James Westaby

A Graduate School of Education, Health & Psychology

James Westaby

Professor of Psychology and Education
jdw43@tc.columbia.edu 212-678-3791

Office Location:

226A Thmps

Educational Background

  • Ph.D., Social and Organizational Psychology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
  • B.A., Psychology (honors), University of Wisconsin - Madison
  • Post-Doctoral Scholar, Penn State University

Scholarly Interests

Areas:

  • Important life decision making in social, organizational, and leadership settings
  • The A.I. Decision Making Calculator: Helping people make stronger decisions
  • Infusing A.I. into life decision making: The good, the bad, and the ugly
  • Dynamic network theory: How social networks influence goal pursuit and performance for individuals, teams, and organizations
  • New A.I. apps to promote goal striving, achievement, and well-being 
  • Social interaction analysis of dyads, couples, and groups

    Founder: www.DynamicNetworkLab.Org

Selected Publications

APPLIED DECISION RESEARCH

  • Westaby, J. D., Rosemarino, N. M., & Elliot, A. J. (2025). How Behavioral Reasoning may Further Explain the Belief-to-Behavior Connection: Exploring the Role of Primary Reasons, Counter Reasons, and Comparative Reasoning Facets. Psychological Inquiry, 36 (1), 67-74. Open Access / Free Download:  https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10.1080/1047840X.2025.2482353?needAccess=true

  • Westaby, J. D. (2005). Behavioral reasoning theory: Identifying new linkages underlying intentions and behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 98, 97-120.
  • Wagner, M., & Westaby, J. D. (2020).  Changing pay systems in organizations:  Using behavioral reasoning theory to understand employee support for pay-for-performance (or Not). Journal of Applied Behavioral Science.
  • Westaby, J. D., Probst, T. M., & Lee, B. C. (2010). Leadership decision-making: A behavioral reasoning theory analysis. Leadership Quarterly, 21, 481-495.
  • Westaby, J. D., & Lowe, J. K. (2005). Risk taking orientation and injury among youth workers: Examining the social influence of supervisors, coworkers, and parents. Journal of Applied Psychology, 90, 1297-1305.
  • Westaby, J. D., Versenyi, A., & Hausmann, R. C. (2005). Intentions to work during terminal illness: An exploratory study of antecedent conditions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 90, 1027-1035.
  • Lee, B. C., Westaby, J. D., & Berg, D. (2004).  Impact of a National Rural Youth Health and Safety Initiative: Results from a Randomized Controlled Trial. American Journal of Public Health, 94, 1743 -1749.

DYNAMIC NETWORK THEORY

  • Westaby, J. D., Pfaff, D. L., & Redding, N. (2014). Psychology and social networks: A dynamic network theory perspective. American Psychologist, 69, 269-284. Click Here: 
  • Wang, W., Stark, T., Westaby, J. D., Parr, A. K., & Newman, D. A. (2023). Social network analysis in psychology: Recent breakthroughs in methods and theories.   In H. Cooper, M. N. Coutanche, L. M. McMullen, A. T. Panter, D. Rindskopf, & J. Sher (Eds.), APA handbook of research methods in psychology: Data analysis and research publication (pp. 501–537). American Psychological Association.
  • Westaby, J. D. (2012). Dynamic network theory: How social networks influence goal pursuit. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
  • Westaby, J. D., & Parr, A. K. (2020). The network goal analysis of social and organizational systems: Testing dynamic network theory in complex social networks.  Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 56, 107-129.  Click Here: Network goal analysis paper (Westaby & Parr, 2020)
  • Westaby, J. D., & Shon, D. (2017).  Simulating the Social Networks in Human Goal Striving.  In R. R. Vallacher, S. J., Read, & A. Nowak (Eds.), Computational models in social psychology (1st ed.). pp. 231-257.  New York, NY: Psychology Press (Frontiers of Psychology series).
  • Westaby, J. D., & Echtenkamp, A. (2017). Humor and Organizational Networks: Functions and Dysfunctions.  In C. Robert (Ed.), Humor in the workplace (1st ed.). pp. 45-59.  Routledge.
  • Westaby, J. D., & Redding, N. (2014). Social networks, social media, and conflict resolution. In P.T. Coleman, M. Deutsch, & E.C. Marcus (Eds.), The handbook of conflict resolution: Theory and practice (3rd ed.). pp. 998-1022. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
  • Westaby, J. D., Woods, N., & Pfaff, D. L. (2016). Extending dynamic network theory to group and social interaction analysis: Uncovering key behavioral elements, cycles, and emergent states. Organizational Psychology Review.  

Related Articles

Uniform Praise

A graduate of TC's leadership program for Army officers says the experience "changed the very lens through which I view the world"

Analyzing the Webs We Weave

James Westaby views individual and organizational performance as the product of the conflicting motivations within network structures

Attachments

Dynamic Network Theory

Psychology and social networks: A dynamic network theory perspective. American Psychologist, 69, 269-284

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