Christopher Peterson, Ph.D., (VIA Science Director) is professor of psychology at the University of Michigan, where he has been the director of clinical training and an Arthur F. Thurnau Professor, an award given to honor his contributions to teaching. On two separate occasions, a course he taught has been voted the "Best Undergraduate Class" at the University of Michigan. His research centers on personality and its relationship to adaptation. Peterson is among the youngest researchers included on the Intercollegiate Studies Institute list of the 250 most highly cited psychologists and psychiatrists over the past 20 years.