Members > APS Awards and Honors > APS William James Fellow Award

APS William James Fellow Award

The APS William James Fellow Award honors APS members for their lifetime of significant intellectual contributions to the basic science of psychology. Recipients must be APS members recognized internationally for their outstanding contributions to scientific psychology. Honorees are recognized annually at the APS Convention.

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

Submit an APS William James Fellow Award Nomination

View a list of Past Award Recipients

APS William James Fellow Award Committee

Alice H. Eagly (Chair),
Northwestern University

Linda Bartoshuk,
University of Florida

Susan Goldin-Meadow,
The University of Chicago

E. Tory Higgins,
Columbia University

Janet Werker,
University of British Columbia

Cindy Yee-Bradbury,
University of California, Los Angeles

2022 Award Recipients

Dedre Gentner

Northwestern University

Gentner_Dedre

Dedre Gentner’s research in the power of analogy and metaphors in reasoning, learning, and discovery has deepened understanding of how children learn spatial categories and adults’ ability to promote accurate and rapid detection of specific differences and structural errors. 

Watch Dedre Gentner's Award Address

Alison Gopnik

University of California, Berkeley

Gopnik

Well known for her research on the learning and exploratory behavior of children, Alison Gopnik uses methodologies of answering philosophical questions that draw on experimental psychology, cognitive science, education and computer science. Gopnik was a 2021 recipient of the APS James McKeen Cattell Award and is the APS President-Elect. 

Watch Alison Gopnik's Award Address

Trevor Robbins

University of Cambridge

Robbins_Trevor

An influential figure in the field of human psychology, Trevor Robbins delves deep into experimental and neuro psychological science as well as psychopharmacology in his interdisciplinary, biology-inspired, theory-driven empirical work.  

Watch Trevor Robbins's Award Address

James H. (Jim) Sidanius

Posthumous Award

Harvard University

Sidanius

James H. (Jim) Sidanius is recognized for his outstanding contributions to the interdisciplinary fields of psychological science. He initiated research on individual differences in political attitudes, a concept that later expanded into his work on social dominance, and conducted important research on topics including prejudice, stereotyping, discrimination, and social dilemmas.   

Watch Nour Kteily's Award Address on Behalf of James H. Sidanius