Publications

Boyd-Frenkel, K. A., Choi, M., & Sng, O. (2025). Nuanced in theory, tricky in practice: Falsifiability, timing, and curvilinearity of Tier 1 and 2 effects. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 48, e102. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X25100964

Sng, O., Choi, M., Williams, K. E. G., & Neel, R. (2025). The directed nature of social stereotypes. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 128(3), 477-507. https://doi.org/10.1037/pspa0000425

Sng, O., Choi, M., & Ackerman, J. (2024). The ecology of relatedness: How living around family (or not) matters. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/pspa0000428

Choi, M., Karnaze, M. M., Lench, H. C., & Levine, L. J. (2023). Do liberals value emotion more than conservatives? Political partisanship and lay beliefs about the functionality of emotion. Motivation and Emotion, 47(3), 364-380. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-022-09997-4

Selected Manuscripts in Preparation

*equal contributions
†mentees

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Suh, E. M. (under review). Do relationships or money matter for life satisfaction? Depends on how much disease there is.

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Ackerman, J. (in preparation). Who is the “ingroup”? The influence of mortality and resources on group boundaries.

Choi, M., Sng, O., Iino-Seiki, N., & Campos, B. (in preparation). Ecological relatedness matters more when living around genetically close relatives.

Choi, M., & Suh, E. M. (in preparation). Why do happy people help more? Happiness increases perceived similarity between kin and strangers.

Choi, M.*, Lee, S.*†, Estes, K. D., Relihan, D. P., Holman, E. A., & Silver, R. C. (in preparation). Social identification with victims amplifies traumatic stress through media exposure of mass tragedy.

Conference Presentations

Chaired Symposia

Forgotten Roots: How the Ancestral Past Shapes Social Behaviors
Society for Personality and Social Psychology (February 2025; Denver, CO, USA)
- Chair: Minyoung Choi
- Speakers: Ian Hohm; Minyoung Choi; Dr. Douglas Kenrick; Dr. Norman Li & Dr. Amy Lim

When Others Help or Hurt Our Well-Being: How and Why
Society for Personality and Social Psychology (February 2024; San Diego, CA, USA)
- Chair: Minyoung Choi
- Co-chair: Oliver Sng
- Speakers: Dr. Jacinth Tan; Dr. Geoff MacDonald; Jinseok Kim; Minyoung Choi

Oral Presentations

†mentees

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Suh, E. M. (2026, February). Do relationships or money matter for life satisfaction? Depends on how much disease there is. Flash talk presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Happiness and Well-Being Preconference, Chicago, IL, USA. [Accepted]

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Suh, E. M. (2025, December). Do relationships or money matter for life satisfaction? Depends on how much disease there is. Invited talk at the International Conference on Life Education and Well-Being, Tai Po, Hong Kong.

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Ackerman, J. (2025, February). Who is the “ingroup”? The influence of survival threats on group boundaries. Symposium talk presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Denver, CO, USA.

Sng, O., Choi, M., Williams, K. E. G., & Neel, R. (2024, October). The directed nature of social stereotypes. Symposium talk presented at the Society for Experimental Social Psychology, Santa Fe, NM, USA.

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Suh, E. M. (2024, August). Relationships matter less (but money matters more) for well-being in pathogen-prevalent ecologies. Invited talk presented at the Ecological Society of America, Long Beach, CA, USA.

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Ackerman, J. (2024, May). Who is the “ingroup”? The influence of mortality and resources on group boundaries. Single-presenter talk presented at the Human Behavior and Evolution Society, Aarhus, Denmark.

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Ackerman, J. (2024, May). Who is the “ingroup”? The influence of mortality and resources on group boundaries. Single-presenter talk presented at the California Workshop on Evolutionary Social Science, Santa Barbara, CA, USA.

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Suh, E. M. (2024, February). Disease prevalence predicts variability in determinants of life satisfaction: Social versus financial resources. Symposium talk presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, San Diego, CA, USA.

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Suh, E. M. (2024, February). Disease threats shape whether friends or money matter for well-being. Invited talk presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Advances in Cultural Psychology Preconference, San Diego, CA, USA.

Brotherson, C.†, Choi, M., Williams, K. E. G., & Sng, O. (2023, November). People’s stereotypes of those moving between harsh and hopeful environments. Single-presenter talk presented at the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minoritized Scientists, Phoenix, AZ, USA.

Brotherson, C.†, Choi, M., Williams, K. E. G., & Sng, O. (2023, August). People’s stereotypes of those moving between harsh and hopeful environments. Single-presenter talk presented at the UCI Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship Symposium, Irvine, CA, USA.

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Suh, E. M. (2023, May). Disease prevalence predicts variability in determinants of life satisfaction: Social versus financial resources. Single-presenter talk presented at the Human Behavior and Evolution Society, Palm Springs, CA, USA.

Sng, O., Choi, M., & Ackerman, J. (2023, May). The ecology of relatedness: How living around family (or not) matters. Symposium talk presented at the Human Behavior and Evolution Society, Palm Springs, CA, USA.

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Ackerman, J. (2023, April). Who is the “ingroup”? The influence of mortality and resources on ingroup boundaries. Symposium talk presented at the Western Psychological Association, Riverside, CA, USA.

Choi, M., & Levine, L. J. (2023, March). Do liberals value emotion more than conservatives? Political partisanship and lay beliefs about the functionality of emotion. Single-presenter talk presented at the Society for Affective Science Intergroup Emotions Preconference, Long Beach, CA, USA.

