APS Mentor Award

The APS Mentor Award recognizes psychology researchers and educators who have shaped the future directions of science by fostering the careers of students and colleagues.

A mentor can be many things: That professor or advisor who made a special effort, transforming our career paths; that inspirational researcher who influenced a larger group of scientists through broader efforts, such as leading an organization or laboratory, or through lecturing and conducting seminars and workshops. There may be other models as well, including for undergraduate institutions and applied settings.

The APS Mentor Award honors the importance of mentoring in our field as well as the dedication and impact of individuals with a distinguished record of teaching, advising, and encouraging students and colleagues. The APS Mentor Awards are presented each year at the APS Annual Convention.

APS’s lifetime achievement awards are not exclusive. In other words, an exceptional psychological scientist might be awarded all of them.


View a list of Mentor Award Recipients


APS Mentor Award Committee

Kenneth Steele, Chair
Appalachian State University
BJ Casey, Member
Barnard College of Columbia University
Alison Gopnik, Member
University of California, Berkeley
Stephen Hinshaw, Member
University of California, Berkeley
Miguel Moya, Member
University of Granada
Serena Zadoorian, Member
University of California, Riverside

2025 Award Recipients


William Crano

Claremont Graduate University

Headshot of William Crano

William Crano holds the title of Oskamp Chair, Distinguished Professorship in Psychology in Claremont Graduate University’s Division of Behavioral and Organizational Sciences. His basic research is concerned with social influence, especially the impact of minorities on the beliefs and actions of the majority, and on the effects of self-interest on attitudes and actions. Crano’s mentees laud him for exemplifying a standard of research that is inclusive, ethical, and focused on real-world problems. One mentee described how Crano would “inevitably step up to serve as an advisor for those students who, with just a dissertation remaining, were abandoned by their original advisors.” Crano also is recognized for  finding a point of connection to his students’ work, even when the topics sat outside his immediate areas of scientific interest. His mentees have become experts on stereotyping and prejudice, criminal justice, risky adolescent behavior, HIV/AIDS intervention, reproductive rights, health equity, drug addiction, and organ donation, as well as basic research on self-regulation, self-concept, social influence, persuasion, attitudes, and social judgment.  


Dacher Keltner

University of California, Berkeley

Headshot of Dacher Keltner

A Distinguished Professor at the University of California, Berkeley, Dacher Keltner studies power, social class, and the social functions of emotion, showing that emotions enable individuals to respond adaptively to the problems and opportunities that define human social living. Keltner’s students say he approaches them as collaborators, fostering an atmosphere of respect and mutual learning. His mentees commend him for providing frank, constructive feedback that builds on his students’ own ideas and guides them toward developing a refined project that is still their own. Mentees report that Keltner takes risks with students, accepting those who have switched career pursuits, taken time off to work in the Peace Corps, or traveled other unconventional paths to psychological science. His former students commend him for guiding them through a potentially overwhelming body of interdisciplinary literature in a way that is not just intellectually invigorating, but fun. He is generous with advice, data, authorship, opportunities, and credit. Keltner provides the freedom and flexibility needed for intellectual growth, and the autonomy he promotes in students builds their character as independent scholars. 


Elizabeth A. Phelps

Harvard University

Headshot of Elizabeth Phelps

Elizabeth Phelps is the Pershing Square Professor of Human Neuroscience at Harvard University. Her research has uncovered the impact of emotion and affect on cognition, enhancing our understanding of cognition and providing insights into social processes and psychological disorders. Phelps encourages every student to design an independent research program and provides the resources and guidance to help their ideas take shape. Phelps creates a lab environment where young minds feel encouraged and empowered to not only add their voices to scholarly conversations, but to also challenge existing theoretical and empirical work. She also recognizes when other expertise would benefit her mentees and facilitates collaboration whenever possible. This not only expands their science, but helps students form valuable connections. Phelps also emphasizes the importance of communicating science, ensuring that each of her mentees (including undergraduates) practices presentations for her and the rest of the lab. She has inspired scientists throughout the field through her leadership, which includes serving as APS President from 2013-2014. Many of her trainees are leaders in the field of emotion and cognition.  


Norbert Schwarz

University of Southern California

Headshot of Norbert Schwarz

Norbert Schwarz is Provost Professor of Psychology and Marketing at the University of Southern California. His research explores how people make sense of the world in which they live and how their decisions are shaped by subtle contextual influences. His mentees describe working with him as transformative, inspiring them to engage in thoughtful discussions, constructive criticism, and rigorous thinking. In a career spanning more than 40 years, Schwarz has invested his time, instilled curiosity, nurtured confidence, and shared his compassion in supporting mentees to carve out their own careers. He creates a research environment that not only values rigorous science and deep thinking, but also creativity and fun. Schwarz takes time to support others to flourish, whether they are members of his lab, visitors, or early career academics looking for advice and new perspectives. Schwarz has helped his mentees design careers that are aligned with their own values, context, and goals. 


L. Monique Ward

University of Michigan

Headshot of L. Monique Ward

As the Arthur F. Thurnau Professor of Psychology at the University of Michigan, L. Monique Ward leads an impactful research program that addresses children’s and adolescents’ developing conceptions of both gender and sexuality and how they receive messaging about male-female relations from their parents, peers, and the media. By attracting diverse young scholars of color and nurturing them to pursue their diverse interests, her mentoring efforts have had a deep and lasting impact on developmental psychology and related disciplines. Ward’s students describe her hands-on, collegial leadership style as more peer-to-peer than mentor-to-student. Her mentorship strikes a delicate balance; her expectations are high, but she provides the tools, insight, and support necessary to enable her students to meet them. One mentee noted that Ward’s honesty about her own successes and failures normalized her students’ own struggles as new scholars. She is widely recognized as a champion of the career development for women, especially women of color. Many of her former students are now prominent scholars and community leaders who are helping advance the well-being of women in science and society.