Research Interests

My main research interests lie in the social psychology of injustice, with a particular focus on the reactions of victims and third-party observers, and what those reactions mean for the justice responses the seek. What do people want done about a transgression? What are the underlying motivations behind their demands to see justice done? And, how do those motivations affect attitudes towards different administrative responses? My recent research in collaboration with Dr. Michael Wenzel, Prof. Norm Feather (both Flinders), and Dr. Michael Platow (ANU) addresses these questions as they relate to retributive and restorative justice responses. I have also conducted numerous studies surrounding the justice-restoring properties of compensation and punishment, adopting a social identity perspective to better understand these processes. I also engage in research investigating the impact of negative expectations in the workplace (stereotype-based and otherwise).

Selected Publications

Okimoto, T.G. & Tyler, T.R. (2007). Is compensation enough?: Relational concerns in responding to unintended inequity. Group Processes and Intergroup Relations, 10(3), 399-420.

Heilman, M. E. & Okimoto, T. G. (2007). Why are women penalized for success at male tasks?: The implied communality deficit. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92(1), 81-92.

Wenzel, M., Okimoto, T.G., Feather, N.T. & Platow, M.J. (in press). Retributive and restorative justice. Law and Human Behavior.

Okimoto, T. G. (in press). The moderating and mediating role of group identification in observers’ reactions to intragroup disrespect. European Journal of Social Psychology.

Okimoto, T. G. & Wenzel, M. (in press). The symbolic meaning of transgressions: Towards a unifying framework of justice restoration. In K. A. Hegtvedt and J. Clay-Warner (Eds.), Advances in Group Processes: Justice (Vol. 25, pp. xxx-xxx). Oxford, UK: Elsevier Ltd.

Selected Conference Presentations

Okimoto, T. G. & Wenzel, M. (2007, August). Do punishments address value concerns? Achieving value consensus through labeling and offender reform. 67th annual conference for the Academy of Management, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Okimoto, T. G., Wenzel, M., Feather, N. T. & Platow, M. J. (2007, January). Retributive versus restorative justice: Shared identity and preferences for justice responses. 8th annual conference for the Society of Personality and Social Psychology, Memphis, Tennessee.

Okimoto, T. G. & Wrzesniewski, A. (2006, August). Inclusionary motivations and effort based performance in groups. Showcase symposium at the 66th annual conference for the Academy of Management, Atlanta, Georgia.

Okimoto, T. G. (2006, August). Outcomes as reaffirmation of membership status following the experience of a procedural injustice. 11th biennial conference for the International Society for Justice Research (ISJR), Berlin, Germany.

Okimoto, T. G. (2006, April). Compensation as an administrative response to procedural injustice: Reaffirmation of membership value and identity restoration. 35th annual conference for the Society of Australasian Social Psychologists, Canberra, Australia.

Additional Information

For more detailed/recent information about my research, presentations, and current projects, please see my Curriculum Vitae. Also please note that between 29 Nov 2007 and 22 Jan 2008, I can be reached in the U.S. via email or by phone at: +1 (949) 378-5940.

Contact Details

School of Psychology
Flinders University of South Australia
GPO Box 2100
Adelaide, South Australia 5001

Office: Social Sciences North
Phone: +1 (949) 378-5940
Fax: (+61 8) 8201 3877
Email: tyler.okimoto@flinders.edu.au