On this page, you´ll find the pictures of influential researchers in Positive Psychology and its early influencers. This page is work in progress and will be updated continuously. If you are missing somebody that should definitely be on here, please shoot me an e-mail or leave a comment.
Roy Baumeister – Known best for: Research on Willpower and self-Control, Need to Belong, Self-Esteem – Website: https://psy.fsu.edu/faculty/baumeister.dp.html
Robert Biswas-Diener – Known best for: Cross-Cultural Studies on Well-Being, Positive Psychology Coaching – Website: http://positiveacorn.com
Kim Cameron – Known best for: Positive Organizational Scholarship, Positive Leadership Behavior – Website: http://webuser.bus.umich.edu/cameronk
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi – Known best for: Research on Flow and Well-Being at Work, also Creativity and Peak Performance – Website: http://www.cgu.edu/pages/4751.asp
Edward Deci – Known best for: Research on Motivation, Description of Self-Determination Theory (with Richard Ryan) – Website: http://www.selfdeterminationtheory.org
Ed Diener – Known best for: Theory of Subjective Well-Being and Satisfaction with Life Scale – Website: http://internal.psychology.illinois.edu/~ediener
Angela Duckworth – Known best for: Has first described the Personality Trait Grit, also (Academic) Success – Website: https://sites.sas.upenn.edu/duckworth
Jane Dutton – Known best for: Research on Positive Organizational Behavior, High-Quality Connections – Website: http://webuser.bus.umich.edu/janedut/
Robert Emmons – Research on Gratitude and its Effects on Well-Being, Positive Interventions, Personal Strivings – Website: http://emmons.faculty.ucdavis.edu
Barbara Fredrickson – Known best for: Broaden-and-Build Theory of Positive Emotions, also Relationships and Mindfulness – Website: http://www.unc.edu/peplab/home.html
Daniel Gilbert – Known best for: Research on Cognitive Biases, e.g., Affective Forecasting Error, Decision-Making – Website: http://www.danielgilbert.com
Adam Grant – Known best for: Research on Pro-social Behavior and Altruism (in Business) – Website: https://mgmt.wharton.upenn.edu/profile/1323/
Jonathan Haidt – Known best for: Research on Moral Sentiments and “extreme” Positive Emotions (e.g., Awe) – Website: http://people.stern.nyu.edu/jhaidt/home.html
Daniel Kahneman – Known best for: Formulation of Prospect Theory, Decision-Making, Judgment, Hedonic Psychology – Website: http://www.princeton.edu/~kahneman
Tim Kasser – Known best for: Research on Motivation, Goals, and especially the “dark Side” of Materialism – Website: http://faculty.knox.edu/tkasser
Dacher Keltner – Known best for: Research on Prosocial Behavior, Compassion – Website: http://psychology.berkeley.edu/people/dacher-keltner
Laura King – Known best for: Research on Meaning in Life, Narrative Approaches to Personality – Website: http://psychology.missouri.edu/kingla
Ellen Langer – Known best for: Research on Mindfulness in a Variety of Contexts, Creativity, Positive Aging – Website: http://www.ellenlanger.com
Fred Luthans – Known best for: Research on Positive Organizational Behavior (POB), Psychological Capital (PsyCap) – Website: http://cba.unl.edu/people/fluthans
Sonja Lyumobirsky – Known best for: Research on Positive Interventions and Sustainable Change of Well-Being, Reviews – Website: http://sonjalyubomirsky.com
Christopher Peterson – Known best for: Research on Character Strengths, Optimism, and Health – Website: http://www.psychologytoday/blog/the-good-life
Richard Ryan – Known best for: Research on Motivation, Description of Self-Determination Theory (with Edward Deci) – Website: http://www.selfdeterminationtheory.org
Carol Ryff – Known best for: Research on Eudaimonic Well-Being, Positive Health, and Aging – Website: http://aging.wisc.edu/research/affil.php?Ident=55
Barry Schwartz – Known best for: Decision-Making Styles (Maximizers vs. Satisficers), Practical Wisdom – Website: http://www.swarthmore.edu/SocSci/bschwar1
Martin Seligman – Known best for: Being the Founder and “Spiritus Rector” of Positive Psychology – Website: http://www.authentichappiness.sas.upenn.edu
Kennon Sheldon – Known best for: Goals and Well-Being, the “Self-Concordance Model” of healthy Goal-Striving – http://web.missouri.edu/~sheldonk/
Mappalicious 
Ed Diener and Robert Biswas-Diener have done a lot around cultural perspectives on happiness. Tim Kasser has explored “the good life”. Carol Dweck’s work on mindset is pretty important… Those are a few who come to mind.
LikeLike
Hello Nico, nice job on this site/page. Thanks, David Nevill
LikeLike
This is a well-being winner, Nico the PP Innovator!
LikeLike
Hello Nico,
I would like to inform you that forgot the Dr. Tal Ben – Shahar.
Dr. Ben – Shahar taught the the largest course ever at Harvard in positive psychology., He wrote several books on the subject that have become bestsellers.
Dr. Ben – Shahar has fascinating lectures on the subject and he has developed online courses – that became very successful around the world.
LikeLike
I’d add Dacher Keltner at UC Berkeley.
LikeLike
Dear Nico
Thank you very much for compiling and offering such an outstanding resources. This surely is a work of kind, creative and generous soul. Deeply appreciate it and going to refer it a lot. The website links are the bonus. Thank you once again.
LikeLike
Very nice start! I would recommend Dr. Everett Worthington from Virginia Commonwealth University. He has really led the way in forgiveness scholarship.
LikeLike
Thanks Nico. This is great. I think that Donald Clifton needs to be included
LikeLike
Hi, Thanks. very interesting.
LikeLike
Hi Nico,
Perhaps you could add Jeanne Nakamura and her work on motivation and engagement in adulthood as well as positive aging.
Thanks
Ishara
LikeLike
Interesting page. Thank you. Prof Csikszentmihalyi is co-founder of Positive Psychology also.
LikeLike
Seeing these faces and their research is like looking at a yearbook of PP at its best. Great going, Nico!
Ben Dean, MentorCoach founder,was also on the ground floor with Marty Seligman and continues to interview the top PP researchers and authors in the world. You can go to MentorCoach.com and see all the PP luminaries he has interviewed over the years. Really amazing.
Todd Kashdan and Roy Baumeister are other notables.
Big hugs for all you do for us, Nico
LikeLike
Roy Baumeister, Tal Ben-Shahar, Todd Kashdan, Dan Levitin.
LikeLike
Carol Dweck!
LikeLike