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Ariana N Bell

University of California, Los Angeles, Psychology, Post-Doc

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Ariana Naomi Bell is an Assistant Project Scientist in UCLA's Psychology Department, working on the UCLA High School Diversity Project. Ariana graduated from UCLA's Social Psychology Ph.D. program in 2019, with a minor in Quantitative Psychology. Prior to coming to UCLA, Ariana received her B.A. in Honors Psychology from Scripps College in May of 2010. Before becoming a graduate student at UCLA, Ariana worked as a research assistant for a consulting firm, EMT Associates Inc., where she worked with the U.S. Department of Education on a national bullying legislation and policy analysis project.

Her primary research interests are:
• Intergroup relations, discrimination, stigma, prejudice, stereotyping
• Health inequalities, social determinants of mental and physical health
• Adolescent development, peer relationships, social identity formation
Supervisors: Jaana Juvonen, Ph.D., Margaret Shih, Ph.D., Sandra Graham, Ph.D., and Yuen Huo, Ph.D.
Address: UCLA Department of Psychology
1285 Franz Hall
Box 951563
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1563

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Papers by Ariana N Bell

Gender Discrimination, Perceived School Unfairness, Depressive Symptoms, and Sleep Duration Among Middle School Girls

Child Development, 2019

The current study examines how gender discrimination by adults in school is linked with depressiv... more The current study examines how gender discrimination by adults in school is linked with depressive symptoms and sleep duration over time in middle school. The main goal is to test one psychological mechanism that can account for such associations: perceived school unfairness. Relying on a racially-ethnically diverse sample of girls (N = 2,718, M age = 13.01, SD age = 0.39) from 26 middle schools, multilevel mediation analyses revealed that girls who experienced school-based gender discrimination by an adult in seventh grade reported higher levels of perceived school unfairness in eighth grade. Moreover, perceived unfairness, in turn, was associated with more depressive symptoms and shorter sleep durations by eighth grade. Implications of changes in adolescent girls' sleep and mood related to their experiences of gender discrimination are discussed.

Interpersonal attitudes toward cross- ethnic peers in diverse middle schools: Implications for intergroup attitudes

Group Processes and Intergroup Relations, 2019

To gain insights into whether schools striving to improve intergroup dynamics should curb disliki... more To gain insights into whether schools striving to improve intergroup dynamics should curb disliking or facilitate liking across students of different ethnic groups, the current study examines the associations between interpersonal affect and intergroup relations in multiethnic schools. Given (i.e., outgoing) peer nominations of liked and disliked grade-mates were coded by ethnicity in 26 public middle schools, including all Asian, Black, Latinx, and White students (N = 4,350). Controlling for earlier intergroup attitudes and the availability of ethnic ingroup and relevant outgroup grade-mates, multilevel analyses show that liking (but not disliking) of cross-ethnic grade-mates was associated with more positive attitudes toward that particular ethnic group. Implications of these findings for intergroup relations among adolescents in multiethnic schools are discussed.

Show Don’t Tell: Diversity Dishonesty Harms Racial/Ethnic Minorities at Work

by Ariana N Bell and Mariam Vahradyan

Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 2020

Organizations aim to convey that they are diverse and inclusive, in part, to recruit racial minor... more Organizations aim to convey that they are diverse and inclusive, in part, to recruit racial minorities. We investigate a previously unexamined downside of this recruitment strategy: diversity dishonesty, that is, belief that an organization is falsely or incorrectly inflating its actual diversity. In four studies (total N = 871), we found that diversity dishonesty heightened minorities’ concerns about fitting in, being authentic, and performing well at the organization. We also found that evidence- based cues (which “show” observers whether the organization has a positive or negative diversity climate), but not expressed cues (which “tell” observers about the organization’s diversity), affect these expectations. Using correlational methodologies, Study 1 found these effects were pertinent to African American and Latinx participants’ beliefs about their current workplaces, holding other diversity-related measures constant. Studies 2 to 4 used experimental methods to replicate these findings with African American participants, using a hypothetical workplace setting.

