Marian Miner Cook
Athenaeum

A distinctive
feature of social and
cultural life at CMC

 

Measuring the Machine: How Psychological Measurement Can Transform AI Accountability

Wed, April 1, 2026
Dinner Program
Louis Tay

Louis Tay, William C. Byham Professor of Industrial-Organizational Psychology at Purdue University and co-founder of ExpiWell, will address how psychological measurement can transform the way we detect and regulate bias in AI. As AI increasingly shapes consequential decisions in hiring, lending, and healthcare, public debates about algorithmic fairness often conflate three distinct concepts: difference, bias, and unfairness. This undermines both scientific evaluation and effective policymaking. Tay will discuss disentangle these concepts, providing principled approaches for evaluating bias in algorithmic assessments and large language model applications. The talk will conclude with implications for AI governance frameworks, anti-discrimination enforcement, and organizational accountability in an era of automated decision-making.

Louis Tay is the William C. Byham Professor of Industrial-Organizational Psychology at Purdue University and Co-Founder of ExpiWell. A leading expert in psychological measurement, well-being, and artificial intelligence applications in psychology, Tay has pioneered frameworks for understanding how AI systems can be rigorously evaluated for bias using principles from psychometric theory.

Tay's scholarship has shaped multiple fields through his editorial leadership of major reference works. He has co-edited five handbooks: Big Data in Psychological Research (APA Books), Handbook of Well-Being (DEF Publishers), Handbook of Positive Psychology Assessment (Hogrefe), Oxford Handbook of the Positive Humanities (Oxford), and Technology and Measurement around the Globe (Cambridge). His research has appeared in journals including American Psychologist, Nature Human Behavior, Psychological Bulletin, and Journal of Applied Psychology.

Tay has contributed to United Nations research reports on well-being and consults for top tech companies and Fortune 500 organizations on topics including AI and measurement bias. He currently leads research funded by the John Templeton Foundation examining whether and how AI conversational agents can cultivate character virtues. As co-founder of the tech company ExpiWell, he developed a platform used by researchers worldwide for ecological momentary assessments.

Dr. Tay's Athenaeum presentation is co-sponsored by the President’s Office and Open Academy.

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Marian Miner Cook Athenaeum

Claremont McKenna College
385 E. Eighth Street
Claremont, CA 91711