Carol Ryff Director, Institute on Aging, University of Wisconsin Ph: (608) 262-5597     E-mail: cryff@facstaff.wisc.edu

CurriculumVitae

Education

• 1978, Ph.D., Human Development,Penn State University, University Park, PA
• 1975, M.A., Human Development,Penn State University, University Park, PA
• 1973, B.A., Family Studies, Colorado Women’s College, Denver, CO

Statement of Interests

Carol D. Ryff, Ph.D., is Director of the Institute on Aging and Professor of Psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  Her research centers on the study of psychological well-being, an area in which she has developed multidimensional assessment scales that have been translated to more than 25 different languages and are currently in use studies around the world.  Investigations by Dr. Ryff and colleagues focus on how psychological well-being (i.e., self-acceptance, environmental mastery, purpose in life, personal growth, positive relations with others, autonomy) varies by age, gender, socioeconomic status, ethnic/minority status as well as by the experiences, challenges, and transitions individuals confront as they age.  Ongoing longitudinal investigations, including MIDUS, are exploring the topic of resilience – why some individuals are able to maintain their well-being and health even in the face of significant life challenges.    The links between positive mental and physical health are also a primary focus in her ongoing longitudinal studies, with recent findings linking well-being to a comprehensive battery of biomarkers (cardiovascular, neuroendocrine, immune).

Dr. Ryff has catalyzed extensive multidisciplinary research on topics related to life course development (e.g., parenting; aging transitions; social relations, emotions, and health).  Since 1996, she has edited four books that summarize recent findings in these areas.  She currently directs the MIDUS II (Midlife in the U.S.) national survey, which is funded by a $26 million grant from the National Institute on Aging.

Representative Publications

Ryff, C.D., Love, G.D., Urry, H.L., Muller, D., Rosenkranz, M.A., Friedman, E., Davidson, R.J., & Singer, B. (in press).  Psychological well-being and ill-being:  Do they have distinct or mirrored biological correlates?  Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics. 

Ryff, C. D., & Singer, B. (2005).  Social environments and the genetics of aging:  Advancing knowledge of protective health mechanisms.  Journal of Gerontology, 60B (Special Issue 1), 12-23. 

Urry, H.L., Nitschke, J.B., Dolski, I., Jackson, D.C., Dalton, K.M., Mueller, C.J., Rosenkranz, M.A., Ryff, C.D., Singer, B.H., & Davidson, R.J. (2004).  Making a life worth living:  Neural correlates of well-being.  Psychological Science, 15 (6), 367-372. 

Ryff , C.D., Singer, B.H., & Love, G.D. (2004).  Positive health:  Connecting well-being with biology.  Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London B, 359, 1383-1394.   Singer, B., Ryff, C.D., & Seeman, T. (2004).  Operationalizing allostatic load.  In J. Schulkin (Ed.), Allostasis, homeostasis, and the costs of physiological adaptation (pp. 113-149).  New York:  Cambridge University Press. 

Brim, O.G., Ryff, C.D., & Kessler, R.C. (2004).  The MIDUS National Survey: An overview.  In O.G. Brim, C.D. Ryff, & R.C. Kessler (Eds.), How healthy are we?: A national study of well-being at midlife (pp.1-36).  Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 

Ryff, C.D., Singer, B., & Palmersheim, K.A. (2004).  Social inequalities in health and well-being: The role of relational and religious protective factors.  In O.G. Brim, C.D. Ryff, & R.C. Kessler (Eds.), How healthy are we?: A national study of well-being at midlife (pp.90-123).  Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 

Markus, H.R., Ryff, C.D., Curhan, K.B., & Palmersheim, K.A. (2004).  In their own words: Well-being at midlife among high school and college educated adults.  In O.G. Brim, C.D. Ryff, & R.C. Kessler (Eds.), How healthy are we?: A national study of well-being at midlife (pp.273-319).  Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 

Ryff, C.D., Keyes, C.L.M., & Hughes, D.L. (2004).  Psychological well-being in MIDUS: Profiles of ethnic/racial diversity and life course uniformity.  In O.G. Brim, C.D. Ryff, & R.C. Kessler (Eds.), How healthy are we?: A national study of well-being at midlife (pp. 398-422).  Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 

Kling, C., Ryff, C.D., Love, G., & Essex, M. (2003).  Exploring the influence of personality on depressive symptoms and self-esteem across a significant life transition.  Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85, 922-932. 

Ryff, C.D., Keyes, C.L.M., & Hughes, D.L. (2003).  Status inequalities, perceived discrimination, and eudaimonic well-being:  Do the challenges of minority life hone purpose and growth?   Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 44, 275-291. 

