Ellen Langer

Ellen Langer
Born	(1947-03-25) March 25, 1947 Bronx, New York
Occupation	Psychology professor

Ellen Jane Langer (born March 25, 1947) is a professor of psychology at Harvard University, having in 1981 become the first woman ever to be tenured in psychology at Harvard. Langer studies the illusion of control, decision-making, aging, and mindfulness theory. Her most influential work is Counterclockwise, published in 2009, which answers the questions of aging from her extensive research, and increased interest in the ins and outs of aging across the nation.

Early life and education

Langer was born in The Bronx, New York. She received her bachelor's degree in Psychology from New York University, and her PhD in Social and Clinical Psychology from Yale University in 1974.

Career

Langer has had a significant influence on the positive psychology movement. Langer has published over 200 articles and academic texts. Langer was published in The New York Times, and discussed her works on Good Morning America. Additionally, in many introductory psychology courses at universities across the United States, her studies are required reading.

Aging

Langer and colleagues conducted multiple forms of research to promote the flexibility of aging. One study showed that rewarding behaviors and following completion of memory tasks improves memory. Another study showed that simply taking care of a plant improves mental and physical health, as well as life expectancy. These studies were the primitive steps to creating the Langer Mindfulness Scale. Her research provided for improved methods in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. Additionally, in one of her most famous studies, Langer found it was possible to lower obesity and diabetes in chambermaids by calling their everyday activity “exercise” rather than “labor.”

Mindfulness

Langer is well known for her contributions to the study of mindfulness and of mindless behaviour, with these contributions having provided the basis for many studies focused on individual differences in unconscious behavior and decision making processes in humans. In 1989, she published Mindfulness, her first book, and some have referred to her as the "mother of mindfulness". In an interview with Krista Tippett on the National Public Radio program "On Being," broadcast on Sept. 13, 2015, Langer defined mindfulness as "the simple act of noticing things." The Langer Mindfulness Scale is still used in modern research.

Awards

In 1980, she was the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship. Other honors include the Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychology in the Public Interest of the American Psychological Association, the Distinguished Contributions of Basic Science to Applied Psychology award from the American Association of Applied and Preventive Psychology, the James McKeen Cattel Award, and the Gordon Allport Intergroup Relations Prize.

External links

• Personal site
• Mind Changers, Series 4: Arden House BBC Radio programme which interviews Langer about one of her experiments.
• The Young Ones Ellen Langer's Counter Clockwise study was the basis for this BBC documentary series.
• The Great Lesson The Great Lesson: A New Film About Mind and Body: Featuring Dr. Ellen Langer