Roy Baumeister

By AI Staff

Roy Baumeister currently holds the title of Professor of Psychology at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia. He previously has held professorial roles at Florida State University and Case Western Reserve University. Baumeister earned his BA at Princeton University and his MA from Duke University, before returning to Princeton for his Ph.D.

Baumeister primarily works in social psychology, focusing on issues of the self, self-conception, and how the self relates to others. This focus extends to topics including relationships and belonging, irrational behavior, self-destructive behavior, sexuality, self control, and free will. In particular, Baumeister’s most influential work argues that humans have an innate need for belonging and attachment, that we are constantly seeking to satisfy this need, and being dissatisfied in it has significant negative effects in other aspects of our lives.

Popular published works by Baumeister include, Evil: Inside Human Violence and Cruelty, Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength, and more recently, The Power of Bad.

For his work, Baumeister has received awards and honors, such as the James McKeen Cattell Fund Sabbatical Fellowship Award, the William James Fellow Award, and the Jack Block Award.

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