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Kirkland Kimberly Jenkins Robinson Melissa Thomas-Hunt Pam Cipriano Paul Becker Tim Layton (-) Benjamin Converse (-) Jeanine Braithwaite Facet People - News School Engineering Social Innovation @ UVA Facet UVA Partner - News Research and Commentary Accolades Alum in Action Student Stories Facet News Type - News Feb 20, 2025 Finding a Seat at the Interdisciplinary Research Table UVA Batten hosted the “Annual Behavioral Science Across Grounds Conference” earlier this month, bringing some of the brightest minds of UVA’s research community to Garrett Hall to exchange ideas, interests, and insights. Associate professor Ben Converse gave the keynote. Learn more Feb 01, 2024 New Research: Sharing "Eco-Innovations" Can Ease Climate Despair Climate despair is emerging as a psychosocial threat. Ben Converse, associate professor of public policy and psychology at the Batten School, and other UVA researchers have found a potential source of hope that is underutilized. Learn more Jan 26, 2023 When Less is More: How Harnessing the Power of Subtraction Can Add to Life There’s a lot of thought that goes into adding things to our routines, our closets, our lives. But how much thought goes into subtracting things? Not enough, according to three University of Virginia professors. Read in UVA Today Jan 31, 2022 Batten's Lipscomb Receives UVA's Prestigious Public Impact-Focused Research Award Social Entrepreneurship Batten professor Molly Lipscomb was honored with the university's Public Impact-Focused Research Award for her work examining the impact of bringing public services to low-income households in countries where services are needed. Learn more Jan 21, 2022 Faculty Spotlight: “I Was Born Questioning” International and Global Affairs Batten’s Jeanine Braithwaite has retired after more than a decade of encouraging students to interrogate the status quo. Learn more Jun 29, 2021 Alum in Action: The Data Beneath the Data International and Global Affairs Batten alum Cameron Haddad (MPP ’20) takes a closer look at everything from health care in South Africa to children’s welfare in Tajikistan, with a core maxim in mind: Remember the people on the other side of the numbers. Learn more Apr 16, 2021 We instinctively add on new features and fixes. Why don’t we subtract instead? Social Psychology Across a series of studies published this month in the journal Nature, Batten’s Gabrielle Adams, Benjamin Converse and co-authors demonstrated that people tend to overlook the option to subtract parts when asked to change or improve something. In an op-ed for The Washington Post, they explore why ‘less is more’ is a hard insight to act on. Read in The Washington Post Apr 14, 2021 Why People Forget that Less is Often More Social Psychology Why, when solving problems, do people prefer adding things to getting rid of them? In an article for The Economist, Batten’s Gabrielle Adams and Benjamin Converse explain their research on subtractive improvements. Read in The Economist Apr 07, 2021 Why Our Brains Miss Opportunities to Improve through Subtraction Social Psychology Leadership In a new paper featured on the cover of Nature, Batten’s Gabrielle Adams, Benjamin Converse and co-authors explain why people systematically overlook subtractive improvements. Learn more Dec 18, 2020 Meet the 2021 Batten Finalists for the Presidential Management Fellows Program Leadership One of the most prestigious programs for graduate students and alumni interested in public service, the fellowship affords recipients two years of experience and training at a federal agency. Learn more Dec 03, 2020 A New Aid Program in Sudan Sheds Light on a Popular Policy Debate International and Global Affairs Social Equity In the latest edition of Batten Expert Chats, professor Jeanine Braithwaite discussed the Sudan Family Support Project, which will offer quasi-universal basic income to citizens of the African nation. Learn more Jul 08, 2020 Respiratory Illness and Poverty in Senegal: A Conversation with Professor Braithwaite International and Global Affairs Health Policy Batten Professor of Public Policy Jeanine Braithwaite and PhD candidate Kamwoo Lee discuss poverty and upper respiratory infections in Senegal for the Center for Global Health's Global COVIDiaries. Watch on UVA Global Pagination Current page 1 Page 2 Next page Next › Stay Up To Date with the Latest Batten News and Events Subscribe
Feb 20, 2025 Finding a Seat at the Interdisciplinary Research Table UVA Batten hosted the “Annual Behavioral Science Across Grounds Conference” earlier this month, bringing some of the brightest minds of UVA’s research community to Garrett Hall to exchange ideas, interests, and insights. Associate professor Ben Converse gave the keynote. Learn more
Feb 01, 2024 New Research: Sharing "Eco-Innovations" Can Ease Climate Despair Climate despair is emerging as a psychosocial threat. Ben Converse, associate professor of public policy and psychology at the Batten School, and other UVA researchers have found a potential source of hope that is underutilized. Learn more
Jan 26, 2023 When Less is More: How Harnessing the Power of Subtraction Can Add to Life There’s a lot of thought that goes into adding things to our routines, our closets, our lives. But how much thought goes into subtracting things? Not enough, according to three University of Virginia professors. Read in UVA Today
Jan 31, 2022 Batten's Lipscomb Receives UVA's Prestigious Public Impact-Focused Research Award Social Entrepreneurship Batten professor Molly Lipscomb was honored with the university's Public Impact-Focused Research Award for her work examining the impact of bringing public services to low-income households in countries where services are needed. Learn more
Jan 21, 2022 Faculty Spotlight: “I Was Born Questioning” International and Global Affairs Batten’s Jeanine Braithwaite has retired after more than a decade of encouraging students to interrogate the status quo. Learn more
Jun 29, 2021 Alum in Action: The Data Beneath the Data International and Global Affairs Batten alum Cameron Haddad (MPP ’20) takes a closer look at everything from health care in South Africa to children’s welfare in Tajikistan, with a core maxim in mind: Remember the people on the other side of the numbers. Learn more
Apr 16, 2021 We instinctively add on new features and fixes. Why don’t we subtract instead? Social Psychology Across a series of studies published this month in the journal Nature, Batten’s Gabrielle Adams, Benjamin Converse and co-authors demonstrated that people tend to overlook the option to subtract parts when asked to change or improve something. In an op-ed for The Washington Post, they explore why ‘less is more’ is a hard insight to act on. Read in The Washington Post
Apr 14, 2021 Why People Forget that Less is Often More Social Psychology Why, when solving problems, do people prefer adding things to getting rid of them? In an article for The Economist, Batten’s Gabrielle Adams and Benjamin Converse explain their research on subtractive improvements. Read in The Economist
Apr 07, 2021 Why Our Brains Miss Opportunities to Improve through Subtraction Social Psychology Leadership In a new paper featured on the cover of Nature, Batten’s Gabrielle Adams, Benjamin Converse and co-authors explain why people systematically overlook subtractive improvements. Learn more
Dec 18, 2020 Meet the 2021 Batten Finalists for the Presidential Management Fellows Program Leadership One of the most prestigious programs for graduate students and alumni interested in public service, the fellowship affords recipients two years of experience and training at a federal agency. Learn more
Dec 03, 2020 A New Aid Program in Sudan Sheds Light on a Popular Policy Debate International and Global Affairs Social Equity In the latest edition of Batten Expert Chats, professor Jeanine Braithwaite discussed the Sudan Family Support Project, which will offer quasi-universal basic income to citizens of the African nation. Learn more
Jul 08, 2020 Respiratory Illness and Poverty in Senegal: A Conversation with Professor Braithwaite International and Global Affairs Health Policy Batten Professor of Public Policy Jeanine Braithwaite and PhD candidate Kamwoo Lee discuss poverty and upper respiratory infections in Senegal for the Center for Global Health's Global COVIDiaries. Watch on UVA Global