Sian Leah Beilock

Sian Leah Beilock is an American cognitive scientist and academic administrator, serving as the 19th president of Dartmouth College. A prominent scholar in the fields of cognitive psychology and performance science, her research focuses on the interplay between anxiety, working memory, and performance under pressure, particularly in academic and athletic contexts. Beilock previously served as the eighth president of Barnard College and held a distinguished professorship in psychology at the University of Chicago.

Early life and education

Sian Leah Beilock was born in 1975 and grew up with a strong interest in sports, particularly soccer, which later influenced her academic pursuits. She completed her undergraduate studies, earning a Bachelor of Science in cognitive science from the University of California, San Diego. Beilock then pursued graduate work at Michigan State University, where she received a Master of Science and a Doctor of Philosophy in kinesiology and psychology, conducting foundational research on the choking phenomenon under pressure.

Academic career

Following her doctorate, Beilock began her academic career as an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at Miami University in Ohio. She subsequently joined the University of Chicago in 2005, where she rose through the ranks to become the Stella M. Rowley Professor of Psychology. At Chicago, she also served as the Executive Vice Provost and led the creation of the University's Becker Friedman Institute for Economics. Her administrative experience there paved the way for her first college presidency.

Research and contributions

Beilock's research program has made significant contributions to understanding how performance fails in high-stakes situations. Her early work, often utilizing fMRI, examined the neural mechanisms behind math anxiety and stereotype threat, showing how anxiety consumes working memory resources. She extended this framework to sports psychology, studying choking in elite athletes like golfers. Her influential books, Choke: What the Secrets of the Brain Reveal About Getting It Right When You Have To and How the Body Knows Its Mind, translate complex cognitive science for public audiences. Her work has been funded by institutions like the National Science Foundation and the United States Department of Education.

Leadership at Dartmouth College

In 2023, Sian Leah Beilock was inaugurated as the 19th president of Dartmouth College, succeeding Philip J. Hanlon. Her presidency at the Ivy League institution follows her tenure as president of Barnard College, a role she assumed in 2017. At Dartmouth, her stated priorities include advancing the college's academic mission, fostering inclusive excellence, and strengthening its unique liberal arts education integrated with engineering and graduate schools. She also chairs the Board of Trustees of the Ivy League athletic conference.

Awards and recognition

Beilock has received numerous accolades for her scholarship and leadership. She is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Association for Psychological Science. She was awarded the 2010 Janet Taylor Spence Award from the Association for Psychological Science for transformative early career contributions. In 2020, she was elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Her public scholarship has also earned her recognition as a Science Friday "Brilliant Science Communicator."

Selected publications

* Beilock, S. L. (2010). *Choke: What the Secrets of the Brain Reveal About Getting It Right When You Have To*. Free Press. * Beilock, S. L. (2015). *How the Body Knows Its Mind: The Surprising Power of the Physical Environment to Influence How You Think and Feel*. Atria Books. * Beilock, S. L., & Carr, T. H. (2001). On the fragility of skilled performance: What governs choking under pressure? *Journal of Experimental Psychology: General*. * Beilock, S. L., & DeCaro, M. S. (2007). From poor performance to success under stress: Working memory, strategy selection, and mathematical problem solving under pressure. *Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition*. Category:1975 births Category:Living people Category:American cognitive scientists Category:American women psychologists Category:Presidents of Dartmouth College Category:University of Chicago faculty Category:University of California, San Diego alumni Category:Michigan State University alumni Category:Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science Category:Members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences