Barbara L. Fredrickson Bio

Barbara L. Fredrickson, Ph.D. is among the most highly cited scholars in psychology, most known for her “broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions,” foundational within Positive Psychology for providing a blueprint for how pleasant emotional states, as fleeting as they are, contribute to resilience, wellbeing, and health. She is Director of the Positive Emotions and Psychophysiology Laboratory (PEP Lab) at UNC-Chapel Hill, Founding Co-Chair of the Association of Positive Emotion Laboratories (APEL), and Immediate Past President of the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA).

Dr. Fredrickson has published more than 100 peer-reviewed articles, and her general audience books, Positivity (supporting website www.PositivityRatio.com) and Love 2.0 (supporting website www.PositivityResonance.com) have been translated for more than 30 foreign markets.

Dr. Fredrickson’s research has received funding by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NCI, NIA, NCCIM, NIMH, NINR) and has been recognized with numerous honors, including the inaugural Templeton Prize in Positive Psychology from the American Psychological Association, the Career Trajectory Award from the Society of Experimental Social Psychology, the inaugural Christopher Peterson Gold Medal from the International Positive Psychology Association, and the Tang Prize for Achievements in Psychology, awarded to recognize exceptional career contributions to the well-being of humanity.

In 2014, she was identified as the 13th most influential psychologist alive today contributing to counseling psychology. In 2015, through a partnership between UNC-Chapel Hill and Coursera, Dr. Fredrickson began teaching a free, on-line course on Positive Psychology that has attracted ~178,000 learners across > 190 counties worldwide. Through this and other means, her work influences scholars and practitioners worldwide, within education, business, healthcare, the military, and beyond.

Dr. Fredrickson was born and raised in Minnesota and graduated Summa Cum Laude from Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota (1986). She received her Ph.D. in psychology from Stanford University (1990), with a minor in organizational behavior, and post-doctoral training in psychophysiology from the University of California at Berkeley (1990-1992). Prior to joining the faculty at UNC-Chapel Hill, she held faculty positions at Duke University and the University of Michigan.

---

 

Fredrickson, B. L. (2001). The role of positive emotions in positive psychology: The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions. American Psychologist, 56, 218-226.

Fredrickson, B. L. (2009). Positivity: Groundbreaking Research Reveals How to Embrace the Hidden Strength of Positive Emotions, Overcome Negativity, and Thrive. New York: Crown.

Fredrickson, B. L. (2013). Love 2.0: How Our Supreme Emotion Affects Everything We Feel, Think, Do, and Become. Hudson Street Press.

Levy, A. (2009). Book Review: Positivity. Positive Psychology News.

Pennock, S. F. (2015) Barbara Fredrickson Talks About… Positive Psychology News.