News Release
August 11, 2004
For Immediate Release
University of Arizona's Richard Bootzin Elected to
APS Board of Directors
Richard R. Bootzin was elected to the Board of Directors of the American Psychological Society, an international organization dedicated to the advancement of scientific psychology.
Bootzin is a professor of psychology and psychiatry at the University of Arizona. His research focuses on understanding and treating sleep disorders, cognitive processing during sleep, the role of expectancy and placebos in behavior change, and methodology in evaluating intervention outcomes. "I am honored to have been elected to the Board because APS represents quality, creativity, innovation, and commitment in advancing psychological science", Bootzin said in response to his election, adding, "We all benefit from the remarkable efforts of APS in support of the generation and application of psychological science."
He heads a sleep research lab, where he and students are currently engaged in a variety of projects including two that are federally funded. One is evaluating whether teaching sleep-improvement techniques to substance-abusing adolescents reduces recidivism. Bootzin also directs the Insomnia Program at the University of Arizona Sleep Disorder Center where he provides training for clinical psychology interns and graduate students.
In 1972 Bootzin developed his internationally renowned Stimulus Control treatment for insomnia, a behavioral therapy that has helped thousands of disordered sleepers. Stimulus Control Therapy is the only nonpharmacological treatment for insomnia receiving the highest standard-of-practice rating from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.
He has co-authored major textbooks in psychology that influenced a generation of students including Psychology Today: An Introduction: Current Perspectives. Bootzin is the author of numerous research articles that have been published in a variety of prestigious scientific journals. His achievements, both experimental and clinical, are internationally recognized.
Training issues are another major focus of Bootzin's efforts. He is a past-president and founding member of the Academy of Psychological Clinical Science, a coalition of more than 50 academic and internship training programs committed to strengthening psychological clinical science. He has been an invited participant in workshops and advisory committees at NIH, a reviewer of research and training grants, an external reviewer in evaluations of psychology department programs, and an active participant in the leadership of professional societies.
Bootzin is an APS Fellow and Charter member. He was a member of the APS convention program committee for three years and chaired the Society's Fellows Committee. Also elected are Michael Gazzaniga, Dartmouth College, as President- Elect, and, Elizabeth Phelps, New York University, as Member-at-Large of the Board. Each will serve three-year terms which began on June 1, 2004.
The American Psychological Society is the only organization dedicated exclusively to supporting researchers, applied and clinical scientists, academics, and teachers in the field of psychology. The Society is a powerful voice in promoting psychology as a science-based discipline and advancing behavioral science research.
For more information about APS, visit www.psychologicalscience.org/about/.