JENNY CHANG

I am a sixth-year Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Social and Decision Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University.  My research takes on an interdisciplinary approach, leveraging insights from economics and psychology, to understand the drivers of social and economic inequalities. I use experimental methods—including lab studies, field experiments, and surveys—to investigate how these inequalities emerge and persist.

Broadly, I am interested in how visibility shapes the allocation of attention, and how this can reinforce barriers for underrepresented or marginalized groups. My work focuses on two interdependent processes: whether and how individuals convey instrumental information about themselves, and how others interpret and respond to those cues. My dissertation examines gender gaps in labor market outcomes, studying both how women and men differ in making their skills visible and whether those behaviors lead to different outcomes.

In related projects, I study how the vividness or salience of information affects prosocial behavior and social perception. Lastly, I work on meta-science and initiatives to improve the reliability and generalizability of empirical findings in the social sciences.

I am on the 2025-2026 academic job market.

Research Areas: Judgment and Decision-Making, Behavioral & Experimental Economics, Management & Organizational Behavior

Research Interests: Gender, Inequality & Discrimination, Diversity, Prosocial Behavior, Meta-science