Board of Directors

He grew up in Cleveland, the oldest child of a schoolteacher and an immigrant businessman. He received his Ph.D. in social psychology from Princeton in 1978 and did a postdoctoral fellowship in sociology at the University of California at Berkeley.

He spent over two decades at Case Western Reserve University, where he eventually was the first to hold the Elsie Smith professorship. He has also worked at the University of Texas, the University of Virginia, the Max-Planck-Institute, the VU Free University of Amsterdam, the University of California at Santa Barbara, the Russell Sage Foundation, and Stanford’s Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences.

After an internship at the Queensland Institute of Medical Research in Brisbane, Australia, she graduated at the Vrije Universiteit. Her master degree is in Physiological Psychology, with special focus on Behavior Genetics.

She obtained her PhD degree in 2003. She spent the last months of her PhD at the Virginia Institute of Psychiatric and Behavior Genetics, Richmond, VA, USA. In 2014, she was appointed as full-professor under the competitive and honorary University Research Chair program of the VU.

She published over 200 papers in peer-reviewed journal including the first molecular genetic evidence for well-being in PNAS and the first genomic variant for well-being in Nature Genetics. She was awarded a prestigious European Research Council Consolidator grant to build, expand, and consolidate her line of research on Genetics and Well-being. She is the president of the Behavior Genetics Associations and was awarded both the BGA Thompson award for outstanding PhD research and the BGA Fuller/Scott Award for her outstanding scientific accomplishments early in her career.

She is the President-Elect of IPPA and was honored with the status of fellow in 2017 in recognition of outstanding contributions to the advancement of positive psychology.  She leads a team of researcher with a focus on the causes of individual differences in wellbeing.

She combines research with teaching and is the Director of the Research Master Genes in Behaviour and Health, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam.

a) Why did you join IPPA:

To my opinion IPPA is the international association to join to connect with a large variety of people around the world who are all interested in wellbeing. It is a platform that enables international collaboration and the translation of research findings to practical applications. I joined to meet new people to inspire each other, learn from each other, and collaborate to make the world a better place!

b) Why did you agree to serve on the IPPA Board of Directors:

As a researcher I support IPPAs mission to have research and evidence-based approaches as the backbone of the association and the field. To help the association to keep this focus and to support the mission to bring people together, I joined the board. Furthermore, I’m a strong believer in international collaborations and diversity as a catalyst for change and do my best to support worldwide inclusion.

c) What is something memorable or something you have gained from being part of IPPA:

I very much enjoy the positivity and the atmosphere at the international conferences. The wide scope, the combination of research and practice, the international setting, and the wonderful people make me already looking forward to the next conference. I’ve met so many wonderful people over the past years that I cannot imagine not being part of IPPA!

She is the inaugural Director of the Master of Applied Positive Psychology program (2013 – 2015) and is a registered psychologist and a Member of the Australian Psychological Society and College of Health Psychologists. She founded the Positive Psychology Network in Australia and has served as Treasurer and Secretary of the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA) and is currently on the IPPA Council of Advisors. Dianne has been an inaugural Editor in Chief of the Psychology of Well-Being: Theory, Research and Practice journal (2011-2016) and has Co-Directed the 2008, 2010 and 2014 Australian Positive Psychology and Well-being conferences. She serves on numerous research advisory boards, regularly reviews scientific papers for leading journals and has received around $3 million funding for her research. Dianne’s research interests include the development and evaluation of well-being programs, particularly in the areas of positive education and performance optimization. She specializes in innovative mixed method designs which utilize the latest technology, experience sampling method and biological indices of well-being. Her research has a special focus on young people. She also integrates ethical and professional practice issues in much of her work and is currently the Ethics Chair at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education. Dianne also has extensive experience with scale development and psychometric testing having been involved in the development of numerous well-being measures including the Wuzzup app, MoodPrism and Wellbeing Profiler.

Past assignments include serving as Associate Dean of Executive Education for the Ross School, serving as Dean and Albert J. Weatherhead Professor of Management in the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University, and Associate Dean and Ford Motor Company/Richard E. Cook Professor in the Marriott School of Management at Brigham Young University. He has also served as a department chair at the University of Michigan, and served on the faculties of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Ricks College.

Dr. Cameron organized and directed the Organizational Studies Division of the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems in Boulder, Colorado.  He helped co-found the Center for Positive Organizational Scholarship at the University of Michigan, which in 2012 was awarded the Research Center Impact Award by the Academy of Management.  This award recognizes researchers/ research centers that have made a major impact on real world management practice.

Dr. Cameron’s past research on organizational virtuousness, downsizing, effectiveness, quality culture, and the development of leadership excellence has been published in more than 120 academic articles and 15 scholarly books.  He was recently recognized as being among the top 10 scholars in the organizational sciences whose work has been most frequently downloaded from Google.  His current research focuses on the virtuousness of and in organizations, and their relationships to organizational success.

Dr. Cameron received BS and MS degrees from Brigham Young University and MA and PhD degrees from Yale University.  He served on the National Research Council, was president of Bay Asset Funding Corporation, and was a Fulbright Distinguished Scholar.  He is a graduate of Leadership Cleveland, Class of 2000 and a recipient of the Organizational Behavior Teaching Society’s Outstanding Educator Award.  He currently consults with a variety of business, government, and educational organizations in North America, South America, Asia, Africa, and Europe.

a) Why did you join IPPA:

IPPA provides me with the most up-to-date research and practice regarding positive psychology and positive organizational scholarship.   The network of scholars and practitioners throughout the world is unparalleled, and the bi-annual congress keeps me up to date in a way I could not achieve by myself.  Additional benefits such as podcasts and the chance to disseminate the work of the Center for Positive Organizations is also a big plus.

b) Why did you agree to serve on the IPPA Board of Directors:
I am eager to help build this organization into a highly influential global network of scholars and practitioners.  The mission of IPPA and the extraordinary individuals who are associated with IPPA, and especially who are leading the organization and its divisions, provide positive energy, learning, and   insight for me.  That’s selfish, I know, but it supplements nicely the chance to contribute a bit.

c) What is something memorable or something you have gained from being part of IPPA:
The one factor that trumps all others is the chance to know and interact with spectacular scholars, practitioners, and leaders.  I would never have encountered these folks without IPPA.

