Nicholas Epley

Nicholas Epley conducts research on the experimental study of social cognition, perspective taking and intuitive human judgment. "Most people are intuitive psychologists in their daily lives - wondering why people think or behave as they do. I just happened to find a profession that enables me to answer these questions for a living," explains Epley.

In his new book, Mindwise: How We Understand What Others Think, Believe, Feel, and Want (February, 2014), Epley introduces what scientists have learned about our abilities to understand the most complicated puzzle on the planet—other people—and the surprising mistakes we so routinely make.

His research has appeared in more than two dozen journals, including the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Psychological Science, Psychological Review and the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. His research also has been featured by the Wall Street Journal, CNN, Wired and National Public Radio, among many others, has been funded by the National Science Foundation and has earned the 2008 Theoretical Innovation Award from the Society for Personality and Social Psychology and the 2010 Distinguished Scientific Award for Early Career Contributions from the American Psychological Association.

Epley received a bachelor's degree in psychology and philosophy in 1996 from Saint Olaf College. In 2001, he graduated from Cornell University with a PhD in psychology, where he earned a Graduate Teaching Award from the Department of Psychology as well as a Cornell University Teaching Fellowship. Epley became an Assistant Professor at Harvard University and then joined the Chicago Booth faculty in 2004. He hopes that his students gain an appreciation for the power of scientific methodologies to provide accurate knowledge about the determinants of human thought and behavior. Outside of Chicago Booth, Epley's interests include hiking, fishing and woodworking.