Dr. Brad Bushman is a distinguished scholar and leading authority in the field of social psychology with a focus on aggression and violence. He currently holds the Margaret Hall and Robert Randal Rinehart Chair of Mass Communication at The Ohio State University where he serves as Professor of Communication with an additional appointment in psychology. After earning his B.S. in Psychology from Weber State University in 1984 he completed his Ph.D. in Social Psychology at the University of Missouri in 1989 where he studied under Russell Geen a prominent researcher in violent media effects. Prior to his current position at Ohio State Dr. Bushman held faculty appointments at the University of Michigan from 2003 to 2010 and Iowa State University from 1990 to 2003 establishing himself as a leading voice in aggression research early in his career.
Dr. Bushman's groundbreaking research has fundamentally transformed understanding of the causes consequences and potential solutions to human aggression and violence with particular emphasis on the effects of media violence. His rigorous empirical studies have challenged numerous pervasive myths demonstrating that venting anger actually increases aggression that aggressive individuals typically have high rather than low self-esteem and that violence and sex do not necessarily sell products as commonly believed. With over 60 000 citations according to Google Scholar his work ranks him among the top communication scholars globally and has been published in the most prestigious scientific journals including Science and PNAS. His research on the relationship between alcohol consumption and perceived attractiveness earned him the 2013 Ig Nobel Prize in Psychology while his investigation into the social contagion of violence among adolescents revealed how violent behavior spreads through social networks similarly to obesity and smoking.
Beyond his scholarly contributions Dr. Bushman has significantly influenced public policy as a member of President Obama's committee on gun violence and through testimony before the U.S. Congress regarding youth violence. He has received numerous honors including the 2014 Distinguished Lifetime Contribution to Media Psychology and Technology award from the American Psychological Association the 2017 Kurt Lewin Award and the 2022 Morton Deutsch Conflict Resolution Award. His work has been featured extensively in major media outlets such as BBC New York Times and NPR and he has appeared on Penn & Teller Bullshit bringing scientific insights on aggression to wider audiences. Currently Dr. Bushman continues to lead innovative research in aggression and violence while mentoring the next generation of scholars with ongoing investigations examining the complex relationship between media consumption emotional responses and behavioral outcomes in diverse populations.
