William Chopik

Assistant Professor Michigan State University

  • East Lansing MI

Expert in social behaviors and individual differences and relationships.

Contact

Michigan State University

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Biography

Bill Chopik, a social/personality psychologist, studies how relationships -- and the people in them -- change over time and across situations. He focuses on how factors both inside (biological, hormonal) and outside (social roles, geography) of people influence their approach to social relationships. In 2016, Chopik was named one of Forbes' "30 Under 30 in Science"; and in 2015, he was named one of the "30 Top Thinkers Under 30" in Pacific Standard magazine.

Industry Expertise

Research
Writing and Editing
Mental Health Care
Women

Areas of Expertise

Optimism
Romantic Relationships
Lifespan Development
Personality
Close Relationships
Health
Friendship
Aging

Accomplishments

30 Top Thinkers Under the Age of 30

2015
Forbes

Education

The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

Ph.D.

2015

Affiliations

  • Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP)

News

How to know if you’re a social butterfly, according to psychologists

Well and Good  online

2021-08-26

The term “social butterfly” is often used to describe, well, a highly social person. And while it's not a medical term, social psychologists understand and acknowledge it in their work and with patients. “'Social butterfly' is a term used for people who are socially skilled, extroverted, and well-liked by others,” says William Chopik, a social-personality psychologist and associate professor at Michigan State University, adding that social butterflies fit in well in different situations, make friends easily, and tend to feel pretty positive on a regular basis.

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Boomers are bigger snowflakes than millennials, according to science

MSN  online

2021-06-04

A new study has found that the baby boomer generation is more sensitive than millennials, despite repeated cries of ‘snowflake' and angst over ‘participant trophies' from the older generation. The research was conducted by Michigan State University in order to fill a void of “basic information about how narcissism changes across the adult life span.” William Chopik, a social-personality personality psychologist who co-authored the study, told Insider that his team defined hypersensitivity as “being unreceptive to others' feedback and lashing out at any criticism toward one's self.” They found that younger generations are less hypersensitive than older generations.

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Bill and Melinda Gates’ shocking split sparks renewed interest in billionaire’s ‘arrangement’ early in marriage

New York Daily News  online

2021-05-05

One expert who spoke to the Daily News said Bill Gates’ enduring friendship with Ann Winblad could actually bode well for his future relationship with Melinda Gates. “A good indicator is looking at people’s relationships with their past exes,” William Chopik, a psychology professor who directs the Close Relationships Lab at Michigan State University, said. “From what we at least know right now, (Bill Gates’ arrangement with Winblad) was platonic and resembled a strong friendship, but details can still come forward,” Chopik told The News. If the relationship was just that, Gates and Winblad seem to fit a category for exes called “perfect pals,” possibly setting the stage for hereafter harmony with Melinda Gates as well, he argued.

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Journal Articles

Changes in adult attachment styles in American college students over time: A meta-analysis

Personality and Social Psychology Review

Sara H Konrath, William J Chopik, Courtney K Hsing, Ed O’Brien

2014

The current article examines changes over time in a commonly used measure of adult attachment style. A cross-temporal meta-analysis was conducted on 94 samples of American college students (total N = 25,243, between 1988 and 2011) who chose the most representative description of four possible attachment styles (Secure, Dismissing, Preoccupied, and Fearful) on the Relationship Questionnaire. The percentage of students with Secure attachment styles has decreased in recent years (1988: 48.98%; 2011: 41.62%), whereas the percentage of students with Insecure attachment styles (sum of Dismissing, Preoccupied, Fearful) has increased in recent years (1988: 51.02%; 2011: 58.38%). The percentage of students with Dismissing attachment styles has increased over time (1988: 11.93%; 2011: 18.62%), even after controlling for age, gender, race, and publication status. Positive views of others have declined across the same time period. We discuss possible implications and explanations for these changes.

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From the cradle to the grave: Age differences in attachment from early adulthood to old age

Journal of Personality

William J Chopik, Robin S Edelstein, R Chris Fraley

2013

Although attachment dynamics are thought to be important across the life span, relatively few studies have examined attachment processes beyond young adulthood. Extant research on age differences in attachment orientation has yielded conflicting results and interpretations. The purpose of this study was to provide a more complete picture of age‐related differences in attachment anxiety and avoidance.

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Sociosexuality moderates the association between testosterone and relationship status in men and women

Hormones and Behavior

Robin S Edelstein, William J Chopik, Emily L Kean

2011

Single individuals typically have higher testosterone compared to those who are partnered, suggesting that individual differences in testosterone are associated with mating effort, or people's motivation to find a sexual partner. However, there is less consistent evidence for links between testosterone and sociosexuality, or people's orientation toward uncommitted sexual activity. Based on Penke and Asendorpf's (2008) conceptualization, we propose that a more nuanced measure of sociosexuality may reveal more robust associations with testosterone. In the current study, we assessed relations between three components of sociosexuality—desire, behavior, and attitudes—and endogenous testosterone levels in men and women. We found that partnered status was indeed associated with lower testosterone in both men and women, but only among those who reported more restricted sociosexuality. Partnered men who reported greater desire for uncommitted sexual activity had testosterone levels that were comparable to those of single men; partnered women who reported more frequent uncommitted sexual behavior had testosterone levels that were comparable to those of single women. These findings provide new evidence that people's orientations toward sexual relationships, in combination with their relationship status, are associated with individual differences in testosterone. The current results are also among the first to demonstrate sociosexuality–testosterone associations in both men and women, and they reveal that the nature of these associations varies by gender. Together, these findings highlight the utility of a multifaceted conceptualization of sociosexuality and the implications of this conceptualization for neuroendocrine processes.

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