Award Winners

The Hilgard Award recognizes an individual who has made significant and long-lasting contributions to general psychology, and whose work exemplifies an integrative and interdisciplinary approach to inquiry, consistent with the mission and goals of Division 1. Dr. Seligman was awarded the Hilgard Award in recognition of his outstanding career that has exemplified Division 1’s ideals. His work is integrative across the subdisciplines of psychology as well as related fields. Furthermore, Dr. Seligman’s work has unquestionably improved the lives of others by informing clinical practice and by being disseminated to lay audiences who are invited to apply the lessons of positive psychology to their own lives. All in all, Dr. Seligman has made an exceptional contribution to psychological science, theory, and public understanding. As one of the reviewers for the award said: “such awards are made for him”.

Dr. Martin Seligman is the Director of the Penn Positive Psychology Center and Zellerbach Family Professor of Psychology in the Penn Department of Psychology. He is also Director of the Penn Master of Applied Positive Psychology program (MAPP). Dr. Seligman is a former President of the American Psychological Association (APA), and has received a number of prestigious awards, including, most recently, the APA Award for Lifetime Contributions to Psychology (2017) and the Tang Award for Lifetime Achievement in Psychology (2014). Dr. Seligman is a world-leading authority in the fields of Positive Psychology, resilience, learned helplessness, depression, optimism and pessimism. Dr Seligman is also a renowned expert on interventions that prevent depression and build strengths and well-being. He is the author of over 350 scholarly publications and 30 books.