The Interpersonal Behavior Laboratory is headed by Marianne Schmid Mast and the research carried out in the lab aims at a better understanding of human interpersonal behavior, mostly at the workplace. The lab is situated at the crossroad of social psychology, management, and leadership and research in the lab focuses on topics such as nonverbal behavior, first impressions, power and leadership, interpersonal communication, behavioral adaptability, responsible interpersonal behavior, interpersonal accuracy, and effects of physical environment on behavior.
We use a wide array of different research approaches, methods, and technologies: experimental settings, simulations, role play, questionnaires, reaction time measures, implicit and explicit assessment methods, and behavioral observation and coding. One specialty of the lab is its use of the latest technology for investigating interpersonal behavior: immersive virtual reality and automatic social sensing.
The lab’s mission is to carry out evidence-based research about how people interact in different work-related situations and to conduct this research using innovative technologies in order to foster scientific knowledge that can be applied to practice.