02/06/2026
We are celebrating Black History Month by highlighting Black pioneers in mental health all month.
We start with Dr. Jennifer Eberhardt, professor of social psychology at Stanford University. Dr. Eberhardt received her bachelor's degree from the University of Cincinnati and master's and doctorate from Harvard University.
Dr. Eberhardt's work largely focuses on racial bias. Her interest in this area comes from moving from a predominantly Black neighborhood to a predominantly white neighborhood in childhood, where she noticed the large differences for Black residents between the two communities in regards to negative Black bias and stereotyping.
In 1994 she completed postdoctoral study on stereotyping and intergroup relations at the University of Massachusetts. She also completed postdoctoral work at Stanford in 1995 in the area of stereotype threat on academic performance.
She has taught at both Yale and Stanford, and helped to develop SPARQ (Social Psychology Answers to Real World Questions) at Stanford. SPARQ creates meaningful conversation amongst members of many groups and occupations to create change in the area of racial associations in education, business, criminal justice, and other important societal intersections.
All of Dr. Eberhardt's ongoing work is in the areas of racial bias and stereotyping, and primarily its effect on relationships, social treatment, and the educational and justice systems. We thank Dr. Eberhardt for her work and ongoing focus in these areas of social psychology.
Listen to her TED talk here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVNb53lkBuc
Sources:https://web.stanford.edu/.../about-jennifer-eberhardt.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jennifer_Eberhardt
