Cooperation and Intergroup Processes Lab

Cooperation and Intergroup Processes Lab (CIP Lab) is hosted by Dr. Hirotaka Imada and based in the Department of Psychology, Royal Holloway, University of London.

Core Members

Hirotaka Imada

Taeik Kim

Postdoctoral Researcher

Katie Webb

PhD Student

Eliza Vettou

PhD Student

Projects

Research projects

Intergroup Pluralistic Ignorance and Intergroup Cooperation for Climate Change

Funded by The Leverhulme Trust

January 2026 - December 2030

Advancing Theoretical Understanding and Methodological Capacity in Psychology Through Social Simulation

Funded by The British Academy

March 2026 - February 2027

Impact activities

Echoes of Care

with Richmond Arts Service · January 2026 - present

Building Intergenerational Cooperation for Renewable Energy Development

with Landsvirkjun · January - June 2026

Recent papers

*Xiao, Q., & Imada, H. (2026). The co-occurrence of ingroup and outgroup prosociality requires cross-group partner choice. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 123(24), e2606967123. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2606967123 View →

*Tateishi, W., & *Imada, H. (2026). Social norms and group-bounded indirect reciprocity. Evolutionary Human Sciences, 8, e13. https://doi.org/10.1017/ehs.2026.10045 View →

*Takei, M., Moon, C., & Imada, H. (2026). Audience costs in the eyes of an adversary. Research & Politics, 13(1), 20531680261428603. https://doi.org/10.1177/20531680261428603 View →

*Bellucci, G., Imada, H., Fett, A., & Ito, A. (2026). Neurocomputational mechanisms of maladaptive behaviours in loneliness. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 30(3), 251-263. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2025.07.007 View →

*Gligorić, V., Jost, J. T., Pezzia, A. E., Balabanova, A., Carlevari, A. V., Lazar, A., Kende, A., … Imada, H., … , Khosrowtaj, Z. (2025). Macro-economic inequality and national stereotypes in 45 non-Western countries. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 17(4), 492-509. https://doi.org/10.1177/19485506251370424 View →

Willcox, K., Imada, H., Rumble, A., Yansen, D., & *Brewer, M. B. (2026). Effects of race and political identity on interpersonal cooperation: A secondary analysis and replication. Political Psychology, 47(2), e70047. https://doi.org/10.1111/pops.70047 View →

Research assistants

Name	Role
Alana Middleton	Impact and Partnerships Associate
Maximus Sadiku	Undergraduate Research Assistant
Georgia Cross	Impact and Partnerships Associate
Jasmina von Lowenburg	Undergraduate Research Assistant

Lab alumni

Name	Role	Years in lab
Jack McCart	Undergraduate Research Assistant	2024-2026
Lingyu Meng	External Research Assistant	2025-2026
Rui Sun	External Research Assistant	2024-2025
Cecilia Gregorio	Undergraduate Research Assistant	2024-2025
Kseniya Guedroitz	Undergraduate Research Assistant	2024-2025
Damita Saboor	Undergraduate Research Assistant	2024-2025

Join the lab!

We are actively seeking undergraduate, postgraduate, and postdoctoral researchers to join our lab.

Undergraduate and MSc students

If you are a current undergraduate or MSc student at Royal Holloway and are interested in conducting research with Hiro, please get in touch via email. You may join the lab as a volunteer research assistant or apply for a research assistant bursary.

Students in the lab have opportunities to gain a wide range of research experiences, including conducting literature reviews, designing and running experiments, analysing data, and contributing to academic publications. We are also looking for students interested in writing science communication pieces for our work (e.g., writing blogposts and creating infographic pieces)

Prospective PhD students

If you are interested in pursuing a PhD in the CIP Lab, please contact Hiro via email with a brief description of your research interests, ideas, and potential funding plans. Information on available PhD funding opportunities can be found here. As many funding schemes have deadlines around December–January, prospective applicants are encouraged to get in touch as early as possible to discuss project ideas and funding applications.

Hiro is particularly enthusiastic about supporting student-led PhD projects that align with his research programme, especially those focusing on the psychological foundations of intergroup relations, intergenerational cooperation, and sustainable behaviour.

Postdoctoral researchers

Hiro also welcomes inquiries from prospective postdoctoral researchers interested in developing fellowship applications. He is keen to support competitive applications for schemes such as the British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowships, the British Academy International Fellowships, Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowships, and other relevant national and international funding opportunities.