Gordon Robert Pennycook is a Canadian psychologist. He is an

assistant professor Assistant Professor is an academic rank just below the rank of an associate professor used in universities or colleges, mainly in the United States and Canada. Overview This position is generally taken after earning a doctoral degree and general ...

of Behavioural Science at the

University of Regina The University of Regina is a public research university located in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. Founded in 1911 as a private denominational high school of the Methodist Church of Canada, it began an association with the University of Saskatchew ...

's Hill and Levene Schools of Business. In 2020, he was elected to be a member of the

Royal Society of Canada The Royal Society of Canada (RSC; french: Société royale du Canada, SRC), also known as the Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada (French: ''Académies des arts, des lettres et des sciences du Canada''), is the senior national, bil ...

’s College of New Scholars, Artists, and Scientists.

Early life and education

Pennycook grew up in

Carrot River, Saskatchewan Carrot River is a town located in east-central Saskatchewan (population: 1000) in Canada. The administration office for the Rural Municipality of Moose Range #486 is located in Carrot River. History The name Carrot River comes from the ...

, Canada. He earned his

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree at the

University of Saskatchewan A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

before enrolling at the

University of Waterloo The University of Waterloo (UWaterloo, UW, or Waterloo) is a public research university with a main campus in Waterloo, Ontario Waterloo is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is one of three cities in the Regional Municipality ...

for his

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

and PhD. At the University of Waterloo, Pennycook co-authored ''On the Reception and Detection of Pseudo-Profound Bullshit'' which won the 2016 Ig Nobel Peace Prize. Upon graduating, he received the Governor General's Gold Medal for outstanding scholastic achievements of a student in Canada and accepted a

Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC; french: Conseil de recherches en sciences humaines du Canada, CRSH) is a Canadian federal research-funding agency that promotes and supports post-secondary research and traini ...

Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship at

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

. As a Postdoctoral Fellowship, Pennycook became interested in

fake news Fake news is false or misleading information presented as news. Fake news often has the aim of damaging the reputation of a person or entity, or making money through advertising revenue.Schlesinger, Robert (April 14, 2017)"Fake news in reality ...

and conducted studies on people sharing misinformation on social media.

Career

Following his Postdoctoral Fellowship, Pennycook became an

of Behavioural Science at the

's Hill and Levene Schools of Business. In 2018, he received a research grant from the Miami Foundation to examine why people fall for fake and hyperpartisan news. He also edited a book, ''The New Reflectionism in Cognitive Psychology: Why Reason Matters'' and authored five book chapters. As a result of his academic achievements, Pennycook received the Canadian Society for Brain, Behaviour and Cognitive Science (CSBBCS) Vincent Di Lollo Early Career Award. Later that year, Pennycook was named a member of the

’s College of New Scholars, Artists, and Scientists.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pennycook, Gordon Living people Canadian psychologists People from Saskatchewan Academics in Saskatchewan University of Regina faculty University of Saskatchewan alumni University of Waterloo alumni Year of birth missing (living people)