About the Author

Mitch Earleywine, PhD, is an associate professor of psychology at the University at Albany (SUNY). Prior to his current appointment, Dr. Earleywine was an assistant professor of psychology (1991-1997) and an associate professor of psychology (1997-2005) at the University of Southern California, where he won numerous teaching and mentoring awards. He was also the director of clinical training at USC from 1998-2000. He received his B.A. in psychology from Columbia University (1986), his PhD from Indiana University (1990), and his post-doctoral training at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (1991). He has published over 60 peer-reviewed journal articles and three books. Dr. Earleywine has given over 70 conference presentations and has been widely quoted in mainstream media outlets such as The Economist, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Chicago Tribune, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Time Magazine, Rolling Stone, and The Nation.

Professor Earleywine performed stand-up comedy in Los Angeles while he was a professor at USC. He performed at The Comedy Store on Sunset Boulevard, The Ice House Comedy Club in Pasadena, the Long Beach Chuckle Hut, and took second place in the Ha Ha Comedy Club's talent competition in North Hollywood. His comedic skills in the classroom are well documented on www.Ratemyprofessor.com. He is developing this book for a course is will begin teaching in the Fall of 2010 entitled ""Talents: Humor and Creativity.""