Professor George A. Bonanno stands as a preeminent figure in clinical psychology and trauma research. He currently serves as Professor of Clinical Psychology and Chair of the Department of Counseling and Clinical Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University where he has maintained a distinguished academic career. After earning his Ph.D. from Yale University in 1991, Dr. Bonanno established himself as a leading voice in psychological resilience research through rigorous empirical investigation. His early work challenged conventional wisdom about trauma response and laid the foundation for his groundbreaking contributions to understanding human adaptation following adversity. Over three decades, he has cultivated a research program that has reshaped clinical approaches to trauma and bereavement worldwide.
Dr. Bonanno's seminal research demonstrating that resilience represents the most common response to potentially traumatic events has fundamentally transformed the field of trauma psychology, with his highly influential 2004 American Psychologist paper becoming a cornerstone of contemporary understanding. His work has shown that resilience occurs across diverse traumatic experiences including war, natural disasters, physical assault, and bereavement, challenging long-held assumptions that trauma inevitably leads to lasting psychological damage. As a result of this paradigm-shifting research, he has been consistently ranked among the world's top one percent most cited scientists by Web of Science, reflecting the profound impact of his contributions. His exploration of psychological mechanisms underlying resilience, particularly the critical role of flexible self-regulation, has provided clinicians with evidence-based approaches to supporting adaptation following trauma.
Beyond his research achievements, Dr. Bonanno has received lifetime achievement honors from the Association for Psychological Science, the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, and the International Positive Psychology Association, cementing his legacy as a transformative figure in psychological science. He has authored influential books including The Other Side of Sadness and The End of Trauma that have brought his research to broader academic and public audiences. Leading the Loss, Trauma, and Emotion Lab at Columbia University, he continues to advance understanding of human resilience through innovative methodological approaches. His ongoing work focuses on developing more nuanced models of trauma response that account for individual differences while maintaining the crucial insight that human beings possess remarkable capacities for adaptation and recovery even after the most devastating life events.
