Dr Kristof Dhont

 

Lab Director

Kristof Dhont is a Reader in Psychology at the University of Kent and Programme Director of the MSc Behavioural Science. He obtained his PhD in Psychology from Ghent University and subsequently held a postdoctoral fellowship funded by the Research Foundation Flanders (FWO). He is the founder and director of SHARK Lab, dedicated to the study of human–animal relations, and lead editor of the books Why We Love and Exploit Animals (2020) and Animal and Vegan Advocacy (2026).

Kristof is the founding President of the PHAIR Society (Society for the Psychology of Human–Animal Intergroup Relations), Associate Editor of Psychology of Human–Animal Intergroup Relations, and an Advisory Board member of the Jeremy Coller Centre for Animal Sentience at the London School of Economics and Political Science. He previously served as Associate Editor of Group Processes & Intergroup Relations and as Consulting Editor for the European Journal of Personality.

His research examines the psychological factors that shape how people think about, relate to, and behave toward animals. His work focuses on the psychology of speciesism, the moral psychology of meat consumption and veganism, sustainable consumption, behaviour change, and the effectiveness of animal advocacy and social change initiatives.

A central aim of his research is to understand why concern for animals often conflicts with everyday choices and behaviours, and how psychological insights can be used to promote more ethical, sustainable, and compassionate decision-making. Combining theory-driven research in social and moral psychology with applied behavioural science, his work addresses challenges relating to food systems, animal welfare, environmental sustainability, and social change

Email: K.Dhont@Kent.ac.uk

Full publication list: HERE 

COMING SOON: Animal and Vegan Advocacy: The Psychological Science and Practice of Attitude, Behavior, and Social Change

Selected Publications

Books

Special Issues

  • Dhont, K., Hopwood, C. J., Alleyne, E. (2026). Where Human–Animal Psychology Is Going Next. Psychology of Human-Animal Intergroup Relations, 5.
  • Dhont, K., Hodson, G., Loughnan, S., & Amiot, C. (Eds.) (2019). (De)Valuing Animals: Intergroup Perspectives on Human-Animal Relations. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 6.

Key Journal Articles and Chapters

  • Dhont, K., & Hodson, G. (in press). Speciesism and the psychology of animal exploitation. Nature Reviews Psychology.
  • Dhont, K., & Ioannidou, M. (forthcoming). Beyond the meat paradox: Selective compassion in dairy, egg, and fish consumption—and how to address it. In K. Dhont, R. Sutton, & M. Ioannidou (Eds.) Animal and vegan advocacy. The psychological science and practice of attitude, behavior, and social change. Routledge.
  • Salmen, A., Faber, N. S., Krings, V. C., & Dhont, K. (2026). Masculinity perceptions and hostile sexism shape evaluations of plant-based meat alternatives. Social Psychological and Personality Science. https://doi.org/10.1177/19485506251404095
  • Ioannidou, M., Harlow, G., Patel, M., Leach, S., Hodson, G., & Dhont, K. (2026). Why the right resists veg(etari)anism: Ideological commitment to consuming animal products. Food Quality and Preference, 136, 105769.
  • Dhont, K., & Ioannidou, M. (2024). Similarities and differences between vegetarians and vegans in motives for meat-free and plant-based diets. Appetite, 195, 107232. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2024.107232
  • Dhont, K., & Ioannidou, M. (2024). Health, environmental, and animal rights motives among omnivores, vegetarians, and vegans and the associations with meat, dairy, and egg commitment. Food Quality and Preference 118, 105196.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodqual.2024.105196
  • Leach, S., Sutton, R. M., Dhont, K., Douglas, K. M., & Bergström, Z. (2023). Changing minds about minds: Evidence that people are too sceptical about animal sentience. Cognition, 230, 105263. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2022.105263
  • Salmen, A., & Dhont, K. (2023). Animalizing women and feminizing (vegan) men: The psychological intersections of sexism, speciesism, meat, and masculinity. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 17(2), e12717. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12717
  • Dhont, K., Hodson, G., Leite, A.C., & Salmen, A. (2020). The psychology of speciesism. In K. Dhont & G. Hodson (Eds.) Why we love and exploit animals: Bridging insights from academia and advocacy (pp. 29-49). Routledge
  • Dhont, K., Hodson, G., Loughnan, S., & Amiot, C. E. (2019). Rethinking human-animal relations: The critical role of social psychology. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 22, 769-784.
  • Dhont, K., Hodson, G., Leite, A.C. (2016). Common ideological roots of speciesism and generalized ethnic prejudice: The Social Dominance Human-Animal Relations Model (SD-HARM). European Journal of Personality, 30, 507-522.
  • Hodson, G., & Dhont, K. (2015). The person-based nature of prejudice. Individual difference predictors of intergroup negativity. European Review of Social Psychology, 26, 1-42.
  • Dhont, K., & Hodson, G. (2014). Why do right-wing adherents engage in more animal exploitation and meat consumption? Personality and Individual Differences, 64, 12-17. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2014.02.002