum Laude (Psychology)
Research Philosophy
I believe that psychological theory needs to interface with social problems in a two-way dialogue, proving itself with constructive solutions in real-world settings and being enriched and constrained by those settings.
While much of my work draws distinctions between homo economicus and homo sapiens, I also examine individual, group, and cultural differences in time discounting or risk taking and how best to assess and model them. Every research method has strengths and weaknesses, so I approach my questions with a mosaic of answers that draw on lab and field experiments that collect process data, behavioral outcomes, associated brain activation, and more.
I then put all of these insights to use by helping individuals or social planners design decision environments that capitalize on the full range of human capabilities and goals to make wise decisions.
Research Interests
Determinants of Risky Decision Making; Cultural, Age, Gender, and Species Differences in Decision Making under Risk and Uncertainty and Intertemporal Choice; Measurement of Risk Perception and Risk Attitude; Role of Memory and other Cognitive Processes in Preference Construction; Financial Decision Making; Environmental Decision Making; Decision Neuroscience; Neuroeconomics; Better Representation of Human Decision Making in Social Network Models and Complex Adaptive Systems Models
Professional Organizations
American Psychological Association (Fellow), American Psychological Society (Fellow), Society for Judgment and Decision Making (Past President), Society for Neuroeconomics (Past President), Society for Mathematical Psychology (Past President), Society for Risk Analysis (Fellow), Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences, Decision Analysis Society (Past Council Member)
Honors and Awards
| 2024 | Honorary Doctorate in Sustainability (Nachhaltigkeit), Leuphana University, Germany |
| 2023 | Patrick Suppes Prize, American Philosophical Society |
| 2020 | Election to US National Academy of Sciences |
| 2020 | Kavli Lecture, Society for Neuroeconomics (SNE) Annual Meeting |
| 2020 | B.F. Skinner Lecture, Association for Behavior Analysis International (ABAI) Annual Convention |
| 2019 | Dean for Science Lecture in Neuroeconomics, Institute for the Study of Decision Making, New York University |
| 2018 | Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science |
| 2018 | Teale Lecture on Nature and the Environment, University of Connecticut |
| 2018 | Princeton Engineering Commendation List for Outstanding Teaching |
| 2016 | Fellow, American Academy of Arts and Sciences |
| 2016 | Distinguished Achievement Award, Society for Risk Analysis |
| 2015 | Fellow, Society for Experimental Psychology |
| 2014 | “In Honor of” citation, Federation of Associations in Behavioral & Brain Sciences (FABBS): Recognition of “eminent, senior scientists who have made important and lasting contributions to the sciences of mind, brain, and behavior” |
| 2012 | Member, German National Academy of Sciences (Leopoldina) |
| 2012 | Honorary Professorship, Economic Science, Technical University Munich, Germany |
| 2011 | Fellow, Society for Risk Analysis |
| 2010 | Chazen Senior Scholar, Graduate School of Business, Columbia University |
| 2009 | Honorary Doctorate in Psychology, University of Basel, Switzerland |
| 2003 | Academy of Management, Organizational Behavior Division, Best Paper Award |
| 2000 | Chazen International Research Prize, Graduate School of Business, Columbia University |
| 1999 | INFORMS Decision Analysis Society Publication Award |
| 1998 | Fellow, Association for Psychological Science |
| 1996 | Fellow, Division 3 (Experimental Psychology, American Psychological Association |
| 1994 | Outstanding Young Investigator Award, Society for Medical Decision Making |
| 1990 | James S. Kemper Foundation Research Scholar, Graduate School of Business, University of Chicago |
| 1988 | Young Psychologist Award, American Psychological Association, XXIV International Congress, Sydney, Australia |
| 1986 | University of Illinois Instructional Award: “List of Faculty Rated Excellent” |
| 1985 | Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada: Postdoctoral Fellowship |
| 1980-1984 | Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada: Postgraduate Scholarship |
| 1980 | Vanier Award for Academic Excellence, York University |
Professional Positions
| 2023 | Visiting Scholar in Environmental Sustainability, Graduate School of Business, Stanford University |
| 2022 – 2026 | Einstein Foundation Visiting Fellow, Einstein Center Climate Change and Science of Intelligence Cluster of Excellence, Berlin, Germany |
| 2016 - | Gerhard R. Andlinger Professor in Energy and the Environment, Professor of Psychology and Public Affairs, Princeton University |
| 2013 | Inaugural Linde Visiting Fellow, Ronald and Maxine Linde Institute for Economic and Management Sciences, California Institute of Technology |
| 2012 – 2014 | Visiting Research Collaborator, Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies, Princeton University |
| 2009 – 2016 | Earth Institute Professor, Columbia University |
| 2009 | Visiting Professor, Copenhagen Business School |
| 2007 – 2008 | Fellow, Russell Sage Foundation |
| 2006 | Visiting Professor, London Business School |
| 2004 – 2005 | Chair, Management Division, Graduate School of Business, Columbia University |
| 2003 – 2016 | Jerome A. Chazen Professor of International Business, Columbia Business School |
| 2004 | Guest Professor, Department of Quantitative Economic Research, University of Fribourg, Switzerland |
| 2002 | Fellow, Wissenschaftskolleg (Institute for Advanced Study), Berlin, Germany |
| 1999 – 2016 | Professor of Management, Graduate School of Business, and Professor of Psychology, Department of Psychology, Columbia |
| 1995 – 1999 | Professor, Department of Psychology and Department of Management & Human Resources, Ohio State University |
| 1994 | Professor of Organizational Behavior and Leadership, Guest Chair, Otto Beisheim Graduate School of Corporate Management (WHU), Koblenz, Germany |
| 1992 – 1993 | Fellow, Center for Advanced Studies in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford, CA |
| 1988 – 1995 | Assistant and Associate Professor of Behavioral Science, Center for Decision Research, Graduate School of Business, University of Chicago |
| 1985 – 1988 | Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Urbana‑Champaign |
| 1984 – 1985 | Natural Science and Engineering Research Council Post‑Doctoral Fellow, Department of Psychology, University of Toronto |
Representative Publications
The selection of publications below contains basic research papers on the questions addressed by my research (“How do finite-capacity information processors judge, decide, act, and live in a world that is only partially predictable and that provides feedback on very variable time scales?”) as well as papers that take those insights into applied settings, mostly in the environmental domain but also for financial (investment or pension savings) decisions.
Weber, E. U. & Johnson, E. J. (2009). Mindful judgment and decision making. Annual Review of Psychology, 60, 53-86.
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Weber, E. U. (2015). Climate change demands behavioral change: What are the challenges? Social Research: An International Quarterly, 82, 561-581.
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Weber, E. U. (2013). Doing the right thing willingly: Behavioral decision theory adn environmental policy. In E. Shafir (Ed), The Behavioral Foundations of Policy, (pp. 380-397). Princeton University Press.
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Weber, E. U., Blais, A.-R.,* & Betz, N. (2002). A domain-specific risk-attitude scale: Measuring risk perceptions and risk behaviors. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 15, 263-290.
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Li, Y.,* Johnson, E. J., & Weber, E.U., Enkavi, A.Z., Gao, J., & Zaval, L. (2014). Cognitive ability and knowledge predict real-world financial outcomes. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 112(1), 65-69.
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