Who is Martin Seligman
"No psychologist in history has done more than Martin Seligman to discover they keys to flourishing and then give them away to the world."
- Jonathon Haidt
Dr Martin E.P. Seligman, Ph.D., is one of the most widely know psychologists of our time. He has spent over 40 years working on the issues of depression, optimism and pessimism. His 'learned helplessness' theory is one of the most influential psychology theories of last century, shedding light on problems such as depression, child abuse and domestic violence.
In 1996, Dr. Seligman was elected President of the American Psychological Association, by the largest vote in modern history. Since 2000, his main mission has been the promotion of the field of positive psychology.
Dr Seligman is currently working with the US Government on wellbeing and resilience for the whole armed forces, focusing on the use of positive psychology to combat post-traumatic stress and suicide rates. He has worked with both the US and UK governments in education settings. He continues to have a strong focus on training psychologists in positive psychology - individuals whose practice can make the world a happier place, in a way that parallels clinical psychologists having made the world a 'less unhappy' place.
Dr Seligman is currently Zellerbach Family Professor of Psychology and Director of the Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania. He is well known in academic and clinical circles and is a best-selling author, having written 20 books and 200 articles on motivation and personality. Among his better-known works are Flourish (2011), Authentic Happiness (2002), Learned Optimism (1991), What You Can Change and What You Can't (1993), The Optimistic Child (1995), Helplessness (1975, 1993) and Abnormal Psychology (1982, 1988, 1995, with David Rosenhan).
You can read a full biography of Dr Seligman on his website. To see Dr Martin Seligman in action see his 2004 TED talk on positive psychology or his more recent talk at Zeitgeist (at the top of this page).