Andrew Soren is the Founder and CEO of Eudaimonic by Design, a global network of facilitators, coaches and advisors who share a passion for well-being and believe organizations must be designed to enable it. Together they harness the best of scholarship and years of experience to advise organizations and design systems that unlock potential and bring out the best in people.

Since 2013, he has been faculty with the University of Pennsylvania’s internationally renowned Masters  of Applied Positive Psychology program. He is also the past president of the program’s Alumni Association.

Andrew is an ICF certified coach through the Co-Active Training Institute. He splits his time between Toronto, Canada and Montevideo, Uruguay.

a) Why did you join IPPA:
As a student, practitioner and teacher of applied positive psychology for the past decade, I know IPPA plays a critical role in the ecosystem of positive psychology – from promoting the science and facilitating community, to sharing findings and applications to increasingly broader audiences.

b) Why did you agree to serve on the IPPA Board of Directors:
Given the important role IPPA plays, I was keen to bring my experience and skills to the Board and the Association more broadly. I am a fervent believer that we must maintain the good of the commons for Positive Psychology. As the field continues to exponentially expand, especially outside of an academic environment and across practitioner bases, IPPA’s role as a custodian for this commons is critical. For me, there was no better way to give back to a commons that has been so important to my life and profession than to be part of the board meant to ensure its good governance.

c) What is something memorable or something you have gained from being part of IPPA:
As Chris Peterson used to say, “other people matter” and that is what IPPA has given to me. It has helped me build a global community of passionate researchers and practitioners of positive psychology who I partner with and learn from regularly.

He earned his doctorate with specializations in Counseling Psychology and Personality Psychology from the University of Minnesota in 2005. For more than 15 years, he has researched how people flourish through building meaning and purpose in their lives and in their work. Among his research projects were the development of tow widely-used measurement tools, the Meaning in Life Questionnaire (MLQ) and the Work and Meaning Inventory (WAMI). He has published more than 100 scholarly journal articles and book chapters, and three books, including The Wiley Blackwell Handbook of the Psychology of Positivity and Strengths-Based Approaches at Work and Purpose and Meaning in the Workplace. He provides keynotes, lectures, workshops, and consulting around the world on the topics of meaning, purpose, psychological strengths, meaningful work, and creating a happy workplace.

Because of his work on adolescent well-being, he was awarded the Distinguished QOL Researcher Award by the International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies.

Daniel is passionate about teaching and youth development. He has implemented four subjects on leadership and Service Learning with an enrolment of 18,000+ students. He has received several teaching awards, including four QS Reimagine Education Awards (two bronze, one gold and one silver awards) and the University Grants Committee Teaching Award.

Daniel is committed to community service. He is the former Chairman of Action Committee against Narcotics and current Chairman of the Family Council in Hong Kong. Because of his community service, he has been awarded the Bronze Bauhinia Star and Silver Bauhinia Star by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

A) Why did you join or become affiliated with IPPA:

I have conducted research on positive youth development (PYD) and developed PYD programs to promote the well-being of adolescents. I am also interested in research and program development in leadership and Service Learning. These research interests and programs are consistent with the vision of IPPA. Through IPPA, I hope I can work together with other colleagues on these initiatives.

B) Why are you agreeing to serve on the IPPA Board:

My understanding is that IPPA has three missions:

1.    Promotion of the science and applications of research in positive psychology
2.    Facilitation of transdisciplinary collaboration amongst different stakeholders across the globe
3.    Sharing findings of positive psychology with a wide range of audience

It is my modest wish to contribute to the work related to these missions.

C) What is something memorable or something you have gained from IPPA or the world of positive psychology:

Together with a group of colleagues, we developed a project entitled “P.A.T.H.S. to Adulthood” to promote the positive development of young people in Hong Kong. It lasted for 14 years. I am very pleased to note the positive changes in the students as well as the teachers after joining the programs.

Kris Peterson brings over 20 years of accounting, administrative systems, and communications and event support experience from across industries to the IPPA organization. She has the unique ability to manage demanding environments and deadlines with a keen understanding of the unique needs of members and volunteers worldwide, and has a discerning eye for the details that go into the day to day operations of an international organization. It is her goal to assist wherever needed to ensure IPPA’s growth and success throughout transitional stages to maintain a sure and true direction for the association.

Outside of work, Kris is a dedicated mother to her daughters, and enjoys spending time at the lake, cooking, boating, and spending quality time with her family and loved ones.

where he focuses on positive psychology, learned helplessness, depression, ethno-political conflict, and optimism. He is a best-selling author of several books including, most recently, Flourish. He received the American Psychological Society’s William James Fellow Award for basic science and Cattell Award for the application of science, and two Distinguished Scientific Contribution awards from the American Psychological Association. In 1996, Seligman was elected president of the American Psychological Association by the largest vote in modern history. His current mission is the attempt to transform social science to work on the best things in life—virtue, positive emotion, good relationships, and positive institutions—and not just on healing pathology.

where he co-founded the Master of Applied Positive Psychology Program with Martin Seligman. The Founding Executive Director of IPPA, he is currently leading a three-year, multi-million-dollar grant investigating connections between the science of well-being and the arts and humanities.