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EDUCATION
PhD, Psychology, University of Cambridge
MRes, Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London
BSc, Psychology, Peking University
BACKGROUND
Rui Sun is a Principal Researcher at the Center for Decision Research. Prior to joining CDR, Rui was a postdoc researcher at the Department of Social Psychology, University of Amsterdam, working on large-scale, cross-cultural studies on emotional experience and psychological wellbeing. She did her Ph.D. in social psychology at the University of Cambridge, working on socioeconomic status, prosocial behaviors, and wellbeing. She also holds a Research Master's degree in Cognitive Neuroscience from University College London, and a BS in Psychology at Peking University.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Rui Sun's research interests include: wellbeing, emotion, culture, prosociality, social media, socioeconomic status. She uses both quantitative methods (big data analysis, questionnaire, online and lab experiments, experience sampling method on smartphones) and qualitative methods (such as theme coding interviews, and content analysis) to research these topics. She is specifically interested in applying computational methods in studying human wellbeing and emotions across different socioeconomic status and cultures.
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS & PRESENTATIONS
Sun, R., Rieble, C., Liu, Y., & Sauter, D. A. (Accepted/In press). Connected despite lockdown: The role of social interactions and social media use in wellbeing. Collabra: Psychology. https://psyarxiv.com/x5k8u/
Kamiloglu, R. G., Cong, Y., Sun, R., & Sauter, D. A. (Accepted/In press). Emotions Across Cultures. In L. Al-Shawaf, & T. K. Shackelford (Eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Evolution and the Emotions Oxford University Press. https://osf.io/9e3sn/
Sun, R., & Sauter, D. (2021). Sustained Stress Reduces the Age Advantages in Emotional Experience of Older Adults: Commentary on Carstensen et al. (2020). Psychological Science, 32(12), 2035-2041. https://doi.org/10.1177/09567976211052476
Sun, R., Hou, W. K., Hui, B. P. H., Siu, NY-F., Engels, T., & Sauter, D. A. (2021). Perception and evaluation of 23 positive emotions in Hong Kong and the Netherlands. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, [579474]. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.579474
Cordaro, D. T., Sun, R., Kamble, S., Hodder, N., Monroy, M., Cowen, A., Bai, Y., & Keltner, D. (2020). The recognition of 18 Facial-Bodily Expressions Across Nine Cultures. Emotion, 20(7), 1292-1300. https://doi.org/10.1037/emo0000576
Sauter, D. A., Crasborn, O., Engels, T., Kamiloğlu, R. G., Sun, R., Eisner, F., & Haun, D. B. M. (2020). Human emotional vocalisations can develop in the absence of auditory learning. Emotion, 20(8), 1435-1445. https://doi.org/10.1037/emo0000654
Sun, R., Vuillier, L., Deakin, J., & Kogan, A. (2020). Oxytocin Increases Emotional Theory of Mind, But Only for Low Socioeconomic Status Individuals. Heliyon, 6(3), [e03540]. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e03540
Pavarini, G., Sun, R., Mahmoud, M., Cross, I., Schnall, S., Fischer, A., Deakin, J., Ziauddeen, H., Kogan, A., & Vuillier, L. (2019). The role of oxytocin in the facial mimicry of affiliative vs. non-affiliative emotions. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 109, [104377]. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2019.104377
Sun, R., Vuillier, L., Hui, B. P. H., & Kogan, A. (2019). Caring helps: Trait empathy is related to better coping strategies and differs in the poor versus the rich. PLoS ONE, 14(3), [e0213142]. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0213142
Cordaro, D. T., Sun, R., Keltner, D., Kamble, S., Huddar, N., & McNeill, G. (2018). Universals and cultural variations in 22 emotional expressions across five cultures. Emotion, 18(1), 75-93. https://doi.org/10.1037/emo0000302