David Guy Myers (born 20 September 1942) is an American psychologist who is a professor of
psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...
at
Hope College
Hope College is a private Christian liberal arts college in Holland, Michigan, United States. It was originally opened in 1851 as the Pioneer School by Dutch immigrants four years after the community was first settled. The first freshman coll ...
in
Michigan
Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...
, United States,
and the author of 17 books, including popular textbooks entitled ''Psychology'', ''Exploring Psychology'', ''Social Psychology'' and general-audience books dealing with issues related to
Christian
A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
faith as well as scientific psychology. In addition, he has published chapters in over 60 books and numerous scholarly research articles in professional journals. Myers is widely recognized for his research on happiness and is one of the supporters of the
positive psychological movement.
Life and career
Myers was born in Seattle, Washington, and graduated from Seattle's Queen Anne High School in 1960. He attended
Whitworth University, from which he received his
B.A. in chemistry, ''
magna cum laude
Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...
'', in 1964, having been a pre-med student. However, his graduate work went in a different direction, that of
social psychology
Social psychology is the methodical study of how thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others. Although studying many of the same substantive topics as its counterpart in the field ...
. He received his
M.A. in social psychology in 1966 and his
Ph.D. in social psychology the following year for thesis titled ''Enhancement of Initial Risk Taking Tendencies in Social Situations'', both at the
University of Iowa
The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...
.
Myers has spent most of his career at Hope College, rising from assistant professor (1967), associate professor (1970), and since 1975, full professor. He served as a visiting scholar at the
University of Mannheim
The University of Mannheim (German: ''Universität Mannheim''), abbreviated UMA, is a public university, public research university in Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1967, the university has its origins in the ''Palatine Aca ...
in
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
in the summer of 1974, and at the
University of St Andrews
The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, f ...
in
Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
in 1985.
Myers has received fellowships and grants from the
U.S. Public Health Service and the
National Science Foundation
The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) is an Independent agencies of the United States government#Examples of independent agencies, independent agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that su ...
and is a fellow of the
American Psychological Association
The American Psychological Association (APA) is the main professional organization of psychologists in the United States, and the largest psychological association in the world. It has over 170,000 members, including scientists, educators, clin ...
, the
American Psychological Society and the American Association of Applied and Preventive Psychology. He is one of the most important authors of psychology textbooks and is the recipient of honorary doctorates from three different educational institutions. According to the
Open Syllabus Project, Myers is the most frequently cited author on college syllabi for psychology courses.
Books
Textbooks
*
Psychology' (with C. Nathan Dewall, 13th edition, 2020) 978-1319132101
*
Exploring Psychology' (with C. Nathan DeWall, 11th edition, 2019) 978-1319104191
*
Psychology in Everyday Life' (with C. Nathan DeWall, 6th edition, 2023) 978-1319498665
*
Social Psychology' (with
Jean Twenge
Jean Marie Twenge (born August 24, 1971) is an American psychologist researching generational differences, including work values, life goals, and social attitudes. She is a professor of psychology at San Diego State University, author, consultan ...
, 14th edition, 2022) 978-1260888539
*
Social Psychology' (with
Jean Twenge
Jean Marie Twenge (born August 24, 1971) is an American psychologist researching generational differences, including work values, life goals, and social attitudes. She is a professor of psychology at San Diego State University, author, consultan ...
and others, 8th Canadian edition, 2021) 978-1260327014
*
Exploring Social Psychology' (with
Jean Twenge
Jean Marie Twenge (born August 24, 1971) is an American psychologist researching generational differences, including work values, life goals, and social attitudes. She is a professor of psychology at San Diego State University, author, consultan ...
, 9th edition, 2020) 978-1260254112
*
Myers' Psychology for the AP® Course' (with C. Nathan DeWall, 3rd edition, 2018) 978-1319070502
Other books
''Psychology Through the Eyes of Faith''(2002) 978-0060655570
''The Pursuit of Happiness: Who Is Happy--and Why''(1992)978-1855382732
''A Quiet World: Living with Hearing Loss''(2000) ASIN: B001CEU7BU
''The American Paradox: Spiritual Hunger in an Age of Plenty''(2000) 978-0300091205
*''Psychology Through the Eyes of Faith'' (2002) with
Malcolm A. Jeeves''Intuition: Its Powers and Perils''(2002) 978-0300103038
''What God Has Joined Together: The Christian Case for Gay Marriage''(with
Letha Dawson Scanzoni, 2005) 978-0060834548
''A Friendly Letter to Skeptics and Atheists: Musings on Why God is Good and Faith isn't Evil''(2008) 978-0470290279
*''How Do We Know Ourselves?: Curiosities and Marvels of the Human Mind'' (2022) 9780374601959
References
External links
David G. Myers's web siteDefining Wisdom: A Project of The University of Chicago Arete InitiativeA Science of Virtues: A Project of The University of Chicago Arete Initiative
{{DEFAULTSORT:Myers, David G.
1942 births
Living people
21st-century American psychologists
American Protestants
American social psychologists
People from Holland, Michigan
American textbook writers
American male non-fiction writers
Fellows of the American Psychological Association
Hearing loss
20th-century American psychologists