Social Psychology Network

Maintained by Scott Plous, Wesleyan University

Jack Brehm

Jack Brehm

IN MEMORIAM

Professor Jack W. Brehm died on August 9, 2009. Social Psychology Network is maintaining this profile for visitors who wish to learn more about Professor Brehm's work.

Please see below for more information:

Jack Brehm was born in 1928 and grew up in Des Moines, Iowa. After high school, he served in the Navy and then attended Harvard College. After graduating from Harvard, Jack attended graduate school at the University of Minnesota, working with Leon Festinger. His PhD dissertation research established the free choice cognitive dissonance paradigm and was the first dissonance study to be published.

In 1975, Jack joined the psychology faculty at the University of Kansas. At Kansas, Jack devoted himself to understanding affective processes even more fundamental than dissonance and reactance. An interest in desire led to his theory of motivation intensity, and an interest in subjective aspects of emotion led to its "sister" theory of emotion intensity. Jack continued working in retirement and had his last paper published in 2010.

Primary Interests:

  • Attitudes and Beliefs
  • Emotion, Mood, Affect
  • Interpersonal Processes
  • Motivation, Goal Setting
  • Social Cognition

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