Alan E. Kazdin

Alan E. Kazdin is the Sterling Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Child Psychiatry at Yale University. He received his Ph.D. in clinicial psychology from Northwestern University. Before coming to Yale, he was on the faculty of the Pennsylvania State University and the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. At Yale, he has been chair of the Department of Psychology, director and chair of the Yale Child Study Center at the School of Medicine, director of Child Psychiatric Services at Yale New Haven Hospital, director of the Yale Parenting Center, and chair of the Publications Committee, Yale University Press. In 2008 he was president of the American Psychological Association.

His research has focused primarily on the treatment of severe aggressive and antisocial behavior in children and adolescents and parenting practices more generally. Currently, his work focuses on world mental health and the treatment of mental disorders for adults. His 850+ publications include 51 books that focus on evidence-based treatments, research methodology, parenting and child rearing, and interpersonal violence. His work on parenting and child rearing has been featured on NPR, PBS, BBC, and CNN, and he has appeared on the Today Show, Good Morning America, ABC News, 20/20, and Dr. Phil. He has developed a free-online Coursera/Yale course to help parents with the routine challenges of everyday parenting.

Professor Kazdin has received a number of professional awards including the Outstanding Research Contribution by an Individual Award and Lifetime Achievement Award (Association of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies), Outstanding Lifetime Contributions to Psychology Award and Distinguished Scientific Award for the Applications of Psychology (American Psychological Association), the James McKeen Cattell Award (Association for Psychological Science), and the Gold Medal Award for Life Achievement in the Science of Psychology (American Psychological Foundation).