Monday, May 18, 2026 – Tuesday, May 19, 2026

Belief Formation and Change: Theory and Applications

A dynamic and interactive workshop where we discuss current puzzles and future directions for theory development and research on belief formation and change, and its application to large-scale societal challenges such as climate change.
Open to
Faculty

Location

Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University
75 Alta Rd
Stanford, CA
United States

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About the Sustainability Research Conference Series

The Stanford Initiative on Business and Environmental Sustainability Research Conference Series is hosted by Stanford Graduate School of Business and the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability.

Belief Formation and Change: Theory and Applications will be attended by 25 leading scholars, invited from around the world, with expertise spanning psychology, sociology, and political science. There will be no audience and no formal presentations/talks.

The workshop will consist of group discussions that start at 12 pm on May 18th and continue through May 19th, 9 am – 5 pm.

Themes

We will be discussing belief formation and belief change theories and applications, as well as proposing key future directions through discussion topics such as:

  • Belief learning and updating theories
  • Computational models and belief networks
  • Social influence
  • Social identity
  • Motivated beliefs
  • Polarization and policy
  • Misinformation
  • Beliefs about climate change

Conference Organizers

Dale T. Miller

Dale T. Miller

The Class of 1968 / Ed Zschau Professor of Organizational Behavior
Madalina Vlasceanu

Madalina Vlasceanu

Assistant Professor of Environmental Social Sciences, Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability, Stanford University
Sara Constantino

Sara Constantino

Assistant Professor of Environmental Social Sciences, Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability, Stanford University