E. Scott Geller
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Dr. E. Scott Geller has more than 45 years of experience in the field as a preeminent researcher and professor. He is presently Alumni Distinguished Professor and director of the Center for Applied Behavior Systems at Virginia Polytechnic Institute (VT) and Virginia State University. Dr. Geller has authored 31 books, 43 book chapters, 38 training manuals, 203 magazine articles, and more than 350 research articles addressing the development and evaluation of behavior-change interventions to improve quality of life. He has published in Accident Analysis and Prevention, International Journal of Medical Informatics, Journal of Safety Research, Environment and Behavior, Behavior and Social Issues, and the Journal of Organizational Behavior Management. Dr. Geller has served as editor of the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis and is currently associate editor of Environment and Behavior and consulting editor of Behavior and Social Issues, Behavior Analyst Digest, Journal of Organizational Behavior Management, and Journal of Safety Research.
When one thinks of behavioral safety, one thinks of Dr. Geller. He paved the way for behavior analysts to explore and tackle issues of public and personal safety. He is perhaps most noted for his work in evaluating attempts at reducing alcohol consumption in college students, yet his focus on safety behavior has inspired him to tackle a number of challenging issues. His work has been in areas as diverse as safety-belt use, at-risk behavior on prime-time television, electronic prescriptions in hospital settings, and the prevention of injury. His extramural grant funding, totaling more than $6 million, has involved the application of behavioral science to benefit corporations, institutions, government agencies, and communities in general.
In 1982, he received a teaching award from the American Psychological Association (APA), and since then has won every university teaching award offered at VT. In 2001, VT awarded him the University Alumni Award for Excellence in Research, and in 2002, VT honored him with the Alumni Outreach Award for exemplary real-world applications of behavioral science. In 2003, he was awarded the University Alumni Award for Graduate Student Advising. In 2005, Dr. Geller was awarded the Virginia Outstanding Faculty Award by the State Council of Higher Education. Dr. Geller is also the recipient of the Gold Medal Award for Life Achievement in Psychology in the Public Interest from the American Psychological Foundation, the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Organizational Behavior Management Network, and the Outstanding Applied Research Award from the APA. He has been elected a Fellow of APA Divisions 9, 25, 27, and 34, as well as of the World Academy of Productivity and Quality Sciences. He is also a charter Fellow of the Association for Psychological Science (formerly the American Psychological Society).