World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!

D-Index & Metrics

Psychology

D-Index
40
Citations
9689
World Ranking
8105
National Ranking
4344

Overview

Daniel C. Molden is affiliated with Northwestern University in the United States. Their research primarily focuses on the social sciences, with significant contributions to sociology and political science, social psychology, experimental and cognitive psychology, cognitive neuroscience, and communication.

The scientist has published in several academic venues, with frequent appearances in:

  • Political Psychology
  • Journal of Open Psychology Data
  • Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
  • European Journal of Personality
  • Journal of Experimental Social Psychology

Their published works include a range of articles spanning various topics. Selected recent papers are:

  • "When and How Different Motives Can Drive Motivated Political Reasoning" (2020) in Political Psychology
  • "Predicting romantic interest during early relationship development: A preregistered investigation using machine learning" (2022) in European Journal of Personality
  • "Negligible evidence that people desire partners who uniquely fit their ideals" (2020) in Journal of Experimental Social Psychology
  • "A motivational systems approach to investigating opinions on climate change" (2021) in Thinking & Reasoning
  • "The Open Anchoring Quest Dataset: Anchored Estimates from 96 Studies on Anchoring Effects" (2022) in Journal of Open Psychology Data

Molden's research encompasses the following main topics:

  • Social and Intergroup Psychology
  • Climate Change Communication and Perception
  • Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior
  • Social Media and Politics
  • Attachment and Relationship Dynamics
  • Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health
  • Consumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and Identification

Frequent co-authors include:

  • Robin Bayes
  • James Druckman
  • Paul W. Eastwick
  • Eli J. Finkel
  • Lukas Röseler

Their interdisciplinary approach bridges multiple subfields to explore social cognition, political reasoning, relationship dynamics, and environmental communication. Their work often intersects experimental methodologies to investigate human behavior in social contexts, including the use of machine learning techniques for relationship prediction and motivational frameworks in political psychology.

Best Publications

  • Finding "meaning" in psychology: a lay theories approach to self-regulation, social perception, and social development.

    Daniel C. Molden;Carol S. Dweck

  • Transfer of value from fit.

    E. Tory Higgins;Lorraine Chen Idson;Antonio L. Freitas;Scott Spiegel

  • Many analysts, one dataset: Making transparent how variations in analytical choices affect results

    R. Silberzahn;E. L. Uhlmann;D. P. Martin;P. Anselmi

  • Self-Theories: Their impact on competence motivation and acquisition

    Carol S. Diveck;Daniel C. Molden

  • Promotion and Prevention Focus on Alternative Hypotheses: Implications for Attributional Functions

    Nira Liberman;Daniel Molden;Lorraine Idson;E. Higgins

  • Motivations for prevention or promotion following social exclusion: being rejected versus being ignored.

    Daniel C. Molden;Gale M. Lucas;Wendi L. Gardner;Kristy Dean

  • Motivational Versus Metabolic Effects of Carbohydrates on Self-Control:

    Daniel C. Molden;Chin Ming Hui;Abigail A. Scholer;Brian P. Meier

  • Many Analysts, One Data Set: Making Transparent How Variations in Analytic Choices Affect Results

    R Silberzahn;E L Uhlmann;D P Martin

  • Motivations for promotion and prevention

    Daniel C. Molden;Angela Y. Lee;E. Tory Higgins

  • Understanding Priming Effects in Social Psychology: What is “Social Priming” and How does it Occur?

    Daniel C. Molden

  • Naive theories of intelligence and the role of processing fluency in perceived comprehension.

    David B. Miele;Daniel C. Molden

  • Meaning and motivation.

    Daniel C. Molden;Carol S. Dweck

  • The promise and peril of self-affirmation in de-escalation of commitment

    Niro Sivanathan;Daniel C. Molden;Adam D. Galinsky;Gillian Ku

  • “Meaningful” social inferences: Effects of implicit theories on inferential processes

    Daniel C. Molden;Jason E. Plaks;Carol S. Dweck

  • Does Easily Learned Mean Easily Remembered? It Depends on Your Beliefs About Intelligence

    David B. Miele;Bridgid Finn;Daniel C. Molden

  • Expanding minds: Growth mindsets of self-regulation and the influences on effort and perseverance

    Alissa J. Mrazek;Alissa J. Mrazek;Elliott D. Ihm;Daniel C. Molden;Michael D. Mrazek

  • There’s No Substitute for Belonging: Self-Affirmation Following Social and Nonsocial Threats

    Megan L. Knowles;Gale M. Lucas;Daniel C. Molden;Wendi L. Gardner

  • Motivations for promotion and prevention and the role of trust and commitment in interpersonal forgiveness

    Daniel C. Molden;Eli J. Finkel

  • The pipeline project : Pre-publication independent replications of a single laboratory's research pipeline

    Martin Schweinsberg;Nikhil Madan;Michelangelo Vianello;S. Amy Sommer

  • CATEGORIZATION UNDER UNCERTAINTY: RESOLVING VAGUENESS AND AMBIGUITY WITH EAGER VERSUS VIGILANT STRATEGIES

    Daniel C. Molden;E. Tory Higgins

Frequent Co-Authors

E. Tory Higgins
E. Tory Higgins Columbia University
Eli J. Finkel
Eli J. Finkel Northwestern University
Carol S. Dweck
Carol S. Dweck Stanford University
Wendi L. Gardner
Wendi L. Gardner Northwestern University
Jay J. Van Bavel
Jay J. Van Bavel New York University
Eric-Jan Wagenmakers
Eric-Jan Wagenmakers University of Amsterdam
Sapna Cheryan
Sapna Cheryan University of Washington
Peter H. Ditto
Peter H. Ditto University of California, Irvine
Andrei Cimpian
Andrei Cimpian New York University

If you think any of the details on this page are incorrect, let us know.

Report an issue

We appreciate your kind effort to assist us to improve this page, it would be helpful providing us with as much detail as possible in the text box below:

Related Online Degrees & Career Pathways

Pursuing a degree in Psychology opens up diverse career pathways, especially in the field of mental health counseling. With increased demand for qualified counselors, many accredited universities now offer flexible online degrees tailored for students seeking careers in counseling or related professions.

While online study provides accessibility and convenience, it’s important to recognize that licensing requirements for mental health counselors vary by location. For example, mental health counselor requirements in Columbus emphasize state-approved graduate education, supervised experience, and successful completion of licensure exams.

If you’re interested in specializing within particular regions, check out how to become a mental health counselor in Corpus Christi, which outlines the required coursework and experience for Texas. Additionally, those considering Dallas mental health counselor certification requirements should be aware of local standards, including specific fieldwork hours and examinations.

Certification processes can also differ in other cities—Denver mental health counselor certification requirements, for instance, focus on particular supervised practice and background checks. Before starting an online psychology program, review your state’s regulations to ensure your degree meets all professional credentialing criteria.

Best Scientists Citing Daniel C. Molden

Trending Scientists

Recently Published Articles