APA honours UK psychologists

Two British psychologists based at the University of Cambridge have jointly received the 2011 Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award from the American Psychological Association (APA). Professors Trevor Robbins, an Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society, and Barry Everitt have collaborated since 1980, investigating the neuropsychological mechanisms underlying drug addiction. Current interests of theirs include research on cognitive enhancers (drugs that improve aspects of mental function for healthy people as well as patients), and disrupting maladaptive drug-related memories as a way to reduce drug seeking and relapse.

'We are both delighted to have received this prestigious international award, especially as relatively few psychologists from the UK have been previous recipients,' Robbins and Everitt said. 'It perhaps acknowledges some of the strengths of British psychology, particularly in the domains of behavioural and cognitive neuroscience, which we are proud to represent.'

The pair have benefited from Medical Research Council and Wellcome Trust funding, as well as from organisational changes at their host institution. 'We were originally based in two different university departments,' they explained, 'but a university initiative and developments such as the Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute as well as more recently, Cambridge Neuroscience, have undoubtedly facilitated this research collaboration.'

Robbins and Everitt will collect their award at the APA's annual convention in August, to be held in Washington DC, where they've also both been invited to deliver plenary lectures. The last British psychologist to win this prestigious award was Professor Alan Baddeley of the University of York in 2001, for his research into human memory.

--Christian Jarrett