Fagundes receives Early Career Professional Award from Society of Health Psychology

Christopher Fagundes, an assistant professor of psychology, is the recipient of the American Psychological Association Health Psychology Division’s 2018 Excellence in Health Psychology Research by an Early Career Professional Award in recognition of outstanding research.

CHRIS FAGUNDES (Photo by Jeff Fitlow)

The award is given annually to researchers who have earned a terminal degree in the past 10 years, have a strong record of important original contributions in research (some of which reflect an important programmatic or thematic focus) and scholarship and are recognized for emerging impact on the field of health psychology. Other factors, including professional honors and the number, quality and impact of publications, are taken into account.

The award will be presented at the association’s convention in San Francisco during an Aug. 11 awards ceremony by the Society for Health Psychology.

“As an interdisciplinary team scientist, I do work at the intersection of psychology, behavioral medicine and immunology,” Fagundes said. “I am so pleased that the American Psychological Association values interdisciplinary biobehavioral work, which I see as the future of psychology. I am so grateful for my staff, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. All of their hard work leads to these honors. It is really their award as much as mine.”

Fagundes’ research is at the interface of health psychology, affective neuroscience and psychoneuroimmunology. He joined Rice’s faculty in 2015.

The Society of Health Psychology is part of the American Psychological Association. Its mission is to advance the science of the psychology of health, including the promotion of health and wellbeing, prevention and management of illness and disability, support of evidence-based applications of healthy psychology across the lifespan, promotion of education and training in health psychology and distribution of health psychology to the public, professionals, scholars, institutions and policymakers.

More information is available at https://societyforhealthpsychology.org/join/awards/.