Nancy Etcoff

Nancy Etcoff is an Assistant Clinical Professor at the Harvard Medical School, a faculty member of the Harvard University Mind/Brain/Behavior Initiative, an Affiliate Scientist at the LKS Center for Health and Happiness at the Harvard School of Public Health, and a psychologist at the Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Psychiatry where she is the Director of the Program in Aesthetics and Well Being.

Dr. Nancy Etcoff conducts ground breaking and highly cited scientific investigations in the psychology and neuroscience of emotion, and the psychology and biology of beauty and aesthetics. Her research has culminated in numerous awards, and her book, Survival of the Prettiest: The Science of Beauty (Doubleday, 1999; Anchor, 2000) has been published in over a dozen languages, and is the subject of a one-hour Discovery Channel documentary. At Harvard, Dr. Etcoff teaches seminars in Neuroaesthetics and The Science of Happiness.

Dr. Nancy Etcoff has appeared as a keynote speaker at numerous international, national and local conferences and festivals. Her 2004 TED talk on happiness and its surprises has been viewed by over 2 million people and translated into 23 languages. It was recently cited by TED curator, Chris Anderson as one of the 5 talks he learned the most from.

Dr. Etcoff has also served as a consultant and global advisor to industry.