David Lester is a British-American psychologist, suicidologist, and emeritus professor of psychology at

Stockton University Stockton University is a public university in Galloway Township, New Jersey. It is part of New Jersey's public system of higher education. It is named for Richard Stockton, one of the New Jersey signers of the U.S. Declaration of Independence ...

Education

Lester received his BA from

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

in 1964, and his M.A. from

Brandeis University , mottoeng = "Truth even unto its innermost parts" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = NECHE , president = Ronald D. Liebowitz , ...

in psychology in 1966. He went on to receive another M.A. from Cambridge University in 1968, and received his first PhD the same year at Brandeis. In 1991, he received his second PhD, this one in social & political science at Cambridge.

Career

Lester served as an assistant professor of psychology at Wellesley College from 1967 to 1969. From 1969 to 1971, he was Director of Research and Evaluation at the Suicide Prevention and Crisis Service in Buffalo, NY. In 1971, he joined the faculty at Stockton University, which opened that year, as a psychology professor and head of the psychology program, and later became a distinguished professor there in 2008. At Stockton, he founded the Psychology and Criminal Justice programs. In 2015, he retired from Stockton, whereupon he became an emeritus professor there.

Research

Lester is known for researching suicide, and has been called "the world's pre-eminent suicide researcher." As of 2018, he has published over 100 books and 2,650 papers on this subject. His research has been published in at least 158 American journals and 47 foreign journals, with 74 colleagues in 34 countries. His work on suicide has focused on (1) crisis intervention by telephone, (2) preventing suicide by restricting access to the means for suicide, (3) studies of the diaries left by suicides, (4) suicide in the oppressed, including African slaves, Native Americans, Holocaust victims, the Roma, and prisoners, (5) reviews of research on and theory concerning suicide from 1897 to 1997, and (6) innovative ideas including suicide as a dramatic act, suicide and culture, and suicide and the creative arts. Lester has also published books and articles on comparative psychology in his early years, a subself theory of personality in recent years, the fear of death, mass and serial murder, life-after-death, and the death penalty.

Professional activities

Lester was the president for the

International Association for Suicide Prevention The International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) is an international suicide prevention organization. Founded by Erwin Ringel and Norman Farberow in 1960, IASP, which is in an official relationship with the World Health Organization ...

for 1991–1995. He edited the Proceedings of the

American Association of Suicidology The American Association of Suicidology (AAS) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization which advocates for suicide prevention. It was established in 1968 by Edwin S. Shneidman, who has been called "a pioneer in suicide prevention." Its official jou ...

from 1988 to 1995.

Recognition

Lester received the American Association of Suicidology's Dublin Award in 1997, and Stockton University opened the David Lester Lending Library in his honor in 2015.

Personal life

Lester is married to Bijou Yang, who was a professor of economics at Drexel University.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lester, David Suicidologists Living people Stockton University faculty British emigrants to the United States 1942 births American psychologists Alumni of the University of Cambridge Brandeis University alumni People in health professions from London