Analysis of State Bullying Laws and Policies

Office of Planning Evaluation and Policy Development Us Department of Education, Dec 1, 2011

Lay Theories of Gender Influence Support for Women and Transgender People's Legal Rights

by Leigh Wilton, Ariana N Bell, and Rebekah Clapham

Social Psychological and Personality Science, 2019

Essentialism-the belief that differences between groups of people are biologically based and unch... more Essentialism-the belief that differences between groups of people are biologically based and unchangeable-is strongly associated with prejudice toward a variety of social groups. The present work examines how gender essentialism shapes support for the rights of two marginalized gender groups: women and transgender people. Study 1 provides correlational evidence that endorsement of gender essentialism is a robust predictor of people's opposition to both women's and transgender people's rights, over and above other individual difference measures. Studies 2 and 3 provide evidence that exposure to anti-essentialist messages about gender indirectly increases the support for women's and transgender people's rights. Study 4 examines the underlying psychological process, showing that gender essentialism reduction indirectly increases the support for women's and transgender people's rights through prejudice. Implications for research on lay theories and transgender people are discussed.

Social integration of refugee youth in Europe: Lessons learned about interethnic relations in U.S. schools

Polish Psychological Bulletin, 2018

While European nations are in the process of schooling large numbers of refugee youth from the Mi... more While European nations are in the process of schooling large numbers of refugee youth from the Middle East
and Northern Africa, empirical research on successful methods of social integration of this vital next generation of citizens is sparse. To address this void of knowledge, we review relevant lessons learned about school-based interethnic relations in the United States (U.S.) that offer some insights into successful social integration. By focusing on refugee youth’s needs to feel safe and connected in school, we focus specifically on social policies and educational practices that separate vs.
integrate different ethnic groups together in schools and classrooms. To understand how and why segregation of groups fosters prejudice, while diversity promotes greater school safety and connectedness, we specifically highlight the role of cross-group friendships and the development of multiple social identities. Recommendations for new research directions on refugee youth are also provided.

Identification with Multiple Groups in Multiethnic Middle Schools: What Predicts Social Ingroup Overlap

by Casey Knifsend, Ariana N Bell, and Jaana Juvonen

Self-definition becomes a central task during early adolescence, as youth identify with multiple ... more Self-definition becomes a central task during early adolescence, as youth identify with multiple social groups. Focusing on ethnic identification and identification with other salient social ingroups (e.g., those based on extracurricular activities), we examined predictors of perceived ingroup membership overlap among ethnically diverse adolescents (n = 1264; M age = 12.51; 53 % female). Social ingroup overlap remained relatively stable, but decreased, across the seventh to eighth grade. The number of cross-ethnic classmates in seventh grade predicted lower overlap in the eighth grade, and cross-ethnic friendships by eighth grade mediated this association. Findings underscore the opportunities provided by multi-ethnic middle schools for youth to connect and befriend one another across ethnic lines, as well as to foster divergent social identities that are associated with positive intergroup attitudes.

Stuart-Cassel, V., Bell, A., & Springer, F. (2011). Analysis of State Bullying Laws and Policies. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development: Policy and Program Studies Service.

Gender Discrimination, Perceived School Unfairness, Depressive Symptoms, and Sleep Duration Among Middle School Girls

Child Development, 2019

The current study examines how gender discrimination by adults in school is linked with depressiv... more The current study examines how gender discrimination by adults in school is linked with depressive symptoms and sleep duration over time in middle school. The main goal is to test one psychological mechanism that can account for such associations: perceived school unfairness. Relying on a racially-ethnically diverse sample of girls (N = 2,718, M age = 13.01, SD age = 0.39) from 26 middle schools, multilevel mediation analyses revealed that girls who experienced school-based gender discrimination by an adult in seventh grade reported higher levels of perceived school unfairness in eighth grade. Moreover, perceived unfairness, in turn, was associated with more depressive symptoms and shorter sleep durations by eighth grade. Implications of changes in adolescent girls' sleep and mood related to their experiences of gender discrimination are discussed.

Interpersonal attitudes toward cross- ethnic peers in diverse middle schools: Implications for intergroup attitudes

Group Processes and Intergroup Relations, 2019

To gain insights into whether schools striving to improve intergroup dynamics should curb disliki... more To gain insights into whether schools striving to improve intergroup dynamics should curb disliking or facilitate liking across students of different ethnic groups, the current study examines the associations between interpersonal affect and intergroup relations in multiethnic schools. Given (i.e., outgoing) peer nominations of liked and disliked grade-mates were coded by ethnicity in 26 public middle schools, including all Asian, Black, Latinx, and White students (N = 4,350). Controlling for earlier intergroup attitudes and the availability of ethnic ingroup and relevant outgroup grade-mates, multilevel analyses show that liking (but not disliking) of cross-ethnic grade-mates was associated with more positive attitudes toward that particular ethnic group. Implications of these findings for intergroup relations among adolescents in multiethnic schools are discussed.

