Steven C. Hayes is a Nevada Foundation Professor of Psychology in the Behavior Analysis program at the University of Nevada. An author of 47 books and nearly 670 scientific articles, his career has focused on an analysis of the nature of human language and cognition and the application of this to the understanding and alleviation of human suffering. He is the developer of Relational Frame Theory, an account of human higher cognition, and has guided its extension to Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), a popular evidence-based form of psychotherapy that uses mindfulness, acceptance, and values-based methods. He is a co-developer of Process-Based Therapy (PBT), a new approach to evidence-based therapies more generally.

Dr. Hayes has written a small number of books for the public, in addition to his many books for professionals. His first, Get Out of Your Mind and Into Your Life (written with Spencer Smith) was written up in a five page story in Time Magazine in February 2006 and for a time was the #1 best selling self-help book in the United States. His latest, A Liberated Mind: How to Pivot Toward What Matters, tells the scientific and personal story of psychological flexibility and topped out as among the top 800 best selling books on Amazon. His TEDx Talks and YouTube presentations for the public exceed 1 million views.

Dr. Hayes has been President of Division 25 of the APA, of the American Association of Applied and Preventive Psychology, the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapy, and the Association for Contextual Behavioral Science. He was the first Secretary-Treasurer of the Association for Psychological Science, which he helped form and has served a 5 year term on the National Advisory Council for Drug Abuse in the National Institutes of Health. He is a Fellow of the American Association for Advancement of Science, and is on the Advisory Board of USERN, which represents scientists who are in the top 1% of their field. He is President of the Institute for Better Health, a 45 year old charitable organization dedicated to excellence in clinical training.