Rosenkranz, M.A., Jackson, D.C., Dalton, K.M., Dolski, I., Ryff, C.D., Singer, B.H., Muller, D., Kalin, N.H., & Davidson, R.J. (2003).  Affective style and in vivo immune response:  Neurobiological mechanisms.  Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, 100, 11148-11152. 

Kwan, C.M.L., Love, G.D., Ryff, C.D., & Essex, M.J. (2003).  The role of self-enhancing evaluations in a successful life transition.  Psychology and Aging, 18, 3-12. 

Ryff, C. D., & Singer, B. (2003).  The role of emotion on pathways to positive health.  In R. J. Davidson, K. R. Scherer, & H.H. Goldsmith (Eds.), Handbook of affective sciences (pp.1083-1104).  New York: Oxford University Press.  

Keyes, C.L.M., Shmotkin, D., & Ryff, C.D. (2002).  Optimizing well-being: The empirical encounter of two traditions.  Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 82, 1007-1022. 

Seeman, T.E., Singer, B.H., Ryff, C.D., Love, G.D., & Levy-Storms, L. (2002).  Social relationships, gender, and allostatic load across two age cohorts.  Psychosomatic Medicine, 64, 395-406. 

Singer, B., & Ryff, C.D. (2001).  New horizons in health:  An integrative approach   Washington, D.C.:  National Academy Press. 

Singer, B., & Ryff, C.D. (2001).  Understanding aging via person-centered methods and the integration of numbers and narratives.  In R.H. Binstock & L.K. George (Eds.), Handbook of aging and the social sciences, 5th edition (pp.44-65).  San Diego: Academic Press. 

Ryff, C.D., Kwan, C.M.L., & Singer, B. (2001).  Personality and aging: Flourishing agendas and future challenges.  In J.E. Birren & K.W. Schaie (Eds.), Handbook of the psychology of aging, 5th edition (pp.477-499).  San Diego: Academic Press. 

Ryff, C. D., Singer, B., Wing, E., & Love, G. D. (2001).  Elective affinities and uninvited agonies: Mapping emotion with significant others onto health.  In C. D. Ryff & B. Singer (Eds.), Emotion, social relationships, and health (pp.133-175).  New York: Oxford University Press.

Ryff, C. D., & Singer, B. (2000).  Interpersonal flourishing: A positive health agenda for the new millennium.  Personality and Social Psychology Review, 4, 30-44. 

Singer, B., & Ryff, C.D. (1999).  Hierarchies of life histories and associated health risks.  In N.E.  Adler, M. Marmot, B.S. McEwen, & J. Stewart (Eds.), Socioeconomic status and health in industrialized nations.  Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 896, 96-115.

Marmot, M. G., Fuhrer, R., Ettner, S. L., Marks, N. F., Bumpass, L. L., & Ryff, C. D.  (1998).  Contributions of psychosocial factors to socioeconomic differences in health.  Milbank Quarterly, 76, 403-448. 

Singer, B., Ryff, C. D., Carr, D., & Magee, W. J. (1998).  Life histories and mental health: A person-centered strategy.  In A. Raftery (Ed.), Sociological Methodology, 1998 (pp.1-51).  Washington, D.C.: American Sociological Association. 

Ryff, C. D., & Singer, B. (1998).  The contours of positive human health.  Psychological Inquiry, 9, 1-28. 

Schmutte, P. S., & Ryff, C. D. (1997).  Personality and well-being:  What is the connection?  Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 73, 549-559. 

Kling, K. C., Seltzer, M. M., & Ryff, C. D. (1997).  Distinctive late life challenges: Implications for coping and well-being.  Psychology and Aging, 12, 288-295. 

Marmot, M., Ryff, C. D., Bumpass, L. L., Shipley, M., & Marks, N. F. (1997).  Social inequalities in health:  Converging evidence and next questions.  Social Science and Medicine, 44, 901-910. 

Ryff, C. D., Lee, Y. H., Essex, M. J., & Schmutte, P. S. (1994).  My children and me:  Mid-life evaluations of grown children and of self.  Psychology and Aging, 9, 195-205. 

Heidrich, S. M., & Ryff, C. D. (1993).  Physical and mental health in later life:  The self-system as mediator.  Psychology and Aging, 8, 327-338. 

Heidrich, S. M., & Ryff, C. D. (1993).  The role of social comparisons processes in the psychological adaptation of elderly adults.  Journal of Gerontology, 48, P127-P136. 

Ryff, C. D. (1989).  Happiness is everything, or is it?  Explorations on the meaning of psychological well-being.  Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57, 1069-1081. 

Ryff, C. D. (1989).  In the eye of the beholder: Views of psychological well-being among middle and old-aged adults.  Psychology and Aging, 4, 195-210.