Show Don’t Tell: Diversity Dishonesty Harms Racial/Ethnic Minorities at Work

by Ariana N Bell and Mariam Vahradyan

Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 2020

Organizations aim to convey that they are diverse and inclusive, in part, to recruit racial minor... more Organizations aim to convey that they are diverse and inclusive, in part, to recruit racial minorities. We investigate a previously unexamined downside of this recruitment strategy: diversity dishonesty, that is, belief that an organization is falsely or incorrectly inflating its actual diversity. In four studies (total N = 871), we found that diversity dishonesty heightened minorities’ concerns about fitting in, being authentic, and performing well at the organization. We also found that evidence- based cues (which “show” observers whether the organization has a positive or negative diversity climate), but not expressed cues (which “tell” observers about the organization’s diversity), affect these expectations. Using correlational methodologies, Study 1 found these effects were pertinent to African American and Latinx participants’ beliefs about their current workplaces, holding other diversity-related measures constant. Studies 2 to 4 used experimental methods to replicate these findings with African American participants, using a hypothetical workplace setting.

Analysis of State Bullying Laws and Policies

Office of Planning Evaluation and Policy Development Us Department of Education, Dec 1, 2011

Lay Theories of Gender Influence Support for Women and Transgender People's Legal Rights

by Leigh Wilton, Ariana N Bell, and Rebekah Clapham

Social Psychological and Personality Science, 2019

Essentialism-the belief that differences between groups of people are biologically based and unch... more Essentialism-the belief that differences between groups of people are biologically based and unchangeable-is strongly associated with prejudice toward a variety of social groups. The present work examines how gender essentialism shapes support for the rights of two marginalized gender groups: women and transgender people. Study 1 provides correlational evidence that endorsement of gender essentialism is a robust predictor of people's opposition to both women's and transgender people's rights, over and above other individual difference measures. Studies 2 and 3 provide evidence that exposure to anti-essentialist messages about gender indirectly increases the support for women's and transgender people's rights. Study 4 examines the underlying psychological process, showing that gender essentialism reduction indirectly increases the support for women's and transgender people's rights through prejudice. Implications for research on lay theories and transgender people are discussed.

Social integration of refugee youth in Europe: Lessons learned about interethnic relations in U.S. schools

Polish Psychological Bulletin, 2018

While European nations are in the process of schooling large numbers of refugee youth from the Mi... more While European nations are in the process of schooling large numbers of refugee youth from the Middle East
and Northern Africa, empirical research on successful methods of social integration of this vital next generation of citizens is sparse. To address this void of knowledge, we review relevant lessons learned about school-based interethnic relations in the United States (U.S.) that offer some insights into successful social integration. By focusing on refugee youth’s needs to feel safe and connected in school, we focus specifically on social policies and educational practices that separate vs.
integrate different ethnic groups together in schools and classrooms. To understand how and why segregation of groups fosters prejudice, while diversity promotes greater school safety and connectedness, we specifically highlight the role of cross-group friendships and the development of multiple social identities. Recommendations for new research directions on refugee youth are also provided.

Identification with Multiple Groups in Multiethnic Middle Schools: What Predicts Social Ingroup Overlap

by Casey Knifsend, Ariana N Bell, and Jaana Juvonen

Self-definition becomes a central task during early adolescence, as youth identify with multiple ... more Self-definition becomes a central task during early adolescence, as youth identify with multiple social groups. Focusing on ethnic identification and identification with other salient social ingroups (e.g., those based on extracurricular activities), we examined predictors of perceived ingroup membership overlap among ethnically diverse adolescents (n = 1264; M age = 12.51; 53 % female). Social ingroup overlap remained relatively stable, but decreased, across the seventh to eighth grade. The number of cross-ethnic classmates in seventh grade predicted lower overlap in the eighth grade, and cross-ethnic friendships by eighth grade mediated this association. Findings underscore the opportunities provided by multi-ethnic middle schools for youth to connect and befriend one another across ethnic lines, as well as to foster divergent social identities that are associated with positive intergroup attitudes.

Stuart-Cassel, V., Bell, A., & Springer, F. (2011). Analysis of State Bullying Laws and Policies. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development: Policy and Program Studies Service.