She received her PhD in psychology from Stanford University in 2007 and joined the UW faculty during the same year. Dr. Cheryan is a social psychologist and studies current social problems focused on inequality and prejudice. She has conducted extensive research on topics of gender within the field of computer science and also examined how immigration is changing the nature of race relations in the U.S. Some of her primary research questions include the following: how do stereotypes shape women’s career opportunities? How do members of immigrant groups respond to not being seen as American? Are there negative effects of positive stereotypes and, if so, what are they?