Sng, O., Choi, M., & Ackerman, J. (2022, October). The ecology of relatedness: How living around family (or not) matters. Symposium talk presented at the Society for Experimental Social Psychology, Philadelphia, PA, USA.

Levine, L. J., Choi, M., Karnaze, M. M., & Lench, H. C. (2022, October). Do liberals value emotion more than conservatives? Political partisanship and lay beliefs about the functionality of emotion. Symposium talk presented at the Society for Experimental Social Psychology, Philadelphia, PA, USA.

Do, C.†, Choi, M., & Sng, O. (2022, May). Do more siblings lead to more sibling rivalry? A cross-cultural investigation. Single-presenter talk presented at the UCI Undergraduate Research Symposium, Irvine, CA, USA.

Chin, T.†, Choi, M., & Sng, O. (2021, May). Social influences on individuals’ life history strategies. Single-presenter talk presented at the UCI Virtual Undergraduate Research Symposium, Irvine, CA, USA.

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Suh, E. M. (2020, July). The ecology of happiness: Money matters more in pathogen-prevalent areas. Symposium talk presented at the Asian Association of Social Psychology, Seoul, Republic of Korea.

Choi, M., & Suh, E. M. (2018, November). Why do happy people help more? Happiness increases similarity perception between kin and strangers. Single-presenter talk presented at the Korean Social and Personality Psychological Association, Chuncheon, Republic of Korea.

Poster Presentations

*equal contributions
†mentees

Choi, M., Sng, O., Iino-Seiki, N., & Campos, B. (2026, February). Ecological relatedness matters more when living around genetically close relatives. Poster at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Evolutionary Psychology Preconference, Chicago, IL, USA. [Accepted]

Shin, J., Choi, M., & Mauss, I. B. (2025, February). Resource scarcity diminishes the perceived desirability of happy people. Poster presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Denver, CO, USA.

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Ackerman, J. (2025, February). Who is the “ingroup”? The influence of mortality and resources on group boundaries. Poster presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Evolutionary Psychology Preconference, Denver, CO, USA.

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Suh, E. M. (2025, February). Do relationships or money matter for life satisfaction? Depends on how much disease there is. Poster presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Happiness and Well-Being Preconference, Denver, CO, USA.

Koo, H. J., Choi, M., Goldy, S. P., & Sng, O. (2024, February). Social density breeds competition and mistrust. Poster presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Advances in Cultural Psychology Preconference, San Diego, CA, USA.

Lee, S.*†, Choi, M.*, Estes, K. D., Holman, E. A., & Silver, R. C. (2023, November). The role of shared identity in predicting distress via media exposure. Poster presented at the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, Los Angeles, CA, USA.

Ma, S.†, Choi, M., & Sng, O. (2023, May). The influence of the number of children on stereotypes of life history strategy. Poster presented at the UCI Undergraduate Research Symposium, Irvine, CA, USA.

Lee, S.†, Choi, M., & Silver, R. C. (2023, May). The role of shared social identity and traumatic stress following mass violence. Poster presented at the UCI Undergraduate Research Symposium, Irvine, CA, USA.

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Ackerman, J. (2023, February). Who is the “ingroup”? The influence of mortality and resources on ingroup boundaries. Poster presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Atlanta, GA, USA.

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Suh, E. M. (2023, February). Disease prevalence predicts variability in determinants of life satisfaction: Social versus financial resources. Poster presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Evolutionary Psychology Preconference, Atlanta, GA, USA.

Chin, T.†, Choi, M., & Sng, O. (2023, February). Can the life history strategies of others influence our own life history strategies? A test of three hypotheses. Poster presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Evolutionary Psychology Preconference, Atlanta, GA, USA.

Chin, T.†, Choi, M., & Sng, O. (2022, May). Social influences on individuals’ life history strategies. Poster presented at the California Workshop on Evolutionary Social Science, Fullerton, CA, USA.

Choi, M., Sng, O., & Suh, E. M. (2022, February). The ecology of happiness: Money matters more in pathogen-prevalent areas. Poster presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, San Francisco, CA, USA.

Choi, M., Karnaze, M. M., & Levine, L. J. (2022, February). Do liberals value emotion more than conservatives? Political partisanship and lay beliefs about the functionality of emotion. Poster presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Emotion Preconference, San Francisco, CA, USA.

Chin, T.†, Choi, M., & Sng, O. (2022, February). Social influences on individuals’ life history strategies. Poster presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, San Francisco, CA, USA.

Choi, M., Lim, N., & Suh, E. M. (2019, July). Altruism as an emotion-regulating tool for extraverts. Poster presented at the Asian Association of Social Psychology, Taipei, Taiwan.

Cha, Y., Choi, M., Choi, S., Baek, S., Jang, D., & Suh, E. M. (2019, February). The effect of life history strategy on third party punishment. Poster presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Portland, OR, USA.

Choi, M., & Suh, E. M. (2017, November). Happiness promotes prosocial behavior toward strangers via perceived similarity between kin and non-kin. Poster presented at the Cognition, Behavior, and Evolution Network, Leiden, The Netherlands.

Choi, S., Choi, M., & Suh, E. M. (2017, August). What makes us stronger? The influence of scarcity on persistence following success and failure. Poster presented at the Korean Psychological Association, Seoul, Republic of Korea.