Rachel Smallman

My research focuses on the conscious and non-conscious processes involved in everyday decision-making. One line of research focuses on counterfactual thinking, or thoughts of “what might have been”. Imagining how events might have turned out differently is a typical feature of the mental landscape; research shows that these counterfactual thoughts can be both dysfunctional and functional, depending on the situation. Although it can bias blame and responsibility judgments, it can also help us learn from past mistakes. My research examines both sides of this counterfactual coin. This research has broader interdisciplinary connections to both mental health and health behavior domains. A second line of research focuses on various factors (e.g., affect and mindset) that impact decision-making and categorization processes. Of particular interest is how affective information can influence our decision-making strategies. An applied line of this research focuses on decision-making in engineering. In general, my research integrates traditional social and cognitive methodology with decision-making research.

Tran, D. D., Arthur, K. A.*, Fields, S., & Smallman, R. (2025). E-cigarette Use, Dependence, and the Use of Protective Behavioral Strategies: A Path Model. Substance Use and Misuse. Arthur, K. A.*, Smallman, R., Engler, S., Lowe, J., Ni, Y., & Fields, S. (2025). Utility of the Theory of Planned Behavior to Predict Mask Wearing Pre- and Post-Mask Mandate. Health Psychology Open. Smallman, R., Arthur, K. A.*, De Leon, A.*, Gresham, P.*, Dvorak, R., & Fields, S. (2025). A Randomized Controlled Trial of Counterfactual and Personalized Normative Feedback Interventions to Increase Safe Drinking Strategies. Substance Use and Misuse. Gresham, P.*, Fields, S. Beebe, E.*, & Smallman, R. (2025). Understanding the effects of counterfactual thinking with protective behavioral strategies on healthy eati