Faculty

The Master of Positive Psychology (MAPP) program is overseen by the Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania and by the University's College of Liberal and Professional Studies (LPS). The program draws on faculty within the University of Pennsylvania's School of Arts and Sciences as well as on other preeminent local and international leaders in the field. Faculty for the 2009-10 academic year include::

David Cooperrider, Ph.D., Professor and Chairman of the Department of Organizational Behavior at the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve. Dr. Cooperrider's research interests include the theory and practice of Appreciative Inquiry (AI), organization development and change, advances in "business as an agent of world benefit," positive organizational scholarship, and qualitative theory-building methods. He is the also the Director of the Center for Business as an Agent of World Benefit (BAWB) at Case Western Reserve.

Edward Diener, Ph.D., Alumni Professor of Psychology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Senior Scientist for the Gallup Organization. For over 20 years, Dr. Diener has conducted research on subjective well-being, life satisfaction, pleasant emotions, meaning, and satisfaction with domains such as health and relationships. In 1996, he won the University of Illinois Oakley Kunde award for teaching.

Angela Duckworth, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Duckworth studies non-cognitive predictors of achievement. In recent studies, she has demonstrated the dramatic impact of self-control on academic achievement and the benefits of direct interventions designed to increase self-control competence in children. Another area of research interest is grit, defined as passionate perseverance in the pursuit of a long-term goal. Grit has been shown to be a strong predictor of performance in especially challenging situations, such as the United States Military Academy at West Point and the National Spelling Bee.

Raymond Fowler, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus at the University of Alabama, Dr. Fowler served as professor and chair of the psychology department at both the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa and the University of Tennessee. He was president of the American Psychological Association (APA) in 1988 and served as APA Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer from 1989-2003. He is a senior advisor for the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA), and his current research interests include the area of positive health.

James Pawelski, Ph.D., Director of Education and Senior Scholar at the Positive Psychology Center. Dr. Pawelski is the author of The Dynamic Individualism of William James and has written articles on the theoretical underpinnings of positive psychology. He is interested in basic conceptual questions such as the meaning of "positive" in positive psychology, the technical definition of "positive intervention," and the precise articulation of the fundamental principles of positive psychology. He also works on the development and testing of specific positive interventions and on their application in personal, professional, and academic settings. He is the founding Executive Director of the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA).

Christopher Peterson, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology at the University of Michigan. Dr. Peterson has been the director of clinical training and an Arthur F. Thurnau Professor (an award given to honor his contributions to teaching). Included on the Intercollegiate Studies Institute's list of the 250 most highly cited psychologists and psychiatrists over the past 20 years, he is the author (with Martin Seligman) of Character Strengths and Virtues: A Handbook and Classification. His latest book is A Primer in Positive Psychology.

Karen Reivich, Ph.D., Research Associate in the Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Reivich co-directs the Penn Resiliency Program, is an investigator on a grant from the Department of Education to teach positive psychology to 9th grade students, and lectures extensively to educators, parents, and business leaders on the topics of resilience, depression prevention, and positive psychology. She is the co-author of The Resilience Factor and is the master trainer for the Positive Psychology Center's educational projects in the UK and Australia.

Paul Rozin, Ph.D., Edmund J. and Louise W. Kahn Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. An expert in cultural psychology, Dr. Rozin is interested in such diverse topics as the way memories for pleasant events represent the actual experiences of these events, the reasons why the French have a healthier and happier relation to food than Americans do, and the greater potency of joys (as opposed to comforts) in contributing to a feeling that one's life is productive, happy, and worthwhile.

Judy Saltzberg, Ph.D., Licensed Clinical Psychologist in private practice. A Founding Fellow of the Academy of Cognitive Therapy, she supervises therapists in training, teaches seminars in the Penn Resiliency program, and trains trainers for the Positive Psychology Center's educational projects in the UK and Australia. She is also interested in the application of positive psychology to clinical interventions.

Barry Schwartz, Ph.D., Dorwin Cartwright Professor of Social Theory and Social Action at Swarthmore College. Dr. Schwartz is the author of The Battle for Human Nature, The Costs of Living, and, most recently, The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Less. His research centers on the relation between choice and well-being.

Martin Seligman, Ph.D., Fox Leadership Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and founding director of the Positive Psychology Center. A past president of the American Psychological Association, Dr. Seligman is the author of many books including, Learned Optimism, Authentic Happiness and (with Christopher Peterson) Character Strengths and Virtues: A Handbook and Classification.