Terrie Moffitt has won the 2022 Grawemeyer Award in Psychology for shedding new light on the nature of juvenile crime. The Grawemeyer Award in Psychology, administered by the University of Louisville, is given for original and creative ideas: ideas that possess clarity, power and that substantially impact the field of psychology. These ideas help us understand one another and the world around us, and provide insights into the human mind. The purpose of this annual award is to acknowledge and disseminate outstanding ideas in all areas of psychological science. The award is designed to recognize a specific idea, rather than a lifetime of accomplishment.
Dr. Moffitt, a Duke University psychologist and King’s College, London, social development professor, discovered two types of antisocial behavior in juveniles. One persists from early childhood to adulthood, is relatively rare, and is seen mostly in males, while the other occurs only in adolescence and is seen in both males and females. Although both types appear to be the same on psychological tests and in illegal behaviors, Moffitt found they are distinctly different, an insight that has changed the way the courts prosecute juveniles. Moffitt and her colleagues published The Origins of You: How Childhood Shapes Later Life (Harvard University Press, 2020).
Dr. Moffitt attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for her undergraduate degree in psychology. She continued her training in psychology at the University of Southern California, receiving a master’s degree in experimental animal behavior, and a Ph.D. in clinical psychology.